07/22/2014
Anonymous
GA
While there are many aspects of Solar Energy USA that were pleasant, I personally will never do business with them again. I initially contacted SE USA in 2012. Michael was pleasant to deal with and informative. I wasn't in a position to move forward at the time, and I initiated contact again in April / May 2014 and scheduled a 4 panel install with spray foam and low-e windows. I paid $17,377 for the system, minus a partial refund which I'll get to later. I will get a 30% state tax credit next year.<br /><br />The panel installation went well overall. I don't know that the initial placement of the panels was the most efficient use of space knowing that I was planning on expanding the system in the future. I'm still working on the measurements to make that determination. Aside from that, the installation was done well, although there was no follow-up (that I'm aware of) with Georgia Power to tie the system in. I called Georgia Power a few weeks after the install to switch to a Plug-in EV rate, and when they arrived to install the new meter they had no knowledge of the solar installation. Georgia Power got everything setup, but I wonder how much time would have passed if I had not initiated contact with Georgia Power. Later on, while doing measurements on the roof, I noticed that my panels were 265W and not 275W as indicated in my contract. SE USA did refund $250 after I brought it to their attention. Fortunately I noticed the discrepancy. Mistakes happen, and I guess their response was appropriate. I haven't compared the cost difference between panels.<br /><br />The spray foam contractors did a good job. My only complaint there is the front room was going to be skipped even though I was extremely specific during the initial consultation that I needed that room done. I pointed out that the access to that room was very limited from the attic area, but was told that it would be taken care of. When the contractors showed up they had no knowledge that the front attic would be done and I ended up having to rip the ceiling drywall in an extremely hasty fashion to facilitate the spray foam in the attic of that room. I missed an entire day of work which could have been avoided. SE USA added an additional fee for the attic area of the front room even though I was very specific that I wanted it done. Instead of being able to cleanly remove the drywall over a weekend, I was rushed to clear the area for the spray foam contractors, which ended up costing me more in repairs to the ceiling in addition to the time missed from my work.<br /><br />The window installers are the crux of the reason I will never do business with SE USA ever again. The company they contracted to perform the window installation was awful, disrespectful, & rude! My initial conversations with the installers included them complaining that I recently had the interior and exterior of my house painted, so they would have to be "more careful". Are you @#$%&*# kidding me?!! They were anything but careful, so I'd hate to see how they would have been if they didn't feel like they needed to exercise caution. It would have probably been like having a category 5 tornado inside my home. They ripped the old windows out and were throwing stuff everywhere, inside and out. They broke dressing on the blinds, and I have marks on all of the window sills. I could probably deal with some amount of damage if they were not complaining about having to be careful in the first place, and if they would have cleaned up the damage when they were done. My alarm system has been completely broken since the window install because they couldn't be bothered to take the slightest amount of time to put the window contacts in. Now that the windows are installed, the process to fix the alarm install is exponentially more difficult compared to what it would have been before the windows were installed. I still don't have a price to fix this issue yet, and I can no longer arm my system. While it's not SE USA fault directly, they are responsible for the people they send into my home. I was very clear with the installers that I had a large group of people coming over to my house later that day and they left a huge mess for me to clean up just a few hours before guests arrived. The measurements on two of the windows was incorrect, so the installers made a make-shift install for two of the old windows until the new ones could be ordered. I had to scramble to re-hang the blinds in those two windows before my guests arrived because they took off without installing them. They stated they would not reinstall any of the blinds, but after extensive arguments we finally got them to agree to. If we were not crunched for time we would have done the blinds ourselves, because they had no interest in taking care of our property or performing a proper install of the blinds they ripped out.<br /><br />Overall, the system that was installed works, and the efficiency upgrades have helped tremendously. Of course, you are NOT limited to having them installed by SE USA, so shop for a provider who will ensure that ALL of their contractors will take care of your property and take pride in the work they are performing. Solar Energy USA was aware of my grievances and chose to ignore them.