---
title: My installer has gone out of business. Who services my system now?
description: Your solar installer has closed. Here's what still works, what's still covered, and the five steps to get your system looked after again.
---

[Solar Guides for Johannesburg Homeowners | CleanVolts](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides)

# [My installer has gone out of business. Who services my system now?](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-installer-out-of-business)

 Written by [Tony Lopes](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/author/tony-lopes) | Oct 5, 2026, 11:10:08 AM

During load shedding, thousands of new solar companies opened almost overnight. Many have since closed, merged or moved on to other work. If yours is one of them, you're not alone.

The good news is that your system doesn't stop working because the company that installed it has gone. The less good news is that nobody is keeping an eye on it any more, and the support you were promised went with them.

Here's what that means, and what to do about it.

## **What You've Lost, and What You Haven't**

Most solar systems come with two kinds of cover:

- **Equipment warranties** come from the manufacturers of the inverter, battery and panels. These usually still stand, because they belong to the equipment, not the installer.
- **A workmanship warranty** comes from the installer and covers the quality of the installation itself. When the installer closes, this generally goes with them.

You've also lost whoever was watching your system. Many installers kept an eye on their customers' systems through the monitoring portal and quietly adjusted settings or spotted faults early. That has stopped too.

What hasn't changed is your responsibility. As the owner, you're responsible for keeping the system safe, whether or not the installer is still around. Our guide to [your legal duty as a solar system owner](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-owner-legal-responsibility) explains what that involves.

## **Step 1: Gather Your Paperwork**

Find everything you got when the system went in:

- The Certificate of Compliance and its test report
- The quote or invoice, ideally listing the equipment by brand and model
- Warranty documents for the inverter, battery and panels
- Any commissioning report or handover notes

If you're missing the equipment details, take clear photos of the labels on the inverter and battery. They show the brand, model and serial number, which is what a manufacturer needs for a warranty claim. Photograph them from a safe distance; don't remove any covers.

## **Step 2: Check Where Your Warranties Stand**

With the brand and serial numbers in hand, contact the manufacturer or its local distributor. Ask:

- Is the equipment still under warranty, and until when?
- How do I make a claim now that my installer has closed?
- Was the product registered, and if not, can I register it now?

Some warranties have conditions, such as the equipment being installed to the manufacturer's specifications, or a battery being kept within certain temperatures. A claim can be refused if those weren't met, which is one more reason to have the installation checked.

## **Step 3: Get Your Monitoring Access Back**

Your inverter's app or online portal is your early-warning system. It shows alarms, faults and how much power the panels are producing.

Many installers set up the monitoring under their own account and only gave the owner viewing access, or none at all. If you can't log in, or can't see your system's settings, contact the inverter manufacturer or distributor. They can usually help move the system to your own account, or to the account of whoever takes over looking after it.

Once you're back in, check for active alarms and compare recent output with the same time last year. Our guide on [whether your system is underperforming](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/is-my-solar-system-underperforming) shows you how.

## **Step 4: Have the System Inspected**

A new provider taking over someone else's installation should start with a proper inspection rather than just carrying on where the old installer left off. A good takeover inspection covers:

- **Safety:** wiring, isolation, earthing, labelling and signs of heat or damage
- **Paperwork:** whether the CoC covers the solar work and whether the system is registered with City Power
- **Performance:** what the panels are producing against what they should
- **Battery health:** how much capacity the battery has left
- **Settings:** whether the system is still configured for load shedding when it should now be set up to [cut your bill](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/what-solar-is-for-after-load-shedding)

Some installers are reluctant to touch another company's work, because they don't want to take on responsibility for problems they didn't create. An inspection solves that: it records the system's condition on the day, so everyone knows what they're starting from.

Want to see how your system shapes up first? Our [10 checks you can do yourself](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/was-my-solar-installed-properly) will give you a good idea.

## **Step 5: Close Any Gaps**

The inspection will tell you whether anything needs doing. The most common gaps on orphaned systems are:

- **No CoC, or one that doesn't cover the solar.** See our guide to [what a CoC does and doesn't mean](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-certificate-of-compliance).
- **No SSEG registration.** See [SSEG registration in Johannesburg](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/sseg-registration-johannesburg).
- **An ageing battery.** See [battery lifespan and replacement cost](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/battery-lifespan-replacement-cost).

Fix the safety issues first, then the paperwork, then performance.

## **A Word of Caution**

Owners of orphaned systems are sometimes told the whole thing needs replacing. Occasionally it does. More often, a few targeted repairs and the right settings are enough.

Before you agree to major work, ask for the inspection findings in writing, with each recommendation explained. If the advice is to replace equipment that's still under warranty, ask why a warranty claim isn't the better route.

## **Where We Fit In**

Taking over orphaned systems is a big part of what we do. A Solar Health Check gives you a clear picture of where your system stands: whether it's safe, whether it's performing and whether the paperwork is in order. We can also help you get your monitoring access and warranty details sorted out.

Where we find work that needs doing, a registered electrical contractor you contract directly does it and issues the CoC in their own name. We [scope it, coordinate it and check it's done](https://cleanvolts.co.za/remediation).

We work across Blairgowrie, Linden, Randburg, Ferndale, Northcliff, Fairland, Emmarentia, Greenside, Parkhurst and the suburbs around them.

[**Book a Health Check**](https://cleanvolts.co.za/book-an-audit), or start with our free checklist, "[Is your solar system legal and safe?](https://cleanvolts.co.za/checklist)".

[View full post](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-installer-out-of-business)

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