Solar system warranties involve modules, inverters, installation, and various other components. Homeowners always want effective warranties throughout the life of their solar systems, and they know it's important to choose the right modules and inverters, and they know it's also important to install them correctly. But when it comes to warranties, the reality always falls short of the desire.
If a solar system stops working for some reason, or if there are other problems, homeowners expect the supplier to cover them. This brings us to the issue of warranty for these items, and there are actually four separate warranties to consider as a PV system supplier.
1. Module performance warranty
Solar panel performance warranties are typically required for 25 years, although some manufacturers have increased the warranty to 30 years. When installers talk about a 25-year warranty on solar panels, they are usually only considering their performance and not covering other aspects of the system or the panels themselves, and more component suppliers are committing to 20 years.
2. Module product warranties
Typically, unlike performance warranties, most module products are warranted for 5 to 10 years, depending on the company installing the module and the product it is supplied with. This is a far cry from the component performance warranty and is much shorter, but many people mistakenly believe that the component product warranty is the same as the component performance warranty. This may lead them to believe that their warranty covers more than it actually does, and for a longer period of time.
3. Inverter warranties
Inverter warranties are almost always for five years, but sometimes there are upgrade options that extend the warranty to 10 years or more. These upgrades are usually not free and may be offered at the time of sale or installation. Other warranties may provide higher value if they are less costly, but it is important to understand how much the cost will go up.
4. Installation warranty
The warranty for installation is provided by the installer, not by the manufacturer of the solar panels or other system components. Typically, this warranty lasts for one or two years. In some cases, the installation warranty may be for 10 years, but this is not common. Asking the installer about the length of his or her warranty is critical to knowledge of the system.
-What warranty terms should you ask your installer about?
Specifically, before choosing an installer for your solar panels and inverters, be sure to ask that company about the warranty. The installer may say it has a 25-year warranty, but it's important to know if it covers everything. While it may cover component performance, other aspects may be warranted for a much shorter period. It is important to know exactly what products and services you are getting.
-Who should you talk to about product issues or security risks?
If you experience a product problem or find what you believe to be a safety risk, the first step is usually to contact the installer. They are very knowledgeable about the work being done for you and also have all the information about the manufacturer of the product being installed. Whether your module or inverter is still under warranty or not, it is important to address safety risks and other issues in a timely manner.
-Learn PV O&M proactively
Choosing the right installer, module manufacturer and inverter supplier is almost the central quality aspect of a solar system, but it doesn't mean that everything runs thereafter. During operation, there are often non-product factors that cause performance degradation and less-than-expected power generation, and homeowners need to take the initiative to learn some general knowledge about PV O&M.
In addition, PV technology updates almost every day, some product design problems at the beginning of the installation may be even the product supplier and installer can not predict, but later there are often some new technologies can be made up.
For example, for commercial and industrial rooftop PV plant owners, power generation is not as expected is a frequent encounter, and often due to the most common accumulation of dust and border mud tape shading caused by these will not be in the system's quality assurance coverage.
Service providers often advise owners to use frequent cleaning to solve this problem on their own, but if they care about the industry regularly, they know that some of the latest small ideas, such as automatic drain de-sludgers, solve the big problem of ash accumulation and mud band obscuration very inexpensively. But because such a small idea is often not the most concerned about the mainstream of the technology of the photovoltaic industry, and therefore need owners to learn and understand on their own.
