First, rule out the outage
The MPSC's consumer tips say inverters shut off in an outage by national standards. If the power is out on your street, a grid-tied system with no battery should be off, and that isn't a fault. When the power is on and the system is quiet, the next call is to the company that installed it.
Leave the equipment alone while you wait. Don't open the inverter or go onto the roof; write down what the display or the monitoring app shows, and the date you noticed, and give that to the company.
What a solar repair visit costs in Michigan
Our estimate is $295 to $1,000 per repair visit. It's a model and not a quote, built from one published national range and scaled by what Michigan solar installers are paid against the US mean. It adds no permit fee, because any permit depends on the work found. The range covers a visit, not a replaced inverter or a roof repair, which are separate jobs.
A warranty may cover the fault, so ask before the visit starts whether it will cost you anything.
| Item | Figure | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Estimated range, not a quote | $295 to $1,000 per repair visit | Built from one national published range, adjusted by the Michigan solar installer wage ratio (0.87). Before any incentive: there is no federal credit for a system installed in 2026. |
| Solar photovoltaic installer wage, Michigan mean | $24.29 an hour | What installers are paid (BLS OEWS May 2025), not what you are charged. Only 310 people are in the Michigan estimate. |
How we estimate costs: the Estimated range row comes out of a model, so treat it as a planning figure and never as a quote. It takes one published national range for this job (a cost guide from a third-party site that we haven't verified and don't cite) and multiplies it by Michigan's solar installer wage ratio to the US (0.87, BLS May 2025). The range is before any incentive: the federal residential clean energy credit does not apply to systems installed after December 31, 2025. The wage and permit rows are what installers are paid and what the city charges, and neither is a price. We have not collected quotes, and too few Michigan installers publish prices to show a range. Full method. Prices as of Oct 23, 2026.
Check the bill for a missing export credit
Your utility bill can confirm what the app shows. Under DTE's Rider 18, power you send out is outflow, credited at the power supply rate, and the excess goes into an Excess Generation Bank; Consumers Energy credits excess at the power supply rate, including transmission, on a single meter. A sunny month with no outflow or excess credit on the bill is worth mentioning when you call the installer.
Keep the bills from before and after you noticed the problem, and have them in front of you when you call, so the company can line up the dates.
Read the warranty before you pay for a visit
The MPSC tells buyers to ask what warranties come with a system, and a repair is when those papers matter. Find what covers the equipment and what covers the installer's work, with dates, plus the make and model of each panel and the inverter. If the fault falls inside a warranty, ask the company before the visit whether you'll pay anything for it.
If you're choosing someone new, the MPSC's tips also say to ask how long a company has been in business and for three customer references, and those questions work as well for a repair as for a new system.
Who may work on the wiring
Michigan defines an electrical contractor as a business erecting, installing, altering, repairing, servicing or maintaining electrical wiring, and its definition of electrical wiring includes generating equipment (MCL 339.5701). So ask for the license number of a contractor holding a Michigan electrical contractor license and look it up with LARA.
LARA's licensing page says that license needs a master electrician of record who lives in Michigan, and that Michigan has no reciprocity with other states, so a technician licensed elsewhere still needs the Michigan number. Detroit issues its own licenses locally. MCL 339.5737(3)(g) exempts a homeowner repairing electrical equipment in an owner-occupied single-family home, which is a legal exemption and not advice to open the equipment; the permit and the utility still apply.
A repair falls under the same electrical code. R 408.30801 says Michigan's adopted 2023 National Electrical Code governs "the installation, replacement, alteration, relocation, and use of electrical systems or material," which takes in a replaced part as much as the first install. Where LARA is the inspecting authority, its permit application bars starting work before the permit is issued and covering any of it up before inspection, so ask the repair company whether your job needs one.
When a repair changes what the utility approved
Once your interconnection agreement is signed, Michigan's rule R 460.984 puts a duty on you: tell the utility before you modify the system. A change the utility rules material needs a new application and fee, and work on it may not begin before a new agreement is in place. Consumers Energy's program page says to notify it ahead of time of any changes you plan, and its agreement leaves the call on what's material to the utility.
Neither utility's documents on this page list which repairs count as material, so before a part is swapped for a different model, ask the utility in writing and keep the reply.
Size is where DTE draws a line. Under its procedures, raising a generator's AC or DC nameplate rating counts as an increase in aggregate generation, and a Legacy Net Metering (Rider 16) customer who makes one moves onto Rider 18 terms. Ask DTE before a panel is replaced with a higher-rated one.
Replacement parts carry a listing. Consumers wants Level 1 and 2 generator equipment certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory, to IEEE 1547.1-2020 and to the September 28, 2021 edition of UL 1741. DTE's supplemental procedures apply to Rider 18 projects using a UL certified system. Ask for the listing of any replacement part on the invoice.
What to get at the end of the visit
Ask for a written description of the fault, the part replaced and its warranty, the date, and the price. If the repair touched the inverter or the wiring, ask whether the city wants an electrical permit and whether your utility needs to hear about it. The system inspection page covers a second look. If the company says the whole system needs replacing, get a second opinion and compare with the quote guide.
