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Avoid Going Solar With Sunrun (Lots of FB complaints and BBB complaints)
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I want to share my thoughts and experience with Sunrun to help others who might be considering them for solar. Even though Sunrun is considered one of the "best" options compared to smaller solar companies, I would still strongly advise against going with them—here’s why:
Customer Complaints: If you check Sunrun’s Facebook and Instagram pages, you’ll see a flood of customer complaints. Many customers are dealing with ongoing issues that Sunrun seems to ignore or handle poorly. This is a huge red flag for anyone considering them.
Smaller Companies Going Bankrupt: While I don’t recommend smaller companies either (since many are going bankrupt), it doesn’t mean Sunrun is a safe bet. Even large companies like SunPower, which had been around since 1985, went bankrupt in 2024. The solar industry overall is struggling because many companies simply can't turn a profit.
The Risk of Equipment Failure or Roof Leaks: One of the biggest problems with going solar is that if a part fails or your roof starts leaking, and the company gives you the runaround, you’re left stuck with a huge issue. Roof repairs can cost several thousand dollars, and removing panels for repairs is another hefty cost on top of that.
Solar Industry Issues: While the idea of solar is fantastic, the industry is plagued by shady companies and a lack of regulation. Many companies don’t honor their warranties, leaving customers in a tough spot. If the government doesn’t step in to regulate, this problem will only get worse.
I strongly recommend doing thorough research and looking at social media where people share their experiences with these companies. Check out Sunrun’s comments section to see what their customers are saying. It could save you from major headaches down the road.
Top Comment: Your comments are spot on, although don't just single out SunRun. Solar mentality has been "grab as much cash as you can" right now, and "worry about the warranty and customer support later". Part of the blame is on the industry for lack of self regulation, and no licensing requirements. Realtors need a license, mortgage loan officers need a license, in some areas, home inspectors need to be licensed. But solar? A $50,000 construction project, with electricity at its core, with complex financing options? And these companies have salespeople out there selling who have no background in home construction, anything electrical beyond a flashlight, and zero experience with loans, leases, PPA's etc? The other part is consumer behavior with the "race to the bottom" mentality. Every consumer is obsessed with getting the "cheapest" system out there. Lost is the fact that solar systems have a 25 year life (maybe less as tech gets better, but at least 15 years). It's a long term relationship. You're signing up for a large asset, and you're only focused on "how much", to the exclusion of "how good is your support for this money saving system on my roof?" Because if it's not maintained, and functioning correctly, it's not saving you a dime. When I buy a car, I don't buy the most expensive by any means, but I damn sure don't buy the cheapest bucket of bolts on the lot.
Sunrun
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By and large, the reviews here have been negative. Let me toss my experience in the ring.
Sunrun is offering no cost installation. Essentially “bumper to bumper” warranty, and no liability to us if one thing happens to the panels. $190/month, 2.99%/year increase over 25 years.
The rep said this is a marketing area for them which is why they are offering this. Our local power provider has an average of 5% increase in cost over the year. With the Solar quote, our bill goes from $250 to $190. We get credit for credit if the panels produce more power than needed and we sell it back to the electric company.
My wife and I just purchased this home. We are planning to stay here for the long term and we love the idea of solar.
I just want to make sure we aren’t being young and naïve. Are we missing something? We are located in Central Illinois
Thanks all.
Top Comment: You’re going to pay $88,379 over the next 25 years for a system that would probably cost you under $20k to buy outright.
Can I run the Raspberry Pi on Solar Power?
Main Post: Can I run the Raspberry Pi on Solar Power?
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I posted this exact question months and months ago on the Rapberry Pi forums, got some good responses, then some asshole power hungry "mod" banned for for my username! anywho, heres the thread: http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=5857
EG4 - Solar Sig for the long run?
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EDIT Brainfart: Noticed this as soon as I submitted post. Solar Sig = Signature Solar
Just the skeptic in me wondering if Sig Solar and EG4 products can be trusted in the long run. They have long warranties, offer compelling stats, and have a very active social media based marketing scheme. On the whole, EG4 sort of falls into the 'too good to be true' paradigm.
If you watch enough Will Prowse videos - it's a constant stream of 'this is the cats pajamas' and 8-12 months later a new cat's pajamas. Basically never keeping any gear long enough to test its reliability and robustness over time.
