Solar in Vermont starts with a roof that is under snow for a long stretch and may be slate, metal, or tired asphalt. The load, the slide, and the shade from spruce and maples matter before any talk of equipment. A soft deck or a second layer of shingles should be replaced before mounts go down. Steep village pitches and metal that sheds onto an entry change the layout. Say the material, the direction, and what the roof does in winter.
Shade from a ridge, a barn, or a tree you will not cut can erase the useful part of a short winter day. That is siting. It is not a forecast of output, and it should not be dressed up as one. Snow on a shallow slope sits. Snow on a steep metal slope leaves in a sheet. Hardware and any guards have to live with that, and with wind on an open hillside. Slate is not a casual place to drill.
Electrical service in older farmhouses and village houses is often full, small, or in a damp stone cellar. Access along a dirt road in mud season or deep snow is part of the job. Ask about structure, about flashing at each fastener, and about a leak that shows up in January under the pack. A roof near the end of its life should come first. Historic village streets may care what faces the green.
Dormers, chimneys, and stove pipes break the slope into pieces. Say where people walk and where snow is allowed to land. A connected barn roof is usually the wrong surface. Long drives and steep yards change how materials arrive. Mention trees you refuse to remove so the plan is honest on the first call.
Call with the town, the roof, and what shades it. Mention slate, metal, snow slide, or a remote drive if those are yours. Ask how the equipment stays put. Do not expect a production promise. Call the number on this page.