Free bill analysis - bring a power bill, get the production math for your actual roof, panel brands like Qcells and REC compared side by side
If the pitch starts at your door and ends with "sign tonight for the special," sleep on it. The sun will still be there tomorrow; so will we.
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AfterFast, Reliable Solar Panel Installation Across Burbank
Solar panel installation in Burbank typically runs $18,000 to $38,000 before incentives, and the timeline from signed contract to permission-to-operate usually lands between 6 and 14 weeks depending on BWP’s net metering queue. That’s the honest range, and it’s what we tell every Burbank homeowner who calls us at (877) 550-6892. What actually moves that number is your roof’s condition, your electrical panel’s age, and whether Burbank Water and Power still has net metering capacity open when we file your interconnection application. We work these streets every week, from the Magnolia Park bungalows to the hillside homes along Sunset Canyon, and we know what Burbank’s permitting office and BWP require before a single panel goes up.
Why Gus’s Solar Is Burbank’s Preferred Solar Panel Installation Company
We’re not a nationwide installer with a call center in another state. Gus Petrakis put his own name on this business in 2011, and that name is on every quote, every permit set, and every system we put on a Burbank roof. When a homeowner on North Screenland Drive calls about a production question two years after install, the same crew that did the work comes back out. That’s the standard here.
Our Solar Panel Installation in Burbank work has built a reputation over the years on one thing: telling people the truth about their house before they spend a dollar. The 90-Day Done Right Promise is in writing on every job we do here. If something isn’t right, Gus makes it right, and one call brings him back. No escalation tree, no ticket number.
Response time to Burbank matters when your system throws a fault in July and your AC is pulling hard. Our crews stage from the Los Angeles office, so we’re typically on a Burbank roof within 24 to 48 hours of a service call. A live person answers the phone 24/7, even on a Sunday morning when your inverter goes dark. Background-checked, uniformed technicians do every install. You know who’s on your roof before they set up the ladder.
Our Solar Panel Installation Services in Burbank
Rooftop Solar Installation
Most Burbank homes we install on are single-story ranch and bungalow layouts from the 1940s and 1950s. Low-slope composition shingle roofs are the norm, which means straightforward racking if the roof has life left in it. We quote the year-25 output, not the day-one brochure number, because triple-digit summers in the 91505 and 91504 ZIPs put real thermal stress on panels and we’d rather under-promise and over-deliver. Every rooftop job includes a structural check, proper flashing on every penetration, and coordination with Burbank’s building and safety office from permit to final inspection.
Solar System Design & Permitting in Burbank
Design work in Burbank starts with your actual utility bill from BWP, not a generic regional average. We model your usage against BWP’s current export rates, then build the system size around what you actually use. Permitting goes through Burbank’s own building department, and the process is specific: they want load calculations, roof plans, and an electrical diagram that matches the equipment you actually install. We handle all of it, including the BWP interconnection application, because a permit approved by the city is worthless without BWP’s blessing on the back end.
Solar Panel Replacement in Burbank
Systems installed 10 to 15 years ago in Burbank are hitting the age where panel degradation and inverter failures start showing up. Many of those early systems used string inverters without module-level monitoring, which makes diagnosing a single underperforming panel difficult. We replace aging panels with Qcells, REC, or SunPower hardware and can retrofit module-level monitoring so you can see exactly what each panel produces. If you’re in the 91506 or 91507 areas and your system is underproducing, call us and we’ll pull the production data before we sell you anything.
Roof-Mount & Tile Roof Solar
Burbank has a real mix: composition shingle, some Spanish tile on hillside properties near Bel Aire Drive, and flat sections on mid-century moderns in the Verdugo Hills. Tile roofs need different mounting hardware and a careful removal-and-replacement process around each mount, which we do with our own crew. On a 1950s ranch near Brace Canyon Park, we recently pulled a permit tied to BWP’s net metering queue before touching the roof. The original 100-amp panel couldn’t clear the load calculation, so we coordinated the service upgrade, then installed REC Alpha Pure-R panels with Enphase IQ8 microinverters, all rapid shutdown compliant. That system now offsets 94% of the home’s summer AC demand.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Burbank
We install and service equipment from Qcells, REC, and SunPower, all paired with Enphase IQ8 microinverters where the roof layout calls for module-level optimization. We keep common replacement parts and microinverters staged for Burbank customers, which means a failed microinverter under warranty gets swapped fast, often within the same week. We don’t push one brand on every house. The right panel for a shaded Magnolia Park roof won’t be the same as the right panel for an open southern exposure in the 91508 hills.
Common Solar Panel Installation Problems We See in Burbank Homes
- BWP’s net metering cap fills before the contract is signed. This is the single biggest issue in Burbank, and it doesn’t exist two miles away in Glendale or North Hollywood where SCE runs the grid. If BWP’s NEM enrollment cap is full when we file, the system can be installed but cannot be interconnected, meaning no credits and no export.
- Original 100-amp panels on postwar homes can’t pass the load calculation. Burbank’s building department requires a service panel that can handle the solar backfeed, and a 1950s-era 100-amp panel almost never can. The upgrade adds $2,500 to $5,000 depending on the panel location and whether the service drop needs rework from BWP.
