02/09/2017
Anonymous
I regret doing business with Affordable Solar (AS). The process became a nightmare soon after I signed the contract. Before installation, the City of Albuquerque and PNM have to inspect the electrical panel and they show up at their own leisure (usually when you're at work) and need access to your home. AS will suggest you leave your gates unlocked or leave your garage door opener with them (do so only if you enjoy having your home broken into). Then after the installation is done the city inspector needs access to your home again for a final inspection and again will show up at his own leisure. Don't expect any kind of coordination through AS because even through they schedule the inspections the inspectors may not show up or call before they come to your home. The "project manager" was worse than useless because she did not coordinate with the roofing company who install my new roof to have the penetrations resealed and the solar panel installers had to wait until the roofers arrived. Of course, all of the delays with the inspections and installation caused AS to miss the deadline for submitting the State of NM tax credit which (along with the federal tax credit) was the only reason I decided to have the system installed in the first place. If you haven't calculated the cost of the system versus the monthly savings then do that first because you may be surprised to learn how long it will take for the system to pay for itself (it won't seem worth it). The salesperson is another sad story. Like typical salespeople do, you will be lied to or told things that sound wonderful but are embellished in unbelievable ways. I was initially told that if the system was installed by the end of 2016 I would qualify for both the state and federal tax credits. Then I was told (in an effort to make a quicker decision) that the system had to be installed by the end of the 2016 summer or I would lose the state tax credit. What I wasn't told was that the city had to complete final inspection and documents submitted to the state before receiving the state tax credit (it's not automatic like the federal tax credit). By the time I received clarification of this the deadline was near, the city inspector did not show up for the appointment, and the state tax credit was denied. Huge lack of communication on the part of AS. When I confronted AS with my dissatisfaction I was promised a 100% refund of the amount of the state tax credit but with the stipulation that the remaining balance be paid in full first. When I asked for further clarification the sales manager was evasive in explaining. Ultimately, I got the explanation I needed but AS only reimbursed me 50% of the state tax credit (I did say they lied didn't I?). On to the installation of the monitoring system. The installer will not come to your home when it is convenient for you but when it is convenient for him. If you cannot be home at his convenience he will suggest you can install the monitoring system yourself. The monitoring system itself will NOT provide any useful information directly and you will have to log onto their website for the information. Don't be sold on the wonderful free lifetime monitoring (it's NOT that wonderful or useful). Anyway, as far as the performance of the system, I still paid PNM for electricity for the first 2-3 months after the systems was installed because it was NOT generating enough to offset the electricity use during the summer and I began paying PNM again in December. IT'S NOT WORTH IT!!! BUT...if you decide that maybe it is...find another company. One star is more than AS deserves.