Answers · Materials and upkeep
I have solar panels and need a new roof. What happens?
The short answer
The panels have to come off and go back, which is a separate job from the roofing and is usually done by a solar contractor rather than the roofer. Coordinate them before either is booked, and establish in writing who is responsible for the roof penetrations and what happens to the solar warranty.
What to sort out first
- Who removes and reinstalls: the original installer, another solar contractor, or the roofer if they are licensed for it.
- Whether removal and reinstallation affects the solar system's warranty, which it can if done by someone other than an approved installer.
- Who owns the roof penetrations afterwards, and whose warranty covers a leak at a mount.
- Scheduling, because the roof cannot be open while the panels are in storage for longer than necessary.
- Whether the system needs to be electrically isolated and who does that.
The timing argument
If the roof is within a few years of the end of its life, replacing it before installing solar is substantially cheaper than removing and reinstalling the array later. If the panels are already up and the roof is failing, this is simply a cost of the reroof and it should be in the budget from the start rather than discovered.
Also asked
- Can the roofer just work around the panels?
- Not for a replacement. The area under the array cannot be stripped and re-covered with the panels in place, and a roof replaced everywhere except under the panels is not a replaced roof. Repairs elsewhere on the roof are a different matter.
General information about roofs and about hiring, not advice about your building. Roofing contractor licensing, permits, insurance practice and deductible rules are set state by state and province by province across the United States and Canada, so your own authority is the current answer.