How to prep for your solar installation

The solar panel installation is an exciting time for every homeowner who wants to go solar but it is the final part of a process. Your solar installer will start by prepping your roof and making sure the shingles or tiles are properly attached. Then, they put in electrical wiring that will connect to your electrical panel and general power system.

As you work out a budget, you’ll need to know what solar incentives you can rely on from the federal government, state government, and your solar installer. The federal government offers a 30% tax credit through 2018 for qualified expenditures for home solar systems. We try to make solar as affordable as possible for our customers by offering a $500 online coupon and $2,000 off a new roof.

Address roof problems

Before installing solar panels, ensure that your roof is structurally sound enough to hold the extra weight. If your roof is old, leaks, or has damaged shingles, you’ll need to repair all of these things before your solar installation.

Consider that solar panels last roughly 20 to 25 years. If your roof is aging, even if it’s not falling on top of your head yet, it may be a good idea go ahead and replace it. It’ll be a big investment, but a new roof will increase the value of your home and allow you to get the most out of your solar panels.

After the electrical wiring is complete, they will install racking to support your panels (this is the only piece of equipment that will actually be attached to your roof). Once the racking is level and safely attached, the panels are placed on the racking. Finally, your inverter or inverters are connected to the panels to convert direct current (DC) energy into the alternating current (AC) energy used in homes and on the electric grid.

The timeline for the installation will range from one to three days, completely dependent on the size of the system you are installing. One additional factor that can add time to your installation process is putting in a power meter for net metering. If your installer needs to add a power meter, this will add a few hours to your solar panel installation.

Approval and interconnection

The final step of going solar is “flipping the switch,” so to speak, and officially commencing to generate power from your rooftop. Before you can connect your solar panels to the electric grid, a representative from your town government will need to inspect the system and give approval. During this inspection, the representative will essentially be double-checking your installer’s work.

He or she will verify that the electrical wiring was done correctly, the mounting was safely and sturdily attached, and the overall install meets standard electrical and roof setback codes.

Following this local inspection, you will be ready for official grid interconnection. A representative from your electric company will come by to do their own final evaluation of the solar panel system. As long as there are no glaring issues, your panels will go live the moment they “give the okay” and connect your system to the grid. You can expect to wait two weeks to a month for the town approval and utility approval to occur and interconnection to go live.

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