Buying a house with a SolarEdge system.

[ericy]

We are in the process of buying a house that already has solar on it. We haven't settled yet, and I am trying to figure out what needs to be done to "transfer" it to us once we complete settlement and get moved in.

Here is what I do know - the inverter box says SolarEdge on it, and the seller tells us it was installed in 2016. It looks like it has a WiFi antenna sticking out of the top of it (6" long white stick). They tell us they save about 80$/month with the thing - given the published rates, it must be putting out about 34kWh/day (I don't know whether the 80$/month is averaged or peak performance in the summer). I assume that it is currently working, but I can't easily verify until we get in the house.

At the moment, that's about all I know. Not even the name of the installer (which we might find when we get access to all of the papers and stuff that the seller left behind).

Now given that it is residential, it is almost certainly a single phase inverter. I don't recall the model number of the inverter. But the thing sort of resembles a SE3800A. The SExxxx series superficially all look similar, so it is probably something in that series.

Anyways, now on to my actual questions....

At the moment, the system is isolated in that the seller has returned the WiFi router to the ISP. So the first question I have is what I would need to do to connect it to our WiFi once I get that working. If need be I could hook up a laptop with an RS232 cable just to bootstrap the thing - if it would help (I do that sort of thing at the office sometimes when we have trouble with a UPS). But somehow I will need to enter a WiFi password.

Secondly the question comes to how I get monitoring working. I apparently need an account - I gather that these are generated by the installer when they first put the system in? Is there a way to get one of these without having a service call? Or can they (who is they?) just do something from their office without sending someone out? Can SolarEdge support do this, or do I need to get the installer involved?

Any other words of wisdom?

[ButchDeal]

Solaredge does not have a wifi kit for the US, it is almost certainly a zigbe and requires a gateway zigbe unit on the inside the plugs into the internet router. Make sure you get that unit, plug it into your router and done.

The monitoriung is in the cloud and the installer needs to creat an owner account for you and grant full owner access. You should get them to show you full access to see that it is working and that all the pv modules are working.

[ericy]

Solaredge does not have a wifi kit for the US, it is almost certainly a zigbe and requires a gateway zigbe unit on the inside the plugs into the internet router. Make sure you get that unit, plug it into your router and done.

The monitoriung is in the cloud and the installer needs to creat an owner account for you and grant full owner access. You should get them to show you full access to see that it is working and that all the pv modules are working.

Thanks - did not expect that answer. Is there any way to identify the installer without digging through papers and hoping to find it (for example, if I call SolarEdge support and give them the address, will they be able to tell me)?

[ButchDeal]

Thanks - did not expect that answer. Is there any way to identify the installer without digging through papers and hoping to find it (for example, if I call SolarEdge support and give them the address, will they be able to tell me)?

It is listed as the installer on the monutoring site. Slaredge support can guve you the information with the serial nmbr of the inverter which is on the sid if the inverter along with the midel numbe.

[JSchnee21]

Do you still have contact with the seller? If they used the web monitoring, perhaps the can just tell you their username and password -- or have them change the password to something temporary.

Definitely ask for a copy of their solar install agreement. In the off chance the installer is still in business, you likely have some warranty coverage remaining -- not to mention info on Make, model, cost, etc.

The external whip antenna you described sounds like the one my system came with for the GSM connectivity option -- so no Wifi / Zigbee should be needed. If you go through the inverter menus (little push button under main inverter box on right) it should tell you how it is / was connected.

Is the home in a state with SREC's? If so, you'll need to transfer ownership of the system in the State monitoring system.

In terms of net metering, if your Poco allows, I would think that this should be fairly transparent when you sign the electrical service over to you.

-Jonathan

[ericy]

Do you still have contact with the seller? If they used the web monitoring, perhaps the can just tell you their username and password -- or have them change the password to something temporary.

Definitely ask for a copy of their solar install agreement. In the off chance the installer is still in business, you likely have some warranty coverage remaining -- not to mention info on Make, model, cost, etc.

