A few weeks ago we were talking with a colleague who has had problems in your self-consumption photovoltaic installation solo at home Specifically, a dispute with the photovoltaic panel guarantee .
Although from a professional and technical perspective it may be complicated and there may be a heated dispute over the minimum quality conditions that must be met and required of some solar panels within the world of the renewables. Non-professional users, what What we need is to clarify and know the key points before a purchase.
There is a lot of fine print in solar photovoltaics and features to look at; from the simple fact of itself we bought the solar panel that ours really needs housing, going through having an adequate installation or components, up to the guarantee conditions offered to us by the photovoltaic panel and its production such as reviewed by Sun Fields in the article on solar panels with more guarantee, just to give some examples.
It is important to know what features should be comply with solar panels so that they are efficient and have a long useful life, and, in this article, we break down what should we look at in the guarantee of a solar panel photovoltaic energy and what we should not do to maintain that warranty, which is just as important, so you don't throw away the money…
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When we talk about endorsements in a panel photovoltaic system it must be considered that, in the quality of the product , this is the most significant quality means guarantee! AND you pay for that, it's the truth.
Three different guarantees intervene in the panels solar; guarantee of product, of production in its useful life and of service. A summary outline:
| Types of panel guarantees solar | Description | Low quality panels | Good quality panels |
| Product warranty | From the solar panel itself | 12 – 15 Years | 25 Years |
| Production guarantee | Performance over the years | 25 Years | 25 Years |
| Service guarantee | Panel replacement + Labor | Normally NO (Depends on the brand) | 25 Years (Depends on brand) |
The years indicated are only an approximation and point of reference. coherence. There are companies that even provide guarantees of up to 40 years, a blessed madness! Still, we have to understand other details…
Although we can understand that solar panels They have the purpose of converting sunlight into electricity to use at home, so that to work, you need an installation that has a number of elements and components that together will produce and I will store (if it is the case) that electricity that we need.
Each element that comprises this installation that we will put into house has some guarantees, so we must understand what are the elements that, together, make that function work. photovoltaic installation.
Although the Spanish regulations on renewable energies of individual energy self-consumption contemplates different variables and possibilities: Self-consumption WITHOUT surpluses (Simpler installation) and Self-consumption WITH surpluses (More complicated installation where we return the energy that work to the electrical network) or that is for a consumer (only one home) or several (for a community – installation more complicated).
To have a general idea, we will focus in a self-consumption photovoltaic installation individual simple, for a single dwelling, and we would have the following schema:
First, and as a factor that determines the price of the installation , you must take into account the energy needs of the home and its situation , which will determine the number of plates photovoltaics that we will need:
Solar installation price depends from:
| Power required to supply housing | Solar irradiation (Hours of Sun) |
| Greater power, greater number of panels | More irradiation less number of panels |
As we will see, investing in solar panels is the most expensive, but, we have to break it down into two parts; a first, that would represent the legal procedures (legislation, bulletin, etc), labor and materials, and the second and more important to us, the components of the installation.
It is interesting to know the individual price generalization of the elements that make up the installation photovoltaic , that is, it is not the same as breaking photovoltaic solar panels, that a battery, an inverter or a charge controller. Changing one or the other would mean spend more or less money.
