What should I check before I buy a solar power system?

When considering a solar system, it's essential to conduct thorough research. Check the company's longevity, the number of systems they've sold, and read reviews from other customers. Additionally, pay attention to the brands they offer, such as Fronius, SMA, Enphase, and Solar Edge, which are renowned for their quality inverters. Beware of companies that may pair a high-quality inverter with subpar panels to create the illusion of a quality system while keeping costs low. These systems may initially appear cheap, but within a few years, you'll find yourself chasing after phantom promises and facing numerous issues.

In Australia, the going rate for a five-kilowatt system of genuine quality starts at around six to six and a half thousand dollars, and goes up to eight or eight and a half thousand dollars. If you come across a system priced between three to four thousand dollars for a five to six kilowatt system, be cautious. Within a few years, you'll likely face numerous problems and spend significant time and effort trying to resolve them. Unfortunately, some companies deceive customers by associating a German-sounding name with the panels, while concealing the fact that they are actually manufactured in China. Many people have experienced the disappointment of discovering that they received low-quality panels despite paying a hefty price. It's crucial to be aware of the old adage, "buy cheap, buy twice," as it truly applies to the solar industry.

\- Check how long they've been around, check how many systems have been sold, look at reviews of other people selling something of the company, and look at the brands they sell. For example, in inverters, the key brands are Fronius, SMA, Enphase, Solar Edge. Those ones are usually going with quality gear, but also, sometimes, they put a quality inverter in, make it feel like a quality gear, and they put a really crappy panel with it, and that's when the system is cheap.

The going rate for a five kilowatt that is of a quality level would be starting at about six, six and a half, going up to eight, eight and a half thousand. If it's in the three to $4,000 price bracket as a five-six kilowatt system, you will within two to three years' time have to spend a lot of time chasing someone that is the phantom. The way it's gone unfortunately, in Australia is I buy a relatively cheap panel, maybe I give it a German name. The German name is really, really big, on the box made in China is so little you can't see it. And we've had instances where panels have been pulled off after two or three years and the customer swore black and blue he had German panels. And yes, the name was German sounding, but then we had to tell him the ugly truth that he actually got the bottom of the pile in terms of quality. Probably charged him still an arm and a leg as well, and a lot of people really had their bubble busted when you actually tell them the facts.