Review for PEP Solar

07/01/2013
Anonymous

Great experience, met our energy use goals

We are so glad that we went with PEP Solar. We talked with several other providers; one was completely unprepared and wasted our time. Not so with PEP.<br /><br />Background: <br /><br />We purchased the house in Dec 2011 and moved in Jan 2012. The house was built in 1992 and most of the dual pane windows had leaked and all had the typical bronze aluminum frames and were difficult to slide open. The AC was original, 20 years old, and the fan motor was leaking; multiple recommendations were to replace rather than repair. We had a lot of noise from the air handler inside the house. Whenever the AC or gas furnace kicked on, we had to turn up the TV. We couldn't live with this noise. These were all known issues when purchasing the house and we budgeted for repairs. <br /><br />Having solar was only a wish list item at the time of the house purchase; we didn't know what a system would cost, maintenance required, whether to buy or lease, warranties, etc. PEP patiently answered our questions and we eventually decided to purchase rather than lease. <br /><br />One of the unique products PEP offers is an AC (heat pump) with solar assist by Sedna Aire. This sealed the deal. Yes, this is an expensive AC system but with the tax rebate, it was a reasonable additional cost over what a similar two-stage AC unit would have cost. Due to the efficiency of the AC, the size of the PV array could be reduced and still meet our energy saving goals. <br /><br />From signed contract to commissioning was 1 month, outstanding! <br /><br />We really like the features of the AC. When the air handler turns on, it slowly ramps up the speed; no sudden off-to-on transition. Most of the time it runs at half speed, providing pleasant air movement with minimal noise. The compressor (outdoor unit) is also very quiet compared to the old unit. It is located at a corner of the house where we have a covered patio. When out on the patio, the neighbors AC makes more noise than ours. <br /><br />PEP was able to accurately factor in all of our planned improvements (AC replacement, new windows, LED bulbs) to design a 5 KW system that has met our electricity needs for the past year. The total APS payments for the 12 months since going solar was $340. I'm guessing this is close to what the summertime per-month cost would have been! This includes our heating cost as well; gas bill for hot water and range is less than $20 per month. We couldn't be more pleased.

Sales process
Price charged as quoted
On schedule
Installation quality
After sales support