- Low-slope composition shingle roofs are past their service life. We regularly see roof surfaces on Burbank ranches that are 20-plus years old, with granule loss and curling at the eaves. Installing racking on degraded shingles leads to leaks and voided roof warranties within the first rainy season.
- West-facing roof planes underperform on BWP’s time-of-use schedule. BWP’s export compensation is not a flat rate. A system that produces heavily on a west-facing plane in the late afternoon may generate power when BWP values it less. We model this explicitly before we size a system, because the wrong azimuth assumption quietly eats your payback.
Pricing for Solar Panel Installation in Burbank, CA
Here’s what Burbank homeowners should budget in 2025. A typical 6 kW rooftop system on a composition shingle roof runs $17,000 to $24,000 before the 30% federal tax credit. An 8 kW system, which is what most 1,400 to 1,800 square foot ranch homes with central AC need here, lands between $21,000 and $29,000. If your roof needs a re-roof first, add $9,000 to $15,000 depending on square footage and whether we’re pulling off one layer or two. The 100-amp to 200-amp panel upgrade, which is mandatory on most 1940s-50s Burbank homes, adds $2,500 to $5,000. Bring me a bill, I’ll bring you the math. Every estimate is free, and it’s built off your actual usage and BWP’s current export rates, not a brochure target. Call (877) 550-6892 and we’ll walk through your roof, your panel, and your bill together. Take two weeks after the quote. Think about it. The price will be the same.
We Also Serve Cities Near Burbank
While this page focuses on Burbank, our Solar Panel Installation team regularly works in Universal City, North Hollywood, Glendale, and Studio City. The utility picture shifts as soon as you cross the city line, but Burbank’s BWP-specific process is where our due-diligence habit was built. If you’re in a neighboring city, call (877) 550-6892 and we’ll tell you exactly how your utility handles net metering before you sign anything.
Serving Burbank, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Burbank area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Solar Panel Installation in Burbank
BWP runs its own net metering program with a finite enrollment cap and export compensation rates that differ from SCE’s. That means every solar proposal built on SCE assumptions is wrong on price and timeline from day one. Before we sign a contract, we check BWP’s current NEM capacity, because if the cap is full, your system cannot be interconnected and earns no credits. Payback on a properly interconnected Burbank system typically runs 7 to 10 years given current BWP rates and Burbank’s heavy AC load, but that math only works if BWP approves the interconnection before we pull the permit. Call (877) 550-6892 for an exact read on your bill.
In most cases, no. Burbank’s building department requires a panel that passes a load calculation with the solar backfeed included, and 100-amp panels from the 1950s almost never pass. The upgrade to a 200-amp service typically runs $2,500 to $5,000 depending on your panel location and whether BWP needs to rework the service drop. Some homes with very low consumption and a 100-amp panel with unused capacity can pass, but it’s the exception, not the rule. We’ll tell you in the first visit whether your panel clears the calculation, and we coordinate the upgrade with BWP so the permit doesn’t stall.
Yes, and it’s a real number. Burbank’s eastern San Fernando Valley location means summer afternoons reach 100°F and above, which causes thermal derating. REC and SunPower panels lose roughly 0.25% to 0.35% of output per degree Celsius above 25°C (77°F). On a 105°F day, a panel surface can be running at 140°F or hotter, which translates to roughly a 10% to 18% efficiency loss during peak heat hours. That same heat drives outsized AC loads, which is why Burbank’s solar payback is often shorter than coastal Los Angeles despite the derating. We model the derating curve explicitly in your production estimate, so the year-25 number you see is what you actually get.
If your composition shingle roof is more than 15 years old, the answer is often yes, and we’ll tell you that before we sell you panels. Installing racking on degraded shingles means leaks in the first rainy season and a voided roof warranty. A re-roof on a typical 1,200 to 1,600 square foot Burbank ranch runs $9,000 to $15,000, and it’s the single largest add-on we quote. The good news is that we don’t hand the roofing work to a sub. Our crew does the tear-off, the underlayment, and the flashing, then installs the racking so the penetrations are sealed correctly the first time. The 90-Day Done Right Promise covers the whole job.
In Burbank’s latitude, due south at a 20 to 25 degree tilt produces the most annual energy. But most postwar ranch homes have low-slope roofs at 15 to 20 degrees with ridgelines running east-west, which gives you a large south-facing plane and a large north-facing plane. We put as much as possible on the south plane, but we’ll sometimes add panels on the west plane if BWP’s time-of-use export schedule values later-afternoon production. East-facing planes are the least productive in Burbank, though they still pencil out on homes with high morning AC usage. Shading from the Verdugo Hills in the late afternoon affects homes in the 91504 and 91505 ZIPs, and we model that with on-site shade readings, not satellite assumptions.
If you’re in Burbank and you’re ready for a straight answer about solar, call Gus at (877) 550-6892. We’ll look at your bill, check BWP’s net metering queue, walk your roof, and give you a number you can trust. If a salesman needs an answer tonight, the answer is no. We don’t work that way, and we never have.
Written by Gus Petrakis, Owner at Gus’s Solar, serving Burbank since 2011.