My solar panels stopped producing. What now?

Panels themselves rarely just stop. They degrade slowly, a fraction of a percent a year. When production drops to zero overnight, the inverter is the first place to look, because it's the component doing the constant work of converting your panels' DC power into the AC your house uses.

Inverter type also tells you how worried to be about the warranty clock. String inverters typically carry 10 to 12 years of coverage, while microinverters and power optimizers are often warranted for around 25 years.^[1] If your system is eight years old and the string inverter quit, you may still be inside the window. Knowing which hardware you have is step one.

A solar system isn't covered by one warranty, it's covered by three, and they don't all point to the same company. The panels carry a manufacturer warranty, usually around 25 years. The inverter carries its own: Enphase backs its IQ microinverters with a 25-year limited warranty, for example, while a typical SolarEdge inverter comes with a 12-year term that can be extended for a fee.^[1][2] And the workmanship, the actual install, is warranted by your installer.

This matters because of who you call. A dead microinverter is the manufacturer's problem. A leaking roof penetration is the installer's. A panel that fails a flash test is the panel maker's. The error code and the component tell you which warranty applies, so write the code down before anyone talks you into an out-of-pocket repair you might not owe.

On a lease or PPA, you don't own the equipment, so you're not the one chasing the manufacturer. The company that owns the system is contractually on the hook to keep it running, and if you have a production guarantee, sustained underproduction may entitle you to a credit. Don't quietly absorb a dead system you're still paying for. Put the provider on notice in writing and hold them to the agreement.