Troubleshooting reference
Start with symptoms, rule out homeowner-safe basics, and escalate conservatively when safety, structure, utility service, or water damage is involved.
Call soon
Solar system is offline or inverter shows fault
Likely causes
- Grid outage or disconnect
- Inverter fault
- Communication loss
Homeowner-safe check
Check app status and AC/DC disconnect positions only if labeled and safe; do not open inverter covers.
When to call
Call installer promptly if production stops or fault repeats.
Emergency
Arc-fault, ground-fault, or rapid-shutdown alarm appears
Likely causes
- Damaged conductor/connector
- Moisture intrusion
- MLPE/inverter fault
Homeowner-safe check
Do not reset repeatedly; PV circuits can remain energized in sunlight.
When to call
Call solar service/electrician immediately.
Call soon
Roof leaks after solar installation
Likely causes
- Flashing/attachment failure
- Missed roof damage
- Improper conduit penetration
Homeowner-safe check
Catch water safely and document leak path; do not climb onto roof.
When to call
Call installer and roofer promptly; roof warranty coordination matters.
Routine
Production is much lower than proposal
Likely causes
- Shading
- Soiling
- String/optimizer failure
- Weather/season mismatch
Homeowner-safe check
Compare monthly production to proposal assumptions and check for new shade.
When to call
Call if underperformance persists after season/weather normalization.
Emergency
Panel, racking, or conduit is loose
Likely causes
- Fastener/torque issue
- Wind damage
- Thermal movement
Homeowner-safe check
Keep clear below and do not touch metal components.
When to call
Call immediately if anything moves, rattles, or threatens to fall.
Call soon
Battery backup does not power expected loads
Likely causes
- Critical-load panel mismatch
- Battery state of charge/settings
- Transfer/islanding fault
Homeowner-safe check
Review backed-up circuit list and app settings; do not rewire loads yourself.
When to call
Call installer for commissioning and load-shed configuration.
Routine
Utility bill savings do not match sales pitch
Likely causes
- Usage changed
- Rate/net-metering assumption wrong
- System underproducing
Homeowner-safe check
Compare kWh production, consumption, and utility export credits month by month.
When to call
Call installer/utility if monitoring and bill data disagree materially.
Routine
Snow, debris, or bird nesting affects array
Likely causes
- Low tilt
- Tree debris
- Critter guard missing
Homeowner-safe check
Do not climb icy roofs; use only approved soft cleaning from safe access.
When to call
Call routinely for critter guard or safe cleaning if losses persist.
Routine
Installer wants final payment before PTO/interconnection
Likely causes
- Milestone mismatch
- Utility paperwork incomplete
- Commissioning not done
Homeowner-safe check
Hold contract-defined final payment until inspections, commissioning, and permission to operate are documented.
When to call
Call company management/financier if payment terms conflict with completion.
Routine
Quote omits panel model, inverter, roof condition, or production guarantee
Likely causes
- Sales quote not engineering
- Warranty ambiguity
- Roof replacement conflict
Homeowner-safe check
Require equipment datasheets, layout, shading model, roof attachment, warranties, and interconnection scope.
When to call
Call another installer if they refuse line-item technical documents.
Maintenance schedule
Seasonal tasks
Spring
- In spring, compare monitoring production against similar sunny days and note new tree shade before blaming equipment.
Summer
- During summer, keep inverter or battery ventilation clear and report repeated thermal derates or communication dropouts.
Fall
- Before fall storms, look from the ground for loose conduit, lifted critter guard, and debris trapped at lower roof edges.
Winter
- After snow, let panels shed naturally unless the installer provides a safe roof-free clearing method.
Interval tasks
Monthly
- Monthly, check the monitoring app, inverter status lights, utility meter behavior, and battery state-of-charge settings.
Annual
- Yearly, save production reports, inspect roof leak history below attachments, and verify rapid-shutdown labels remain legible.
Every few years
- Every few years, reassess roof age, panel cleaning need, inverter warranty window, net-metering changes, and battery capacity fade.
Cost components
Labor
The labor number starts with site survey, engineering, permitting, roof layout/attachments, electrical work, monitoring, utility interconnection, commissioning, and rebate documentation; uncertainty mainly comes from layout design, roof attachment, electrical upgrades, monitoring setup, utility paperwork, and commissioning.
Materials
Modules, inverters, optimizers, racking, flashing, conduit, wire, disconnects, batteries, and labels deserve their own line; modules, racking, flashing, inverters/microinverters/optimizers, wire/conduit, disconnects, combiners, monitoring, batteries, and labels belong in the standard allowance.
Permits and inspections
The compliance line is crossed fastest by solar permits, structural review, interconnection, service upgrades, batteries, and rapid shutdown. Put filing and correction time in writing.
Broad range discipline
A simple PV array, electrical upgrade, battery system, and roof-integrated project explain why bids spread. Small grid-tied systems are major projects; batteries, roof work, service upgrades, trenching, and complex interconnection add large increments.
What moves price
Pushes price up
- Battery backup; added cost is usually tied to layout design
- Service/panel upgrade; added cost is usually tied to roof attachment
- Roof replacement or complex roof; added cost is usually tied to electrical upgrades
- Tree shading and production guarantees; added cost is usually tied to monitoring setup
Can reduce price
- Simple south-facing roof; lower pricing is likelier when modules is clearly defined
- Healthy panel capacity; lower pricing is likelier when inverters is clearly defined
- No battery; lower pricing is likelier when optimizers is clearly defined
- Clear interconnection path; lower pricing is likelier when racking is clearly defined
Hiring red flags
- sales production promise made before shade and roof condition review is missing from the first written price, not merely from fine print.
- The crew cannot describe how attachment flashing and structural rafter layout will be confirmed on site.
- The proposed shortcut drops interconnection, PTO, rapid shutdown, or panel upgrade requirements and leaves no inspection trail.
- The promised warranty never says how roof leaks, production guarantee, inverter failure, and battery capacity exclusions is handled.
- Sales proposal lacks equipment models, layout, production model, or interconnection terms.
- Promises tax credits/rebates without eligibility caveats.
- No roof-condition or attachment/flashing plan.
- Final payment due before inspection/PTO despite contract milestones.
Contract checklist
- Module brand, wattage, inverter or optimizer model, racking, attachments, flashing, layout, and shade report with brands, sizes, locations, and exclusions.
- Roof age, structural review, decking condition, conduit route, service panel work, and rapid-shutdown equipment before work starts, including who schedules inspections.
- Production estimate, degradation assumptions, monitoring setup, battery loads, backup panel, and operating modes for access, protection, cleanup, and disposal.
- Permits, utility interconnection, PTO milestone, net-metering paperwork, rebate or tax-credit documentation as unit pricing or written allowances.
- Warranty owners, workmanship roof penetration term, production guarantee, maintenance duties, and removal/reinstall pricing; require final photos, manuals, product registrations, and waiver timing.
- System size, module/inverter/battery models, layout, shading analysis, and production estimate.
- Roof condition, attachments/flashing, structural review, and fire setbacks.
- Electrical scope, panel/service upgrades, permits, inspections, interconnection, and PTO.
- Tax/rebate documents, financing, monitoring access, and commissioning report.
- Warranties for workmanship, roof penetrations, modules, inverters, battery, and production.
Warranty norms
Solar warranties stack module product, module performance, inverter, racking, battery, workmanship, roof penetration, and monitoring terms. Production guarantees depend on shade, weather model, soiling, utility curtailment, equipment uptime, and whether the owner keeps monitoring active.