Review for ADT Solar (formerly Sunpro Solar)

Office location: 17245 Jones Maltsberger Rd, San Antonio TX, 78247

08/08/2022
Erin Raup Universal City, TX

Go Solar! But with another company

I highly recommend getting solar, but do not do it with ADT Solar. We signed our contract with them November 2nd 2021 and did not have an operational system until June 28th 2022 (almost 8 months later). They are overpriced and have terrible project managing within their various teams as I will outline below. We were told when we signed that we would have a working system in either January or February (within 4 months, as the average is typically 3 months), ours took 8 almost solely due to the mismanagement of our project by various ADT Solar staff. As mentioned, we signed 10/2/21 and then the solar panels and most of the electrical system was installed on 1/10/22. We were very happy on this day and thought we were about to be close to the finish line, but boy were we wrong. The first red flag happened on this day when our electrical system failed to get completed in one day. I went out to talk to the electricians at 4:30 pm to see if they needed anything and they told me they were almost finished. I looked out the window a little after 5 pm and see them drive off. I thought it was odd they didn't say anything to me before leaving but just assumed everything went smoothly since they had told me shortly before they were almost complete. It was not until a few days later that my project manager told me that they in fact had not completed the electrical work and did not have availability to come out and finish it until the 21st (11 days later). I was annoyed by the lack of communication and management on their part for not scheduling better (if you know you can't complete it in one day why would you not schedule two days?) but I was still hopeful at that point that I was one step closer to getting solar on my home. This is where it really starts to go downhill. A new set of electricians came out on the morning of the 21st. They were there for less than 10 minutes before they came knocking on my door again. They take me to the electrical panel and tell me that our electrical panel needs to get updated because the solar circuit breaker does not fit. I was speechless. We had TWO set of electricians come out BEFORE our system was installed in order to make the permit drawings. Then we had another set of electricians install our electrical on install day and somehow all 3 set of electricians missed that our panel needed to be upgraded. HOW does that happen? So now ADT Solar needed to resubmit our permit drawings with the upgraded panel noted. After being told it was "expedited" they did not actually resubmit our drawings for 11 days after the day we were told we need an upgrade. (For reference, I'm an architect so I know it shouldn't take 11 days to update drawings especially if it's "expedited"). The drawings were resubmitted on 2/1/22 and approved by CPS on 3/15. Our local jurisdiction approved them on 3/23. ADT Solar did not come out to finish the electrical work and update the electrical panel until 4/15. (3 WEEKS after it was approved. That's their expedited time? It had been over 5 months since we signed by this point). It took them another two business days to request inspection by the local jurisdiction (4/19) which was scheduled and approved on 4/26. At this point we are FINALLY starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. But of course, completing the project in under 6 months would just be too good to be true. On 5/9, I am told by our project manager that our CPS (electrical utility supplier) agreement had expired on APRIL 17th (3 weeks prior). Again, I am speechless. All I could think was, again, HOW did this happen? I was told by my project manager in MARCH that my project was likely not going to be completed until June. So, that tells me that they knew (or should have known??) that our agreement was going to expire and they needed to ask for an extension. I was told in March but ADT Solar staff decided to wait until 4/11 (less than a week before it expired on 4/17) to request an extension to CPS, even though previously (twice) it had taken over a month for CPS to approve and my project manager had continuously told me that CPS was backed up and that's why our project was going so slow. But sure, giving them less than a week to approve an extension sounds like enough time, right? Besides ADT Solar mismanaging my project yet again, they failed to communicate it with me. They waited 3 WEEKS after it had expired to tell me. They said they were waiting to hear whether it was approved or denied, which they got denied on 5/4 (still 3 business days before telling me). This is when I escalated my concerns to the higher up manger (I believe regional manager, Leslie) of the San Antonio area. I voiced all of the concerns I have listed above and she took a day to gather information on my case. She was professional, and told me that my project would be expedited (not the first time I heard that) and said that it was not the first time some of these issues had been raised to her. I knew there was nothing ADT Solar could do to speed up my process at that point, but I was hoping my concerns would be addressed so that future customers would not have a horrible experience like me (I've read other reviews, doesn't seem like much has changed). I was pretty much done with dealing with ADT Solar at this point. My project manager would send me updates every so often and give me an estimation of when something would be complete, but it was always two to three more weeks more than their estimation. ADT Solar resubmitted our drawings on 5/4 (the day it was denied, very quick for them) and it was approved, again, on 6/8. Our system was finally operational when commissioning was done on 6/28 (about 8 months from the start of the process). Honestly, it's a real bummer for me to write this horrible review. I work in the architecture/construction industry and am a huge advocate for going solar. I could probably pay off my system in just a couple years with their referral system if I actually recommended them, but unfortunately I can't do that based on my awful experience. We'll be getting solar on another house and will be staying far away from ADT Solar, I recommend you do the same.

On schedule
After sales support

System size (kW): 7.87

Year installed: 2022