Roofing for Homes With Solar
Roofing for homes with solar is a different job. If your home has solar and needs roofing work, the panels have to come off and go back on, the system has to be shut down and recommissioned, and someone has to own the result. Good Faith Roofing handles the roof and the solar detach and reinstall as one project, so you are not scheduling two contractors and refereeing them when something goes wrong.
- One contract covering roofing and solar detach and reinstall
- One point of accountability if anything goes wrong
- Electrical shutdown, reinstall and system verification included
Why this is genuinely hard for homeowners
A roof replacement on a home with solar is not one project. It is two projects with a hard dependency between them, run by companies that do not work for each other. The typical sequence goes like this: you call a roofer, who tells you the panels are not their scope. You call your solar installer, who may or may not still be in business, and who quotes a detach and reinstall on their own timeline. You then try to line up two crews so the panels come off the morning tear-off begins and go back on after the last shingle is nailed, without leaving your roof or your solar production hanging for weeks.
Then something goes wrong. A panel is scratched. A conduit run does not line up with the new roof penetrations. The system comes back online producing less than it did. The monitoring app shows a string offline. Now you are the one gathering evidence and arguing between two companies who each have a plausible reason to point at the other. Homeowners in this position frequently spend months on it, and often end up paying for the fix themselves because nobody can prove who caused it.
What the project actually involves
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1. Site and system review
We document the array: panel count, model, racking type, inverter or microinverter configuration, conduit routing, and existing attachment points. We photograph pre-existing panel condition so there is a record.
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2. System shutdown
The system is properly de-energized per the manufacturer and utility requirements. This is electrical work and it is not something a roofing crew should improvise.
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3. Panel removal and storage
Panels are removed, labeled by position, and stored safely on site or off site. Racking and flashing are removed with the roof.
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4. Roof replacement
Full tear-off, decking inspection, new underlayment, flashing and roofing material. Old solar penetrations are properly closed rather than smeared with sealant.
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5. Reinstall
New flashing and mounts for the new roof, racking reset, panels remounted, wiring re-run and secured.
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6. Commissioning and verification
The system is energized, monitored output is checked against expected production, and you get documentation of the final state.
Two contractors vs. one team
| Roofer + separate solar company | Good Faith Roofing | |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling | You coordinate two calendars | One schedule, one project manager |
| Panels sitting off the roof | Often days or weeks between crews | Same-project sequencing |
| Damage responsibility | Disputed between companies | Ours |
| Roof penetration flashing | Solar crew flashes into a roof they did not install | Same team owns both details |
| Warranty questions | You mediate | One point of contact |
| If output drops after reinstall | Finger-pointing | We diagnose and fix it |
The right time to do this
If your roof is more than about 12 years old and you are considering solar, replace the roof first. Putting a 25-year solar array on a roof with eight years left guarantees you pay for a detach and reinstall you could have avoided. If you already have solar and hail has hit your neighborhood, get both the roof and the panels inspected, because hail damage to an array is often missed when only a roofer looks at it.
Frequently asked questions
- Do solar panels have to be removed to replace a roof?
- Yes, in nearly all cases. A proper roof replacement removes everything down to the deck, and the array is mounted through the roof surface. Working around panels leaves old penetrations and underlayment in place, which defeats the purpose of the replacement and usually voids workmanship coverage on those areas.
- Can a roofing company remove solar panels?
- Removing and reinstalling a grid-tied solar array involves electrical work, not just unbolting hardware. It should be performed by people qualified to de-energize, disconnect, reconnect and recommission the system. That capability is exactly why we handle both scopes rather than subcontracting the part most likely to go wrong.
- How long does solar detach and reinstall add to a roof replacement?
- Detach is typically a day and reinstall a day, layered around the roofing work. The bigger variable is scheduling. When two separate companies are involved, the gap between removal and reinstall is what stretches projects out for weeks.
- Will my solar warranty be affected?
- It depends on your specific equipment and installer agreements. Some solar workmanship warranties are voided when another party works on the array. We review your documentation with you before starting rather than discovering it afterward. See our page on solar and roofing warranties.
Keep reading
Planning a roof replacement with solar? Talk to one team about both.
Tell us your panel count and inverter setup and we will scope the whole project, roof and array together.
Or call (972) 999-8388