Derek started in the solar industry in 2014, with 6 years of electrical work already under his belt. After a few years of installing systems, he found his true love in troubleshooting and maintaining aging systems, from the smallest residential PV systems to 5+ MW utility-level systems.
He has master’s (or equivalent) electrical licenses in 6 states, and has passed the NABCEP for PV Installation Professional, PV Commissioning and Maintenance Specialist, and PV System Inspector.
The “solarboi” emerged on TikTok in 2022, as Derek searched for ways to share any knowledge he can with the constantly growing solar workforce, potential solar customers that don’t feel they understand solar very well, or existing solar customers that are worried about their aging systems. Through entertaining and educational videos about electrical theory or rapid shutdown devices, derek the solarboi has reached tens of thousands of people, and doesn’t plan to slow down any time soon.