Solar Panel Warranty Loopholes Exposed
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- Опубликовано: 17 окт 2024
- Solar Panel failures and attempted warranty claims have been on the rise in recent years. Now even the Cheap Chinese Solar Panel Manufacturers are offering warranties that match the high-end USA and Korean manufacturers. But is the warranty worth the paper it's written on?
In this video we expose a loophole or "Get out of Jail Free Card" that almost all of the solar panel manufacturers have been keeping up their sleeve. We also take you along the journey we've been on with the manufacturers we recommend (Q-Cells and Sunpower), to ensure our customers don't get caught out by the loopholes that were in their warranty documents.
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Featuring: Mark Cavanagh
Editing and Visual Effects: Elliot Moss 
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Outstanding work here, thank you for making us aware of this. How about the amount of time one spends trying to get a replacement panel. If you value labor and time it seems like it is always better to just buy a new panel for your customer rather than dealing with the convoluted replacement processes...
Thank you so much for your high level of expertise, integrity and standards. You are one of the only RUclipsrs I trust to learn about technical matters on PV. You are like Elon Musk you try to understand things from first principles without listening to any opinions and this is precious.
Thanks for the genuine compliment!
Thanks Mark, an informative video. I actually found this after doing a search as one of the sales people giving me a quote mentioned that the best solution was to use solaredge optimisers because the shading on my roof would void the warranty of the panels. I checked the warranty doco, usual manual doco and can't find any mention of shading clauses. Am thinking the manufacturers have since removed these clauses, but the sales guys haven't caught up yet. Good that you have picked up on this 2 years ago and brought it to the surface.
SolarEdge isn't the best solution for shade, and the failure rates are some of the highest: ruclips.net/video/MSXEYr7PZWc/видео.html Fronius outperforms all other inverters with its MPPTs for shade, more on this here: ruclips.net/video/EtJMErVw7Kk/видео.html
Nice work. It’s an important topic. Sunpower confirmed for me in writing a year ago that I can install their panels in shade without voiding their warranty. I’m pretty sure QCELLS did the same for me at the time, because I was on the same mission. LG’s warranty document stated that if you install their panels in too much shade, un-optimised, then you could void their warranty - so I asked them what their definition of too much shade was. They could not give me an answer. So I stopped recommending them to customers.
Yeah if that definition is basically "whatever we say it is" then you potentially don't have a warranty, you have a worthless (to you, valuable to the company selling the panels) marketing ploy, not a warranty.
Enjoying these videos Mark - Especially this one, which highlights a big problem which is going totally unnoticed in the UK.
Mainline distributors over here in some cases do not even provide flash data, clear warranty paperwork or registration route.
Well done for calling them out...
Thanks! :)
Thanks for another great video! Would love to see a video comparing all the top brands monitoring platforms/apps
Mark your businessmen rock , great to have find your channel. I will send people your way
Great video Mark. I’m wondering why you all don’t get back to selling REC again. Based on my research, I’d take REC’s range over QCells’ range.
We offer the REC Alpha Pure-Rs now, as well as QCells and Canadian Solar.
Wow! I didn't know this , and I've been selling solar many years! Thanks for info!
No worries, it’s a concern. I have an update coming soon about this. I’m making progress!
Great video, and great channel ! Looks like Meyer Burger pannels don't have those issues with shading, could you confirm ?
It seems like there 2 options.
Make the hotspots much larger, so it’s less destructive than a discrete wire/diode that can short, or decrease the surface area and the size/voltage of each busbar area so it has less voltage and more current in parallel, leading to higher temperature handling and more diodes to prevent shading from crippling 1/3 of a panel, but instead 1/12th or 1/6th, where the voltage could be stepped or combined or sent to a modulator/optimiser /micro-inverter on the panel itself that has more than 5-6 diodes.
It seems like a hybrid optimiser panel, or half-cell panel with multiple parallel bus’s would reduce the physical size of the bypass isolation surface area,
and improve the shading handling of long-term or high ambient shading ie shading in 60’c ambient temperatures.
I would imagine that you should have more isolation points to handle these conditions, but doing so would probably add inefficiency and irregular voltage levels.
And adding more thermal protection reduces the exposed surface area to add insulation materials and expansion gaps to each cell row/column.
It would be interesting to see if a shingled or layered approach would reduce the thermal density/hotspot during shading and/or evenly heat an entire section to reduce the thermal load on the wire/bar instead. Or if it’s better to have a backplate or glass barrier between the wiring to “bake” a larger area, avoiding a hotspot, but heating a larger area of the panel instead.
Thanks PRO regards from Holland
You are welcome!
2:21 Today panels made of the 6 sections but not 3 and pais go in parallel. I wonder if today this problem described is still relevant for the panels consisting of the 6 sections?
