It’s no secret that installations of solar-powered systems have increased over the past ten years, and for good cause. Solar energy systems are economical to install, help save energy expenses, and raise home values. Finding the appropriate solar contractor is the issue that homeowners are having with solar installations. Due to the industry’s rapid expansion, solar contracting are competing to give the best deal. Unfortunately, lesser prices are sometimes accompanied by lower quality services and dissatisfied clients.
A successful transaction should ideally result in a good installment, a content customer, and a reasonable profit for the business. Customers are responsible for choosing the best solar contractor for their house or place of business. Although the system’s cost should be a consideration in your choice, it shouldn’t be the only one.
Meanwhile, since solar technology is new to many people, choosing a solar installation contractor might be a little intimidating. Most homeowners have at some point needed to call a plumber, but as for solar, most people have never had to deal with that. How can you distinguish between a good and a bad solar installer? What questions should you ask?
First and foremost, don’t be scared! Hiring a solar contractor is similar to hiring a contractor for any home renovation in many respects. Don’t let the technical aspect of solar energy overwhelm you.
And so, if you’d like to get things right for your property’s solar power needs then you’re in luck because we have listed these top 10 tips that will help you in finding and choosing the right solar contractor for you:
1.) Get in the Right Hiring Attitude
Many people have used a general contractor to do a significant home remodel or even a plumber or electrician to handle modest repairs around the house. But most individuals have never used solar power. Where does one usually begin?
The main procedure is the same as when choosing any contractor: do your homework on the business, understand the product you’re purchasing, and carefully read the contract that will be offered to you. Along the process, you can then decide whether the contractor can provide the solar power and labor you need for your property.
To have your questions answered, you should see the contractor in person, or have a representative come over to your home (although given the pandemic, this meeting may be done virtually). You should also have a checklist prepared to go through the things that you needed to be done.
2. Do not rely on websites that compare solar prices.
There are businesses out there that want to make choosing a home solar system something similar to choosing a hotel or airfare. Because it prioritizes price over all other factors, we believe that this oversimplified approach is bad for the consumer.
If you’re renting a vehicle for the weekend, it might be acceptable to simply choose the least expensive choice. However, a residential solar array is a complex system with numerous parts that must function flawlessly as a whole. Coordinating with your utility, paperwork, and approval from one or more local authorities are additional requirements for the installation process.
All of this will be managed by a skilled solar installation, leaving the homeowner with very little work to do. But there are numerous opportunities for an installation to make a mistake because of the intricate process taking place behind the scenes. If one business is giving unbelievably low prices, you should consider how they could be lowering costs.
Online-only solar shopping has the additional drawback of encouraging individuals to overlook important information about the items they are purchasing. If you overlook the hardware and only consider the price, you can get a machine that doesn’t perform as you had hoped.
3. Get several estimates from other solar orlando installers contractors
You must obtain different quotations, just as you would for your ideal kitchen remodel. This is done to assess the various offers and qualifications of the companies you are considering, as well as to acquire fair pricing.
One problematic practice, for instance, is being informed that your home is ideal for solar energy when it isn’t. A dishonest business could simply increase the production numbers to make them appear as hopeful as possible or overlook shading issues that cause your solar system’s output to be so low that it will never pay for itself.
A trustworthy business would advise you that your roof has to be fixed first or that solar panels are unnecessary because your home doesn’t receive enough sunshine. Instead of selling you a machine that won’t function properly, they would rather walk away.
However, a less ethical business only cares about making the transaction. Therefore, if you receive three quotations and two of the businesses advise against solar and the third advice in favor of it, you should follow their advice.
Having several quotations also enables you to compare various equipment options and installation strategies.
One of the frequently overlooked aspects of a solar installation, for instance, is how the racking is fastened to the roof and kept weatherproof. There are different levels of experience among solar installers, particularly when it comes to harder roofing materials like clay tile. A poor solar installation might ruin your roof’s watertight integrity and cost you thousands of dollars in repairs, negating any savings you might have realized from going solar.
As a result, it’s critical to find out how your installer prevents rain from starting in your living room after the installation is complete. One way to discern a good contractor from a bad one is if one contractor is dismissive and provides general responses, while another patiently provides detailed responses to all your inquiries. Therefore, it’s best to ask a lot of additional questions to make sure that you’re getting the most out of your budget.
4. Never pick a commercial solar services based solely on price
Everyone likes to save money, but you shouldn’t save money on your solar photovoltaic system by choosing the lowest quotation out of all the available options. The quality of the installation and the equipment truly varies. Although likely, your best installation will also be the least expensive, you won’t know for sure unless you compare the proposals and research the providers.
On the other hand, choosing the priciest installer does not ensure superior quality as well. This is why it’s very important to ask for many quotations as possible so that you may evaluate each of them.
5. Avoid energy purchase and lease agreements.
Most of the time, the largest solar installers do not want to sell you a solar system. As an alternative, they frequently encourage you to rent one utilizing financial instruments like solar leases and power purchase agreements (PPAs). These financial products give them greater profits at the expense of a lower financial return.
