Winnetka, CA · 2024 – 2025 · LADWP / LADBS

Three addresses on the paperwork. Two systems on the roofs.

A Winnetka property with a second dwelling and an accessory unit, both new and both sprinklered. The utility's notices carry three addresses; the solar is two systems.

Addresses and systems are not the same count. On this property the utility wrote three address spellings across two work requests, and what was actually installed was two arrays of the same size, one per dwelling.

At a glance

Dwellings

Second unit and an accessory unit

Systems

2.59 kW AC-CEC each

Interconnections

Two work requests

Addresses in utility notices

Three spellings

Fire protection

NFPA 13-D sprinklers in both units

Roof

Composition shingle

Battery

None

Utility / AHJ

LADWP / LADBS

The story

This lot has a second dwelling built under the state's two-unit development rules and an accessory dwelling unit alongside it. Both are new, both were signed off with their own certificates of occupancy, and both are sprinklered throughout to NFPA 13-D.

Two arrays went on, one per dwelling, 2.59 kilowatts AC-CEC each. Two interconnection work requests, one per dwelling.

What makes this property worth a page is the bookkeeping. Across the utility's notices three different address spellings appear — the base address, the base address with a half, and the neighboring number. Two work requests carry those three spellings between them. Permission to operate came through against two of them.

That is not an error to be embarrassed about; it is how a property looks in a utility's records while its new addresses are settling. But it matters if you are the owner reading those notices, or a future buyer counting systems. On this property two LADWP work requests corresponded to two separately metered solar systems, and the work request number is the line to read rather than the address.

Both buildings carry residential fire sprinklers, which is standard for new construction of this type here. Sprinkler status is one of the things a solar layout is checked against in Los Angeles, alongside how much of the roof the array covers.

Two systems, two panels, two records. Counted correctly from the start, that is a simple property. Counted from the address lines, it is three of everything.

How it ran

Both dwellings were finished and separately metered before their solar was interconnected.

What we did

• Designed one array per dwelling rather than one system for the property.
• Filed and tracked a separate interconnection work request for each dwelling.
• Reconciled the utility's address spellings against the work request numbers so the record matches what is on the roofs.
• Installed rapid shutdown devices and per-module electronics on both arrays.
• Carried both dwellings through to permission to operate.

System specifications

Is your project like this one?

• Your property has more addresses than buildings on the utility's paperwork.
• You are not sure how many solar systems your property actually has.
• You have a new second unit or accessory unit with its own meter.
• Your new buildings are sprinklered and you want to know whether that affects solar.
• Your Winnetka property is served by LADWP, while permits are handled by LADBS.

Cali Energy in Winnetka

Frequently asked questions

Why does my property have three addresses on the utility paperwork?

Because new dwellings get new addresses, and those addresses take time to settle in the utility's system. On this property three address spellings appear across two work requests. On this project, each work request identified one of the two interconnections.

How do I know how many solar systems my property has?

On this property two LADWP work requests corresponded to two separately metered solar systems, while three address spellings appeared across the notices. On a straightforward property the work request is the line to read; where a system is later modified or extended, the records can be more involved than that.

Do fire sprinklers affect a solar layout?

Sprinkler status is one of the things a residential solar layout is checked against in Los Angeles, alongside how much of the roof plan area the array covers. Both dwellings here are sprinklered throughout to NFPA 13-D, which is standard for new construction of this type.

Can two dwellings share one solar system?

Where each dwelling has its own meter it is its own utility customer, so each needs its own system and its own interconnection — which is the structure on this property. LADWP also allows an accessory unit to remain behind the primary residence's meter, and that would change the answer.

Does Cali Energy work on multi-dwelling lots in Winnetka?

Yes. Winnetka is inside City of Los Angeles boundaries, so permits run through LADBS and interconnection through LADWP — once per dwelling on a property like this one.

What this would look like on your roof

Related

• Two roofs. Two permits. One correction day Winnetka, CA · 2.05 kW AC-CEC each · Enphase IQ8A Solar
• The ADU has to exist before its solar can be connected Winnetka, CA · 2.59 + 2.16 kW AC-CEC · two dwellings Solar
• Fifteen percent of the roof. Eighteen inches from the ridge Sylmar, CA · 4.51 kW DC · REC 410 W Solar
• SolarEdge on two matching homes, side by side Sherman Oaks, CA · matching new homes · SolarEdge Solar

This timeline reflects this property and this permitting path. Updated September 2026.