Over a million homes throughout the United States have already gone solar and many homeowners who haven’t gone on board yet are considering installing solar. If you are interested in home solar panels, you might be wondering what actually occurs during a solar panel installation.
There are certain things which need to happen after you sign your solar contract before the solar panels on your roof can power your home. Many steps occur behind the scenes and it often takes between one to three months before you can rely on the power of solar.
The following are five steps for the solar installation process:
- Site visit from an engineer. Once you sign your solar contract, an engineer will come by your property and conduct an evaluation of the electrical status of your home. They will take a look at your roof to make sure it is structurally stable and your electrical panel to see if you require an upgrade – since your new solar panels will need more amps of current.
- Obtain permits and fill out documents. There is a lot of paperwork involved with installing solar panels. Fortunately, most of this paperwork is handled by the installer, but it is always a great idea to understand what happens behind the scenes of your solar installation. One of the primary things you apply for are state and federal solar incentives (i.e. local solar programs, federal ITC, clean energy financing initiatives, solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs), and government rebates). Furthermore, you must acquire building permits.
- Order solar equipment. Once your paperwork is complete, your installer will place an equipment order through their primary distributor. The equipment will already be determined before you signed your contract. Once the equipment ordering process is finished, your installer will add your property to their queue.
- Installation. Your installer will begin by prepping your roof, ensuring that the tiles or shingles are properly in place. Next, they will put in electrical wiring which connects to your electrical panel and general power system. Once the wiring is complete, racking to support your panels are installed, then the panels are placed onto the racking. Lastly, your inverter(s) 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.
- Approval. Before you can connect your solar panels to the electric grid, a local government representative needs to inspect the system and provide approval. The representative will ensure that your installer’s work was done correctly and everything is up to code. Once the local inspection is finished, a representative from your electric company will visit to conduct a final evaluation of the solar panel system. When the electric company approves, then you’re ready to go live.
If you are interested in solar installation in New Jersey, contact Sea Bright Solar and schedule an appointment today.