We haven't gone to settlement yet, so yes there is still contact. That being said, the seller has already moved out, and is out of state. I suspect they are pretty busy getting their new place set up, so questions take a while to get answered, and any papers he has are probably packed away. But they did leave behind a huge stack of manuals/papers related to appliances, HVAC and many other things - I didn't get a chance to go through it all as we didn't have that much time. I don't doubt that something related to the system is in there somewhere. I just don't know how long it will take to find it what I need. When we get in the house after settlement, I will have a todo list a mile long - including a visit to the 10th circle of hell (Comcast).

I guess getting their password is also a possibility, but eventually I need to try and touch base with the installer anyways (assuming they are still in business). If it is Zigbee, then simply connecting the gateway would get the thing online again - the last time I was in the house I didn't see anything that looked like it, but I wasn't looking for it either. And as you say - if it is GSM, it should still be visible now.

The external whip antenna you described sounds like the one my system came with for the GSM connectivity option -- so no Wifi / Zigbee should be needed. If you go through the inverter menus (little push button under main inverter box on right) it should tell you how it is / was connected.

Is the home in a state with SREC's? If so, you'll need to transfer ownership of the system in the State monitoring system.

In terms of net metering, if your Poco allows, I would think that this should be fairly transparent when you sign the electrical service over to you.

-Jonathan

The home is in Delaware, and it looks like there is net metering. For what it is worth, there are a lot of homes with solar in this area. I am still coming up to speed on a lot of the other details for these things. I guess we will get there eventually.

I don't have the SN yet - I might try calling SolarEdge tomorrow and see if they can do an installer lookup just based upon the property address, and then see if the installer is in business and whether they can currently see if the system is up. Anything I can learn ahead of the settlement date reduces the workload on the day we move in.

[foo1bar]

It is listed as the installer on the monutoring site. Slaredge support can guve you the information with the serial nmbr of the inverter which is on the sid if the inverter along with the midel numbe.

It also is normally listed on the electrical permit from when the system was installed.
And since more and more of the building permit information is accessible online you may be able to just look it up on the town/county building department's website.

[ericy]

It also is normally listed on the electrical permit from when the system was installed.
And since more and more of the building permit information is accessible online you may be able to just look it up on the town/county building department's website.

Heh.. Yes, the building permit did the trick. I now know the name of the installer, and their website is still up so I can call them later today when they open.

[azdave]

Any other words of wisdom?

Maybe I missed it above but do you know if this system is still on an active lease that you are expected to assume or is it fully owned by the seller?

[ericy]

Maybe I missed it above but do you know if this system is still on an active lease that you are expected to assume or is it fully owned by the seller?

Fully owned by the seller.

I talked with the installer this morning. Yes, it is ZigBee, so I will have to find that little white box when I get in there (he couldn't quite remember where it would have been - probably close to where the cable TV wires come into the house).

He said the system appeared to be working fine until the 21st, and probably went dark only because they disconnected their Comcast. The system is sized at 9.75kW - building permit said 41 panels. Mostly facing SW(215 degrees) - some facing SE (125 degrees). Once I get in the home, he offered to come by and spend 30 minutes to familiarize me with the thing, and to create an account on the monitoring site.

[azdave]

Fully owned by the seller.

Sounds like you have a good grasp on things then. Hope it all goes smoothly for you.

I'd also check with the local utility to see if the old grid-tie agreement is transferable or if you need a new one signed. My contract is grandfathered under an older, much more favorable plan and can be transferred to any new owner for 17 more years. I don't plan to sell but if I did, that transferable contract is a great benefit.

[J.P.M.]

Fully owned by the seller.

I talked with the installer this morning. Yes, it is ZigBee, so I will have to find that little white box when I get in there (he couldn't quite remember where it would have been - probably close to where the cable TV wires come into the house).

He said the system appeared to be working fine until the 21st, and probably went dark only because they disconnected their Comcast. The system is sized at 9.75kW - building permit said 41 panels. Mostly facing SW(215 degrees) - some facing SE (125 degrees). Once I get in the home, he offered to come by and spend 30 minutes to familiarize me with the thing, and to create an account on the monitoring site.

Sounds like your on your way to some information. Good luck.