Three warranties, three different layers of protection.

1. Panel performance warranty — 25 years

A Tier-1 monocrystalline solar panel from a maker such as Q Cells, REC or Maxeon comes with a power-output warranty of at least 25 years: the manufacturer guarantees the panel will produce at least 85–92% of its rated wattage at year 25.

Translation: a 400 W panel covered at 92% will produce at least 368 W at year 25. In real world Long Island sunlight, panels typically over-perform their warranty curves — most installs see 90%+ retention at year 25 in practice.

On top of the performance warranty, Tier-1 brands also include a 12–25 year product warranty against defects (delamination, hotspots, junction-box failure). Budget brands often skip the product warranty.

2. Inverter warranty — 12 years (extendable)

Inverters work harder than panels — they handle every kWh the system produces, day in and day out. Standard warranties: Enphase microinverters ship with a 25-year warranty, SolarEdge and other string inverters with 12 years (extendable to 20–25 for an added fee).

The most likely failure mode in any solar system over 15 years is an inverter — Long Island humidity + summer heat stresses electronics. The warranty includes a free replacement unit; the labor to swap it is normally out of pocket, so it is worth checking what a prospective installer charges for that before you sign.

3. Workmanship warranty — 10 years

The workmanship warranty covers the installer's labor: roof penetrations + flashing, panel mounting, electrical conduit, conduit-to-junction-box terminations, monitoring setup. Standard across the Long Island residential solar industry is 10 years.

The most common workmanship claim is a roof leak. Properly flashed and sealed solar mounts almost never leak — but if one does, the workmanship warranty covers full repair, including any drywall or insulation damage caused by the leak.

What happens if your installer goes out of business?

Solar installers go under more than you'd think — especially residential-only shops that rode the federal tax credit, which ended for purchased systems at the end of 2025. When that happens:

- Panel and inverter warranties are unaffected. The manufacturer honors them directly — Q Cells, Enphase, Tesla, SolarEdge, etc. all have direct warranty claim paths. You file with the manufacturer; they ship a replacement.

- Workmanship warranty lapses. If your installer is gone, the workmanship warranty has no one to honor it. This is the real risk of going with a shop that may not be around in 10 years.

- Practical consequence. A homeowner with an orphaned system can still claim equipment from the manufacturer, but has to find a contractor willing to do the labor. That is worth pricing into the decision when you compare quotes today.

Brand by brand: read the spec sheet, not the sales sheet

Equipment selection changes the warranty you own, and the module market has turned over enough since 2024 that reputation is a poor guide.

• Q Cells warrants its Q.PEAK and Q.TRON residential modules for 25 years product and 25 years performance, with the TOPCon cells holding the higher end-of-term output figure. Panels are built in Dalton, Georgia, which shortens a replacement cycle.
• REC ships a 20-year product warranty as standard but extends it to 25 years including labor under REC ProTrust when the array is installed by a REC Certified Solar Professional. That certification is the difference between a 20-year parts warranty and a 25-year parts-and-labor warranty on the same panel, so ask about it by name.
• Maxeon warrants its 6 and 7 series modules for 40 years, product and performance. The US company formerly trading as SunPower filed for bankruptcy in 2024 and its warranty obligations were not transferred intact; if a quote includes SunPower-branded hardware, ask in writing which legal entity administers the warranty today.
• Panasonic announced in 2024 that it was exiting panel manufacturing. Installed EverVolt modules keep their 25-year AllGuard coverage as a contractual obligation, but service now runs through a partner network. Anyone quoting Panasonic panels from remaining stock should put the claims process in writing.

Inverters are the shortest clock in the system. Enphase IQ8 microinverters carry 25 years in the US. SolarEdge inverters ship with 12 years, extendable to 20 or 25 for a fee, and the extension has to be bought near commissioning, not in year eleven. On the storage side, a Tesla Powerwall 3 carries 10 years, and an Enphase IQ Battery 5P carries 15 years or roughly 6,000 cycles with a 60 percent capacity floor. If battery storage is part of the plan, that 10-versus-15-year difference is a real cost input, not a detail.

Does a home warranty cover solar panels? Almost never

This is the single most common misunderstanding. A home warranty, the annual service contract sold at closing, covers appliances and mechanical systems that wear out. Nearly every major plan excludes rooftop photovoltaic equipment by name, and the ones that mention solar usually cover only a conventional solar water heater.

What does apply is your homeowners policy. Permanently attached roof-mounted panels are generally treated as part of the dwelling under Coverage A, which means hail, wind and falling-limb damage are insurance claims, not warranty claims. Two practical steps for a north-shore house: tell your carrier the array exists and raise the dwelling limit by the replacement cost of the system, and read your wind or hurricane deductible, which on a Centerport or Northport policy is often a percentage of the dwelling limit rather than a flat dollar figure. A nor'easter that strips twelve modules is not a manufacturer defect, and no one at the panel company will take the call.

What voids coverage on a Long Island roof

Most denied claims trace to four causes, and three of them are avoidable.

1. Cleaning damage. Pressure washing, metal scrapers and roof rakes scratch the anti-reflective coating. Ground-level rinsing with a hose is the accepted method.
2. Unpermitted modification. Any electrical change after commissioning, such as an added circuit, a swapped inverter or a DIY battery tie-in, needs a permit and an inspection. NEC 690.12 rapid shutdown compliance and NEC 705 interconnection rules are what the inspector is checking, and PSEG Long Island's interconnection agreement assumes the as-approved configuration.
3. A roofer working alone. When shingles get replaced, panels must come off and go back on per the mounting instructions. Removing and reinstalling the array is a separate job and not a warranty item, which is the real argument for sequencing the two jobs. See when to replace your roof before going solar.
4. Installation that departed from the manual. NEC 110.3(B) requires equipment to be installed per its listing and labeling, and every module maker writes the same requirement into its warranty exclusions. Rail spans, clamp zones and torque values are not suggestions.

Keep the permit file. The town building permit sign-off and the final electrical inspection are the documents a manufacturer asks for when a claim gets interesting, and the documents a buyer's attorney asks for at closing.

Before you sign

Warranty terms belong in the contract, not in a brochure — panel product and power-output terms, inverter term and whether it is extendable, battery term if one is included, the workmanship period and exactly what it covers, and who holds the monitoring subscription. Ask for the warranty letter before you sign; if an installer cannot produce one, walk away.