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Palomar Solar reviews
• updated MAR 3, 2026Loading map...
The Verdict
Palomar Solar does the work right and stays engaged long after installation. We analyzed a full range of their projects and found a pattern of one-day installs, multi-year follow-up, and customer stories that span a decade without complaint. One homeowner with a 4,600-square-foot house paid a $38 electric bill for the entire year. Another had a shattered panel replaced at no cost, even when the damage couldn't be explained. The company monitors each system remotely and flags performance drops before customers notice them. We found 128 mentions of workmanship quality and zero negative comments about follow-up support. Palomar runs both its solar and roofing crews in-house, so you avoid the blame-shifting that happens when a leak appears under new panels. They use microinverters (one per panel), so a single failure doesn't take down your whole array. The premium over competitors is real, but 80 reviewers called out long-term responsiveness, and we couldn't find a story of a warranty claim being denied or delayed.
If you want the lowest bid, you'll find it elsewhere. But if you want an installer who'll call you three years later to report a failing inverter before you've noticed, the extra cost buys accountability that lasts.
3 Stories That Stood Out
Walter R. watched his 4,600 sq ft house produce so much solar energy that his entire 2019 electric bill came to just $38 after Palomar Solar installed a system in February 2018. He shopped six different companies, asking each for both roof‑mount and ground‑mount proposals; two firms said a ground mount wasn’t possible and were dropped from consideration. Prices and system designs varied wildly, but Palomar stood out by giving a clear recommendation: go with a ground mount even though it would cost more up front. Palomar installed an inverter‑per‑panel setup (microinverters), so a single inverter failure would only take one panel offline. Other companies pushed a single, whole‑system inverter that could leave the entire array dark for weeks while waiting for service. That reliability tradeoff—paying more to avoid a complete outage—was the deciding detail for him. Adam, the Palomar sales rep, kept the pitch straightforward: the system would cost more but would be top of the line. He didn’t rely on gimmicks like free TVs or gift cards, and when Walter asked for a better price the company trimmed $1,000 from the final figure. The installation crew left almost no trace behind, took
Gary N. hired Palomar Solar to put on a new roof and a solar array about three years ago and found their work impressive from the start. He lives with an Enphase-equipped system that lets him monitor each panel and that sends a monthly performance report — which is how he noticed, near the end of a month, that one panel hadn’t been producing correctly for a few days. He called Palomar, only to learn they had already flagged the issue and opened a work order before he picked up the phone. A technician came out and uncovered something unexpected: the panel was shattered. The tech mentioned he’d seen similar breakage on homes next to golf courses, which made no sense for Gary’s house. Rather than push the problem onto the manufacturer and start a warranty fight, Palomar’s management phoned that evening and volunteered to replace the damaged panel and the converter at their own expense. He had expected a battle over liability, so the company absorbing the cost and handling the repair proactively was the detail that stuck with him.
J S followed up a decade after Palomar Solar and Roofing installed his home system and discovered the company still actively monitors and maintains what they put on the roof. He began skeptical about whether a contractor would honor repairs years into a contract, but after ten years ended up 100% satisfied. Palomar has visited his property at least three times to replace a module gateway, provides tech support when gateway communications fail, and recently flagged a failed microinverter. They notified him on April 1 about a communications issue and, just recently, arranged to replace the faulty microinverter and will be issuing a check to cover it. He doesn’t usually write reviews, but the thing that stands out is how Palomar keeps watching the system years later and steps in proactively to fix problems as they arise.
Platforms Monitored
Performance by Work Type
How We Got To Trust Score 89
Clean Record
Unauthorized Activities
Passed screening
Misleading Claims
Passed screening
Background Check
Serving customers for 15 years
Among the longest-standing installers in the market.
BBB Rating: A+
Excellent BBB standing. Strong complaint resolution.
Natural Review Patterns
Reviews were posted naturally over time.
What You Can Expect
Rick G. commissioned a residential solar system ten years ago and watched the team walk him through the design before completing the installation quickly. Over the past decade he discovered the array has been dependable, and on the rare occasions a concern popped up the crew responded and fixed it promptly. What stood out for him was the clear, efficient install process combined with durable performance and responsive service even after ten years.
Tyra waited a couple of years before writing, and after Palomar Solar fitted a 26-panel system on her home she experienced zero problems. Phil guided the process, and she found his help excellent; the installation crew worked fast and professionally. What set this experience apart was the clear, hands-on explanation of how the system works—she walked away confident in operating and troubleshooting it rather than confused. Two years later she still hasn’t had an issue, and that combination of a smooth install and straightforward education is the detail she remembers most.
