Fort Myers solar heating since 2010
Cape Coral Solar Water Heater Pros installs and repairs solar pool heaters and solar water heaters across Fort Myers, from 1960s ranch homes off McGregor Blvd to the condo towers on the Caloosahatchee. We are solar thermal specialists: we heat pools and household water with the sun, and we do not sell solar electric panels or batteries.
Much of our Fort Myers work is on systems that have been on the roof for decades, including panels from brands that no longer exist. We have serviced them on both sides of the river since 2010, so we repair every make instead of steering you toward a new one.
Every quote is written, we pull the permit whether your address answers to the City of Fort Myers or to Lee County, and new installations carry our 5-year parts and labor workmanship warranty.
Older systems
Most older Fort Myers solar systems can be repaired as long as the panels themselves are sound. Homes built from the 1960s to the 1980s along McGregor Blvd, in Whiskey Creek and around Cypress Lake often still carry first-generation pool panels and early solar water heaters.
Many of those systems came from installers who have since closed, and FAFCO, once one of the largest pool panel makers, shut down in late 2024. Here is how we decide between fixing what you have and starting over.
A leaking header, a few pinhole leaks or a dead controller are repairs, not reasons to replace. Leak repairs run $185 to $350 each, and a new Pentair SolarTouch or Hayward GL-235 controller or sensor runs $350 to $700 installed.
Our solar pool heater repair service explains each fault and what it costs to fix.
Quality polypropylene panels last 15 to 20 years or more, so a 30-year-old array that splits every time it is patched has reached the end. Once several panels need replacing at $450 to $750 each, a new array for a 15 by 30 foot pool at $5,800 to $7,400 is often the better spend.
A rooftop collector from the 1980s can still be sound while its pump, controller and tank are worn out. When the glass is broken or the absorber leaks, we quote a SunEarth flat plate collector and a new solar storage tank through our solar water heater installation service.
City or county
Your permit office depends on the parcel, not the mailing address. The City of Fort Myers issues permits inside city limits, and the Lee County Department of Community Development issues them for unincorporated addresses, so we look up the parcel before we quote, pull the permit ourselves and schedule every inspection.
Neither FPL nor LCEC currently pays a solar water heater rebate, so the return comes from the bill itself. A solar water heater typically covers 60 to 80% of a Southwest Florida household's water heating, which is often 14 to 18% of the electric bill.
Homes in the historic districts can face design review for equipment visible from the street, so we check the address before we draw a panel layout. County requirements are posted by Lee County DCD.
What we do most
Fort Myers calls lean toward fixing what is already on the roof, because so many homes here have had solar for decades. These are the three jobs we are asked for most often.
A pool that will not warm, a header spraying water or a controller stuck on one setting are the usual calls. We fix leaks, swap failed panels, replace vacuum relief valves for $95 to $185 and rewire sensors.
A lukewarm shower usually traces to a failed circulating pump, a dead differential controller or a burned-out backup element rather than the collector. Our solar water heater repair service covers active direct, closed loop glycol, drainback and batch systems.
The towers along the Caloosahatchee and Fort Myers association pools have far more surface area to heat, and a board has to approve the work. Our commercial and condo solar pool heating service prices each site separately, and most condo and HOA pools start around $15,000.
Typical jobs
Four job types make up most of our Fort Myers work. The figures below come from our 2026 price list, and your own quote is written after we have seen the roof and the pool.
A 1970s block home with a 15 by 30 foot pool often has 8 to 10 sun-faded panels and a manual valve. If the panels flex without cracking, the job is a few leak repairs and new stainless straps; if they are brittle, we replace the array in 1 day on a shingle roof.
When the panels look fine but the pool stays cold, the controller or the diverter valve actuator has usually failed. A new actuator runs $325 to $550, and we check the sensor readings against the actual pool and roof temperatures before we leave.
An 80 gallon solar storage tank in its second decade often weeps at the base or loses its backup element. Replacing it takes 3 to 5 hours and keeps the existing collector, pump and controller when they test well.
A tower pool on the river usually needs a large array on a flat amenity or garage roof, plumbed back to the pool equipment room. The board receives a written proposal sized to the pool's surface area before anyone signs.
Weighing a repair against a new system? Our guide to whether solar pool heating is worth it works through payback in Southwest Florida terms.
Fort Myers questions
These are the questions Fort Myers homeowners and condo boards ask us most.
Most Fort Myers repair visits are booked within 2 to 3 business days, and hard leaks and no-hot-water calls go to the front of the line. Estimates for new systems are usually done on site within the week, with a written quote the same day or the next.
Yes. In deed-restricted communities such as Gateway, we prepare the panel layout and product sheets for the architectural review. Florida's Solar Rights Act, Statute 163.04, stops an HOA from banning solar collectors, though it may set their placement within 45 degrees of due south when that does not impair performance.
Yes. FAFCO closed in late 2024, so factory warranty support is effectively gone, but leaks, headers and straps on FAFCO and SunSaver panels can still be repaired. When a panel is beyond repair, we replace it and adapt the connections.
No, neither utility currently offers a solar water heater rebate, and the federal 25D credit ended for systems installed after December 31, 2025. Florida still exempts solar equipment from sales tax, and our Florida solar incentives guide lists what else applies.
Free estimate
Tell us your address, the pool size if you know it, and what the system is or is not doing. We confirm whether the City of Fort Myers or Lee County will issue the permit and send a written quote the same day or the next after the visit.