Solar Panels Quote

Minrich

Had several quotes now cheapest is £5500 with a ABB Powerone inverter , solarworld panels what is this inverter like ?
Had others around £6000

unkletom

Minrich wrote: »

Had several quotes now cheapest is £5500 with a ABB Powerone inverter , solarworld panels what is this inverter like ?
Had others around £6000

£5500 sounds good for a system including German made panels. I recently had a 3.75kw (15 panels) installed with a ABB Power One inverter. In order to reduce the cost I went for cheaper 250W ET Solar panels. They are made in China but have a decent reputation. Total cost incl installation £5162.

The Power One inverter is ideal for my setup as I have 4 panels on a south facing roof and 11 on the other (west). No problems so far.

Tom

tunnel

Minrich wrote: »

Had several quotes now cheapest is £5500 with a ABB Powerone inverter , solarworld panels what is this inverter like ?
Had others around £6000

Power ones have been around for a good while so you shouldn't have any issues.
Why do you keep getting quotes with solarworld panels though? To give you an idea, I have Sharp, LG & Jetion(black on black), all work just as well as the next. Why not get some quotes with some other panels like unkletom has suggested and that £5500 could get nearer £5k
If you're unsure of any of the panels offered then post them on here to be scrutinised. Will the panels be on the front of the house and needs to be pleasing on the eye? My Jetions are on my WNW facing front and look well nice(beauty in the eye of the beholder though)

Minrich

I am getting the companies to all quote for the same things , otherwise how can you compare ? Once i get to the lowest quote i can approach my favoured installer (I know who i want to do the work) and negotiate the price and panels downwards . One installer i found only gives 2 years guarantee on their work , where another gives 10 .
To keep getting quotes for different combinations is ok but price is not my main concern .....
I also found out that if there is a warranty issue with Enphase Micro Inverters that the manufacturer resolves the problem rather than an installer .... Is that right ?

chris329a

Make sure you get also an insurance backed workmanship warranty just in case the business goes bust.

If the microinverters go wrong you will still have to pay for the scaffolding to sort it....but as has been said loads on here, if you don't have shading you don't need them!

Sterlingtimes

[QUOTE=Minrich;67396967I_also_found_out_that_if_there_is_a_warranty_issue_with_Enphase_Micro_Inverters_that_the_manufacturer_resolves_the_problem_rather_than_an_installer_...._Is_that_right_?[/QUOTE]

With Enphase you each panel talks to a hub and the hub is connected to your router. You can then see your performance on the Enphase site. My public version is here.

https://enlighten.enphaseenergy.com/pv/public_systems/2y7S502614?preview=1

The hub itself has a small display screen that also tells you how many panels are working.

Unfortunately, only the installer or maintainer is afforded access to individual panel statistics.

The idea is that the maintainer would contact you if an inverter failed (or presumably an associated panel failed). The installer told me that he would re-visit if needs be to replace the inverter free of charge. Enphase certainly supplies the replacement. I am unclear whether the installer gets compensated by Enphase for the re-installation in the event of a replacement being required.

Minrich

Sterlingtimes wrote: »

With Enphase you each panel talks to a hub and the hub is connected to your router. You can then see your performance on the Enphase site. My public version is here.

https://enlighten.enphaseenergy.com/pv/public_systems/2y7S502614?preview=1

The hub itself has a small display screen that also tells you how many panels are working.

Unfortunately, only the installer or maintainer is afforded access to individual panel statistics.

The idea is that the maintainer would contact you if an inverter failed (or presumably an associated panel failed). The installer told me that he would re-visit if needs be to replace the inverter free of charge. Enphase certainly supplies the replacement. I am unclear whether the installer gets compensated by Enphase for the re-installation in the event of a replacement being required.

Found out today that Enphase supply the replacement but get the installer to attend and gives them £40 approx towards the cost....this is in the first ten years of the 20yr period of their warranty . Company told me they have never had an Enphase go wrong but have had 7 Inverters go wrong (Warranty anyway) ... This compares with around 2500 micros not going wrong and 7 out of 130 inverters going wrong ...
I think this is one reason why some companies are preferring micro inverters as it saves them further call backs in the future ??

Minrich

chris329a wrote: »

Make sure you get also an insurance backed workmanship warranty just in case the business goes bust.

If the microinverters go wrong you will still have to pay for the scaffolding to sort it....but as has been said loads on here, if you don't have shading you don't need them!

Who says i would have to pay for the scaffolding ?
Its like saying i would have to pay for the electricians screwdriver or his van to get to me ?

If i had some work done on my chimney stack and 3 months later there was a problem i wouldn't have to pay for the scaffolding for the company to come and rectify it would i ?

So why for Micro Inverter problem ?

zeupater

Minrich wrote: »

Who says i would have to pay for the scaffolding ?
Its like saying i would have to pay for the electricians screwdriver or his van to get to me ?

If i had some work done on my chimney stack and 3 months later there was a problem i wouldn't have to pay for the scaffolding for the company to come and rectify it would i ?

So why for Micro Inverter problem ?

... but if you had a 20 year guarantee from the brick manufacturer and just one shattered, or the mortar around one fell out after 10 years, who becomes responsible for the scaffold supply ? ... the brick manufacturer for a 50p brick?, the builder who did the work 10 years ago and provided a 2 year workmanship warranty -or- muggins ? .... it's likely that the best contribution you'd get is a voucher to pick up a free brick from the local builder's merchant, and that's only if the manufacturer is still trading ...

Unless you find a really friendly installer who are willing to flaunt H&S legislation, or you have easy access and they have their own scaffold tower -and- they don't mind making a loss on the job (£40 wouldn't normally even cover a callout), it's likely to cost something .....

HTH
Z

chris329a

Minrich wrote: »

Who says i would have to pay for the scaffolding ?
Its like saying i would have to pay for the electricians screwdriver or his van to get to me ?

If i had some work done on my chimney stack and 3 months later there was a problem i wouldn't have to pay for the scaffolding for the company to come and rectify it would i ?

So why for Micro Inverter problem ?

I had over 6 quotes and when I pushed them all on this matter they said that the manufacturer would replace the actual inverter within their guarentee, and that they would do this FOC....however I would be liable for the scaffolding charge.

Firstly if you can find someone willing to say in writing that they would do this free then well done. Secondly you don't know that they will be operating still in up to 20 years time (assuming that's the guarantee). Thirdly you don't need them if you are on an unshaded roof anyway.

I'll be interested to hear what you find out, as the companies I asked were either truthful from the outset or brushed over it until pushed......