Every other article argues that solar is worth doing. This one answers the question that stalls the decision after the numbers are agreed: what happens to your building while we build it. Taken from a live program, not a brochure.
Every commercial solar conversation reaches the same point. The numbers stack up, the roof is fine, the board is warm, and then whoever runs the building asks the question that nobody put in the proposal.
How long will you be on my roof, and when do you turn my power off?
It is the right question. A building full of staff, or residents, or stock, cannot stop for a fortnight while somebody bolts panels down. So here is the honest answer, taken from a job we are on site with right now. Just over 400 kW on a commercial roof. Not a brochure timeline, the actual program.
About seven working weeks from the first day on site to practical completion. One interruption to your power, of two to four hours, on a date you pick, usually a weekend.
That is it. Everything else happens around you.
On systems up to 100 kW, the STC discount comes off your quote up front. You do not claim it back later and you do not chase anyone for it, because the paperwork is ours. From 1 October 2026 that limit is expected to rise to 1 MW, subject to the regulations being made. Until then it stays at 100 kW.
Send us your latest electricity bill and we'll come back with the recommended system, your annual savings, your savings over 10 and 15 years, the CO2 offset, and the price after the rebate. At no cost and no obligation.
Send us your bill →The work is deliberately sequenced so that the noisy, heavy and disruptive parts are finished before anything touches your electrical system.
Week one: setting up. Fencing, signage, site amenities, roof access and fall protection, and the first deliveries of lifts, racking and rail. Nothing electrical happens yet. If you have staff parking or a loading dock, this is the week we agree where our compound goes and where the trucks come in.
Weeks one to three: the roof frame. The racking and rail that the panels sit on goes down first, then the cable trays that carry the wiring. About two working weeks of it. Noise is on the roof, not in the building.
Weeks two to five: panels. The wiring on the roof gets run and joined up, then the panels themselves go on and get terminated. On a job this size that is the longest single stretch, roughly three weeks, and it is also the least disruptive. You will see people on the roof and very little else.
Week five: the connection. This is the only part that reaches into your building. The cable from your main switchboard to the new solar board gets run, the solar board is set and wired, and the inverters are mounted and connected. Two days, mostly in the roof cavity.
Week five or six: the shutdown. Two to four hours with your power off, so the new gear can be tied into your main switchboard safely. You get a week's notice, in writing, and we schedule it for whenever hurts least. On most sites that is a weekend morning.
Week six: testing and commissioning. Insulation and polarity testing, inspections against the agreed test plan, a quality closeout and a punch list, then commissioning. Three or four days, and none of it touches your supply.
Week six or seven: switch-on. The system is energised once the local network operator accepts it.
Week seven: handover. As-built drawings, certifications, the operating and maintenance manuals, and training for whoever looks after the building. Then practical completion, your review and acceptance of the works, and a twelve month defects period starts.
We will not pretend the date is ours to promise.
The network. Your system goes live when the local network operator accepts the connection, not when we finish. That approval sits with them, it runs on its own timeline, and it is applied for early precisely because it is the one item that can move the switch-on date. Anyone who guarantees you an energisation date is guaranteeing something they do not own.
The weather. Roof work stops in wind and rain. We build a contingency allowance into the program rather than quietly running late, because a program with no allowance in it is a program that was always going to slip.
The outage is short because almost none of the work needs your power off. Roof frame, wiring, panels, the new solar board and the inverters are all built alongside your live system. Only the final tie in to your main switchboard requires the power down, and that is a couple of hours of work by people who have done it before.
It comes in writing, a week ahead, because on a real site the electrician is not the only person affected. Somebody has to move a cool room load, or reschedule a shift, or tell a tenant, or plan around a kitchen. A verbal heads up on the day is how a two hour outage turns into a complaint.
Aged care and retirement living are the sharpest version of this. We are currently delivering rooftop solar across a group of homes in the ACT and NSW, from 180 kW to 300 kW per site, and on those jobs the program is written around the home rather than around the crew.
Showers and laundry in the morning, the kitchen through lunch, air conditioning through the afternoon. Clinical equipment that does not stop for anyone. Roof access above rooms where people sleep. The engineering is the same as any commercial roof. The scheduling is not, and it is the scheduling that decides whether the job is tolerable for the people who live there.
Same principle for a club with a Friday night, a factory with a production run, or a school with exams. Tell us what your week looks like before we build the program, not after.
Two things worth knowing before you compare quotes, because they change what the number on the page means.
The discount is already in the price, or it should be. On a system up to 100 kW the STC discount is applied to your quote rather than paid to you afterwards. If one quote looks cheaper than another, check whether both are quoting the price after the rebate. They often are not, and that alone can account for the gap. Our STC calculator will give you a rough figure to check a quote against.
The 1 MW change has not happened yet. It was announced on 5 August 2026 and is expected to start from 1 October 2026, subject to the necessary regulations being in place. The Clean Energy Regulator's own page still states 100 kW. Anyone telling you today that a 400 kW roof qualifies is ahead of the law. If your project sits between 100 kW and 1 MW, the sensible move is to get it designed and quoted now and to plan the installation date around the change, because the date that matters is when the system goes in.
The value of a certificate is set by the market at the time, so no honest quote carries a rebate figure with no date on it.
Whoever you are talking to, ask these five before you sign.
If the answers are vague, the program is vague.
Send us your latest electricity bill and we'll come back with your annual savings, your savings over 10 and 15 years, the recommended system and the CO2 offset. At no cost and no obligation.
Send us your bill →How long does a commercial solar installation take?
On a rooftop system of around 400 kW, expect about seven working weeks from the first day on site to practical completion, plus the network operator's connection approval, which runs on its own timeline. Smaller systems are shorter. The sequence is the same at any size.
Does my power need to be switched off?
Once, for two to four hours, so the new equipment can be connected into your main switchboard safely. Everything else is built alongside your live supply. The outage date is yours to choose and we confirm it in writing a week ahead.
Can you work around our operating hours?
Yes, and it should be agreed before the program is written rather than negotiated during it. On sites with residents, patients, members or production runs, the schedule is built around the site's week.
What do we get at handover?
As-built drawings, certifications, operating and maintenance documentation and training for your facilities people, followed by a defects period during which we remain responsible for putting things right.
Is there a rebate on commercial solar, and how does it reach me?
On systems up to 100 kW, the STC discount comes off the price of the system before you pay, and we handle the certificate paperwork. From 1 October 2026 the limit is expected to rise to 1 MW, subject to the regulations being made, which would bring most mid-sized commercial roofs into it. Eligibility depends on the system, the equipment, accredited installation and a site assessment.
Who is responsible if something fails later?
We design it, we build it, and we maintain it, so there is one company to call. That is the point of the structure, and it matters most in year three, not week one.
Rebate references describe the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme as it stands at the date of publication. The certificate value is set by the market at the time of installation and is subject to change with market and policy. Eligibility depends on system size, equipment, accredited installation and a site assessment. The expansion of the scheme to 1 MW has been announced and is expected to commence from 1 October 2026, subject to the necessary regulations being in place. It is not in force.
Timings describe the delivery program for a specific commercial rooftop project of just over 400 kW and are indicative only. Actual programs vary with system size, roof type, site access, switchboard configuration, weather and the connection requirements of the local network operator. Energisation dates are subject to network acceptance and are not guaranteed.
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