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Is my solar installation quote complete?

Check that your solar installation quote names the system size, panel and inverter models, racking and roof attachment, who handles roofing and main-panel work, permits, utility interconnection paperwork, monitoring, warranty terms and any battery, plus the four elements FTC guidance lists for a written estimate: work description, materials, completion date and price.

Source: FTC home improvement advice for consumers, read 15 October 2026.

Researched by the InstaBids editorial team. Last checked: 15 October 2026

New solar panels and aluminum racking rails on a pallet in a driveway, waiting to be installed.

Key facts

What should a written solar installation quote list?

Ask for a written solar installation quote that states the system size, the number and model of panels, the inverter type and model, how the racking attaches to your roof, the wiring route to your main panel, monitoring, any battery, permits, utility paperwork and a finish date, so every line can be checked against the next quote.

In its home improvement advice, the FTC states: "A written estimate should include a description of the work to be done, materials, completion date, and the price." For a solar system, the materials line should carry model numbers, not just a panel count.

Source: FTC home improvement advice for consumers, read 15 October 2026.

The FTC's Solar Power for Your Home page, read 15 October 2026, says: "Bids should have specific details in writing about the system, including" and gives as one item: "its size and how much power it’s expected to deliver". Ask for that size and that output figure as separate lines in your solar quote.

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.

  1. Size and output: What total system size does the quote state, and what yearly production estimate was it designed around, with which shading assumptions?
  2. Panels: Which panel model and how many, and does the layout drawing show which roof faces carry them?
  3. Inverters: Is the design one central inverter, microinverters under each panel or optimizers, and where will each box be mounted?
  4. Attachment: What mount and flashing method seals each roof penetration, and roughly how many penetrations does the layout need?
  5. Electrical: Where does the conduit run, where does the disconnect sit, and does the connection need any change to your main panel or service?
  6. Battery: If storage is included, which model is it, where will it sit, and which circuits would it keep running?

Ask for the layout drawing and the electrical diagram the bidder expects to file with any permit application, and compare them with the quote: panel count, inverter type, conduit path and main-panel connection should match line for line.

The same FTC page says: "If you want to use solar power for your home, your options include buying a system, leasing a system, or signing an agreement to buy solar power." Ask which of those three the paper in front of you is, because a purchase quote, a lease and a power agreement put different terms in writing.

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.

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Which items are often left out?

Check your solar installation quote for missing lines such as roof repairs under the array, sealing of each penetration, main-panel work, utility interconnection paperwork, monitoring setup, association approval and what happens to the array when the roof is replaced later. Have every bidder respond to each of those lines on paper.

The U.S. Department of Energy's homeowner's guide to going solar, read 15 October 2026, says: "You should also consider the age of your roof and how long until it will need replacement." Ask what roof condition the bidder assumed, whether any roof repair is in this job or left to a separate roofing contractor, and what removing and reinstalling the panels for a later re-roof would involve.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Homeowner's Guide to Going Solar, read 15 October 2026.

Ask whether trimming a tree that shades the array is part of this job, left to you, or passed to a separate tree company, and whether wire mesh to keep birds and squirrels from nesting under the panels is included or offered as an extra line.

The FTC's Solar Power for Your Home page advises: "Contact your utility to see what arrangements it makes with homeowners who produce solar power." Ask who prepares and submits the interconnection application, who arranges any meter change, and when the bidder expects you may switch the system on.

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.

Among the details the FTC's solar page says bids should have in writing is: "what warranties apply to the equipment (like the panels and inverters that convert solar panel output so it can be used with your home’s electrical network) and the installation workmanship". The same page notes: "Your equipment may be covered by a manufacturer’s warranty for the initial period you have it." Ask for each warranty as a written document, including any separate term covering leaks at roof penetrations.

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.

Ask whether monitoring is included, what it reports, whether it relies on your home internet connection, and whether any monitoring subscription is part of this quote or a separate later charge.

The Department of Energy guide says: "Ask your solar installer if they offer battery storage options and learn more about storing solar energy." If a battery is quoted, ask for its model, its location, and the list of circuits a backup panel would carry, as numbered lines in the written scope.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy, Homeowner's Guide to Going Solar, read 15 October 2026.

The FTC's solar page says: "If you have an HOA, find out if you have to get its approval to install a system." Florida Statutes s. 163.04(2), read 15 October 2026, states: "A property owner may not be denied permission to install solar collectors or other energy devices by any entity granted the power or right in any deed restriction, covenant, declaration, or similar binding agreement to approve, forbid, control, or direct alteration of property with respect to residential dwellings and within the boundaries of a condominium unit."

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.
Source: Florida Statutes s. 163.04, Energy devices based on renewable resources, read 15 October 2026.

The next sentence of s. 163.04(2) reads: "Such entity may determine the specific location where solar collectors may be installed on the roof within an orientation to the south or within 45° east or west of due south if such determination does not impair the effective operation of the solar collectors." Subsection (4) of the same section ends: "This section shall not apply to patio railings in condominiums, cooperatives, or apartments." Ask who submits the layout for any association review. Whether that section reaches your own association is a question for a Florida attorney.

