SunEdison panels any good?

[thejq]

Sorry if I was a little obtuse. The point I was making is that enphase inverters are in the shade, while a string inverter box can sit in the sun.

Nothing lasts as long if it sits in the sun.

The micros are normally attached to the railings and relatively close to the solar panel if not touching. So even though it's in the shade, the operating temperature in a hot summer day is really high. This has contributed to the high failure rate of their 1st and 2nd gen products, but the current gen (and hopefully future ones) seems to be able to withstand the temperature much better. A central inverter can be located in the garage or under the shade at the side of house and operate in much cooler conditions. It's definitely not recommended to install them in direct sunlight.

[solar pete]

Which is more reliable, an Enphase inverter under the shade of the panel OR the String inverter box on the side of your house sitting in the sun?

We generally find a way to install string inverters in the shade, sometimes its not possible but very rarely. The type of inverter one chooses is a matter of personal choice, that said I would estimate 90% of the actual solar-pro's on this forum will recommend a string inverter if shade on the panels is not an issue.

[sensij]

I can't find any current official document that states labor is included in the replacement warranty. In the latest http://www.solaredge.us/files/pdfs/s...ember-2014.pdf

That link is to an outdated document. The current warranty is here:

http://www.solaredge.us/files/pdfs/s...ember-2015.pdf

The relevant text hasn't changed. However, if an *installer* (like ButchDeal) is saying SolarEdge covers labor, it may very well be true. The warranty does also say:

All other costs, including, without limitation, travel and boarding costs of SolarEdge service personnel that are incurred for repairs of Products on-site, as well as costs related to buyer’s employees and contractors repair or replacement activities, are not covered by the Limited Warranty and, unless otherwise agreed in writing in advance by SolarEdge, shall be borne by the buyer.

which leaves open the possibility of supplemental agreements between SolarEdge and installers. The online installer support ticket process means SolarEdge can be made aware of every step of the troubleshooting and repair activity, and form ad hoc agreements in writing to compensate the installer for their labor. The limited warranty as it is written may not require this to happen, and it would be better if the warranty did, but for now, the actual experience of installers is the best info we have.

[inetdog]

I love that. At their discretion they may send someone to repair a module on site under warranty instead of requiring you to ship it back. But if they do that they can then bill you for all of their expenses.

[ButchDeal]

I love that. At their discretion they may send someone to repair a module on site under warranty instead of requiring you to ship it back. But if they do that they can then bill you for all of their expenses.

So you feel that they will send someone to do an onsite repair on a $50 optimizer? Funny. That warranty covers inverters including commercial inverters.

[solarix]

2 comments:
I don't know about their panels, but SunEdison just had all their utility scale jobs in Hawaii canceled for failure to perform and locally here they are being sued by a town for underperformance on a large system they put in three years ago.
I've done a lot of warranty service work on SolarEdge products and have never been able to get them to cover us for the labor involved. I'd like to know how if its true....

[thejq]

I've done a lot of warranty service work on SolarEdge products and have never been able to get them to cover us for the labor involved. I'd like to know how if its true....

Really, that doesn't sound encouraging . I tried to have the installer put the 25-yr SE optimizer labor clause in the contract when we signed (based on his verbal comment on SE covering labor), but he wouldn't. He said it's provided by SE not them. Since SE doesn't specifically document it anywhere, if, after the 10-yr installer's warranty (in my case), something were to happen, it's completely up to SE's discretion how much or if they can cover any labor cost.

[DaveDE2]

That link is to an outdated document. The current warranty is here:

[URL="http://"[url"]http://www.solaredge.us/files/pdfs/solaredge-warranty-december-2015.pdf"]

The statement in the sixth bullet in the warranty document leaves me scratching my head. If SE can punt and just issue a credit for present value of the defective goods at the time of the defect as determined by them instead of repair or replacement, what good is the warranty or for that matter an extended warranty? I posed that question to SE headquarters here in US, they apparently contacted someone in Israel about it and was told that they are currently repairing or replacing most items. I couldn't get a direct answer to my question but at least for now they are honoring most defects with replacement. A guy in their repair department said that right now about the only thing they aren't covering is water damage to inverter's and part replacement turn around time is about a week.

