Attention California Contractors

In seven months, all new homes in California will require a solar-power system, as dictated by the state’s 2019 Building Energy Efficiency Standards for Residential and Nonresidential Buildings. It’s the most recent update in a series of codes aimed at bringing all new California homes to zero-net-energy use by next year. 

As the requirement states, all low-rise residential buildings shall have a photovoltaic system meeting the minimum qualification requirements as specified in Joint Appendix JA11 (found at energy.ca.gov), with annual electrical output equal to or greater than the dwelling’s annual electrical usage. 

While this will be most immediately significant for remodelers who double as custom home builders, the long-term effect will be more remodelers and exterior replacement contractors, especially roofers, encountering solar-power systems on jobsites.