Solar Panel Installation Intake Forms & Client Questionnaires

A solar installation is not a one-afternoon job. Between the site survey, structural engineering review, electrical panel assessment, permit application, utility interconnection agreement, and the actual installation, a residential solar project involves more documentation than most home improvement projects combined. The difference between a smooth 6-week timeline and a 4-month headache usually comes down to what information was captured — or missed — during the initial consultation. A proper intake form ensures your sales team collects everything the engineering and permitting teams need on the first visit, not the third.

The Solar Panel Installation intake form starts with the roof. Roof type (asphalt shingle, tile, metal standing seam, flat/TPO, slate, cedar shake) determines mounting hardware and labor hours. Roof age matters because no responsible installer puts a 25-year panel system on a roof that needs replacement in five years. The form captures roof age, last inspection date, known issues (leaks, soft spots, previous repairs), and whether the customer has a warranty that could be voided by penetration mounts. Orientation and pitch are documented for each potential array location, along with any obstructions — dormers, skylights, vents, chimneys, and satellite dishes that reduce usable area.

Electrical Assessment and Utility Information

The electrical panel is the second make-or-break factor. A 100-amp panel in a 1970s ranch will almost certainly need a service upgrade before solar can be connected, and that adds $2,000 to $4,000 to the project cost. The intake form captures main breaker size, available breaker slots, panel brand and condition, and whether the home has a subpanel. It documents the utility provider, rate plan (tiered, time-of-use, or flat), and average monthly consumption in kilowatt-hours for the past 12 months. Net metering availability and the utility’s interconnection process are captured because these vary dramatically by jurisdiction and directly affect the customer’s payback calculation.

Energy consumption history is not just a nice-to-have — it is the basis for system sizing. The form asks the customer to provide or authorize access to their last 12 months of utility bills, documents any planned changes that would affect consumption (adding an EV charger, finishing a basement, installing a pool), and captures the customer’s offset goal. Some homeowners want 100% offset; others are looking for a system sized to eliminate just the highest tier of their rate plan. Without this information up front, your proposal will need revision.

Financing and Incentive Eligibility

Solar customers arrive at the consultation with widely varying expectations about how they will pay for the system, and many have misconceptions about which incentives apply to them. The intake form captures the customer’s preferred financing path — cash purchase, solar loan, lease, or power purchase agreement — and documents factors that affect eligibility. Tax incentive qualification requires owning the system (leases and PPAs transfer the credit to the developer), having sufficient federal tax liability to use the credit, and in some states meeting specific equipment or installer certification requirements.

State and local incentive programs are captured separately because they change frequently and have capacity caps. The form includes fields for state rebate programs, SREC (Solar Renewable Energy Certificate) markets, property tax exemptions, sales tax exemptions, and utility-specific rebate programs. HOA restrictions get their own section: does the customer live in an HOA, does the HOA have architectural review requirements for solar, and has the customer already submitted or been denied approval. In states with solar access laws (California, Arizona, Colorado, and others), HOA restrictions may be unenforceable, but documenting the situation up front prevents delays.

Battery Storage and Structural Assessment

Battery storage has moved from a niche add-on to a standard part of the solar conversation. The intake form captures whether the customer is interested in battery backup, their primary motivation (backup power during outages, time-of-use rate arbitrage, off-grid capability), critical loads they want backed up, and available installation space for the battery system. It documents whether the home has a generator and whether the customer wants the solar-plus-storage system to integrate with it.

Structural assessment fields capture the information your engineering team needs for the permit set: roof framing type (truss vs. rafter), rafter spacing, decking material, and whether as-built drawings are available. For ground-mount systems, the form documents available land area, soil type, setback requirements, and whether the property is in a flood zone. Shading analysis fields capture the primary shade sources (trees, neighboring structures, terrain) and the times of day when shading occurs, which directly affects panel placement and string design.

Intake vs. Client Questionnaire

The intake form is your internal project document. Your sales consultant completes it during the site visit, recording the technical measurements and observations that drive system design and permitting. The companion client questionnaire is what you send to the homeowner before the consultation. It asks about their goals, energy bills, roof history, financing preferences, and HOA status in homeowner-friendly language. It includes authorization for utility bill access, consent for a credit check if financing is selected, and a signature block for the proposal acknowledgment.

Pricing

Each form is $12.99 for the complete set (intake + questionnaire), $9.99 for intake only, or $6.99 for questionnaire only. All PDFs are fillable in Adobe Reader and password-protected against editing.

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