Solar Energy World

Norman Review

The folks at Solar Energy World are super helpful and friendly. It takes time from purchase date to install, but the timeline was as they promised. The sales rep, Jay Randall, was always available and straight up. You have access to everyone in the company when there are questions. We frequently talked with CEO Geoff Mirkin and he just as helpful. Even the installation team was friendly, courteous, and professional. They continue to support us and made it clear that we are partners for the next 25 years, at least. It's a nice team to be on. Thank You Solar Energy World!

Still too early to tell......but optimistic!

Just a few comments- Overall I was very impressed with our Solar project. However it's still too early to tell what the payback will be. If you purchase the system as we did with a loan, be prepared to pay the loan payment as well as your normal electric bill for a while. It takes literally many months to get your system registered, Net Meter installed, and SREC Generation going. We've been generating since Oct 2014 and have seen one SREC check and it's March 2015. I know this is not the installers fault but just make note. Also if you are on a budget with electric company you will not see very little change in your electric bill for a year until it equalizes. We got off the budget after we realized this. Our system seems to be performing as well as promised if not a little better so we are optimistic we will save some money in the long run. The reason I'm dinging SEW on a couple small things is I didn't care for the conduit all over the side of the house. Although it's VERY neat, it could have been done a little differently and hidden much better. Also I have a couple panels that are not straight and I've asked them to come back to straighten them- nothing yet. It's been 6 months. Lastly I was told I would get a follow-up visit from them to review the system after it was installed. 6 Months later and haven't heard from them. I would definitely still recommend these guys though- they did a great job and got it all done in a short period of time and took care of all the paperwork, etc. They just need a little follow up with the customer after the job is complete.

Why did we wait so long.

We had several solar companies come to our home to present their product. Solar Energy World, without a doubt, had the best sales presentation, and was in fact the most knowledgeable. They listened and tailored their system to our needs. Several of the other companies just kept pushing what they felt we should have. The sales rep was personable and made us feel very comfortable in making our decision to go with Solar Energy World. We gave them a 4 for being on schedule, only because Delmarva Power kept holding up the final paper work. We would recommend Solar Energy World to anyone.

8.3 KWh Residentail SunPower PV Installation

Jack Bolel was by far the most knowledgeable representative of the four solar installation company representatives I talked with before choosing Solar Energy World (SEW). The presentation and estimation tools he had were far superior. He agreed to all my requests for contract language changes to address installation schedule contingencies, and worked with my equipment selection and configuration ideas to arrive at the most cost-effective solar installation configuration for my house. Being able to contact existing SEW customers in my area to review their experiences was an important factor in my decision to choose SEW. The SEW installation team were all professional and courteous master craftspeople. The only glitches encountered involved Montgomery County electrical inspection and PEPCO net-meter installation scheduling, which together delayed solar system operation by over 6 weeks. The included home energy audit was very helpful. I highly recommend SEW for PV Solar installations.

Great at first, problems at end. Hopeful for future

Their seminar, plant tour, sales and installation were excellent. Everyone who we met was top notch. Then it all fell apart. Took 3 weeks/3 calls from us to get an inspection scheduled. Thank goodness for Summer in the office; she is professional and does her best to explain and inform. She is the perfect "face" of this company. Once our system was installed there was NO follow up. If this company instituted a follow up policy they could avoid what happened to us (not being able to get inspection scheduled) and figure out where there are weaknesses in their company and maybe most importantly, make the customer feel like they care. We paid for our system up front, and between the inspection issue and Pepco's timeline we waited 2 months to have it turned on. Solar Energy World needs to explain to customers that there could be a timeframe during which they are still paying in full for their utility and also paying for the solar system. They were great at the paperwork and the administrative stuff. We have online access to our metering info and also to the SREC system. I really liked this company and hope to be able to recommend them in the future. Our system has been operational for two months (during the shortest days of the year) and has been generating power, but it's too early to assess. (Unfortunately the net meter was installed by Pepco December 11 and today is February 20 and we have not yet seen a bill. Pepco is a whole other story of probems...) I am optimistic that it will all work out!

Excellent

The customer service and follow up was fantastic. I was kept informed with every step. The installation team was fantastic. The work was completed without a flaw. I will recommend them for all solar installations.

Free energy

I have had my system for just over 3 years now, and it is performing beautifully. Thank you Solar Energy World, a free 12500 kWh every year. My only gripe... why didn't you make me do this sooner!

Solar panels

Solar energy world is an excellent company, we are very satisfied with their service & installation. From the sales rep Mr Dan Myers to office staff, especially Sherice Johnson are highly professional & courteous people. My calls were returned within minutes. Installation was smooth & on time with utmost professionalism, very impressive. Dan Myers was very helpful & supportive, he personally delivered the system manual once the system was activated. Sherice Johnson helped a lot with her professional service, she was extremely patient with me. I'll highly recommend this company.

October 2014-January 2015

We have been dealing with Solar Energy World for 4 months now. There have been some bumps in the road that required follow up emails and additional calls, but in the end, leadership has shown that they are commited to making it a possitive experience for all their customers. I truly believe that management wants the company to grow and learn from issues, which speaks alot to the quality of the company. Our solar system has been on since the middle of December, and it has been working nicely, and meeting the minimum generation estimated for each month, just as the production estimate indicated that it would. Some pieces of advice I'd offer to anyone looking to go solar: #1 - Keep in mind that the process can be a little drawn out due to all of the different state requirements, certifications, and inspections you'll need to go through. #2 - Make sure you are prepared for the amount of equipment that will end up on your home. Not just the panels, but the additional meter, the convertor and communication box, and lots of conduits filled with wires. Ours is on the side of the home, so we will be looking into a creative way of hiding the eye-sores. #3 - Keep in mind that energy production is not uniform throughout the entire year. Meaning, winter months will most likely generate much less than summer months. So if you finance, with the expectation that you electric bill will be vanishing, meaning the loan payment isn't a big deal... be aware that during winter months you may still find yourself paying both the electric bill, and the loan payment in the same month.

