Solar Edge Help Please

[Eco Deal]

I used to install 100's of solar edge system , now if you go into your portal you should have a icon called charts IF ONLY your installer set you up as an advanced user, you can check graphs such as voltage, AC & DC currents etc etc for each panel. this may give you more ideas. a PO cost about £35 ex VAT so that is the cheapest solution. or swap OA around see if when you swap one for the faulty one does the panel with the suspected faulty OA start to under perform , The big problem is roof access I guess ... if it was me I would just max the life out of the panel and when it does start to make a big loss then get a panel that looks similar and swap it. you can mix and match panels with solar edge. upgrading the firmware from solar edge wont do anything or repairing them to the system.

 

[dazzapsj1]

Hi Eco Deal,
what is an OA and PO please.

 

[dazzapsj1]

This is what is confusing, 8 45 this morning a little sun, the panel only generating half of the others facing that way, strange, even though it is not a lot of sun the difference shows itself straight away.

 

[dazzapsj1]

Hi Everyone again,
Solar Edge have now informed me they think it is a faulty panel, the Sun has bee out a couple of mornings and the panel dropped off again.
So the next thing is to ask if anyone locally would be able to replace the panel I would hope Consumer Protection Association would help with the payment, but the first step is to get a quote, I have really appreciated the help and advice from this forum and hope somebody would be able to help, I live 4 miles outside Bath.
Thank you again for all your help up to now.

Dazzapsj.

 

[Gavin A]

before you do all that, please just can you post up a close up picture of the panel and panels around it.

Sounds to me like what I'd expect to see with a panel experiencing shading - which can come from the panels closest to it if they're not levelled properly.

 

[Worcester]

We were still being offered Siliken panels back in June, so there may be some stocks available. you have the advantage that with Solar Edge, panel compatibility isn't an issue

Not sure who on this forum covers the Bath area, BruceB might...

Replacing it will be an expensive operation - scaffolding, time, travel, reconfig, the panel cost will be negligible in comparison.

As GavinA says, we really do need to rule out every other possibilty first. (Loose connection? )

 

[dazzapsj1]

The Solar Edge guy stated
Its look like an issue with the panel the optimizer measure at the input of the optimizer a lower current readings in compere to its neighbor.
I have no shading issues I have checked this and no shading, I really do not know where to start, as stated by Worcester that if it is a loose connector how do I know, any guidance form the forum would be really appreciated. Did Siliken leave any funds for Customer Warranties ? I have looked and cannot find anything, unsure of what the next sensible step should be.
Thanks Dazzapsj

 

[dazzapsj1]

Hi All,
So nobody has been in touch or posted about my problem, so does anyone have any ideas what to do, I have had an email from Solar Edge saying only approved Solar Edge Installers can work on the problem or else my warranty with them is void, but no Solar Edge Installers seem interested either because not enough profit or where I live, I was just hoping for guidance from someone out there, as now I am clueless.
Thanks
Dazzapsj

 

[Gavin A]

If it ain't shading, then it still looks to me as if something is causing a bypass diode to operate - this would happen in bright sunshine, not in cloud as the bypass diodes have a minimum level of differential between the 3 strings of cells in the panel before they will activate.

Could possibly be a badly mismatched panel, with cells in the different strings being so badly mismatched that it triggers the bypass diodes at high generation levels, or faulty bypass diodes or both.

This sort of thing would match with the details given, in terms of the problem not showing itself at low output levels, but showing up at higher output levels.

 

[Worcester]

Have at look at this for problem solving: So what?s gone wrong? | Solar Power Portal - it might give you some ideas on testing, though it'd be easier with the sun out.

 

[whinmoor]

I agree it could well be a faulty bypass diode. If so, it’s not something an installer could easily repair (unlike a bad connector) so you’d probably need a new panel. But this one’s not dead, it’s just under-performing.

Do you have the datasheet for the Siliken panel? Does it mention anything about being insurance-backed?

I think your first course of action should be to check whether you actually have a warranty that is valid. You mentioned you have an insurance policy in case your installer ceased to trade. Are you 100% sure it’s valid?

I think a phone call to the CPA could help. I expect when they hear the story, and that you are only losing about £20 a year, they will simply offer to pay you £20 a year to make up the shortfall. Over 25 years, that would only equal £500. You may have to send them screenshots each year of your monitoring software and you can do some basic calculations to work out how much lower this panel performed than its neighbours and therefore how much it has cost you in cash terms.

The cost of a scaffold might be close to £500 in your area before adding in labour and the hassle of finding and paying for a replacement panel. Most installers would rather avoid work completed by others as any faults later might be pinned on them.

You would obviously need to monitor the situation to ensure the panel doesn’t lose more generation but this would seem to be the most sensible way to proceed from a financial perspective.