Broadly speaking, we would have the following breakdown by chapters in a budget that a company can provide us installer (Estimate for a three-person home, with average consumption in kW of 350 month, and about 15 photovoltaic panels installed):
Prices of the components of an installation photovoltaic
| Parts – Components | Function in the installation photovoltaic | % off price full |
| Photovoltaic panels | Solar cells convert solar radiation into electric power | €€€€€€ |
| The solar inverter | It is responsible for transforming the direct current (CC) in alternating current (AC) | €€€ |
| Structure supporting panels | Structure that orients the panel, provide support and protect it against the elements weather | €€€ |
| Bidirectional counter | Allows you to record the load curve of the home to optimize self-consumption | € |
| Protection table for DC and AC | Protections for the photovoltaic installation both for alternating current as direct current | € |
| Newsletter and legalization | Includes registration in administration corresponding and legalization of the installation | € |
| Labor and possible materials | Cost of installation, wiring, connections and possible materials to use | €€ |
In the table above, we have not indicated prices because depending on the brands they vary a lot, but we can recognize that the most expensive components are the photovoltaic panels (individually They can be around 180 – 250 Euros, but since we need many, taken together, is the largest investment) and the solar inverter (Here in price is according to your pocket and the quality that you want to acquire, there are from very cheap with little efficiency, even expensive that exceed calmly the 1,000 Euros)
We have seen that many users wonder What guarantees does it have a photovoltaic module? And although the degradation of photovoltaic panels is an important part to consider, there are many other aspects what we should look at.
Although the maintenance of the plates solar panels is normally paid by the user (some companies offer maintenance contracts) we must know what guarantees will we have and demand them when buying a panel photovoltaic system or when all the equipment is installed solar. First it is interesting to know the useful life that can reach components:
| Installation components photovoltaic | Average useful life |
| Photovoltaic panel | Possibility of more than 25 years |
| Solar inverter | Possibility of more than 25 years |
| Panel support structure | Possibility of more than 25 years |
| Bidirectional counter | Possibility of more than 20 years |
| AC and AC protection panel | Possibility of more than 25 years |
| Batteries | Possibility of more than 4 years (A maximum of 7 – 8) |
| Wiring | Possibility of more than 25 years |
Our article on windows is also of interest photovoltaics that will come in the near future.
Although it is estimated that the life of a module is about 30 years , and its performance after 25 years usage is above 80% . there are a lot of lyrics small to read in the warranty conditions of a solar panel and its maintenance, if we do not want give us a good scare, and pay again.
The panels hide two types of guarantees that go coupled with the quality of the panel , and, consequently, to the purchase price of a panel. In a cheap module we will find guarantees of 10 to 15 years, but we have made an important investment and we want to amortize it true, so:
The guarantee of the product itself as an element electronic is the one that covers the damages or that the solar panel itself may have (materials, components, glass, connections, etc). It has to be guarantee of product 25 years .
The guarantee of production in a solar panel is the one that covers the minimum production that the panel must have photovoltaic throughout its life (performance that we obtain of the panel and how much it will slow down during its useful life). Has to be 25-year production guarantee .
It is one that includes technical assistance necessary to proceed with the replacement of the solar panel, transportation and labor . Only the best ones manufacturers provide this service, come on, the control panels quality.
We make a significant initial investment and we want you to have a long lifespan, just buy panels of good quality from recognized brands and that they give you the same guarantee of product, production and service as: LG Energy , SunPower , Panasonic , FuturaSun , to give examples of brands.
Although it can be very boring, we always recommend reading the guarantee to have some basic notions, and among the several points that we can find:
In reality, the solar inverter does not usually break and being a electronic element and be normally protected in the The interior part of the house has a long useful life.
The most technically advanced inverters, from good brands and that allow to obtain better yields, obviously they are more expensive. Apart from the ways to save energy at home that we habitually practice, we must study and see what needs we have and decide the final purchase, of course, the professionals are there to help us.
Many companies that install photovoltaic equipment offer the maintenance contract for "X" years. If we end up hiring him, then we will also have to require that the conditions of guarantee .
The world of energy self-consumption is complicated and with many nuances in the facilities. It is an investment important if we want to supply energy to a whole house, In our opinion, we always advise you to look for a company installer who has a real professional career. Compare prices and budget, I have tried to acquire equipment from recognized brands, which, in the long run, we will appreciate.
Out of curiosity, and if you have a photovoltaic installation in field. Solar panel maintenance by grazing dreaming of sheep that clean the lower part of the facility in the field eating the grass, it is really profitable and cheap.