Natalie's review

LOVE Solar Energy World! Researched lots of companies and we are very happy that we went with Solar Energy World. They were great from start to finish - and with any questions we had after that. We had our solar panels installed in Dec. 2013 and have been enjoying LOW electric bills - and our SREC checks! Basically not paying anything for our electric. Highly recommend Solar Energy World. They know what they are doing. 5 stars!

bob's comments

The billing process was not smooth. there is one question that was not answered about how credits are handled

Ridge , MD Install

Been wanting solar for a very long time , Did a lot of research and decided to go with a local installer Solar energy world delivered what they said they would.I would recommend this company to anyone.

Preston MD

System was purchased in October 2013 and due to various delays didn't come online till March 2014. Most delays were weather related so hard to blame SEW for that. In the end, we ended up with higher output panels than we purchased, but this benefit is probably offset by the extra credit score dings required as the financing expired and had to be reapplied for. Aside from this, the system works better than advertised. Although SEW submitted all the paperwork for SREC's, GATS has to have state registration and that process is slow. Installers were really nice guys and gladly answered all questions and explained things very well.

Home Owner

Solar Energy World - one word - "Easy!" We meet first with another solar vendor. Their equipment leasing cost and usage contract didn't add up. Our next find was Solar Energy World - after our initial meeting - we "wrote" the check. Solar Energy World's presentation and financial projections were straight forward. We were also given systems options - such as panel type. Our purchase experience continued to be handled beyond our expectations. At every phase - all of our multiple questions were answered. And to our suprise - after our install - we received a comprehensive notebook - complete of all relevant contracts and system information - very nice.

Performed as Promised

We were very pleased that Solar Energy World did everything exactly as they indicated that they would. Their installers were very good and very neat. They performed in a timely manner. When the job was done, SEW gave us a very helpful guide to understanding our system.

Wonderful to work with

We had a totally good experience from beginning to end with this company. We got pv panels and solar thermal panels and love our system. The company has been very responsive to our requests and helped us every step of the way. I highly recommend them.

Great Service

Great customer service skills before and after.

My Solar Panels after 2 years

We definitely are happy with our solar panels and with Solar Energy World for installing this great system. We had a 6.5 kw 28 panel ground installation done and it is producing as expected. Fed and State reimbursements/credits came in as forecast, although still waiting for county tax part to kick in as we are on a waiting list. Summer months are very small bills under $40. Winter is a drop off as expected, usually under $100 a month in real cold months and if we do not use our wood stove to keep the heat pump off. Solar Energy World knows what they are doing and we are very happy with the results.

A Plus for Solar Energy World!

Our experience with Solar Energy World in setting up solar panels on our home and garage has been a positive experience. From the initial meeting through the installation and continuing service all of Solar Energy's World's personnel have been friendly, competent, and responsive. Especially helpful was getting us through the bureaucratic ups and downs of rebates, tax credits, and SREC contacts for continuing monitoring and sale of vouchers. Our only complaint has been corporate refusal to purchase the complete monitoring system as part of the original package to help compare usage to production and thus better help us conserve energy. We've kept our friends and neighbors informed and several have become part of the Solar Energy World family. June&Harold Confer

Great job on PV System in Rockville, MD

We had our Sunpower Solar Electric PV system - 9.2KW (40 modules using Sunpower 230 pannels) installed by Solar Energy World. They did a wonderful job. They were very professional and the system works great. They helped us navigate with the local electric utility which confused our paperwork with another customer with the same name. We also appreciated that they did not try to sell us a service policy, stating that with our kind of roof we didn't need it, but if we insisted they would be happy to take our money.

Great Company & Service

Everything went great from the initial consultation to the install. The only 2 issues that came up was they had put a hole in my drywall for a new wire coming up to hook to the internet & they used the wrong trench...The installer didn't realize he didn't have to run the wire in the home the way he did & didn't have to put a hole in the wall, which I fixed. They corrected the problem using the wrong trench though. In all, they were great to work with!

Overall a great experience

Working with Solar Energy World was a great experience. Pat O'Brien was our sales representative and he gave my husband and me a clear and full big picture idea without being pushy and with lots of patience to answer all of our questions. Solar Energy World took care of all the permits and inspections but towards the end of the process I believe there was a change in office managers and I had to follow up with them a few times to have issues resolved with the SREC Brokerage firm to make sure the SREC account could be set-up properly. Overall it was a great experience and I highly recommend using Solar Energy World for your solar conversion.

super people!

This was a dream I didn't think possible, but it did happen and with every detail considered and the best possible system installed. Really good follow up service. Prompt and professional!

Excellent experience

Great job from start to finish. The communication from the first meeting to when the fianl payment was made after everything was complete was perfect. Would highly highly recommend these guys

A Job Well Done

Solar Energy World installed our system very quickly form start to finish. They did very good work and our system is up and running smoothly. We really enjoy using the online recording application, you can check how your system is operating and set up graphs for the weekly, monthly, and yearly production. If you or someone you know is interested in making the responsible change to clean renewable energy you need to go with a company you can trust and I trust this company.