SolarCleaningBossPro Blog — Solar Panel Cleaning Software

A Buying Checklist for Solar Panel Cleaning Software

This is the short version of everything in this series, turned into questions you can take into any demo or free trial. Print it, keep it next to the laptop, and check each one against the software you are looking at. If the answer to most of them is yes, you have found something that fits a solar cleaning company.

Before You Use the List

If you work outside the US, start with Solar Panel Cleaning Software in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK for the country-specific questions. Everyone else can start here. The checklist is grouped the way a job moves through the company, from the first quote to the next recurring cleaning.

The Array and the Job

• Can I record the number of panels on every job?
• Can I record the mount: roof, ground mount or carport?
• Can I record stories (1-story, 2-story, 3+ story) and pitch (low, steep, flat)?
• Can I record extras like bird proofing, critter guards and inspection?
• Can I record access notes: spigot location, roof access side, gate code, dog?
• Do those details show under the address on the lists and on the tech's phone?
• Are they entered once and shown on every visit after?

Quotes and New Customers

• Can I build estimates from my own service list, with per-panel prices, a minimum charge and add-ons for stories and steep pitch?
• Can customers approve estimates online?
• Does an approved estimate become the scheduled job, with the details carried over?
• Do website requests and sign-ups flow into the software, and can a sign-up become a client in one click?

Recurring Cleanings and Scheduling

• Can I set plans by days between visits: 180, 365, 90?
• Do due cleanings show up on their own on a map and a list?
• Are overdue cleanings easy to spot?
• Is there a dispatch board by day, with a filter by truck?
• Can I auto-route from the shop and set the order by hand?
• Is the order on the board the same order on the tech's phone?

Recurring cleanings are where the money is, so weigh this section heavily. The Waiting List: How Solar Panel Cleaning Software Shows Every Cleaning That Came Due explains what good looks like.

The Tech App and the Customer App

• Does the tech app run on the phones my crew already has, with no app store download?
• Does each tech log in with their own PIN?
• Does each job card have navigation, panel details and access notes?
• Are there Start, Skip and Complete buttons, plus before and after photos?
• Is there a time clock, and can the office see crew GPS?
• Do customers get alerts they choose: night before, when they are next, when the tech arrives?
• Can customers see where they are in line on a live map?
• Can customers request service, update their card, see invoices and pay?

Texting and Billing

• Is there two-way texting from the office, with replies kept with the customer?
• Do automated reminders go out by text and email?
• Is a monthly text allowance included, and how big is it?
• Do invoices have line items and sales tax?
• Can I keep a card on file and charge it on completion or on a schedule?
• Are past-due invoices followed up automatically?
• Can a property owner with many buildings get one monthly statement, with each line labeled by address?

Switching, Setup and Growth

• Can I import my customers with a CSV, and are addresses placed on the map automatically?
• Can one client have many addresses, with tags and custom fields?
• Can I be up and running in about a day?
• Are there office user roles and employee PINs for when I grow?
• Does it work in my country and bill in my currency?

Price and Trial

• Is the price clear and published?
• Are the tech app and customer app included, or extra?
• Is there a free trial I can run on real customers without a credit card?

For reference, SolarCleaningBossPro is $59, $89 or $199 a month on the Start, Pro and Crew plans, with all three apps on every plan and a 14-day free trial with no credit card.

Use the Trial to Answer Every Question

A demo can answer most of these questions in theory. A trial answers them with your own customers. Import your list, add the panel details for the next couple of weeks, build a route and run a real day from the tech app. Anything you still reach for a spreadsheet to do is a “no” on this list. To see how SolarCleaningBossPro answers each question, go to the solar panel cleaning software overview.