Solar Diagnostics and Repair Resources
This resource hub covers common solar diagnostics and repair topics including battery issues, underperforming systems, lost monitoring access, solar inspections for real estate and troubleshooting steps. Whether you’re a homeowner, home buyer or seller, these guides are designed to help you understand your system and make informed decisions.
- PG&E Solar True-Up Explained: A Sacramento Homeowner’s Guideby Ryan McKnightConfused by your PG&E solar true-up bill? This Sacramento homeowner’s guide explains how annual solar billing works, why true-up balances can be unexpectedly high, and what to check before assuming your solar system is the problem.
- Solar System Inspection Cost in Sacramento: What Should Be Included?by Ryan McKnightSolar inspection prices can vary widely depending on what is actually included. Here is what Sacramento homeowners, buyers and real estate professionals should expect from a proper solar system inspection.
- NEM 3.0 for Residential Solar & Battery Systems in Sacramento. What Is It and How Does It Affect My Electric Bill?by Ryan McKnightNEM 3.0 changed how many California homeowners are credited for excess solar energy, but the rules differ between PG&E and SMUD customers. Learn how solar production, battery storage, export credits and time-of-use rates can affect your electric bill in the Sacramento area.
- Orphaned Solar Systems: What Happens When Your Installer Disappearsby Ryan McKnight“`html Orphaned Solar Systems: What Happens When Your Installer Disappears? Solar panels are designed to operate for decades, but the company that installed them may not last nearly as long. Across the Sacramento region, many homeowners are discovering that their original solar installer has gone out of business, stopped servicing older systems, or simply no… Read more: Orphaned Solar Systems: What Happens When Your Installer Disappears
- CT’s in Residential Solar & Battery Systems: Diagnostic Steps for Electriciansby Ryan McKnightCT’s in Residential Solar & Battery Systems: Diagnostic Steps for Electricians Current transformers, usually called CT’s, are one of the most important and most overlooked parts of a residential solar or battery system. When they are installed correctly, they let the inverter, battery, gateway, or monitoring platform understand what is happening at the service, solar… Read more: CT’s in Residential Solar & Battery Systems: Diagnostic Steps for Electricians
- Basic Troubleshooting of Solaredge Inverters and Battery Systemsby Ryan McKnightBasic Troubleshooting of SolarEdge Inverters and Battery Systems SolarEdge systems are common throughout the Sacramento area, and when they are working properly, they usually do a good job of giving homeowners visibility into solar production, battery status, and system alerts. But when something goes wrong, the app does not always tell the whole story. If… Read more: Basic Troubleshooting of Solaredge Inverters and Battery Systems
- Solar System Not Producing? 7 Common Causes in Sacramento Homesby Ryan McKnightSolar System Not Producing? 7 Common Causes in Sacramento Homes There’s nothing quite as frustrating as opening your monitoring app on a sunny Sacramento afternoon only to discover your solar system isn’t producing any power. Whether production suddenly dropped to zero or gradually declined over time, the good news is that many solar failures follow… Read more: Solar System Not Producing? 7 Common Causes in Sacramento Homes
- The Most Important Part of Your Solar System You’ve Never Heard Of: Current Transformers Explainedby Ryan McKnightThe Most Important Part of Your Solar & Battery System You’ve Probably Never Heard Of If your solar or battery system isn’t performing the way it should, the problem may not be your panels, inverter, or battery. It could be something much smaller: Current Transformers (CTs). CT issues are one of the most common causes… Read more: The Most Important Part of Your Solar System You’ve Never Heard Of: Current Transformers Explained
- Sacramento Solar Repair: When to Repair, Replace, or Upgradeby Ryan McKnightIf your solar system isn’t performing the way it used to, you’re probably wondering whether it makes sense to repair it, replace equipment, or invest in an upgrade. As someone who spends a lot of time troubleshooting solar and battery systems throughout the Sacramento region, I’ve found that many homeowners are told they need a complete replacement when the actual problem is much smaller—and much less expensive.
- A Homeowner’s Guide to Troubleshooting Solaredge Invertersby Ryan McKnightA guide for Sacramento area homeowners that covers basic troubleshooting of solar systems with Solaredge brand inverters.
- What Is a Solar Performance Inspection and Do You Need One?by Ryan McKnightWhat Is a Solar Performance Inspection and Do You Need One? Most homeowners wouldn’t ignore a strange noise coming from their car’s engine. They wouldn’t skip a home inspection before buying a house, either. Yet many solar systems operate for years without anyone ever verifying that they’re producing the amount of energy they were designed… Read more: What Is a Solar Performance Inspection and Do You Need One?
- Why is my electric bill still high after solar?by Ryan McKnightWhy is my electric bill still high after solar? One of the most common questions I hear from homeowners throughout the Sacramento region is: “Why is my electric bill still so high when I have solar?” Many people assume that once solar panels are installed, their electric bill should disappear. Unfortunately, that’s not always how… Read more: Why is my electric bill still high after solar?
- A Realtor’s Guide to Selling a Home with Solar in the Sacramento Regionby Ryan McKnightREALTOR RESOURCES A Realtor’s Guide to Selling a Home with Solar in the Sacramento Region Solar and battery storage systems are becoming increasingly common throughout the Sacramento region. While they can be valuable selling points, they can also create confusion during a transaction when buyers, sellers, and agents don’t fully understand the equipment. This guide… Read more: A Realtor’s Guide to Selling a Home with Solar in the Sacramento Region
- Selling a Home With Solar? What do I need to know? – Sacramento Solar Inspections…by Ryan McKnightREAL ESTATE SOLAR Selling a Home with Solar? What Do I Need to Know? – Sacramento Solar Inspections… Solar can be a major selling point, but it can also create questions during a real estate transaction. Here’s what Sacramento-area homeowners, buyers, and realtors should know before a home with solar hits the market. Over the… Read more: Selling a Home With Solar? What do I need to know? – Sacramento Solar Inspections…
- Buying a Home with Solar? What to watch out for…by Ryan McKnightBuying a Home with Solar? What to watch out for… Buying a home with solar? Solar can be a great selling point when purchasing a home, but not all solar systems are created equal. As someone who diagnoses and evaluates residential solar systems throughout the Sacramento area, I’ve seen plenty of situations where buyers assumed… Read more: Buying a Home with Solar? What to watch out for…
- Monitoring Solutions for Orphaned Solar Systemsby Ryan McKnightLost access to your solar monitoring? Orphaned systems often go unchecked, costing homeowners money. Learn how modern monitoring solutions can restore visibility and performance.
- What Is an Orphaned Solar System? | Sacramento Solar Helpby Ryan McKnightIf you have solar on your home but no one to call when something goes wrong, you may have what’s called an orphaned solar system. This is becoming increasingly common across Sacramento and Northern California, especially as solar companies go out of business or stop servicing older systems. Here’s what that means—and what you can… Read more: What Is an Orphaned Solar System? | Sacramento Solar Help