Frequently Asked Questions - Solar
Straight answers to the questions San Jose homeowners ask us most, from real costs to how long the whole thing takes.
Pricing & Cost FAQs
A typical residential solar installation in San Jose runs between $12,000 and $28,000 before incentives, depending on roof size, panel count, and the equipment you choose. Most homes we quote fall in the $15,000 to $22,000 range after the federal tax credit. Our approach is different from the door-knockers: bring us your actual utility bill and we model the numbers against your real usage and current export rates, not a brochure. You get a written estimate that holds, and you get two weeks to think about it. Call (877) 550-6892 and we'll walk through the math with your bill in hand.
San Jose homeowners typically pay between $2.50 and $3.50 per watt for a residential system before incentives, which tracks closely with both the Bay Area market and the statewide average. A 6 kW system lands around $15,000 to $21,000, and a 10 kW system pushes toward $25,000 to $30,000. The per-watt number shifts based on panel type, inverter choice, and roof complexity. Instead of guessing at a per-watt figure, we quote the year-25 output against your actual bill so you see what the system produces over its life, not just what the spec sheet says on day one.
San Jose homeowners can save $1,200 to $2,200 per year on electricity after going solar, with most systems paying for themselves in 5 to 8 years. PG&E rates have climbed steadily for two decades, and the NEM 3.0 export rates in California reward homes that pair solar with battery storage. Your actual savings depend on your roof orientation, your usage pattern, and whether you add a battery. We model savings against your real bill and current export rates, so you see a range that reflects your house, not a sunny hypothetical.
For most San Jose homeowners, yes. The city gets roughly 260 sunny days a year, PG&E rates are among the highest in the country, and the federal tax credit still covers 30% of system cost. A system that costs $18,000 after incentives and saves $1,800 a year pays for itself in a decade and keeps producing for another 15 to 20 years after that. The exception is a heavily shaded roof or a house with very low electric usage. If you're unsure, call us and we'll tell you honestly whether the numbers work for your roof before you spend a dime.
Under California's current NEM 3.0 export rates, a battery usually makes financial sense in San Jose. PG&E pays much less for exported solar power than it did under the old rules, which means storing your daytime production for evening use captures more value than sending it back to the grid. A FranklinWH or Tesla battery adds $8,000 to $15,000 to the project, but it typically shortens the payback period under NEM 3.0 and keeps your lights on during public safety power shutoffs. We'll quote the system both ways with and without storage so you can see the difference on your own bill.
Yes. The federal Investment Tax Credit covers 30% of your total system cost with no cap, and it applies to both panels and batteries. California's SGIP program offers battery rebates, with higher amounts available in fire-prone areas and for low-income households. San Jose itself has streamlined its permitting process for solar, which has meaningfully reduced soft costs over the last decade. Property tax exclusions for solar improvements are also still in effect statewide. We factor every current incentive into your written quote so the number you see is the number you pay.
Service & Process FAQs
Most San Jose residential installations take 1 to 3 days on the roof, with the full process from signed agreement to permission to operate running 4 to 8 weeks. The roof work itself is fast. Permitting with the City of San Jose typically takes 1 to 2 weeks, PG&E interconnection approval usually adds another 2 to 3 weeks, and final inspection closes it out. We give you a real window and we call if it slips. You'll know the week of installation before we show up, and you'll know the day of the week before the crew arrives.
It starts with your electric bill. You send us a copy or read it to us over the phone, we model your usage against current PG&E export rates, and we give you a written quote modeled on the year-25 output, not the day-one brochure number. From there, we handle the permit, the install, and the interconnection paperwork. Gus Petrakis's own crew does the installation, he flashes every roof penetration properly, and he watches the monitoring after the system goes live. No signature wanted tonight. Take two weeks and think about it. The price will be the same.
Yes, we handle the entire process. We pull the City of San Jose permit, file the PG&E interconnection application, schedule the inspection, and walk the system through permission to operate. You sign one agreement and the rest moves forward on our schedule. San Jose has its own permitting quirks and our team files these every week, so we know what the inspectors look for and we build to that standard the first time. If a rework ever comes up, that's on us, not on you.
We start with a phone call and a copy of your electric bill, because that tells us more than a walkthrough ever could. If your roof is complex, heavily shaded, or aging, we'll schedule a site visit before we finalize the number. The worst door-knocking reputation in America belongs to this trade, and Gus built this company to be the opposite: numbers modeled on your actual bill and current export rates, with a crew that shows up when we say we will. Call (877) 550-6892 and we'll tell you whether a site visit is even needed for your house.
Yes. A large share of San Jose homes have concrete tile or clay tile roofs, and we install on both regularly. Tile requires more care than composition shingle because tiles crack if walked on wrong, and the mounting system needs tile-replacement flashing rather than a simple L-foot. Our crew does this work in-house and flashes every penetration properly. If your roof is nearing the end of its life, we'll tell you that too and walk you through whether it makes more sense to re-roof before the panels go up.
Brands & Parts FAQs
We install panels that have a long track record of holding up under California sun and that carry strong manufacturer warranties, including options from major tier-one manufacturers with 25-year performance guarantees. We choose equipment based on your roof, your budget, and your long-term goals rather than pushing one brand on every house. What matters more than the label is how it's installed: flashing done right, torque specs met, and a system that's monitored so a dead panel becomes a call from us rather than a surprise on your bill.
