Solar survey checklist for installers

1) What to confirm before survey day

• Service scope: roof evidence only, roof plus electrical review, or a wider solar-plus-battery handoff.
• Property type and access: anything already known that changes how the survey should be planned.
• What the installer needs next: quote support, design review, install planning, or all three.
• Any existing constraints: awkward roofs, listed details, loft restrictions, or previous electrical concerns.

2) What to capture on every solar survey

• Wide roof photos that show the usable array areas, not just close-ups of individual details.
• Pitch, orientation, and obstruction context recorded clearly enough for layout review.
• Shading notes from the positions that actually affect design decisions.
• Access and routing observations that change scaffold, cable, or installer planning.

3) What to document for electrical review

• Meter, cut-out, and consumer unit evidence that can be reviewed after the visit without guesswork.
• Obvious electrical limits or unknowns surfaced early rather than after quoting has started.
• Likely inverter and battery locations, with route notes where these form part of the agreed scope.
• Electrical photos and notes grouped with the rest of the pack, not sent as a separate follow-up.

4) What the final pack needs before design starts

• A roof record that makes usable and non-usable zones obvious.
• Electrical evidence that an office or design lead can follow without another call to site.
• Notes grouped by decision point, not hidden in one long observations field.
• A pack structure that lets the next team move immediately instead of rebuilding the survey story.

5) Where solar surveys usually break down

• Roof photos too tight to support layout review.
• No clear record of which roof areas are unusable.
• Electrical photos that show equipment but not the details the office needs.
• Scope additions discussed verbally but not reflected in the final handoff.

See the checklist in a live pack