The presence of escalator clauses, which automatically raise your electricity cost every year even if the utility company keeps its pricing unchanged, is one of the main reasons why these financial products are frequently unfavorable for consumers. Furthermore, a handful of these major national installers have received negative evaluations and have even been sued by state governments.
6. Choose locally based companies that have been around for a while.
Look out for newly established solar companies that have only been around for a few years. It’s better to choose one that has more experience in the solar industry. You could personally inquire or occasionally search up the business online and read their state licensing.
In addition to being more likely to be technically competent, experienced companies are preferable since they are also more likely to still be around if you require warranty servicing years down the road. The residential solar market is more developed in some areas, such as Orlando, therefore it will be simpler to discover businesses with at least 10 years of experience.
7. Browse through internet reviews but be cautious as well
The Better Business Bureau is a wonderful place to start when looking at online reviews. Compared to other online review sites, the BBB is unique. It gathers customer complaints about a business and attempts to arbitrate the dispute between the client and the business. Read a complaint carefully to determine whether it raises a worry because it may reveal unethical business practices or it may just be a misunderstanding between the client and the organization. Additionally, a complaint listed may be resolved or not. Resolved complaints are less of an issue, and no matter how fantastic a company is, it is inevitable that it will experience some dissatisfied consumers as it grows and conducts a significant amount of business. More conventional reviews can also be posted by people on the BBB, but those reviews are not verified by the BBB.
It’s worthwhile to research the business online, but you should take those reviews with a grain of salt. Online reviews can be manipulated and are a less trustworthy predictor of quality. Avoid in particular “pay-to-play” websites, which include well-known ones like Angie’s List and ConsumerAffairs.com. As they have a history of pay-for-placement, review websites for solar providers should also be avoided. We recommend looking at Yelp and Google reviews since they are more reliable than these other websites.
8. Avoid subcontractors by reading their license
Even while they can speed up the process for a solar contractor, subcontractors also increase the level of unpredictability in your solar process. The number of subcontractors a solar supplier uses on work reduces their ability to control the process and makes it more difficult to handle problems when they do develop.
You can determine whether a solar company employs subcontractors in one of two methods. You might start by asking your contractor whether they will outsource any of the work. Second, confirm their licensing details by visiting the DBPR website. Any business in Florida can be searched for to determine what licenses they have. You can also check to see if somebody has a license. Make sure a firm owner holds at least one of the licenses; ideally, each license should be held by a manager of the company. By doing this, you can be certain that the business has the necessary credentials and isn’t just employing someone to operate as their license holder in name only.
A contractor must possess one of the following combinations of licenses to carry out an entire solar installation in Florida without employing subcontractors:
An electrical license and a solar license
An electrical license and a roofing license
A portion of the installation will undoubtedly be subcontracted if the business only possesses one of these licenses (or a general contractor’s license).
9. Ask and Understand Their Warranty Policies
The warranties that solar contractors provide are another factor. The majority of solar systems come with both product and installation warranties. The company that makes the panels, inverters, and other equipment also provides product warranties. The products themselves are covered by these warranties. On the other side, your contractor may provide the contractor’s warranties, which cover installation and workmanship.
In an ideal world, your contractor would assist you in making a warranty claim with the product’s manufacturer. They should serve as a go-between for you and the manufacturer, ensuring that the latter provides the proper level of support. You should contact them to find out more about how they handle claims.
You should make sure that your contractor has a guarantee that covers any problems that occur as a result of their installation error while taking into account the warranty that they give. In a perfect world, your contractor would go further than what is specified in their warranty. This demonstrates that your contractor truly prioritizes the demands of their clients. You can once more go to their evaluations for inspiration, or you can directly ask them how they have handled recent warranty claims.
One more thing to keep in mind concerning warranties: they are only as reliable as the entity providing them. If a corporation goes out of business in five years, a 20-year warranty is not as valuable. Therefore, when thinking about warranties, evaluate the general dependability of your contractor and their tools.
10. Avoid using high-pressure sales techniques.
It’s not necessarily a bad sign if the sales representative you’re dealing with is trying hard to close a deal because many trustworthy and honest solar installers reward their sales representatives with commissions. High-pressure sales techniques, however, are a different story and an indication that a business prioritizes quantity above quality in its sales efforts.
Now, you may be wondering what these high-pressure sales are we’re talking about. Here are a few warning signs to be on the lookout for:
- Sales conducted by door-to-door or telemarketing, particularly those that target seniors.
- Encouraging the client to choose “no-money-down” financing options (leases and PPAs)
- Urging the client to swiftly sign a contract rather than allowing them to carefully review it on their own.
- Contrary to what other companies may tell you, one company claims that solar energy will benefit your home.
High-quality local solar installers want to stay close to home and focus on providing high-quality work rather than trying to grow into enormous national corporations. This is why here at Everything Solar, we only provide the best of our products and services for our clients.
Contact Us Today Solar Panel Installation!
Now that you know what to keep in mind in looking for the right solar contractor for you, might as well contact us today here at Everything Solar! Reach out to us to arrange a consultation if you’re ready to compare contractors. You can learn more about our services, products, and installation by looking over our FAQs page.