Restart Solar reviews

Rusty L. picked Restart after interviewing several solar companies. What sold him was Robbie’s roof-first design: Robbie avoided tacking extra panels onto the north side and rejected the angled racks other companies wanted—choices Rusty felt would look terrible and might not hold up in Fontana’s high winds. Robbie stayed available for questions without the pressure of typical sales reps, and the whole team—consultants, installers, electrician, and roofers—worked professionally together. The project moved steadily through a clear timeline. On 3/2/15 he approved Restart to install the system with a reroof option. By 3/10/15 the layout went to the fire department, and on 4/16/15 the fire-approval plans were in hand and install dates were set. The electrician upgraded the main panel on 5/8/15; roofers removed tiles and installed the new roof on 5/13/15; and the solar crew completed the two-day equipment install on 5/18–19/15. They put the system in test mode on the 19th and were already producing power. Roofers returned on 5/20/15 to reinstall tiles around the arrays. An inspector signed off on 6/1/15 so the SCE application could proceed; SCE sent the final approval and tag on 6/19/15

Nathan D. bought a house in Venice on Thanksgiving 2013 and, while renovating it, stumbled into the idea of solar after a chance conversation at a hardware store. At first a different company told him his roof couldn’t support panels, but a spring 2014 referral brought him to Restart Solar where he met Jon Baston and Kyle Demarinis; they patiently walked him through a leased SunPower option, the system design, and the rebates and incentives that made it affordable. Restart engineered a solution for the roof, handled permits, navigated LADWP paperwork, and managed activation. The array went on in June 2014 and began producing power by January 2015, leaving him with lower bills and the satisfaction of running his Venice home on clean electricity. He valued the team’s professionalism and responsiveness throughout the process. The detail that stuck with him most: Restart solved what another company had ruled out and took care of every bureaucratic step, turning an intimidating idea into a working system and immediate savings.

George hired Restart Solar to put panels on his home's roof, and what stood out most was that Restart's CFO, Jason Walters, personally delivered and unloaded the panels and then oversaw the installation and activation. He first met with salesperson Jim Wakefield, who visited the house and came across as the most knowledgeable and professional of the four vendors George interviewed. Restart then sent a surveyor to measure the roof and confirm the design; the surveyor and crew remained professional and courteous throughout. After George accepted the formal quote, work began within two weeks: roofers came first, followed by the installers, and the job wrapped up within a few days. They hit a paperwork hiccup getting final approval from Southern Cal Edison, but Jason stayed responsive and courteous during the execution while overseeing the final steps. The system is up and running and George is very pleased — Restart wasn’t the cheapest or the most expensive option, but its professionalism and strong Yelp and Angie's List ratings were the deciding factors. The detail a prospective buyer should remember: senior leadership at Restart was willing to get hands-on to make sure the systemwas

Tony C. had solar panels installed on his Upland home by RCC (Restart) Solar and initially loved checking his system’s output every day through the company app. He discovered that access vanished on September 2 — roughly when the Upland office closed — and that marked the start of a breakdown in service. He called the customer-service number repeatedly and never reached a live person, left messages, and sent emails. A Marketing Director emailed promising he would be “taken care of” and that someone would call by 6 p.m.; neither promise materialized. Over the next weeks he kept sending messages and emails but got no follow-up. Nearly three months after the monitoring software failed, he still had no fix. He qualified his experience: the original installation by RCC had felt professional, so he awarded two stars, but Restart’s post-sale support left him so frustrated he would have given a negative score if possible. He now doubts the company will resolve the problem and plans to post his account on Facebook, Yelp, and elsewhere — the image that lingers is a working system turned effectively off to him for months with no live customer contact.

Michael researched solar panels extensively and settled on SunPower’s all-black modules for his home, drawn to their sleek appearance and very low long-term degradation. He hired Restart to do the installation; the crew worked quickly, stayed professional, and delivered a high-quality installation. The standout detail for him was the combination of the all-black aesthetic with panels that promise minimal degradation over time — that visual and durability pairing is what made the project feel successful.

David M. researched several installers before choosing RESTART Solar to put a 4 kW PV system on his roof, picking them for their materials and technical know-how. He opted for SunPower panels — pricier and American-made, but much more efficient — which meant using 12 panels instead of the 16–18 required by some overseas brands. That saved precious roof space and simplified the layout, even though the upfront system price was a bit higher. The installation itself looked clean and finished: the crew focused on both aesthetics and performance, and Jon and Kyle steered him through the entire process, taking care of permits and the final inspection. Six months after switch-on the array has been producing reliably and has driven his SCE bill down to zero, a payoff he credits to choosing higher-efficiency equipment and a team that handled the details.

Shari P. had a solar system installed by RCC Solar three years ago last month on her home. Since then she has never paid more than $120 to the electric company and now pays about $1.70 a month just to stay connected to the grid for nighttime power, while selling the daytime electricity her panels generate. As appliances wore out she replaced them with more efficient models — washer, dryer, dishwasher — and plans to buy a new refrigerator using utility rebates; a $50 rebate will cover the connection fee for two years. The system cost was substantial up front, but she refinanced her mortgage and the second loan on the house was absorbed by a lower interest rate, effectively removing that extra debt. Three years on, the system is essentially paid for, the panels carry another 22 years of warranty, and she anticipates free electricity going forward. The most memorable part of the experience: RCC has kept the system in shape for free, washing the panels and updating electronics at no charge, so the installation keeps delivering without surprise maintenance bills.

Todd W. heard directly from one of the company's owners about a change to the panel-cleaning schedule. The owner laid out what would be different, and the crew showed up and cleaned his panels right away. He appreciated the personal outreach and the quick, no-fuss response — the standout detail was an owner handling the communication and arranging immediate service.

Ty L. hired a crew to install SunPower panels on his home several years ago and the job quickly turned into a nightmare. He discovered installers had actually poked through his interior ceiling during the work, which led to ongoing leaks. Over time the damage forced him to have the panels reinstalled and the leaks repaired; he ultimately chose to replace the entire roof while addressing the problems. A different company later moved the panels to a new location on the roof and the system has been getting noticeably better coverage since. Ty L. singles out Restart as the original installer and warns others to avoid them, believing the business may have rebranded — he plans to track down the new name so others aren’t surprised. The image that stays with him is simple and concrete: a punctured ceiling that cascaded into leaks and a full roof replacement before the system finally started performing properly.