Solar panel detach and reset.
Your roof needs replacing and there is an array on it. We take the panels off, build the roof, put them back and recommission the system - one company, one license, one warranty call.
Get My Free Roof InspectionA roof underneath a solar array cannot be replaced with the panels in place. They have to come off, the roof gets rebuilt, and the system goes back on and is recommissioned. That service is called a detach and reset, and it is the single most common reason a homeowner with solar ends up stuck between two contractors who each say the other one owns the problem.
CRE Roofing does both. We are an Oklahoma registered roofing contractor that has been installing residential solar since 2018, so the same company de-energizes the system, pulls the array, tears off and rebuilds the roof, remounts the panels on new flashings and verifies the system is producing again.
Why it matters who does it
An array is dozens of penetrations through your roof deck. Every one of them is re-flashed during the reset. When a roofing crew that has never mounted a panel does the remount, or a solar crew that has never torn off a roof does the flashing, that is where the leak comes from - and by then nobody will own it.
How a detach and reset runs
System shutdown
The array is de-energized at the disconnect and the inverter, in the right order, before anyone gets near a panel.
Detach and store
Panels, rails and attachments come off and are stored, labeled by string so the system goes back exactly as it was wired.
Roof replacement
Full tear-off, decking repair, new underlayment and flashing. The section under the array usually needs the most decking work - it is the part nobody has looked at in years.
Reset on new flashings
New mounts and new flashings at every penetration. We do not reuse old flashings on a new roof.
Recommission
System brought back up, strings verified, production confirmed. The job is not finished until it is making power again.
Documentation
You get the photo record of the work, which is what your solar warranty provider will ask for if it ever comes up.
If it is a storm claim, the reset belongs in the scope.
When hail takes a roof that has solar on it, the detach and reset is part of the cost of restoring that roof - and it is frequently missing from the carrier's initial scope of loss.
It is a supplement, and it is one that gets paid when it is documented properly: photographed array, panel count, string layout, and a line-item scope for the removal and reinstall. This is exactly the kind of item a roofer with no solar capability does not think to ask for.
For roofing contractors
Hit an array on a job and have nobody to call?
We do detach and reset work for other Oklahoma roofing companies. You keep the roofing job and the customer relationship; we handle the array, the electrical and the recommissioning, and we stay off your roof otherwise.
Call the office at (405) 234-7929 and ask for detach and reset scheduling.
Common questions
Do you have to remove solar panels to replace a roof?
Yes. A roof cannot be torn off and rebuilt underneath a mounted array. The panels, rails and attachments all come off, the roof is replaced, and the system goes back on and is recommissioned. The industry name for that service is a detach and reset.
What does a solar panel detach and reset cost?
It is priced by the number of panels, the number of arrays, the roof pitch, and whether the existing racking and flashings can be reused or have to be replaced. It is quoted as its own line item alongside the roof, and we quote both at the same visit so you see one total instead of two companies pointing at each other.
Will removing the panels void my solar warranty?
It can, depending on who does the work and how it is documented. Some manufacturer and workmanship warranties require the removal and reinstall to be performed by a qualified installer and documented. Ask your original solar company what their warranty requires before anyone touches the array - and get the detach and reset documented either way.
What happens to the system while the roof is being built?
The array is de-energized at the disconnect first, then removed and stored on site or off site depending on the job. The system is off for the duration of the roof work and is recommissioned and verified as producing before we call the job finished.
Can my roofer just work around the panels?
Not on a full replacement. A roofer who offers to shingle around an array is leaving the worst section of your roof - the one with dozens of penetrations under it - untouched, which is where the next leak comes from.
I am a roofing company and I hit an array on a job. Can you help?
Yes. We do detach and reset work for other Oklahoma roofing contractors who do not carry solar capability in house. You keep the roofing job; we handle the array. Call the office.
Where we work
Oklahoma and Missouri, both in full.
Two home states, not one plus a side territory. Our office is in Warr Acres and we run crews across Oklahoma and Missouri, with active work in Texas. If hail hit your town, call and we will tell you straight whether we are already working your area.
Get a straight answer about your roof.
A free, no-obligation inspection from a CRE Roofing crew member, with photos of whatever we find and a plain-language explanation of your options.
Get My Free Roof Inspection