Solar Energy Services, Inc.

Solar System Maintenance

I have used Solar Energy Services since they first installed my system. I have had them perform an overall review several times. Most recently I had one of the collectors on the roof spring a leak and of course called Solar Energy Services. They immediately dispatched a senior manager in the company to perform an overall review of my system so that they could inform me exactly what I needed. The visit was then followed up quickly by a technician to perform the repairs. His attention to detail and explanation for what he was doing, how to optimize my system and even checked some of the pool settings to ensure I was getting the most capability from the Solar System. I highly recommend this company and cannot say enough good things about their response, their office personnel, and the field technician. It was a pleasure doing business with them.

Excellent Job

John Marrah was great. He was the only rep who understood completely and fully embraced my goals. The follow-on team of designers, installers, and project management were excellent. Professional, personable and knowledgeable. The paperwork was handled smoothly and right through final commissioning, everyone did what they were supposed to do. Our project had some unusual technical challenges and SES dealt with them flawlessly. I think I should mention that I ran my own engineering company for over 42 years. I'm in a position to judge this stuff.

Review of SES

SES was the installer for our 7.92 kW rooftop PV system that entered service in February 2018. I have since recommended them to neighbors and co-workers, and recommend them here without reservation. SES stood out among the three companies that came to our house for a site visit and submitted an offer. Rich from SES obviously knew his stuff. I accompanied him as he measured our (nearly flat) roof and came up with a probable layout. We discussed where to bring the line down from the roof and where to place the inverter. He looked at our circuit panel and concluded it was probably fine to accommodate the system. He later sent two detailed designs with shade analyses, equipment lists and quotes, and economic/cost recovery analyses. By contrast, one of the other companies (a reputable DC installer; just with a different approach) sent a salesman who begged off on all system design questions and was instead focused on getting our signatures on a contract. The tendered contract had a preliminary design that was physically too large for our roof and assumed replacement of our circuit panel. I pointed out these issues, and the salesperson explained we had to sign a contract to get the actual design, and could cancel within three days after getting the real offer. I reluctantly signed, so that we could get a third competing offer; thought better of it overnight, and cancelled first thing the next morning. The only good to come out of that offer was learning about the latest high-wattage LG panels. I asked Rich if SES could design our system using those panels, and they did—the third detailed offer (with a price-tag thousands below the other LG-based offer) submitted by SES before we signed a contract. We contracted with SES in November 2017. The permitting and interconnection processes proceeded without any hitch. Lisa at SES worked well with the DC permitting folks to resolve their questions and minor issues. We got our permits and notice to proceed in January 2018, and SES installed the system in early February 2018. The SES installation crew was professional and polite, and the installed system was rock-solid on our standing-seam metal roof, with the interconnecting cables all nicely arranged and contained. The electrical work was well done, and SES ran a cable through our floor to connect the inverter directly to our internet router. All well and good, deserving of a recommendation—but what happened after installation shows that SES absolutely has to be on your short-list if you need a solar installer in Maryland or DC. Our small roof includes three commercial-grade, pyramid-style glass skylights, each with a supporting frame projecting a foot or so above the roof. It turned out that those structures shaded about 8-12 inches of three panels in late winter/early spring, enough to cut their output well below the other panels. One of the three panels also had a number of days of zero output. After some emails back and forth, and some internal analysis and discussion at SES, they decided to come back and disassemble and reinstall the entire array and supporting rails. A two-person crew came and worked a full day, just to move the entire system 12 inches north and get those three panels out of the part-shade from the skylights. After completing that work, the crew was on the phone with the SES construction manager for nearly an hour to trouble-shoot the worst-performing panel, eventually identifying a bad optimizer, which SES replaced on a follow-up visit. All of this work was done at no additional charge to us. The system’s performance has significantly improved, and the troublesome “zero-output” panel is now the best performer in the array. So my advice to anyone shopping for a solar installer is to do your homework, understand the SRECs (if you are in DC—note that you may get low-ball quotes that assume you sign over the SRECs; SES does not do this), get three quotes, and make sure that one of those quotes is from Solar Energy Services.