 

[dazzapsj1]

Hi,
Thanks everybody, I can see everything you are saying, but I do feel a little aggrieved that if anything goes wrong with your system others do not want to get involved with some other company's work, even if they have ceased trading. This leaves customers with a bad taste and maybe telling others not to bother with Solar/PV because of this. I do understand this stance but it does leave me as a customer at a lost. I just hope other panels or optimisers do not start dropping off as I am truly up s*** creek. A big thank you to everyone for all your advice, Solar Edge have said they will do all they can to help. So I will keep you in touch.
Thanks again Dazzapsj

 

[Worcester]

We will happily help solve a problem, you just need to bear in mind out costs! - If it not ours, we aren't going to do it for free.
We will cover workmanship liability on OUR work, we won't pick up responsibility for future faults, if we haven't installed it. And would only warrant the bit of work that we have done.
Everyone here has been trying to help you solve it the least expensive way. If you need scaffolding that could easily cost £600 to start depending upon roof size - we have one job starting Monday, it's only 3.5 kW on multiple roofs, with pooches, verandahs, conservatories on the way - scaffolding was over £1100...

For problem solving, it's going to start at £300 / day plus travel costs, because it is not your usual installation electrician that will be coming out, and we can't do it off a ladder!

 

[dazzapsj1]

Worcester I understand that, sorry if I gave the impression of complaining, it is more a feeling of frustration, the warranty body say get a quote, I am not naive to even ask someone to fault find and then give a quote as this would be business suicide, it just leaves me in a bad situation. The point I was making is that a lot of customers have had installations from firms that now no longer trade and all their warranty companies are going to say the same to them, and companies will not come out until guaranteed a payment which is fair, but it still leaves the customer in a position of not knowing how much and will the warranty company reimburse. I think this could give the whole industry a bad reputation, I just wonder if there is a better way of addressing problems with installations where the installation company no longer trades, any ideas.

 

[MCS Renewables]

The customers who had installations done by companies who are no longer trading should have chosen more carefully then!


We quoted for a job in 2011 and were told we were £1200 dearer than the chosen installer. Customer phones us in 2013 as we offer a local renewable rescue service. We went through the whole job and wrote a detailed report about the faults. Ten facing modules East, six facing South on a single string inverter, 2.5 mm cable, inverter in loft mounted on timber, DC cables straight under tiles, etc etc. Basically it needed removing and starting again.
We told him that it would cost nearly £3K to put right, twin tracker inverter, scaffolding, etc etc.
The customer chose his original install based on price with a company with a fancy Solar name, who had no history, were not tradesmen, used subbies and had hard sale tactic sales teams.
This repair has not been done as this customer thinks we are ripping him off !!!
So he has to sit back and get his appalling return until he finds someone else to do it.
IMO it's his own fault for not doing enough research in the first place !


IMO the industry is better off now that some of these train jumpers have gone back to wherever they came from. However the damage has been done, we are all going to be classed as rogues just because we have solar on our vans.
Part of the blame lies with REA / RECC who were only interested in membership fees and not standards and the same applies to ELECSA/NAPIT/NICEIC and others who put quantity of membership above quality of members.

Buy local and buy from tradesmen who have a good local reputation would seem to be a good way for customers to protect themselves.

 

[Earthstore]

May I just ask, What made you choose the company that you did?

 

[Worcester]

This is a good one to take up with RECC - after all this is precisely what they are there for..
The challenge is that if it's not a workmanship issue, and it's faulty components, then there is the labour and incidental costs associated with fault finding and replacing the components may not be covered.
I know that our insurers offer an 'extended' warranty insurance when our client is issued with their Deposit and Warranty insurance that we raise for them:

Additional covers are available for Solar PV installations:
Product Failure - Cover for up to £20,000 for up to 5 Years to protect you should the installation fail due to a product failure which would have been covered by the manufacturer’s warranty but due to the manufacturer no longer trading they cannot replace the product
Loss of Feed in Tariff – Cover for up to £2,000 per year for 5 years to reim-burse you for loss of feed in tariff should the system fail to operate and you do not receive your feed in tariff
Incurred Electricity Cost – Cover for up to 5 years to reimburse you for additional electricity costs, should the system fail to operate and you incur additional electricity costs
Legal Expenses – Cover for £25,000 of legal expenses for 1 year to protect you from disputes relating to the installation of the system

Not sure what the small print and (one off) premiums are though!

I'll ask them for the details - we aren't allowed to sell it directly as there are all sorts of (really heavy) regulations about selling insurance products - think PPI

 

[MCS Renewables]

Note to Worcester :

Is it now an MCS requirement that we scaffold over pooches. LOL

 

[Earthstore]

Note to Worcester :

Is it now an MCS requirement that we scaffold over pooches. LOL

Unless it is a Great dane, you can safely work under those, but terriers are a must...

 

[MCS Renewables]

Try Virginia Graham , CEO of REA

here is her personal email : [email protected]

She loves it when I dish out her email in cases like this