Electrical, energy & home tech

Books and taxes for home battery storage installers.

Retrofit and new-build installs, commissioning payments that lag the crew's work, demand response incentives, and manufacturer rebates. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
NovemberExample month
$14,000
what you made

November brought in $14,000. The demand response payment for the Whitfield install finally landed, three months after the system went live.

  • GoodLeap payoutFinanced installs
  • Direct customer final paymentBattery installs
  • Pacific utility demand response paymentDemand response payments
  • FranklinWH unit orderBattery hardware
  • AAA Electrical subcontractSubcontracted panel work
Money in$58,000
Money out$44,000
Set aside for taxes$3,000
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

A battery storage installer's books go wrong around timing and job type.

A generalist sees deposits and bills. Your business is retrofit jobs that cost less than new builds, commissioning steps that finish after the crew leaves, and utility incentives that arrive months late. When the books do not know that, the monthly number lies to you.

  1. 1

    A retrofit costs less but looks the same on paper

    Installing a battery onto a home that already has solar takes less racking and roof work than a new combined system, but if retrofit and new-build jobs share one revenue line, you cannot see that the retrofit actually carries a better margin.

    What we doKeeps retrofit and new-build installs in separate lines, so margin by job type stays visible.
  2. 2

    Commissioning holds the final payment

    A battery often needs firmware configuration and a load test before it can be turned over, and that commissioning step can run days or weeks after the crew leaves. Booking the whole contract as income the day the unit is mounted makes the crew's month look bigger than the cash that landed.

    What we doTracks the install and the commissioning payment separately, so income lands with the payment actually collected.
  3. 3

    Demand response payments show up months later

    Some utilities pay an incentive when a customer's battery gets enrolled in a demand response program, and that payment can land two or three months after the install closed, long after the job feels finished.

    What we doKeeps demand response payments tied to the install that earned them, so a late payment does not get mistaken for money from a new job.
  4. 4

    Manufacturer dealer rebates arrive as a separate check

    A dealer rebate from a battery manufacturer on a completed install lands as its own payment, weeks after the job, and if it gets dumped into general income, you lose track of which installs actually earned the rebate.

    What we doMatches manufacturer rebate checks back to the install that earned them, so job profitability stays accurate.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a battery storage installer.

Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Battery installsNew combined solar and battery systems, billed in deposit and completion draws.
  • Retrofit installsBattery added to a home that already has solar, tracked apart from new builds.
  • Financed installsThe full contract amount, with the lender's dealer fee booked as a cost.
  • Demand response paymentsUtility incentives for enrolling a customer's battery in a demand response program.
  • Manufacturer dealer rebatesRebate checks tied back to the specific install that earned them.

Money out

  • Crew wagesKept apart from job bonuses so labor cost by install stays clear.
  • Battery hardwareUnits and inverters from Tesla, Enphase, or FranklinWH.
  • Subcontracted panel workPanel or subpanel work billed apart from the battery's own cost.
  • Permits and utility interconnection feesMunicipal permit fees and utility interconnection charges.
  • Truck and fuelFuel, repairs, insurance, and loan payments for crew trucks.
  • Lead fees and marketingEnergySage and Google local services leads.
  • Certification and training feesManufacturer certified installer program costs.

What we watch for you

  • Retrofit margin

    Retrofit installs against new-build systems, since the two carry very different costs.

  • Commissioning backlog

    Installs finished but not yet commissioned, so a busy install month is not confused with a busy pay month.

  • Rebate matching

    Manufacturer rebates matched back to the install that earned them, so nothing gets lost.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things battery storage installers ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

A retrofit job took half the time of a new system but the invoice looks similar. Does that show up right?

Yes, I keep retrofit and new-build installs in separate lines, so you can see the retrofit's better margin instead of it blending into the average.

The battery was mounted in October but commissioning didn't finish until November. When does that count as income?

When the commissioning payment actually lands. I track the install and the final payment as separate steps, so the timing matches the cash.

The utility finally paid the demand response incentive for a job from three months ago. Where does that go?

Back to the install it came from, so it reads as a delayed payment on old work, not income from something new.

The tax side

The tax side of a battery storage install business.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing between the install and the payment. A rebate that gets lost, a commissioning step booked too early, and a set-aside nobody started until April.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Battery install equipmentService trucks, load bank testers, and commissioning tools can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
  • Contractor 1099sSubcontracted electricians not on payroll get a 1099-NEC if paid $2,000 or more in 2026. The form is due January 31.
  • Employee or contractorA crew member who uses your trucks and tools and works your schedule is usually an employee, not a subcontractor, no matter how the pay is set up.
  • The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.

Deductions home battery storage installers miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Load bank testers
  • Firmware configuration tools
  • Truck signage and wraps
  • Liability and bonding insurance
  • Certification renewal fees
  • Phone for site photos
  • Dump fees for old equipment
  • Home office for scheduling
  • Vehicle registration
  • Background check fees
  • Permit drawing software
  • EnergySage lead fees

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

A battery storage installer's year, kept every month.

Installs and their final commissioning rarely land in the same month. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether storm season's install rush changed the number.

  4. October

    Before winter outages

    Winter storms drive another wave of battery interest. Before it hits, Gus looks at equipment you might buy and anything worth doing before December.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for home battery storage installers. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions battery storage installers ask first.

Can Gus handle jobs paid through financing companies?

Yes. He books the full job as money in and the lender's fee as a cost, so your sales are not understated and the fee still counts against your taxes.

A retrofit takes less time than a new system. Does Gus track that difference?

Yes. Retrofit and new-build installs are kept in separate lines, so you can see the retrofit's better margin instead of it blending into an average.

Commissioning sometimes finishes weeks after the install. Does that skew my books?

No. Gus tracks the install and the commissioning payment as separate steps, so income lands with the payment actually collected.

A utility demand response payment showed up months after a job closed. Where does that go?

Back to the install that earned it, so a late payment reads as delayed income on old work, not money from something new.

Do I write off my testing equipment all at once?

Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy it, and sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.

My books are a year behind. Is that a problem?

No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most people know where they stand inside a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

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Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever