Northridge, CA · January – April 2021 · LADWP / LADBS
No wire to the house. The service runs underground.
Five point one kilowatts on a two-storey house with an underground service. Permit set in March, permission to operate in April.
Whether a house is fed overhead or underground is recorded on the utility's work request and it shapes the site visit, the meter spot and where the solar connection lands. It does not change what goes on the roof.
At a glance
- System
- 5.1 kW AC-CEC
- Service
- Underground
- Modules
- Canadian Solar 320 W
- Inverter
- SolarEdge HD-Wave
- Permit set to PTO
- Six weeks
- Utility site visit
- Required
- Utility / AHJ
- LADWP / LADBS
The story
The first thing the utility's own work request says about this house is not the system size. It is two letters: UG. The service is underground — no drop from a pole, no wire across the garden, the supply arriving from below.
That matters for the parts of a solar job that happen at ground level. The utility sends someone out to look before it commits to anything, and where the meter sits and how the new connection reaches it are settled on that visit rather than on a drawing.
On the roof it changes nothing. Canadian Solar 320 watt modules in a long run down the main slope, a SolarEdge HD-Wave inverter on the wall, and a junction box on the roof where the array wiring is collected and bonded before it goes down the conduit.
The calendar was short. Two proposals in early January, the permit set received in the second week of March, the utility's site visit two weeks later, the first four progress notices in a single day on the twenty-fifth, the installation released on the fifth of April and permission to operate on the twentieth. Six weeks from permit set to switch-on.
On this house the underground service meant the same roof work, a site visit from the utility and a meter spot settled on the ground rather than on a drawing. Whether yours is handled the same way depends on what the utility finds when it looks.
How it ran
| 5 January 2021 | Two proposals issued |
|---|---|
| 10 March 2021 | Permit set received; interconnection request filed |
| 23 March 2021 | Utility site visit required and attended |
| 25 March 2021 | Four progress notices; solar site evaluation complete |
| 5 April 2021 | Solar service installation released |
| 20 April 2021 | Permission to operate — 5.1 kW AC-CEC |
Six weeks from permit set to permission to operate.
What we did
- Issued two proposals before the design was fixed.
- Filed the interconnection request the same week the permit set arrived.
- Attended the utility's required site visit on an underground-served house.
- Installed Canadian Solar 320 watt modules with a SolarEdge HD-Wave inverter.
- Carried the project from permit set to permission to operate in six weeks.
System specifications
| System | 5.1 kW AC-CEC |
|---|---|
| Service | Underground |
| Modules | Canadian Solar CS1H-320MS, 320 W |
| Inverter | SolarEdge HD-Wave, wall mounted |
| Roof | Composition shingle, two-storey house |
| Roof wiring | Collected and bonded in a roof junction box |
| Utility / AHJ | LADWP / LADBS |
Is your project like this one?
- Your street has no power poles and you want to know whether that complicates solar.
- You want a single string inverter rather than microinverters.
- You want to know what a job looks like when nothing goes wrong.
- You are being asked for a utility site visit and do not know why.
- The utility has asked for a site visit and you want to know what it is for.
Cali Energy in Northridge
Northridge is inside City of Los Angeles boundaries: permits run through LADBS, interconnection through LADWP.
The newer tracts on the hill side of Northridge were built with the service underground, which changes where the utility looks when it comes to set the meter.
This installation is on the Northridge projects page alongside the others, and what the work covers is set out on the Northridge service area page.
- License and classifications: CSLB #1032379
- Official reference for this process: LADWP Electric Service Requirements
- Official reference for this process: LADBS — inspections
Frequently asked questions
Does an underground service change the solar installation?
Not on the roof. It shapes the ground-level part: the utility's site visit, where the meter sits and how the new connection reaches it. On this project the service is recorded as underground on the utility's own work request.
Why does the utility need a site visit?
To see the existing service before committing to the connection. On this project the visit was requested and attended, and the four progress notices followed two days later.
What is the roof junction box for?
It is where the array wiring is collected and bonded before it runs down the conduit to the inverter. On this roof it sits at the top of the array.
How long did this project take?
Six weeks from the permit set arriving to permission to operate, with the proposals issued two months before that.
Do you quote more than one option?
On this house the owner had two proposals in January before anything was drawn. We quote more than one where the roof supports more than one sensible answer.
Does Cali Energy work on underground-served houses in Northridge?
Yes. Cali Energy holds B, C-10 and C-39 classifications under CSLB #1032379.
What this would look like on your roof
Every number on this page came off a real job in Northridge, CA — not a brochure. Tell us your utility, your roof and what your bill looks like now, and we will model your own version of it before you commit to anything.
Or call +1 (323) 844-7777 · Cali Energy, Northridge · CSLB #1032379 (B, C-10, C-39) — design, permits, install and electrical under one licensed contractor.
Related
This timeline reflects this property and this permitting path. Updated September 2026.