If there’s one thing that really bugs me about solar power it’s the fairly ugly solar panels that you’ve got to cover your roof with if you want to get some serious power from the sun to supply all your home’s energy needs.

Let’s face it, they may be effective but they really aren’t the prettiest things on the planet and I’m sure that their lack of aesthetic appeal is preventing more people from taking another step towards being environmentally friendly. But now, maybe the problem with aesthetics is about to be removed thanks to a company in Philadelphia and car bumpers.

Car bumpers? Yes car bumpers play a part in this story for these environmentally friendly roof tiles that work as solar panels are made from a high-performance polymer that’s often used in car bumpers.

The company that’s turning car bumpers into roof tiles is SRS Energy and there is no doubt that the roof tiles that they’re making are very aesthetically pleasing. Each tile is a solar panel but you see none of the technology that makes the tile a small power generator for it’s buried between the top and bottom skin of the tile.

By having each tile completely independent from the rest one broken tile does not mean that the entire system is compromised and on the other hand it when all the tiles are working it means that the entire roof area is a solar panel.

And just what do these solar tiles look like? Think of the clay tile roofs that you will see in typical Mission-styled homes in California or Italian villas and you’ll have a mental picture of what a roof made from these tiles might look like.

These tiles are still in the developmental stage but the technology has been tested and the tiles will be in available for purchase early in 2010.

A hat tip to Life Goggles for the link to this story