With so many options for manufacturers and installers out there, it can sometimes be challenging to focus on the nuts and bolts of what makes solar valuable. It’s great to celebrate your system size, your backup capability, or the reduction of your bill, but the real place where solar pays for itself is through its ability to produce and deliver for years to come, and at a minimum, for at least its expected lifetime if not more. This is why, out of all the features of this premier installation, we had to start here. Basically, if your solar installation isn’t set up to be functional for the long haul, you are always at risk of falling short of your ROI expectations. For this featured installation, in addition to meeting the expectations of production, bill reduction, and whole-home backup capabilities, we wanted to ensure that this installation was set up to meet the demands of solar life expectancy.
Over the years in this industry, we have constantly faced homeowners’ concerns during their transition to solar. While their reasoning may vary, the most common concerns have remained the same for decades: What happens if my roof leaks? What if my system breaks down? What if the installer goes out of business and cannot honor the warranty? These concerns are valid and deserve a better response than simply stating “our years of experience” and asking for trust. This is especially true considering the recent turbulence in the industry, including the bankruptcy of Powerhome/Pink Energy and others. At The Solar Agents, we are one of the few companies willing to service installations done by other installers. However, there are many issues that are not covered by manufacturers, such as labor costs for most materials, roof leaks, trip charges (rollouts), and faulty workmanship done by incompetent installers. This means that homeowners will have to bear these costs themselves. In addition, the cold hard truth of the matter is this: installers are not as enthusiastic about repairing solar installations that they have already been paid for, especially at their own expense. So when we first opened our doors, we set a high bar to, at a minimum, have at least one Solar Insure certified installer in every state that we operate in.Solar Insure has been one of our favorite partners because they are the only company in the country that addresses the biggest concerns of solar owners at the highest level. They understand what it takes to meet expectations and deliver a high ROI, and they have delivered on their promises for over 15 years. Although I would love to highlight every aspect of their service for homeowners, for the sake of time, I encourage you to visit HERE instead. Regarding this side of the solar equation, we appreciate that they financially contribute to help installers maintain their installations so that homeowners receive the service they deserve. We also appreciate their high standard for installation companies, with only about 2% of installers qualifying for their service. Moreover, in all our dealings with them, they have consistently shown their commitment to doing what is best for homeowners. To us, of all the features that can be added to a solar installation, none contribute more to supporting the expected life of solar ownership. With it, this highlighted installation now has a top 2% installer, a 30-year extended protection for the roof of their home, 30 years on all major components, and an extended battery protection of 20 years, which guarantees peace of mind on their solar investment for the expected lifetime of their system.
Fred West
Owner/CEO The Solar Agents