Solar modules are not hazardous waste, but recyclable material – glass, aluminium and increasingly the silicon are recycled. In Switzerland, disposal is already paid for at the time of purchase via the advance recycling fee: returning the modules is free of charge, organised via the industry's established take-back system. What costs money at the end of their life is the dismantling work on the roof – not the disposal. (As of: July 2026)
Key points in brief
- Disposal is pre-financed at the time of purchase: via the advance recycling fee, collection points take modules back free of charge.
- A module consists predominantly of glass and aluminium – both established recycling streams; the recovery of silicon continues to develop.
- The dismantling itself is specialist work involving scaffolding and an electrician – this workload is the actual cost point at the end of life, not the modules.
- Inverters and batteries go their own ways: e-waste take-back for the one, battery take-back system for the other.
- The best news comes first: the date is far away – modules work for 25 to 30 years and often beyond.
When is dismantling due at all?
First, the classification that relaxes the topic: with today's systems, dismantling is a date in the distant future. Modules age with well under one per cent performance loss per year and work for 25 to 30 years and often longer; many systems survive the timeframe with which they were calculated. In practice, there are three occasions that herald the end of life:
1. The natural end – the system is old, the performance has dropped significantly, major repairs are no longer worthwhile. 2. Repowering – the old system gives way to a new, more powerful one on the same roof; economically (and ecologically) only sensible if the additional yield clearly outweighs the effort. 3. The building – demolition or total renovation where the roof is rebuilt; functioning modules can be reused instead of disposed of, depending on their condition.
What is not a reason for dismantling: the sale of the house (the system goes with it) or the replacement of the inverter – that is a planned component change in the middle of the system's life.
The Swiss solution: disposal is already paid for at the time of purchase
The core of the topic is fortunately unbureaucratically regulated: in Switzerland, solar modules fall under the Electrical Equipment Ordinance (VREG) and are subject to the advance recycling fee (vRG) – a small amount included in the module price at the time of purchase that pre-finances the subsequent disposal. The take-back system has been organised since 2014 by SENS eRecycling together with the trade association Swissolar, with over 500 collection points throughout Switzerland; larger quantities are collected on pallets directly on site. The practical consequence for you: Handing in disused modules is free of charge – regardless of when and where the modules were once purchased.
This also eliminates the concern of sitting on a disposal problem at the end of life: the problem is paid for before the system has ever delivered a single watt. What dismantling costs is something else – more on that below.
What happens to the modules during recycling
A look at the materials list shows why modules are grateful recycling candidates: the lion's share of the weight is glass, plus the aluminium frame – both materials with recycling streams that have been established for decades. The rest is distributed among plastic films, wiring, junction box – and the actual cells with the silicon as well as small amounts of other metals.
In the recycling process, the frame and junction box are dismantled, the laminate is separated, and the material streams are separated: glass and aluminium go into classic recycling, metals are recovered. The recovery of the solar silicon itself is the youngest part of the chain and continues to develop with growing return volumes – with every step forward there, the energy backpack is reduced for the next module generation. Old modules are therefore not a legacy burden, but the raw material store for the new ones.
Dismantling: specialist work on the roof
What actually costs money at the end of life is not the disposal, but the work: dismantling is installation in reverse – scaffolding or fall protection, disconnection by the specialist electrical company (the DC side remains live right to the end, as long as light falls on the modules – dismantling is therefore expressly not a DIY task), dismantling of modules and substructure, professional sealing of roof penetrations, and transport to the collection point.
The effort depends on the individual case – roof shape, accessibility, whether renovation is taking place at the same time. Two constellations make it significantly cheaper: with repowering, dismantling shares the scaffolding and electrician with the new build; with roof renovation, the scaffolding is there anyway. Isolated dismantling without a follow-up project is the most expensive option – one more reason to synchronise the end of the system's life with the next roof project, as conversely applies to construction as well.
On the administrative side: the decommissioning is reported to the grid operator (deregistration of the system, meter questions), and anyone who still has remuneration or incentive arrangements clarifies their end at the same time – routine that the specialist company takes care of too.
Inverters, batteries, substructure: the other streams
The other components go their own, likewise regulated ways: the inverter is electronics and goes through the e-waste take-back – this too is pre-financed in Switzerland via the advance fee. The battery storage belongs in the take-back system for batteries – under no circumstances in the e-waste and certainly not in the skip; the return is organised by the specialist company during removal. The substructure made of aluminium and steel is classic scrap metal with a positive residual value, and the wiring follows it into metal recycling.
In short: an established channel exists for every component – at the end of its life, the solar system is not a special disposal case, but a cleanly sorted material collection.
Dismantling requests are still rare for us – the systems from the major expansion waves are simply not old enough yet – but the recycling question comes up in almost every consultation, usually as a critical test: «And what happens to the things afterwards?» The answer, that disposal is already paid for via the recycling fee and the return costs nothing, reliably surprises – hardly anyone knows that. The dismantling that we actually carry out almost never has age as a reason, but the building: demolition, upward extension, total renovation. And there, a rule of thumb has proven itself, which we pass on to everyone: never plan dismantling as a solo project. On the same scaffolding, with the same electrician as the follow-up project, it costs a fraction – and functioning modules often find a second life more often than you think: on the garage roof, among acquaintances, via reuse platforms.
Frequently asked questions
What does the disposal of solar modules cost?
Handing them in at the collection points is free of charge – financed via the advance recycling fee that was included in the module price at the time of purchase. Only the dismantling work on the roof causes costs, and it is best to share this with a scaffolding project that is due anyway.
Are old solar modules hazardous waste?
No – modules consist predominantly of glass and aluminium and are recycled via the industry's take-back system. They belong neither in the skip nor in the mixed construction waste, but at the collection point; the route there is organised by the specialist company during dismantling.
Can I do the dismantling myself?
No – as long as light falls on the modules, the DC side is live; disconnection and dismantling are the responsibility of the specialist company, plus fall protection and the professional sealing of the roof penetrations. The same boundary as in operation: the roof belongs to the professional.
Can functioning modules be reused?
Yes – modules that have to give way in a building project but still perform properly often find a second life through reuse, from the outbuilding to second-hand markets. The prerequisites are a functional test and professional re-installation at the new location.
Do I have to report the dismantling anywhere?
Yes, to the grid operator – the system is deregistered, and meter and remuneration arrangements are terminated. This is routine and is handled by the commissioned specialist company; keep the deregistration confirmation in the system dossier.
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In good hands from the first to the last module.
Whether repowering, renovation dismantling or decommissioning: we dismantle professionally, organise recycling and deregistration – and say honestly which modules deserve a second life.
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Swissolar-certified specialist company · ESTI installation authorisation (Art. 14 NIV) · in Zurich since 2017 · over 150 systems completed · a personal answer from the specialist company, no call centre
Sources: SENS eRecycling (factsheet «Recycling PV-Module»; cooperation with Swissolar since 2014, over 500 collection points, collection of palletised quantities); Swissolar, leaflet on recycling and disposal of PV; Electrical Equipment Ordinance (VREG). Experience from the installation and dismantling practice of ecoEn GmbH, Zurich region. As of: July 2026.
Last updated: 9 July 2026 · Author: ecoEn editorial team