I've posted more than once in this sub that it's hard to beat the 'value' EG4 seems to offer but is there a catch?
https://signaturesolar.com/eg4-6000xp-off-grid-inverter-split-phase/
Top Comment: You just have to remember that EG4 is a reseller of Chinese white good inverters. The EG4-6500 was made by MagnavoxVoltronics and EG4-12kPv and 6000EX are made by Luxpower (although EG4 specs rxtra goodies). The long-term support is based on the strength of the underlying manufacturer. Luxpower has apparently been around in one form or another for a while but their residential solar inverter business is new in North America. Last year, I was fully aboard the Luxpower/SRNE/Deye value proposition. Then Victron slashed their prices. Now, I don't really see the benefit of going anywhere else for "long term" build.
Will a 13.8v radio run on 12v solar panels?
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My wife is probably being sent to PR and will be taking our iC-7000 with her. I'm putting together a kit to run it, but I'm leery because the voltage is pushing the limit.
Top Comment: Something like this: Solar panel -> solar charge controller -> battery -> fuses -> radio. Page 148 of the IC-7000 manual says the radio likes 13.8V plus or minus 15% so your safe range of voltage is 11.73V to 15.87V.
If I give Kusanali the Solar Pearl and don't run her with another Dendro character, which artifacts and stats would be best for a DPS?
Main Post: If I give Kusanali the Solar Pearl and don't run her with another Dendro character, which artifacts and stats would be best for a DPS?
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Deepwood is basically always the best set if you don't have someone else with it on the team.
EM/EM/Crit or EM/Dendro/Crit are almost always going to be the best choices, but it depends on subsets.
The real question, though, is why would you go for Solar Pearl over the 3 star Magic Guide which out performs the pearl?
SunRun scammed my elderly father - now what?
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I am not sure what to do, and I'm hoping someone here can help. My widowed 80 year old father lived independently until this summer, when an unexpected illness landed him in the ICU. When I was sorting through his papers, while juggling his care, I discovered that he had just signed a 25 year lease with Sun Run for $300/month, with a guaranteed 2.99% annual increase, and he purchased a Tesla battery as a back up for the solar panel system. The whole thing is so new that the panels have been installed on his roof but have not been turned on, nor has my father switched to the electric plan they told him he needed to capture the benefit of solar (something to do with nights v days with a battery back up plan - I know nothing about solar so I don't know what this means). His monthly electric bill is lower than the SunRun solar panel monthly lease payments.
My father was confused. He said they told him he qualified for a program for senior citizens and he didn't have to pay for the panels. There is nothing in writing that supports this statement - all he has is an electronically signed contract. His doctors did a brain scan when assessing the extent of damage from his illness, and they discovered that he is in cognitive decline, a state that had to have started well before he signed the SunRun lease. So I presented this to SunRun, proposing that they come take back their panels and we call it a day.
SunRun said they needed a doctor's note that predated when he signed their contract, which obviously does not exist. Without it, they claim the contract is valid and they expect an octogenarian to lease panels until he is 105 years old, at a cost higher than what his electric bill is.
My father is now in an assisted living facility, and I am trying to figure out what to do with his home. I live in a different state than this home with the SunRun solar panels. A local agent said the leased solar panels are a detriment to the purchase price and will likely mean pricing the home $50,000 to $60,000 less than we could offer it without the panels. My father has zero assets apart from his home (which has a mortgage) and his monthly social security, so I cannot afford to lose this much money when I have to figure out how to afford his care.
I genuinely have no idea what next steps to take. Can anyone offer any advice? Has anyone been in this situation?
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This sort of thing disgusts me. I used to do door to door for a solar company. I would have elderly people tell me about a prior solar salesperson who told them about some elderly program or other, which is completely false information. So, I'd sit them down and talk them out of going solar, because it wouldn't be in their best interest. I did this to my own detriment, because it would be difficult to meet quota since I was spending time to explain the reality to them, which took a while, but I'll be damned if I was going to allow elderly people be screwed by something that can be and should be a good thing for people, who make an educated decision.
[deleted by user]
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Top Comment: No
Dry Run:expedition
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What am I doing wrong? I've tried doing the dry run drilling mission like 5 times now everytime I try and setup the wires drill n solar it doesn't feed the drill, I've ran lines multiple times making sure the conduit box like things pop up but still reports no power to drill what am I doing wrong?
Top Comment: It took me a few tries too. Just because the solar panel is not in Shadow doesn't mean it is in sunlight. Place it in the near the lake and in one go, in the morning, run the electricity from the solar panel to the drill. Place the second drill. Then move the solar panel and run a whole new line without touching the first electrical wires from the solar panel to the second drill location.