Your roof needs replacement, but there is a solar array sitting on it. Most homeowners end up stuck between a roofer who will not touch panels and a solar company that will not touch shingles. Rooftop Power is both trades under one roof, and a roof-and-array job is exactly what that is built for.
Solar panels are designed to last 25 years or more. Asphalt shingles are not. If your array went up on a roof that already had ten or fifteen years on it, the day comes when the roof is worn out while the panels are still producing every kilowatt hour they should. You cannot reshingle around an array, so the panels have to come off, the roof gets replaced, and the panels go back on. That is removal and reinstallation, and for a lot of New England homeowners it is not optional, it is the only way to fix a failing roof without abandoning a working solar system.
The same job comes up for reasons that have nothing to do with age. Storm and hail damage to the deck under the array, a leak that has to be chased to its source, rot at the flashing, or a roof that needs to come off so an addition or a skylight can go in. In every one of these cases the panels are in the way of the real repair, and moving them correctly is its own skilled trade.
A few homeowners also need a removal because they are moving the array, taking a system with them, or repositioning panels after tree growth changed the shading on part of the roof. Whatever the reason, the work is the same careful sequence: get the panels off without damaging them, do the roof right, and put the system back exactly as it should be.
Our solar crew starts by documenting your system’s exact layout and its production baseline, so we know what the array made before we touched it and what it should make when it goes back on. Then we de-energize the system, disconnect it safely, and remove the panels and racking, staging everything protected on site or in our care so nothing gets scratched, dropped, or left out in the weather.
With the roof clear, the roofing crew replaces it and details it for solar. That means new flashing, and ice and water shield laid in where the array will live and where the mounts penetrate the deck. This is the part a solar-only company cannot do and a roofer alone should not, because the roof has to be built to carry an array again, not just to shed rain.
Finally the solar crew reinstalls the panels on new mounts with new flashing, rewires and reconnects the system, and recommissions it. We verify the array is producing against the baseline we captured on day one, so you are not taking anybody’s word that it came back the way it left. Because one company holds the entire scope, nobody argues about whose ladder, whose leak, or whose warranty. It is all ours.
The hard part of a reroof under solar is almost never the shingles. It is the coordination. Hire a roofer and a separate solar company and you become the project manager between two trades that do not want responsibility for each other’s work. The roofer will not lift panels or take the liability for the electrical. The solar company will not schedule around a roof it did not tear off. You end up sequencing two crews, two schedules, and two warranties, and if a leak shows up afterward, each one points at the other.
Rooftop Power runs both trades with our own in-house crews, so the removal, the roof, and the reinstallation are one project on one timeline under one accountable company. There is one inspection, one written scope that covers panels and roof together, and one number to call if anything needs attention later. Nobody hands your job off to a subcontractor, and nobody gets to blame the other guy.
This is the same reason so many homeowners choose a local installer that owns the whole job rather than the lowest bid on each piece. When one company is responsible for the array coming off, the roof going on, and the system coming back to life, the finger-pointing has nowhere to go.
Most of the arrays we remove and reinstall were put up by someone else, and plenty of those installers are out of business. That is fine. We work with all the major panel and racking brands, and we do not need the original company’s paperwork to do the job right. We document the existing system with photos at every stage, map the wiring and layout before anything moves, and rebuild it correctly on your new roof.
If your original installer is gone, this project is also the natural moment for a full health check, because the whole system is accessible and already in our hands. We can spot a failing connector, a tired inverter, or racking that was never flashed properly, and tell you about it while it is easy and cheap to address rather than after the panels are bolted back down.
Because the panels are off anyway, it is also the least expensive time you will ever have to expand the array, add panels, or wire in battery storage. The labor to open the system is already being done. We will lay out what makes sense for your home and what it would cost to do now versus later, with no pressure either way.
Taking an array off and putting it back is not just a physical job, it is a permitted one. Depending on your town and the scope, a reinstallation can require a building permit for the roof and an electrical permit for the solar reconnection, plus a final inspection before the system is allowed to energize. We pull the permits, meet the inspector, and handle the paperwork so the system is legal, not just running.
There is a utility side too. When a system comes down and goes back up, the interconnection with your utility often has to be confirmed or re-established so your net metering keeps crediting you correctly. We coordinate that with your utility, whether that is Rhode Island Energy in Rhode Island, Eversource or National Grid in Massachusetts, or Eversource or United Illuminating in Connecticut, so your credits do not quietly stop when the array goes offline.
Recommissioning is the last step and the one cheap operators skip. We bring the system back up, confirm every panel and string is reporting, check the inverter and monitoring, and verify the array is producing what it should against the baseline. You get a system that is inspected, interconnected, and provably back to full output, not one that merely looks finished from the ground.
The biggest hidden risk in a removal is the warranty. Panels, inverters, and racking carry manufacturer warranties that can be voided by improper handling, mismatched hardware, or an installation that does not follow the manufacturer’s procedures. A roofing crew that treats your panels like plywood to be tossed aside can cost you thousands in coverage without anyone realizing it until a component fails years later.
Our crews follow manufacturer procedures on removal and reinstallation, use the correct mounting hardware for your equipment, and coordinate any registration or warranty updates that a reinstallation requires. Handled this way, a proper remove and reinstall does not jeopardize your coverage. Handled by an unqualified crew, it very well can, which is the plain reason roofers alone should not be lifting an array.
We also stand behind our own workmanship separately from the manufacturer coverage. That means the roof penetrations we make, the flashing we install, and the connections we rebuild are backed by Rooftop Power, so the waterproofing of your new roof and the integrity of your reinstalled system are both on us.
For most homes the whole sequence, panels off, roof replaced, panels back on and recommissioned, is measured in days, not weeks. The array is only offline for the working days of the project itself, and because we run both crews we do not lose time waiting for a second company to show up. We schedule the roof and solar work back to back so your system is down for the shortest window possible.
It starts with one inspection. We look at the roof, the array, the racking type, and the electrical, then give you a single written scope and price that covers the panels and the roof together, so you are not comparing two bids that each assume the other trade will handle the hard part. You know the full number before anything is scheduled.
On project days our crews handle everything: safe removal, the new roof, reinstallation, and the reconnection and inspections that make it official. When we hand it back, you get confirmation the system is producing against its baseline. One inspection, one scope, one crew, one company that answers for the entire job.
Because the array is coming off and the roof is being opened up, a removal and reinstallation is the cheapest moment to handle a few related jobs at the same time. Here are the ones homeowners most often bundle in.
The replacement roof itself, built by our own crews for New England weather and ready to carry an array again.
Learn MoreThe panels are off and the system is open, so it is the least expensive time to expand the array or add battery storage.
Learn MoreA full health check while everything is accessible, plus ongoing service for every system we touch.
Learn MoreWorking with Rooftop Power has been exceptional. From the beginning everyone at RTP kept me informed at every step. When a hiccup happened it was addressed immediately and resolved.
The installation crew was punctual, respectful, and left the job site spotless. I was particularly impressed with their attention to detail from the first consult to the final inspection.
Had a great solar experience with Rooftop Power from start to finish. We ended up getting a new roof and electrical upgrade for the install and used RP for both.
One inspection, one written scope covering panels and roof, one accountable company. Call 401-298-8040.