Serviced my Solar Hot Water System

Our Solar Hot water system was installed in early 2012 by a company in the metro Balt-Wash area that has since gone out of business. I wanted someone to inspect the system to ensure it was working properly and to change the glycol which is recommended every 3-5 years (apparently). Solar Energy answered all my questions and was able to service my Schuco system while many other companies were unwilling to do so. The servicemen were professional and neat and the price was lower than I expected. All is well

Great Service

I have a Solar Hot Water system going on 8 years old which had stopped working. The manufacturer has since left the residential market and abandoned their customers making it virtually impossible to get service. After several painstaking google searches, I stumbled across this great little company and scheduled a service call. The tech showed up on time and after running through his checks, determined my original installer failed to fill the required amount of Glycol which caused what was in the system to go bad. He took the time to explain what was wrong in layman's terms, fix the problem and thoroughly clean up afterwards. A day later the company called to check and see if I had any problems or questions. My only comment was their employee was a great representative of their company. I without hesitation recommend their services. Finding someone knowledgeable with Solar Hot Water Systems is not a simple task.

Residential Solar installation

Excellent on all counts. Responsive, professional, fast, and high quality. Good follow up and immediate troubleshooting to get everything up, running, and registered.

Great Job! Nice Install!

The SES team was great to work with - from design to construction and post install services (SRECS) it was smooth. The process was turnkey and is now working as specified. Installation was done cleanly and the product and panels are top shelf. I would recommend this team to anyone considering a Solar project.

Highly Recommend SES!

From beginning to end I was highly impressed and satisfied with SES. For context I received quotes from 6 local installers in MD. Lisa Walsh from SES was tremendous!!! She designed an excellent value system and was so responsive and nice in answering all of my questions. The installation team had a keen eye for detail and did not cut any corners. The system was installed flawlessly. The office team worked efficiently through the paper work, coordination with power company (BGE), and continues to be responsive with any questions. I have no reservation in recommending Solar Energy Services!!! In fact, I have already referred them to several friends that are interested in solar.

Great people, kind and helpful

Lisa was incredibly kind, helpful, and patient in discussing my options for solar panels. I ultimately went with another company that made a proposal that was too good to turn down. But I would have been thrilled to work with Lisa and SES, and anyone looking to install solar should seriously consider them. Lisa made a very competitive proposal at a better value than nearly all of her competitors. What's more, she diligently talked through my options and never pressured me or badmouthed the competition, as others did. She's very knowledgable and I would encourage anyone interested in solar to talk to her.

Most capable solar installer in region

I installed almost 11kW with Solar Energy Services on a residential new construction. Every aspect of the installation was exceptional. Customer Service/Installers/Follow up were all incredible. I installed solar 7 years ago on another home and didn't receive close the level of professionalism that I did with Solar Energy Services this past October 2016. There is no reason to research other installers. They are, hands down, the best.

Installation of solar panels

Easy to work with. Professional. On time and responsive to questions and problems.

Great job done by a friendly and competent crew.

The installation required a high degree of technical sophistication with regard to wiring roof integrity and wiring challenges. Although the job took longer than anticipated, Kirk and his team were always responsive and courteous as we worked through some of the challenges, the most crucial of which was whether my roof could support the weight of the panels. The actual installation was amazing to watch as the crew scampered around the roof, erecting panels in PERFECT linear arrays, and hiding the wiring inside weatherproof galvanized piping. The siting of the inverters similarly was done to our specifications to make it easy to monitor the system. The first month was amazing - over 2 megawatts produced, resulting ina savings of over $150 on my Pepco bill. This fall, we have generated more tan we consume. SS also applied for the Montgomery County permits (which was a drag) and the Pepco net meter insallation (which came sooner than expected). Altogether, great job and the sleek black panels are BEAUTIFUL and blend in so well that no one even knows we have solar! Price was competitive -toward the lower end of offers.

Solar panel installation

Solar Energy exceeded our lofty expectations. Their level of communication, the design team, the install team, the help after the install was complete was SUPERB. They exceeded our lofty expectations and they are nice folks to boot. Highly recommend

SES gets it done

These guys know their stuff. I had a solar pool heater system installed recently and couldn't be happier. They were competitive in pricing, very responsive, did quality installation and overall were very easy to work with. My system is performing as expected.

Great system, good timing, excellent advice

I'd been considering a system for several years but put off installing one because of all the trees we had. After several trees died and more sun made it to our roof we decided the time was right so I did some research and found SES via a discusion on a PVS web site: one of the company owners was answering intricate questions. I found his email and the rest is history. I flipped the switch a couple of hours ago. They were uncanny in their ability to predict with considerable accuracy when each phase of the project would wrap up. PEPCO could have moved a little faster with replacing the meter and handling the final paperwork.

Excellent in every way

SES was a great company to work with. From the start to finish, all aspects were professionally handled, and well thought out. The sales staff is extremely knowledgeable, especially compared to some other companies where I thought the sales person just wanted to make a sale, not really understand my wants and needs. The office staff (Erin) coordinates everything and makes it so there are no homeowner headaches. And now that I am generating tons of electricity, I can say with confidence the installation and materials are top-notch. Couldn't recommend them more highly.

Crownsville Maryland Residential Installation

Excellent communication from start to finish, and the final installation looks great. Highly recommended!

Professional, Smooth Installation

I did a fair amount of web research and then did 3 phone interviews of protential installers. Solar Energy was timely, professional and flexible in their proposal (some installers wanted to do things ONLY their way or didn't call back for days), and the actual installation was completely uneventful, looks great and the paperwork and coordination with the utility was all handled by them with no involvement from me.....and the system is working just fine. Their price was very competitive. In short, absolutely no hestitation in using them again or in recommending them.

Excellent Job - Information, Installation and Training

SES provided excellent information in order for us to determine whether we wanted to invest in solar. Any person we talked with was very knowledgeable and friendly. Once we decided to move forward, the installation was excellent. Efficient, friendly and always cleaned up at the end of the day. Once it was installed we were provided patient instruction, paperwork details were excellent and all calls or email inquires were immediately returned. It was obvious the staff work well together as a team.

Solar Installation!

Solar Energy Services is an extremely professional organization. There was no attempt to add any un-needed "extras" into our contract. The sales rep was extremely knowledgable and answered every question we had on the spot. The construction crew was prompt and professional. Everything was completed in a timely, neat and unobstructive manner. We highly recommend Solar Energy Services to anyone!

SES Review

Since its inauguration in 2009, Nextility, Inc., a Washington D.C.-based company, who develops solar energy projects has worked with Solar Energy Services on numerous solar water heating and solar electric system installations. From time and time again, SES has proved to be a reliable resource and holds a successful track record engineering and constructing projects on-time and to a high quality standard. They have always been fair to us and have treated the individuals at our company with lots respect. We've enjoyed our relationship with them throughout the years and look forward to future projects with SES.

Competent, helpful and a quality company overall.

Everyone at Solar Energy Services is very helpful in providing information for you to make an informed decision on a solar system. And they continue to be a part of the whole process of getting onto the grid even after the instal is complete. I can't say enough about how good this company is to deal with.

Roof mounted PV systems

The City of Bowie has used Solar Energy Services (SES) for the installation of approximately 20kW of solar on three City buildings. Their expertise in design and installation is superior and provided for an easy permitting process within our County. In fact, the City has recently contracted with SES to provide annual preventative maintenance on all four City facilities totaling 60kW in solar production across 248 panels.

Senior Construction Adviser/ Special Projects Administrator DHCD

I was happily surprised with the performance of Solar Energy Services Inc. during the recent construction of the 1st Net Zero House in Prince Georges County MD. Due to delays and cancellations by our previous solar vendor we contacted Solar Energy Services at the last minute. Lisa from Solar Services quickly jumped in and expedited everything to meet our schedules and deadlines. In addition they were able to flow on site with other contractors as if they were part of the group from the get go. The panels they provided were cheaper in cost but more efficient that the ones we intended to use, so we easily met our Net Zero goal as intended from the get go. Last but not least, they provided us with excellent service with patience, courtesy and excellent customer service. The installer worked with us to resolve any and every issues that arose from our plans and specifications even though it was not their duty or responsibility to do so based on our contract Sincerely, Patricia Omondi

Solar Installation

I have expressed my observations to a lot of your staff. I hope this only re-enforces the positive experience we received. From the very beginning to the the very end, it was second to none and at times beyond top of the line. From original sales call (Kirk) to final 'turn on', staff were professional, cordial and always leaving us with the feeling that we could call anytime/anyone and our questions would be addressed. Most professional of all was Erin in the office. She is a valued employee due to her positive, want to help and 'I care' attitude. Also, because I left prior to the installers arriving and not getting home until after they left for the day, I never knew they were there! The didn't leave 1 screw, debris, any evidence of how they worked, expect to get it done! What a model to display! Please use my name and/or number as a reference whenever needed! Thank You, Edna-Wynne Raley