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Quand êtes-vous retournés sur le toit pour incliner les panneaux ?

Quand êtes-vous retournés sur le toit pour incliner les panneaux ?
When did you return to the roof to tilt the panels?
From Lesson 450:Auxiliary switch with motion verbs (être vs. avoir)·French

Questions & Answers about Quand êtes-vous retournés sur le toit pour incliner les panneaux ?

Why is être used as the auxiliary verb here instead of avoir?
The verb retourner is a verb of motion that can act both transitively and intransitively. Here, it is intransitive (it has no direct object, as you are simply "going back" to a place), so it requires être. If you were turning an object over (a transitive action), you would use avoir, as in Vous avez retourné les panneaux (You turned the panels over).
Why is there an "-s" at the end of retournés?
In the passé composé, verbs that take the auxiliary être must agree in gender and number with the subject. The -s tells us that the subject vous in this sentence is plural (meaning "you all"), rather than a formal singular "you".
Why use the preposition sur instead of à for "to the roof"?
While English says you go "to" the roof, French treats the roof (le toit) as a physical surface. Because of this, you go "onto" it using sur rather than treating it as a general destination with à.
Why do we need pour before incliner?
In French, when an infinitive verb expresses a purpose or intention (meaning "in order to do something"), it must be preceded by pour. Here, pour incliner explains the purpose of the trip to the roof.

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