Solar site survey scheduling checklist
What to collect before the visit, what surveyors record, and how to move to design and permit.
For a residential solar installer, the site survey is where a signed or near-signed customer becomes a buildable project. A good survey gives design the information it needs the first time. A rushed one leads to redesigns, permit corrections and an unhappy customer waiting on a second visit. This checklist covers scheduling, preparing and following up on site surveys.
1. Collect before scheduling
- Signed agreement or the stage of the sale, as your process requires.
- Recent utility bills, so the design team can review usage.
- Utility account details needed for the interconnection application.
- Property ownership and any HOA, with HOA contact if approval is needed.
- Roof age and material, and any known roof problems. If the roof may need replacement, raise it now.
- Main electrical panel location, and a photo of the panel label and the main breaker.
- Interest in batteries, EV chargers, or future additions, which affect electrical design.
2. Schedule the survey
- Offer times when the surveyor can access the roof, attic and electrical panel, usually with someone home.
- Avoid weather that makes roof access unsafe. Have a rule for rescheduling.
- Group surveys by area.
- Send a confirmation listing what the surveyor needs: attic access, panel access, pets secured, and someone available to answer questions.
3. What the surveyor records
Use a standard form so design gets the same information from every survey.
- Roof: material, condition, pitch, each plane's orientation and dimensions, vents and obstructions.
- Structure: rafter or truss size and spacing, from the attic where accessible.
- Shading: trees, nearby buildings and other obstructions, recorded with your shading tool or method.
- Electrical: panel brand, busbar and main breaker ratings, available breaker spaces, grounding, and the service entrance.
- Meter location and the route from the array to the inverter and panel.
- Photos of every item above, labeled.
- Any issue that may change the project, such as roof damage or panel upgrade needs.
4. Same-day handoff to design
- Upload photos and the survey form the same day.
- Flag any open questions for design.
- Tell the customer what was found and what happens next, with an expected timeline from your own process.
5. Change orders from the survey
Sometimes the survey changes the project: a panel upgrade, roof work, tree trimming or a smaller system.
- Explain the reason to the customer, with photos.
- Send a written change with the price and schedule impact.
- Get approval before design is finalized.
6. Design, permit and interconnection
- Design completes the plan set and any structural review needed.
- Submit the permit to the authority having jurisdiction and record the submittal date.
- Submit the interconnection application to the utility, following its process.
- Record approvals, corrections and resubmittals with dates.
- Tell the customer at each step.
7. Schedule the install
- Book the install only when the permit is issued and equipment is confirmed.
- Confirm the crew and electrician dates.
- Send the customer the install date and what to expect on the day.
8. Inspection and permission to operate
- Schedule the inspection with the jurisdiction after install.
- Record the result and any corrections.
- Submit the required documents to the utility for permission to operate.
- Tell the customer not to turn the system on until the utility grants permission, if that applies in their utility territory.
- Tell the customer when permission is granted and how to monitor the system.
9. Keep customers informed
Long timelines create anxiety. A short update at each milestone reduces calls.
- Survey done.
- Design complete.
- Permit submitted and approved.
- Interconnection submitted and approved.
- Install scheduled and completed.
- Inspection passed.
- Permission to operate granted.
10. Review monthly
- Time from signed agreement to survey, and survey to permit submittal.
- Surveys that needed a second visit, and why.
- Permit corrections, and their causes.
11. Survey quality checks
- Review a sample of surveys each month against your form.
- Check whether design had to ask the surveyor questions, and add those items to the form.
- Make sure photos are labeled and clear enough to read panel labels and rafter sizes.
- Share common gaps with surveyors in short training sessions.
Where software fits
Solar projects pass through many hands, and the survey record is the foundation for all of them. Monaxion is solar CRM, scheduling and dispatch software that keeps survey photos and notes with the project, tracks milestones, and prepares customer updates your team approves before sending. Book a demo to set up your survey process in it.
Published 2026-10-31 · General guidance only; follow the codes, labels and rules that apply where you work.
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