Before the site visit
What a site visit looks at
After you say yes, someone from the installation partner comes to look at the house. Knowing what they are looking for makes the visit shorter and the first design more likely to be the right one.
Whose visit this is
The site survey is stage 2 of the installation partner's process, carried out by their surveyor. Solar Strive does not perform this visit, does not send anyone to your home, and never gives a professional opinion about your property. This page is the homeowner's side of the same visit: what will be looked at, so you can have things ready.
Nothing here asks you to judge whether your roof, your panel, or your rafters are suitable. That judgment is the surveyor's, and it is the reason the visit exists.
Outside
The surveyor starts with the building as a whole: how it sits, what faces where, and where the electricity comes in.
- The front, back and sides of the house
- Fixes the orientation of each roof face and shows what is nearby — trees, neighbouring buildings, anything that throws shade.
- The utility meter, and where it is
- The meter is where your system meets the grid. Its location shapes the cable run and whether a second meter or a new socket is needed.
- The main service panel — door closed, then open
- The breaker box. The surveyor wants the main breaker's amp rating, the sticker inside the door, and whether there is a free slot for a solar breaker. A panel that is full or under-rated is one of the most common surprises in a proposal.
On the roof
From the ground, a ladder, or a drone — the surveyor decides which. You are not expected to go up.
- Every roof face
- Pitch, size, condition, and the material — shingle, metal, tile — each change how an array is mounted.
- Obstacles: vents, pipes, a chimney, an attic fan, HVAC equipment
- Panels go around them, and some cast shade. Knowing where they are is what turns a rough panel count into a real layout.
- Shade across the day
- Shade in the middle of the day is the one thing that can rule a roof face out. Morning or evening shade matters much less.
In the attic
Mounts bolt through to the rafters, so the surveyor needs to know what the rafters are. This is the part most homeowners do not expect.
- A general look at the attic space
- Access, insulation, and whether anything is obviously wrong with the structure.
- Rafter size and spacing
- The width and depth of the timbers and the distance between them decide where mounts can go and how the load is spread.
- The ridge beam
- The spine of the roof. Its size and condition are part of the same structural picture.
The sketch
The surveyor draws the property: which side faces the street, compass north, how many storeys, where the meter and the panel are, and where an array would sit. It is the drawing the design team works from.
- Roof slope and the intended panel location
- The surveyor estimates the pitch and marks a proposed layout. It is a proposal — the design is refined later, and you see it before anything is agreed.
- Space for a solar breaker
- Whether the existing panel can take one, or whether it needs rearranging or upgrading, is settled here and priced in the proposal.
Photos worth having ready
Six photographs a consultant will almost always ask for, and which you can take in a few minutes with a phone. They do not replace the visit; they mean the first conversation is about your house rather than about scheduling a look at it.
The utility meter, close enough to read
Where to stand: Straight on, with the numbers and any labels in focus.
Why it matters: Identifies the meter type and whether it already runs in both directions.
The meter from a few steps back
Where to stand: Far enough to show the wall it is on and what is around it.
Why it matters: Shows where a cable run would arrive and how much room there is.
The main service panel with the door closed
Where to stand: Whole panel in frame, including anything mounted next to it.
Why it matters: Location and clearance.
The main service panel with the door open
Where to stand: Straight on, no flash glare, every breaker visible.
Why it matters: The layout of the breakers and whether there is a free slot.
The main breaker, with its amp rating legible
Where to stand: Close up on the largest breaker, usually at the top.
Why it matters: The panel's capacity is the number a proposal is built around.
The sticker inside the panel door
Where to stand: Close up, legible.
Why it matters: Manufacturer, model, and rating in one place.
Safety first: open the panel door to photograph the breakers; do not remove the cover behind them, and do not go on the roof or into a cramped attic for a photo. Anything you cannot reach safely is the surveyor's job.
What you do not need to know
You are not expected to know whether your roof is strong enough, whether your panel has capacity, whether the rafters are the right size, or how many panels fit. Those are the surveyor's questions, answered with their training and their liability, and a homeowner guessing at them helps nobody.
What helps is access — a clear path to the panel and the attic hatch, the dog in another room, and any earlier roofing or electrical paperwork within reach. That, and the photographs above, is the whole of your preparation.
The whole sequence
The site visit is stage 2 of eight. See the shape of all of them.
What happens next →