About five years ago Maureen L. chose Palomar to install solar panels on her home. What mattered most to her was the online monitoring portal that lets her watch each panel’s energy production — she still checks it to see how the system performs. She found Palomar honest and fairly priced, with excellent customer service and unusually direct communication with the owner, Adam, who stayed involved throughout the process. After five years she remains extremely pleased; the combination of a live performance dashboard and a real person to call is the detail that sticks with her.
John N. has been with Palomar since he installed a battery system a little over five years ago. When Palomar took over his solar array, they also took on the warranty work, stepping in whenever a component failed. Batteries or panels that go bad get swapped out within days, with Palomar handling the logistics and charging him nothing—no drawn-out back-and-forth and no surprise bills. He highlights quick, responsive office support and on-site technicians who show up respectful, thorough, and clearly familiar with his entire system. After more than five years, what stands out for him is the dependable, hassle-free warranty coverage—fast replacements at no cost whenever something fails.
J S followed up a decade after Palomar Solar and Roofing installed his home system and discovered the company still actively monitors and maintains what they put on the roof. He began skeptical about whether a contractor would honor repairs years into a contract, but after ten years ended up 100% satisfied. Palomar has visited his property at least three times to replace a module gateway, provides tech support when gateway communications fail, and recently flagged a failed microinverter. They notified him on April 1 about a communications issue and, just recently, arranged to replace the faulty microinverter and will be issuing a check to cover it. He doesn’t usually write reviews, but the thing that stands out is how Palomar keeps watching the system years later and steps in proactively to fix problems as they arise.
Geoff H. had a Palomar solar system installed on his home several years ago and has been very satisfied with how it’s performed. After years of reliable operation, he encountered a problem with the system’s gateway, and Palomar responded with a fast, professional repair. He values that the panels have worked well over time and that service was prompt when the electronics needed attention — the quick gateway fix is the detail that stuck with him.
What convinced D M. that Palomar really follows through arrived years after the panels went up: in 2021 a main breaker failure melted parts of the electrical panel so one leg died and all 240V circuits — including the solar — stopped working. Palomar’s monitoring picked up the outage and sent an email about a month later, which D M. appreciated as concrete proof they were still watching the system long after install. Palomar had installed an Enphase system on D M.’s home in late 2018. Eric Zetmier handled the initial contact, answered detailed questions, and sized the array to cover current usage while leaving room for a future EV. The crew installed everything cleanly, but D M.’s older, compact electrical panel didn’t leave space for Enphase’s consumption monitoring hardware, so that part had to wait. After the 2021 panel failure, D M. replaced the panel and even had a new SDG&E service line trenched in under new city rules — work done by another contractor because Palomar wasn’t taking on service-line trenching at the time. Eric still helped by pointing D M. toward alternative options to investigate. In early 2022, D M. reached back out to see if the new panel had room for
Seven years ago, facing SDGE electric bills that climbed to nearly $1,000 a month, Josie A. had Palomar Solar’s owner, Adam Rizzo, install rooftop panels on her San Diego home. She ended up with a trouble-free system that didn’t just cut costs but produced utility credits year after year — last year those credits topped $750. Over the first five years the array more than paid for itself. What stood out most was the follow-up: Adam and the Palomar team have always been a phone call away to answer any question, and as recently as today Adam personally responded when she questioned San Diego Community Power’s automatic enrollment. She describes them as honest, friendly and dependable, with high-quality equipment and service, and the two concrete takeaways that stick are the sustained owner access and a system that now returns money to her utility account.
Carter contacted Palomar Solar in 2020, reaching out to Erik Z for a quote on a solar array for his ranch-style home in Laguna Niguel. Erik arrived to inspect the roof within two days and came back the next day with options. Carter chose the maximum number of panels the roof could support and signed a contract. The office handled paperwork and permits without hiccups, then moved the install date earlier than planned; the crew completed the entire rooftop installation in a single day. Installers worked quickly, left the site clean, and Erik followed up afterward to confirm everything was working — he was satisfied. Two years later Carter asked Erik for a battery-backup quote. Erik again responded immediately and the team took over the permitting and logistics. Although they warned permitting could take up to six months, Palomar got the battery system in place in under 90 days. As with the panels, the installers were conscientious, efficient and courteous. What stands out from both projects is the company’s speed and follow-through: a full roof install finished in one day and a battery backup delivered far sooner than the six-month permitting estimate.
Long-term Satisfaction
Long-term satisfaction for Palomar Solar holds steady at 4.8 ★. This is better than 68% of installers we looked at.
Long-term reviews carry the most weight in our methodology because they are most representative of what you should be paying for: a system that will perform for years.