Not big into solar havivng just got into when we got it installed, but this doesn't surprise me one bit. Frankly took everything sales/installers folk told me with a huge pinch of scepticism. The industry in general is 1 big 'kick it down the road' time bomb that no one cares about & legislators will never intervene in as industry still has loads to grow, even though recent Europe/UK energy crisis has almost every street having solar these days. Come back in 15-25 years
thank you. Have you had an experience with JA Solar panels? There warranty ? Also do solar panel installation company provide an installation warranty to cover for installation issues that may lead to the failure of the panels?
I’m pretty sure JA have the same conditions in their install manual. Yes, really it is the installers issue if they installed panels in the shade and the manufacturer rejects the warranty - but good luck fighting that fight.
I sell solar and have run into few homeowners with 10yrs+ on solar and they say the panels still work. Sunpower has been selling panels for about 38years( their words) and I think Sunrun (much weaker panel based on my research) has been over 14 years. So those panels are also still working, but MC electrical, you havn’t touched on this. Ty
Sure. I’d hope many panels still work at 25 years. On the other hand we swap panels out probably every week that have failed (not from our installs) Sometimes under warranty, sometimes not. We have swapped a lot of Sunpower Maxeon panels too, and they tried to refuse warranty.
Greatly appreciated information!
This has me thinking, my parents solar is IMO under performing, its about 10-12 years old, 532v 5A - now it peaks in pure midday unshaded sun around 400-ish V and 4-ish A. Voltage goes up current drops, Ohm's law tells me something is not right, perhaps 2 or even 4 of their 12 (Jinko I think) panels may have gone MIA, some of them in the late arvo would be in partial shade from neighbours trees for a shortish period of time.
This video is essential
So what happens at night, when there is total shade ? Or is it only an issue if part of a panel is shaded ? What if I have East and West facing panels ? In the morning the West panels may be in total shade, and vice versa in the afternoon. MAybe I need to read up some more :(
In reality shade with high contrast is the issue. Rule of thumb is avoid high contrast shade (close shade) between 10am and 2pm, especially summer. But… maybe I’m wrong, because most manufacturers just say the unrealistic “avoid shade at all costs” approach.
thank you for this video.
Thanks
Great with an update in the subjekt!
Hey Greenfrog, I missed your point!
@@mcelectrical is it the same warranty situation today? (Scading)
Wonderful
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Q Cells are owned by a arms manufacturer , Hanwha. Look them up. Land mines?
Hi Solaman. Yes. Same deal with LG and any large Korean manufacturer. It's required by the government. They no longer make cluster munitions. But thats what happens when your country boarders North Korea I guess.
@@mcelectrical Sorry I didnt know that. But they sell arms to the UK and other countries. Make love not war.
Beautiful
Clouds cause shade, dont worry about this. Mine are 12 years old Bisol, they work fine.
Birds flying also cause shade. We'll see how they go honouring a 25 year warranty with partial shade.
Wow. Ty for that comment. I sell solar and have run into few homeowners with 10yrs+ on solar and they say the panels still work. Sunpower has been selling panels for about 38years( their words) and I think Sunrun (much weaker panel based on my research) has been over 14 years. So those panels are also still working, but MC electrical hasn’t touched on this.
Very nice
Nice work
Really good
Do not expose solar panel to direct sunlight and rain.
Great video
beautiful
Looking forward to the tigo results
Yes, My Tigo saga , Back and forth for 3 month to get them working on an 3000 TL SMA inverter and then finding out that they don't work with that model of SMA inverter.Not Tigo's fold ,however allot of time spend . To Tigos credit,they compensated me with the full amount on return shipment
@@markcavanagh I’m about to get some here in Canberra.. I might hold off until I see your new video. Your other videos were really great thanks
Awesome video thanks
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Amazing
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It seems pretty clear that we actually need cell level inverters and the question is how long it will take to make that cheap enough to manufacture.
Never happen. The inductors and capacitors don’t scale down like that. You’ll not get it much better than a half or quarter panel.
@@JasperJanssen Could you explain a bit more why do you think it cannot scale that way? Sure, you may need DC-DC converters to increase the voltage for any semiconductors to work but I fail to see why it couldn't be done.
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What happens if a bird craps on the panels ?? will this affect them??
It goes into shit mode😂😂😂😂
vary nice
I have Hanwha panels completely covered with snail trails and they won’t cover them under warranty. They are 11 years old. Next step is ACCC. Shouldn’t have to take this route, it’s pretty disgraceful.
@@markcavanagh I can assure no one has walked on any panels. Every single panel is covered with them though. I don’t see how they can exempt themselves from warranty based on rough handling. They are installed by professionals and packed for transport by Hanwha. If anything, Hanwha should be responsible for insufficiently protecting their panels for transport.
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The Heat Pumps are worse it will save you money not a chance not a chance
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joss
It is indeed ridiculus. Under the roof shading will be permanent too but no diode will be harmed.
I dont understand how cell manufacturer can not include a bypass in each cell, its made from the same material and will be better than any optimizer.
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