---
title: Was your solar installed properly? 10 checks you can do yourself
description: Ten safe, look-don't-touch checks that show whether your solar system was installed properly, what each finding means, and when to get it looked at.
---

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

# [Was your solar installed properly? 10 checks you can do yourself](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/was-my-solar-installed-properly)

 Written by [Tony Lopes](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/author/tony-lopes) | Oct 5, 2026, 11:01:11 AM

Between 2022 and 2024, South Africa installed solar faster than it could train people to install it. Good installers had waiting lists. Everyone else got whoever could come soonest.

Plenty of those systems were installed well. Some weren't. And because a solar system can run for years with a hidden problem, most owners have no idea which kind they have.

These ten checks will give you a good idea. None of them needs tools, and none of them needs you to open anything.

## **Before You Start: Look, Don't Touch**

Every one of these checks is visual. Please keep it that way:

- **Don't open your DB board, the inverter or the battery.** There are no user-serviceable parts inside.
- **Don't touch the cables from the panels.** Panels produce voltage whenever light falls on them, even with everything switched off.
- **Don't go up on the roof.** You can check everything that matters from the ground.

If anything looks burnt, smells hot or makes a noise it shouldn't, stop and get it looked at.

## **1. You Have a CoC That Covers the Solar**

A solar system is an addition to your electrical installation and needs its own Certificate of Compliance, with a test report attached. The certificate you got when you bought the house doesn't cover solar that went in afterwards.

Find yours and check that it mentions the inverter, panels or battery. If you can't find one at all, that's the first thing to fix. Our guide to [what a CoC does and doesn't mean](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-certificate-of-compliance) explains how to read it.

## **2. The System Is Registered With City Power**

A grid-connected system needs to be registered as small-scale embedded generation (SSEG). Many systems put in during load shedding never were. If you're not sure whether yours is, our guide to [SSEG registration in Johannesburg](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/sseg-registration-johannesburg) covers what's needed.

## **3. You Know Who Installed It, and What They Installed**

You should have the installer's details, an invoice listing the equipment by brand and model, and the warranty documents for the inverter, battery and panels.

Try calling the installer. A surprising number of companies from the rush years have closed. If yours has, the equipment warranties usually still stand through the supplier, but you'll want someone else to take over looking after the system.

## **4. The Inverter and Battery Have Room to Breathe**

Inverters and batteries make heat, and heat shortens their lives. Look at where yours are mounted:

- Is there clear space around them, or are they boxed into a cupboard?
- Are they out of direct sun and rain?
- Is the area clear of clutter, paint tins and anything flammable?

Each manufacturer specifies the clearances its equipment needs. A cramped, hot spot is one of the most common shortcuts we see.

## **5. Isolators Are Fitted and Labelled**

A properly installed system lets someone safely cut off each source of power: the panels, the battery and the grid. You should be able to see isolators or breakers for each, clearly labelled.

Your DB board should also carry a warning that the installation has more than one source of supply. Anyone working on your electrics, including a firefighter, needs to know that switching off the main breaker doesn't make the house dead.

Don't switch anything to test it. Just check it's there and labelled.

## **6. Cables Are Neat, Supported and Protected**

Follow the cable runs you can see. Good work looks tidy: cables in conduit or trunking, fixed at regular intervals, and protected where they pass through walls or along the roofline.

Warning signs are cables hanging loose, lying across the roof unsupported, tied on with cable ties that have gone brittle in the sun, or squeezed through gaps where they can rub.

## **7. The Panel Frames Are Earthed**

The metal frames and mounting rails should be bonded to earth. You can often see this from the ground or a window with your phone's zoom: green-and-yellow cables connected to the rails. If you can't see any sign of earthing, it's worth asking about.

## **8. The Roof and Ceiling Look Right**

From the ground, check that the panels sit in straight, even rows and that none are tilted, cracked or lifting. Look for slipped or broken tiles around them.

Then check inside. Damp marks or stains on the ceiling under the panels can mean the roof was damaged when the mounts went in.

## **9. There Are No Signs of Heat or Damage**

Look at the inverter, the battery, the isolators and the DB board for:

- Brown or black marks, or melted plastic
- A hot or burning smell
- A battery case that looks swollen
- Buzzing, crackling or a fan that runs constantly

Any of these means stop and get help. Don't wait for it to get worse.

## **10. The Monitoring App Is Happy**

Open your inverter's app or display. Check for active alarms or fault codes, and look at how much the panels produced on a clear day compared with a year ago. If you've lost access to the app, that's worth fixing too: it's your early-warning system.

Our guide on [whether your system is underperforming](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/is-my-solar-system-underperforming) walks you through reading the numbers.

## **What Your Results Mean**

- **All ten look fine:** good news. Keep your paperwork somewhere safe and check the app every few months.
- **Paperwork gaps (checks 1 to 3):** not dangerous in themselves, but they matter for insurance and when you sell. Fix them before you need them.
- **Installation issues (checks 4 to 8):** get an inspection soon. These are the shortcuts that turn into faults.
- **Any sign of heat or damage (check 9):** get it looked at now.

Remember that as the owner, you're responsible for your system's safety. Our guide to [your legal duty as a solar system owner](https://cleanvolts.co.za/guides/solar-owner-legal-responsibility) explains what that means.

## **Where We Fit In**

These checks tell you whether something looks wrong. A Solar Health Check tells you what's actually going on: whether the system is safe, whether it's performing, and what needs attention.

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/was-my-solar-installed-properly)

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