If a solar system stops working for some reason, or if it encounters other problems, homeowners want the supplier to cover them all. This brings us to the issue of warranties for these items, and there are actually four separate warranties to consider as a PV system provider.
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 maybe for 10 years, but this is not common. Asking the installer about the length of his or her warranty is critical to the knowledge of the system.