We install FranklinWH, Tesla, and Enphase battery systems, and we'll recommend the one that fits your home and your goals. FranklinWH has become a strong choice for whole-home backup with straightforward capacity and solid warranty terms. Tesla's Powerwall 3 is a proven platform with a large installed base across the Bay Area. Enphase batteries integrate cleanly with their microinverter ecosystem. The right answer depends on your panel count, your backup goals, and whether you want generator support. We'll quote what actually works for your house, not what's on the truck.
Microinverters convert DC to AC at each individual panel, while a string inverter converts power from the whole array at a single point. Microinverters, like those from Enphase, handle partial shading better because one shaded panel doesn't drag down the whole string, and they offer panel-level monitoring. String inverters, like SolarEdge with power optimizers, cost less for larger arrays and keep most of the shade-handling benefit. In San Jose, where afternoon shade from mature trees is common, we lean toward microinverters or optimized systems for homes with any shading at all.
Quality panels installed in San Jose will produce power for 30 to 40 years, with most manufacturers warranting 85% of rated output at year 25. The Bay Area climate is gentle on equipment: no hail, no extreme heat, and mild winters. The bigger variable is the inverter, which usually needs replacement once at the 10 to 15 year mark. Our monitoring catches production drops before they show up on your bill, and we quote the year-25 output from the start so your expectations match reality, not the day-one spec sheet.
Licensing & Insurance FAQs
The work is performed by crews who hold the license and insurance California requires for solar contracting, and the business was founded in 2011, so this isn't a new outfit feeling its way through your roof. Gus Petrakis puts his name on the work and our locations are held to the same standard: every pro working under our name is required to hold the license and insurance their state requires. We're happy to provide license and insurance documentation before you sign anything.
Every location carries the insurance and bonding coverage required for work in its state, and California's requirements are among the strictest in the country. We carry general liability, and the crews working on your roof are covered. When you call us, a live coordinator connects you with the local team that covers your address, and that team can provide proof of insurance with your quote. No one climbs on your roof without the paperwork in place, and we would rather keep you for twenty years than win one big ticket.
The installation is done by the company's own crew, not a rotating cast of third-party installers. That matters for quality and for accountability: the same people who install your system are the ones who come back if something isn't right. Gus Petrakis modeled the business on the idea that the name on the truck is the person you'll run into again on a Saturday, which is the oldest accountability mechanism there is. You won't meet one salesman at the door and a different crew on install day.
Emergency & Response FAQs
Call (877) 550-6892 and we'll pull up your monitoring data to see what's happening. A dead panel or a tripped inverter often shows up in our monitoring before you notice it on your bill, and we watch the monitoring after every install so problems get caught early. If it's a monitoring-level issue, we can often diagnose it remotely. If it needs a visit, the local team nearest you will schedule a time. You should not attempt to access or repair roof-mounted electrical equipment yourself.
Our lines are open 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM, seven days a week, and a live coordinator will connect you with the local team that covers your address. For urgent issues like a burning smell, visible arcing, or water intrusion, call immediately and we'll prioritize your case. For routine production drops or monitoring alerts, we'll schedule the next available visit with the local crew. Call (877) 550-6892 and tell the coordinator what you're seeing; we'll tell you straight whether it's urgent or can wait.
Yes, and you should treat it with respect. Rooftop solar runs at high DC voltage, and that voltage is present any time the sun is up even if the system is shut down at the inverter. A burning smell, visible smoke, scorch marks, or water coming through a roof penetration are reasons to call a professional immediately and stay off the roof. There is no safe DIY path into a malfunctioning solar array, and the simplest way to get hurt is to start disconnecting wires you don't fully understand. Call (877) 550-6892 and let a trained pro handle it.
Call us and we'll assess the damage, usually by looking at your monitoring data first. The Bay Area rarely sees hail, but wind can lift panels that weren't properly flashed, and tree limbs occasionally take out a panel or two. We'll document the damage for your homeowner's insurance if you need it, and the local team will handle the repair. Most storm damage is covered by your home policy, and we'll help you through that process. The first step is a phone call and a quick look at what your monitoring is reporting.
Warranty & Guarantees FAQs
Every solar job carries a ninety-day written guarantee from Gus Petrakis: publish his name, his address and his license number, and one call brings him back. On top of that, the panels carry their manufacturer's 25-year performance warranty, the inverter carries a 10 to 12 year warranty depending on brand, and the batteries we install carry their own 10 to 15 year manufacturer coverage. We put the terms in writing before you sign, and there's no fine print hiding a shorter roof-penetration warranty than the one we tell you about up front.
The ninety-day guarantee covers the workmanship of the installation: flashing, mounting, wiring, and everything our crew did on your roof. If something isn't right, one call brings Gus back. After ninety days, the manufacturer warranties take over for the equipment, and we continue to watch your monitoring so a dead panel turns into a call from us rather than a surprise on your bill. The guarantee is in writing on every job, and it means what it says.
Yes. Every system we install is connected to monitoring, and we watch the production data after it goes live. A panel that underperforms, an inverter that trips, or a gradual production decline all show up in the data, usually before they show up on your electric bill. When something drops, we call you. That's part of the deal, not an add-on. The alternative is a system you forget about until one August bill comes in higher than it should, and we'd rather catch it in March.
For most systems, repair is the right call. Inverters are the most common failure point, and replacing an inverter costs a fraction of a new system. Panels are more durable, and individual panel failures can often be replaced without touching the rest of the array. Replacement makes sense when the system is 20-plus years old, when multiple panels are failing, or when you want to add a battery and expand capacity anyway. We'll give you an honest recommendation either way. Call (877) 550-6892 for an exact quote and we'll tell you whether repair or replace makes more sense for your roof.
Written by Gus Petrakis, Owner at Gus's Solar, serving San Jose since 2011.
Still Have Questions?
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