Roof leak at the solar panel mounts: cause, responsibility, and cost

Water staining below a solar array is usually one attachment, not the whole system, and the fix takes both trades: a solar crew lifts the affected panels and rails, a roofer repairs the deck and sets proper flashing, then the array goes back. Lifting and resetting is priced off the same $200 to $400 per panel detach and reset range, applied only to the panels that come off, with new flashed attachments at $25 to $60 each. Finding the entry point first is a $150 to $350 visit.

Check this first

Photograph the stain inside and note where it sits relative to the array. Water travels along rafters and decking, so the interior stain is often several feet from the actual penetration. The photo plus the array layout narrows the search.
Look at the array from the ground after rain. Rust streaks below a rail, a lifted or cracked tile near an attachment, a rail end that has pulled, or sealant that has cracked and shrunk are all visible from below with a phone camera zoom.
Check the age of the roof. A shingle roof past 15 years in Lee County is at the end of its insurable life under Florida Statute 627.7011(5), which lets an insurer require replacement of a roof 15 years or older that cannot pass an inspection showing five years of remaining life. If that is your roof, a patch is money spent twice.

Do not go up to investigate, and do not seal anything yourself. Roof sealant over a solar attachment is the single most common way a small leak becomes a hidden rotted deck.

What is usually wrong

What you are seeing	Likely cause	Fix and cost
Stain below one array section	One attachment without proper flashing, or failed sealant	Partial lift and reset from $200 to $400 per panel, attachments $25 to $60 each
Broken or slipped tile near a mount	Tile hook set without lifting and re-bedding the tile	Solar lift plus tile repair by the roofer
Multiple stains across the array footprint	Roof at end of life, not the mounts	Full detach and reset with the re-roof
Leak started right after a storm	Wind-lifted flashing or debris strike	Inspection $200 to $400, then repair
Water at a conduit or junction box penetration	Conduit boot or box flashing	Wiring and conduit repair $250 to $900 plus roofing
Stain near a rail end, rust marks	Corroded hardware near salt water	Attachment and hardware replacement during the lift

All ranges are on the pricing page.

Why this shows up in Lee County

Boom-era installs. A lot of Lee County solar went on between 2019 and 2023, some of it by companies that are gone: Pink Energy filed Chapter 7 on October 7, 2022, Vision Solar on December 28, 2023, Titan Solar Power closed on June 13, 2024, and SunPower filed Chapter 11 in August 2024. Their roof-penetration warranties closed with them, and the quality of the attachments varies wildly between crews.

Storms. The National Hurricane Center’s report on Ian records a Cayo Costa landfall at 130 knots on September 28, 2022 with 6 to 9 feet of surge inundation in Pine Island, Cape Coral, and the mouth of the Caloosahatchee, and the National Weather Service Tampa Bay survey documents an EF2 tornado with 132 mph winds through Fort Myers and North Fort Myers on October 9, 2024. Attachments loaded past their rating in either event can leak long afterward without a single visible failure.

Salt. Canal-front homes across the Cape, on Pine Island, and on Fort Myers Beach corrode stainless and aluminum hardware faster than inland homes do, and a corroded lag or clamp loosens, which opens the flashing.

Who is responsible for what

Florida Statute 489.105 defines a roofing contractor as one whose services are unlimited in the roofing trade, covering the installation, maintenance, repair, alteration and extension of all kinds of roofing and waterproofing, and defines a solar contractor as one whose services consist of the installation, alteration, repair, maintenance, relocation, or replacement of photovoltaic systems and their equipment. The array is the solar contractor’s, the roof surface is the roofer’s, and the flashed attachment sits exactly on the line.

The practical rule, and the one to put in writing: whoever sets the attachment warrants the roof at that point. On a leak repair that means the roofer inspects and repairs the deck and flashing while the panels are off, and the solar crew handles everything above it. Nobody gets to point at the other trade afterward. The permits and interconnection guide covers the licensing side, and the detach and reset page covers the handoff in full.

What to expect on the call

Send the interior photo, a ground photo of the array, the roof material, and the roof’s age if you know it. If the roof has years left, the fix is a partial lift scoped with your roofer and a written split of responsibility. If the roof is at the end of its life, an honest contractor will say so, because paying to lift panels twice inside two years is the worst outcome available and the honest answer is to do the leak repair as part of the re-roof.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do solar panel mounts cause roof leaks?

A correctly flashed attachment does not leak, and the panels themselves shed water. Leaks come from attachments set without flashing, sealant used instead of flashing, tile hooks that broke the tile below them, or a roof that was already at the end of its life when the array went on. The array is usually the suspect and rarely the cause.

Who fixes a leak at the solar mounts, the roofer or the solar company?

Both, in sequence. A solar crew lifts the panels and rails off the leaking area so the roofer can see and repair the deck and flashing, then resets them. Neither trade can finish the job alone, which is why the sequence and who warrants what should be agreed in writing before anyone starts.

What does it cost to lift panels to fix a leak?

A partial lift and reset is priced from the same detach and reset range of $200 to $400 per panel, applied only to the panels that have to come off. New flashed attachments are $25 to $60 each. A diagnostic and inspection visit to find the entry point first is $150 to $350.

Is the leak covered by anyone?

If the installer is still in business, its roof-penetration warranty is the first call. If the installer closed, that warranty went with it, and manufacturer warranties on panels and inverters do not cover roof work of any kind. An active homeowner policy may cover the interior damage from a sudden event but not gradual leakage.