[Remmy700P]

Enphase had a problem with thermal degradation in the earlier generation of the M190 and M215 microinverters. It was a component failure rather than a design flaw. As micros only process a small portion of the power of an entire array, the internal temp rise for any single inverter is small, i.e. on the order of 5-10 C. All of the ones we had go bad on customer installs (~35-40 total) went out within 24 months and were replaced by Enphase without cost (we replaced the component at no charge to the customer). As far as I know, there's never been a problem with the M250 series (at least in our experience).

As far as the choice between microinverters and a string inverter, for me it's a no-brainer. Would you rather run 600-700+v DC through conduit across your roof or through your attic, or would you feel safer running 120v AC? The MTBF on a microinverter is >300 years. The replacement cycle for a string inverter is 12-15 years max. They will allow a panel to "switch on" sooner than a string-tied module and will generally outperform a string inverter-managed system (even with "optimizers") by up to 16%. Don't get me wrong... I like modern string inverters (SMA, Snyder,et al), and in certain architectures, it makes a ton of sense. However, for the average homeowner, a microinverter-managed array is going to be more efficient and cost effective for the life of their PV system.

SunEdison announced that CH11 filings would be commencing, and is facing not only a regulatory review by the SEC, it is now also looking at a DoJ investigation as well. http://www.utilitydive.com/news/repo...ruptcy/416790/

[ButchDeal]

Please educate yourself on inverters, micros, and stats.
SolarEdge isn't a string inverter, it is an optimized distributed inverter and it allows modules to produce just as early as micros,
Micros produce 240v not 120v, SolarEdge runs ~350v DC not 600-700
Micros only invert a part of the array yes but the invert ALL of the module they are connected to and many modules produce more than the micro can handle.
300 year MTBF is pretty damn crappy when you have 30+ of them....

[Remmy700P]

That was uncalled for. I don't appreciate your douchey, condescending response. I've been running my own PV array for years and work in the industry. I certainly hope that you aren't representative of the typical poster here. Your ego is getting in the way.

[ButchDeal]

Operating a system, particularly an automated system does not make one knowledgable about how to creat a system. How many operate a car today but have no idea how to maintain or repair it.
As for douchy, most would consider it a douche move to post such clearly misleading information as if from a point of authority.

[FFE]

Would you rather run 600-700+v DC through conduit across your roof or through your attic, or would you feel safer running 120v AC?

I would rather run 10 amps DC than 50 amps AC. It shouldn't matter if it is installed to code.

If they are 300 years MTBF and I have 30 of them....

[solar pete]

Remmy take a time out, your info was often misleading at best and how is it douchy to point out the truth, grow up.

[DanKegel]

fwiw the solaredge optimizers may be a bit simpler than full-on microinverters. Simpler may mean the can be more reliable. Anyone know of reliability stats comparing the two?

[randomuser]

Can someone address the life expectancy of the Enphase Envoy box? That's the main reason I chose SolarEdge. I think both inverter systems work well from the many installs of both products. The 2 year warranty of Envoy is what scared me. How many of these $500 boxes with a 2 year warranty would need to be replaced over 25 years? What was the cost of a string inverter 10-15 years ago? Is it much less expensive now? If the SolarEdge inverter replacement will cost less than today, when it fails in the future, that'll be a bonus. Hope the future failure of my inverter won't require a wholesale replacement of not only the inverter but also all the power optimizers on the panels.

[cracovian]

I just added 8 SunEdison 275s over the weekend for less than $2/W before taxes. They're on the Western side and they're obviously behind (performance-wise) my Southern 280 and 300 LGs but by not much.

They look great and my regret is that I didn't add more since they were selling for 66 cents/W.

[cracovian]

I did start out with a small LG farm (all Enphase) though the now discontinued 10 LG ACe panels at the bottom of the stack knock the socks off M250s... Too bad they never caught on!