How One Oregon Contractor Lowered Operating Costs & Elevated Design with CertainTeed’s Solstice® Shingle
The Project:
In 2024, Sarmiento’s Roofing, LLC completed a brand-new, 11,000-square-foot, wood-frame office, showroom and shop in Salem, Oregon. For owner Santiago Sarmiento, the roof was more than a building component, it was a proving ground.
As a roofing and solar contractor, he wanted his own facility to showcase where the industry is heading: integrated solar roofing that looks like a traditional roof, protects like a premium roofing system, and delivers real energy savings.
A major motivator came from Oregon’s rapidly changing energy landscape.
According to state-regulated filings, Portland General Electric (PGE) rates have increased roughly 50% since 2020. At the same time, regional planners expect demand to continue rising, with the Northwest Power and Conservation Council projecting a 30% increase in electricity demand over the next decade. These trends created a clear financial incentive for Sarmiento: use his own building to reduce exposure to long-term utility escalation and demonstrate the real-world savings solar roofing can deliver.
“We really wanted a product we could trust, something modern, durable, and stylish,” said Sarmiento. “Because we’re in the trade, especially roofing, we chose a system we believed in and could proudly show our customers.”
For several years before Solstice® Shingle was available, Sarmiento followed its development closely. He attended multiple trade shows where CertainTeed displayed legacy products. By the time Solstice Shingle launched, he had already decided his new office would be one of the first commercial buildings in the country to install it.
The Oregon location added another dimension: a cloudy, rainy climate where solar must perform reliably despite long stretches of overcast days. The new facility became the ideal site to test real-world production, operating costs and long-term performance of solar roofing in this environment - especially with energy costs climbing and future demand projected to rise sharply.
The Goals:
Sarmiento designed the project around clear objectives:
- Reduce operating costs. The new building needed to significantly reduce monthly power bills and hedge against rising utility rates.
- Prove a modern solar roofing system. As a contractor, he wanted first-hand experience with installation, performance, and maintenance before recommending it widely.
- Showcase integrated aesthetics. He was looking for a solution that was low profile, sleek, and integrated into his new construction roof.
- Protect warranties and the roof assembly. Drilling through a new roof for racking was not acceptable; the system had to preserve and extend the roofing warranty.
- Demonstrate real numbers to clients. The facility would act as a live showroom where homeowners, builders and GCs could see the product, walk the roof, and review actual utility bills and production data.
The Solutions:
After years of following earlier solutions at trade shows, Sarmiento selected CertainTeed's Solstice® Shingle for its combination of aesthetics, performance, and system compatibility.
From a contractor’s perspective, several factors were decisive:
- Low-profile, architectural look. Solstice Shingle mimics traditional asphalt shingles with a sleek, uniform appearance that blends into the roofline rather than sitting on top of it.
- Integrated roof + solar approach. The shingles install directly to the roof sheathing using standard deck screws and are designed to work as part of a complete CertainTeed roofing system, avoiding the penetrations and racking that can void shingle warranties.
- High durability and weather performance. Solstice Shingle delivers market-leading impact and wind resistance for solar shingles, with a wind speed rating up to 110 mph and approvals for all wind zones, including high-velocity hurricane zones. The product is engineered to withstand heavy rain, wind, and harsh weather, critical in Oregon’s wet, variable climate.
- High energy efficiency, even in low light. The advanced photovoltaic cells are designed to produce energy efficiently, even on cloudy Oregon days.
- Single-source 25-year system warranty. By combining Solstice Shingle with CertainTeed roofing components, Sarmiento could obtain a unified, long-term warranty
“This product is completely different,” said Sarmiento. “It looks amazing, it’s low-profile, and it can match any home or commercial property. It’s a win-win as you’re saving money on your power bill and helping the environment with a product made by one of the best brands on the market.”
To secure the full 25-year CertainTeed system warranty and ensure watertight performance from the deck up, Sarmiento’s Roofing paired Solstice Shingle with a complete CertainTeed roof assembly:
- Underlayment: CertainTeed’s VYCOR® ICE & WATER SHIELD® HT high-temperature, self-adhered membrane, an underlayment that provides robust waterproofing and high-heat resistance.