Source: Florida Statutes s. 163.04, Energy devices based on renewable resources, read 15 October 2026.

What should the payment terms say?

Ask for a solar payment schedule tied to visible stages, such as permit approval, equipment delivery, panels mounted, final inspection and the utility's go-ahead to switch on. Check which stage your first payment buys, and require written sign-off on any change order when hidden roof or main-panel problems surface mid-install.

Section 489.126(1) of the Florida Statutes, as read on 15 October 2026, provides: "For purposes of this section, the term “contractor” includes all definitions as set forth in s. 489.105(3), and any person performing or contracting or promising to perform work described therein, without regard to the licensure of the person."

Source: Florida Statutes section 489.126 (Moneys received by contractors), read 15 October 2026.

Its subsection (2)(a) continues: "A contractor who receives, as initial payment, money totaling more than 10 percent of the contract price for repair, restoration, improvement, or construction to residential real property must: 1. Apply for permits necessary to do work within 30 days after the date payment is made, except where the work does not require a permit under the applicable codes and ordinances, and 2. Start the work within 90 days after the date all necessary permits for work, if any, are issued, unless the contractor has just cause for failing to apply for the necessary permits, starting the work, or refunding the payment, or unless the person who made the payment agreed, in writing, to a longer period to apply for the necessary permits or start the work or to longer periods for both."

Source: Florida Statutes section 489.126 (Moneys received by contractors), read 15 October 2026.

Whether these passages reach your agreement is a question for a Florida attorney. Keep equipment, installation and utility switch-on as separate lines.

The FTC solar page also says: "Never deal with a power or home repair company that pressures you for a quick decision, tells you to sign a contract without time to review, or asks you to pay in cash." If financing, a lease or a power agreement comes with the quote, ask for those terms as their own documents.

Source: FTC, Solar Power for Your Home, read 15 October 2026.

Does the quote say who pulls the permit?

Ask who applies for any permit your solar installation may need, how many separate permits the bidder expects for the building, electrical or roofing side, who schedules each inspection, and who gives you the final sign-off paperwork. Check which contracting business the quote lists as the permit holder.

Ask whether your last solar payment waits until the permit is closed out, and who requests the final inspection. If a solar bidder proposes putting the permit in your name, ask it to explain that choice in writing.

DBPR's construction-industry page, read 15 October 2026, lists under Solar Contractor: "CV and RV– A “solar contractor” means a contractor whose services consist of the installation, alteration, repair, maintenance, relocation, or replacement of solar panels for potable solar water heating systems, swimming pool solar heating systems, and photovoltaic systems and any appurtenances, apparatus, or equipment used in connection with these systems." Ask which business will do the main-panel and roofing work if the solar company does not. Any public-record lookup you choose to make about a bidder on DBPR's site is optional.

Source: DBPR construction industry page, read 15 October 2026.

Florida Statutes s. 377.705(4)(d), read 15 October 2026, states: "All solar energy systems manufactured or sold in the state must meet the standards established by the center and shall display accepted results of approved performance tests in a manner prescribed by the center, unless otherwise certified by an engineer licensed pursuant to chapter 471 using the standards contained in the most recent version of the Florida Building Code." The same section defines the term this way: "“Center” means the Florida Solar Energy Center of the Board of Governors." Ask each bidder to say in writing how the equipment it proposes relates to that sentence.

Source: Florida Statutes s. 377.705, Solar Energy Center; development of solar energy standards, read 15 October 2026.

What should my request include?

Describe the roof, the main electrical panel and your electricity use in a single written scope, with a photograph of every roof face, the main panel with its door open, the meter, the attic access and any shading trees. Note the roof's age, any association rules and whether you want a battery.

Contact details stay hidden until the homeowner picks a contractor and they confirm the connection.

Source: InstaBids process and privacy, read 15 October 2026.

How can I compare it with other written quotes?

Compare solar installation quotes line by line, starting with system size and the yearly production estimate, then the panel and inverter models, roof attachment, main-panel work, permits, utility paperwork, warranty documents and completion date. Where a bidder priced something other than your written scope, have it spell out the gap before you pick one.

  1. Production: Does each estimate use the same roof faces and shading, or does one assume panels on a face the others avoided?
  2. Equipment: Does each quote name its panel and inverter models, rather than a phrase such as equivalent or similar?
  3. Roof: Does each quote state its attachment and sealing method, and who answers for a leak at a penetration?
  4. Electrical: Is the same main-panel or service work in every quote, or does one leave it to a later change order?
  5. Timeline: Which quotes show a start date, an inspection step, a utility switch-on step and a finish date?

Treat a bigger array, an added battery or a different inverter layout as an alternate on its own line, so your base design stays intact. When one bidder's question leads you to change the design, revise the written scope and resend that version to all bidders, keeping every answer tied to one system.

Once the size, equipment, roof and utility answers are recorded, keep one identical written scope for every competing written response you request.

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Sources checked: 15 October 2026.

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