A repair call that turns into a pitch for a new system deserves care. Consumers Energy warns against anyone promising "you will not receive an electric bill" or solar "with no upfront cost." In a July 15, 2026 suit against Climax Solar, the Attorney General alleges payments were released before systems were finished or utility-approved. Report deceptive marketing to the Attorney General at 517-335-7622.
When to call 911 and when it can wait
- Smoke, a burning smell or fire at the inverter, panels or wiring is a 911 call. Stay away from the equipment and let the fire department handle it.
- The system is quiet but there is no smoke, smell or heat.
- The power is out on your street and you have no battery.
Check these before you send the form.
- Smoke, a burning smell or fire at the inverter, the panels or the wiring? Call 911.
- Will the roof need replacing while the panels are on it? Taking panels off and putting them back is its own job with its own cost, so the quote isn't worth getting yet.
- Is most of the roof shaded for much of the day? Then hold off, because heavy shade is a reason a quote isn't worth getting yet.
- Does a pitch promise no electric bill, free solar or no upfront cost? Ask for the total price including financing in writing, and don't sign before you have it.
- None of those, and you want a price for panels, a battery or a repair? The normal form is fine, and the quote guide lists what to compare.
A yes to the first question means calling 911 first. If it's the second or third, settle the roof or the shade first, and if it's the fourth, ask for the total price in writing before you agree to anything.
What to do before you call
- Check whether the power is out in your area.
- Write down what the monitoring app or the inverter display shows, and the date you noticed.
- Find the installer's name, the warranty papers and the make and model of the panels and inverter.
- Call the installer first, then ask for the electrical contractor license number of anyone else.
License, permit and utility
A permit is pulled under the electrical contractor's state license number. Since March 12, 2024 the state's electrical code has been the 2023 National Electrical Code; LARA's code page sends residential requirements to the Michigan Residential Code. Rooftop panels also fall under Michigan's rule R 408.30521a, which points to Section R324 and NFPA 70.
For the utility, DTE's Rider 18 runs on an application and a Parallel Operating Agreement, and Consumers Energy's program on an application and a Generator Interconnection Operating Agreement. Ask the repair company whether the work changes anything on yours.
Ask for the company's contractor license number and look it up with your state's licensing board before you sign.
Questions people ask
Why is my solar system not working during a power outage?
Grid-tied inverters shut off in an outage. The MPSC says backup power needs a battery.
Who repairs a solar panel in Michigan?
A contractor holding a Michigan electrical contractor license, for work on the wiring. Ask for the number and look it up with LARA.
Is solar repair covered by a federal credit?
No, the Residential Clean Energy Credit ended for expenditures made after December 31, 2025, so the price on the invoice is what you pay.
How do I know whether my panels are sending power out?
Check your utility bill for outflow or excess credits. DTE credits outflow at the power supply rate under Rider 18, and Consumers Energy credits excess at the power supply rate, including transmission.
What should a repair invoice show?
A written description of the fault, the part replaced and its warranty, the date and the price. Ask too whether the city wants an electrical permit for the work.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Solar photovoltaic installers (SOC 47-2231), Michigan statewide, mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025: Solar photovoltaic installers (SOC 47-2231), United States (national), mean hourly wage Read Oct 23, 2026.
- SolarPanelMatch: how we estimate costs, Michigan (editorial policy) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- MPSC: Solar Power Consumer Tips Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DTE Electric: Rooftop Solar Distributed Generation Rider 18 letter Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Consumers Energy: Distributed Generation Read Oct 23, 2026.
- MCL 339.5701 definitions (legislature.mi.gov) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- MCL 339.5737 (legislature.mi.gov) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- LARA: Electrical Examination, Licensing/Registration & Application Information Read Oct 23, 2026.
- LARA BCC-339 Electrical Permit Application (Wayback copy 2025-11-06) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Mich. Admin. Code R. 408.30801 (Cornell LII) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- LARA Bureau of Construction Codes: Code Books Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Mich. Admin. Code R. 408.30521a (Cornell LII) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DTE: Solar Panel Interconnection Process Overview Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Michigan AG: AG Nessel Files Lawsuit Against Solar Company, Financial Institutions Read Oct 23, 2026.
- IRS FAQs on OBBB changes to 25C, 25D (FS-2025-05) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- IRS: Residential Clean Energy Credit Read Oct 23, 2026.
- LARA Bureau of Construction Codes, Electrical Permit Application (BCC form) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Mich. Admin. Code R 460.984, Modifications to the DER (LII copy of the Michigan Administrative Code) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Consumers Energy, Distributed Generation program page (footer 2026) Read Oct 23, 2026.
- Consumers Energy, Standard Level 1, 2 and 3 Interconnection Agreement for projects up to 550 kW with certified equipment Read Oct 23, 2026.
- DTE Electric, Rider 16 / Rider 18 supplemental procedures (August 2023, per DTE) Read Oct 23, 2026.