- Asphalt Shingle Roof: CertainTeed NorthGate® ClimateFlex® shingles as the primary roofing material, chosen for durability, cold-weather flexibility, and long-term performance.
- Solstice® Flashings & Accessories: System-specific flashings and accessories to tie the solar shingles into the roof and maintain a fully watertight, warranty-compliant assembly.
“When you combine your Solstice product and your composition shingle in one warranty, it’s a no-brainer, you can’t get anything better,” says Sarmiento.
Installation:
Because Solstice Shingle has a similar weight to composition shingles, no structural engineering or special structural permits were required. The permitting process focused on standard solar paperwork, without adding complexity or cost to the base building construction.
After a one-day training session with CertainTeed’s technical team, the crew installed the system on their own building
- System size: ~10 kW
- Number of Solstice shingles: Approximately 140–146
- Installation duration: About one day to install the shingles, plus one additional day to complete flashings and tie-ins
“The install was smooth. Our team already understands courses and dimensions, it felt like installing shingles,” Sarmiento said.
Compared to rack-mounted systems, he noted fewer roof penetrations, easier installation, and cleaner access for future maintenance.
Maintenance & Safety:
A new construction project in a dusty area gave Sarmiento an early look at maintenance in real jobsite conditions. The experience reinforced the advantages of solar shingles over traditional panels:
- The Solstice surface can be cleaned with simple soap and water.
- With proper fall protection and anchor points, the system is fully walkable, just like a roof.
- There is no racking to trap dust and debris and no inaccessible areas under panels or brackets.
- The roof maintains a consistent, visually seamless surface.
“You’re basically walking on a piece of glass at first…it’s intimidating,” Sarmiento admitted. “But once you trust it, it’s durable. You can clean it, walk on it, and maintain it easily. You can’t do that with panels. With panels, you can’t clean underneath, and you can’t get to the brackets, as there’s no space.”
The Results:
Although the office system was intentionally sized on the smaller side, Sarimento viewed it as a test platform, the savings were immediate and significant - especially against Oregon's rising electricity costs.
- Before Solstice: Power bills of over $500 per month
- After Solstice: $45–$60 per month from March through July
- Projected 25-year total utility savings: Approximately $197,000, based on an assumed annual escalation rate of ~3% (Please see the graph below)
- Projected 25-year total utility savings: Approximately $197,000, based on an assumed annual escalation rate of ~3% (Please see the graph below)
- Annual production target: Approximately 12,000–14,000 kWh, depending on weather and season
- Peak recorded production: More than 60 kWh per day during sunny summer days
“This is a very small system for the size of the building, but we’re saving about $400 a month during those months,” he said. “We have proof that it’s working, we see it on our own bill. Even on cloudy days in Salem, with showers, it’s producing. It’s making kilowatt-hours. It works.”
Based on their modeling and early results, Sarmiento estimates that over time the system will bring their power costs close to parity with the initial investment. Seeing the performance, he now plans to add more Solstice shingles to increase capacity on the same building.
Weather & Roof Performance:
In Oregon’s rain, wind and cloudy conditions, the full CertainTeed system has performed as intended:
- No leaks or water intrusion
- No wind-related issues
- Watertight performance across underlayment, shingles, and flashings
Business Impact:
Sarmiento’s new office now functions as both a modern commercial facility and a live demonstration site for Solstice Shingle and the CertainTeed roofing system:
- Lower operating costs supported by real utility data
- A test platform for solar roofing performance in low-light regions
- A local showroom where clients can walk the roof, review bills, and ask technical questions
- A single-manufacturer system with unified warranty coverage
The experience on his own building has also given Sarmiento confidence to guide other contractors entering solar roofing. He emphasizes the importance of:
- Choosing a trusted, integrated system rather than mixing unrelated roofing and solar components.
- Understanding that warranty, maintenance and aesthetics are just as critical as nameplate kW.
- Focusing on the right clientele, owners who value quality, brand reliability and long-term savings.
Sarmiento’s Roofing has transformed its own headquarters into a working example of an integrated solar roofing system. By combining CertainTeed’s full roof assembly with Solstice Shingle, the company now operates a facility that delivers durability, design consistency, and meaningful energy savings on a single, unified roof.