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Solar site surveys · North CarolinaA technician on the roof, in the attic and at the service panel, with the survey read against the code editions, AHJs and utilities that apply in North Carolina.
North Carolina writes one State Building Code for the whole state, so residential solar is still checked against the 2018 NC Residential and Fire Codes and, for homes, the 2017 NC Electrical Code while the adopted 2024 codes sit on a legislative delay. Permits come from county or city inspection departments, and many homes interconnect with Duke Energy Carolinas or Duke Energy Progress, whose net metering bridge rate closes to new applicants on January 1, 2027. Coastal counties carry design wind speeds of 130 to 150 mph.
The capture spec is the same everywhere. What the engineer and the plan reviewer read it against is not.
The NC Residential Code assigns ultimate design wind speeds by county, rising from 115 mph for most inland counties to 130 to 150 mph along the coast, with Carteret County at 150 mph and parts of New Hanover and Brunswick east of Hwy. 17 at 150 mph. Racking attachments and roof zones have to be checked against the local value.5
Several western counties, including Buncombe, Watauga and Haywood, are listed as special mountain wind regions instead of carrying a single design speed, so the site's wind value should be confirmed with the local building official.5
The 2024 NC codes are adopted but delayed, so a project permitted today follows the 2018 codes and 2017 electrical code, while one permitted after the change will face new rules such as residential roof pathways. Survey records should note roof layout well enough to work under either set.6,2,10
Associations cannot ban rooftop solar outright, but they can control placement and screening and may bar panels visible from public or common areas on street-facing roof slopes, so the survey should record roof orientation relative to the street.11
Who reviews the plan set, and what the state layers on top.
Beyond the three investor-owned utilities, 32 electric cooperatives serve about 2.8 million customers and roughly 76 municipal and university systems serve about 599,000. The NCUC has only limited jurisdiction over them, they are not required to offer net metering, and each sets its own solar terms.18,19
Serves about 2.3 million North Carolina customers in the Piedmont and west, including Charlotte. Residential systems must follow the NCUC-approved NC Interconnection Procedures, with an accepted Request to Interconnect, an application fee, insurance and an interconnection agreement, and are capped at 20 kW AC under its net metering riders.18,20,21,22
Interconnection page ↗Serves about 1.6 million North Carolina customers in the east and parts of the west, including Raleigh. It uses the same state interconnection procedures and offers its own versions of the Residential Solar Choice and Net Metering Bridge riders; Duke has asked regulators to merge it with Duke Energy Carolinas, targeting January 1, 2027.18,19,23,22
Interconnection page ↗Serves roughly 129,000 customers in northeastern North Carolina. Net metering is open to residential systems up to 20 kW AC sized to no more than annual use, with a $200 application fee for systems under 20 kW and authorization required before energizing.18,24
Interconnection page ↗One standard, one visit, the same record in North Carolina as everywhere else. What it gets checked against is the code stack above.
As of September 2026, one- and two-family homes and their PV equipment follow the 2017 NC Electrical Code, based on the 2017 NEC. The 2023 NC Electrical Code was adopted but is on indefinite delay, so confirm the edition with the local inspector.1,2
Not yet. The legislature tied their start to 12 months after the State Fire Marshal certifies publication and a fully constituted Residential Code Council, and a state licensing board said in June 2026 that May 1, 2027 is the earliest possible date. The 2018 codes remain in force.6,7,4
Under the 2018 codes in force, the fire code's R-3 pathway rules exempt homes built under the residential code, and the residential code has no pathway section. The pending 2024 residential code adds 36-inch pathways, so check which code governs your permit.8,5,10
Generally not. G.S. 22B-20 voids covenants that prohibit residential solar collectors, but associations can still regulate placement and screening and can bar collectors visible from public or common areas on street-facing facades or roof slopes.11
Metro pages for North Carolina: Charlotte, Raleigh.
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Explore →Every local fact on this page links to where it came from. Codes, programs and tariffs change: confirm the current requirement with the AHJ and the utility before you design.
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