ComplaintsforGreen Ridge Solar

• Initial Complaint

  12/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 8/15/22 I entered into a contract with Green Ridge Solar to install a solar panel system on my house. I paid $78,519 for this system. I was told that this solar system should produce 96% of my consumption.( The solar system went live 9/29/22. I HAVE ONLY HAD 2 MONTHS without a power bill from PGE, foe example my current bill from PGE is $267.23. My monthly bill for the solar panels is $193.13. That's $460.36 this month, far more than what my electric bill would have *** without solar. I was told that during the summer months the system would produce excess power which would get banked for winter months when the system wasn't producing as much. I don't think the system is producing 50% let alone 96% of my consumption. I was also told by the salesman that since I the system was going live 9/29/22 rite when we are are going into the winter months, not producing a** much as the summer months that Green Ridge Solar would pay my power bill from October of 2022 through May of 2023. THE HAVE NOT PAID A DIME! I have spoken to the people at Green Ridge Solar many times getting nothing but the run around. They tell you they will call you back and never do. The last time I talked to them about a month ago they told me that they could change out some equipment and add 7 more panels but that would cost me approximately $6000 more dollars. I asked if that would be enough to make up the for the consumption that I actually use, I was told they would have to get back to me. I've never heard from them again. Green Ridge Solar needs to make this system work a** it was sold at there expense or come and remove the system fix my roof and pay the loan off. Please see attachments that I uploaded.

  

  Business response

  12/29/2023

  To whom this may concern:
  

  We reached out to ***** on 12/28/23 and made contact over phone. After investigation on our end, it was apparent that ***** originally submitted a powerbill that had less consumption history than what he anticipated using in the future. In our recent phone call, we discovered a family member occupied an apartment on the property that was not previously living there, when we sized his solar system. Additionally we discovered that there may have been some additional usage during the 2022-2023 period, including supplying power to an RV during the summer where additionally occupants lived, a failed heat pump that ran off heating strips for heat during the winter, and possibly other incidental usage. It's our belief that ***** has been acting in good faith and there was a potential misunderstanding between two system size options that were presented to ***** at the time of sale. Albeit the contract, supporting documents, change order, and utility submission paperwork do indicate the smaller of the two system sizes was contracted (and ***** did sign these documents throughout the process), ***** indicated he may not have known the differences in detail and expect the system to produce more than it would to offset the additional usage not previously captured. 
  

  Green Ridge is helping ***** with fitment of more panels on the system we installed, to bring production up at a reduced cost to *****. We anticipate working together on a mutual solution. I have indicated to ***** we will have a design completed by thursday of next week, and will follow up our discussion.

• Initial Complaint

  06/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  There will be an email that will follow (Temporary Complaint ID# in the Subject Line) that delineates all the issues. There is not enough space here except for the most minimal information. Solar install April *****, 2023 First county electrical inspection 4/19/23 Follow-up inspection (after issues corrected) 4/26/23 PGE Net-meter swap and system 'going live' 5/9/23 Voltage problem detected 5/13/23 (Saturday)PGE and Green Ridge initially contacted 5/15/23 - both parties made in-person visits, phone calls, emails It's been shown that PGE is not sending voltage too high. I have lived here over 32 years with no voltage issue ever; currently there is no issue at night when no solar production. Since installing the solar panel array, all electrical connections in my house and outbuildings have been subjected to very high voltage. This very high voltage is damaging everything over time and will cause premature degradation and failure of items such as of appliances, electronics, the well pump, etc. The inverters, of which I have two instead of the initial intended one, each raise voltage 3 volts over the utility-supplied voltage making for a raise of 6 volts over PGE's 125 volts. Additionally, because I do not share my transformer with any other customer, the voltage must be increased even higher to not only push the power out to the line but also down the line further as no other customer immediately uses it.On 6/27/23 my larger inverter malfunctioned, making me lose production while I wait up to 2 weeks for a replacement.This is system costing $80K on which I have a 25-year loan. I was not warned there might be frequent equipment failure, eventually out of warranty. I was told numerous times before install, they monitor the system so that when it goes down, has a problem or failure, I would be informed. I noticed after it had been out an entire day. I could lose up to 1500KW which I must produce and bank so that my system covers my year-round needs.

  Customer response

  06/28/2023

  I began contact with this solar company in the beginning of 2022.  Over the course of that year I worked with one person (***********************) while building a structure on which the solar panels would be installed. The system was designed to completely cover my electricity consumption year-round, and even produce a little extra just in case. The financing (interest rate) that had been secured would expire March 19 so it was set for install by that date.  Financing was extended and install finally took place the week of April 10 (through April 13, 4 days).  After that there was the county electrical inspection which failed.  The solar installer had to return to add grounding rods (2) and post diagrams on the various shut-offs, etc. The final step was the swap of my electric utility meter to a 'net-meter' which happened on May 9 and my system went live.

   

  Initially, my system was designed with one inverter. However, *** had failed to replace the old outdated 15KW transformer on the power pole at the road (when it malfunctioned in 2021), with the newly required 25KW transformer.  So *** rejected the net-meter application (submitted by Green Ridge) unless I purchased a new transformer at the cost of up to $8,000 and a delay of 8 weeks (going long past the date my financing with a decent interest rate would expire). Green Ridge told me they could 'fix' this by using 2 inverters in the system and the application would be approved (which it was).  I asked my case manager/contact **** over and over if this changing to two smaller inverters from the one large inverter would have any affect on my system and he said emphatically NO.  It turned out that not only did it increase voltage which is (my primary) issue but also limits (or caps) my production at 15KW when my system is capable of producing close to 19 KW. Therefore, I lose production on those sunny summer days when I need to produce as much as possible to take me through the entire year. 

   

  Since installing the solar panel array, all electrical connections in my house and outbuildings have been subjected to very high voltage. This very high voltage is damaging everything over time and will cause premature degradation and failure of items such as appliances, electronics, the well pump, etc.  The inverters, of which I have two instead of the initial intended one, each raise voltage 3 volts over the utility supplied voltage making for a raise of 6 volts.  *** operates on a range up to 125 volts.  Additionally, because I do not share my transformer with any other customer, the voltage must be increased even higher to not only push the power out to the line but also down the line further as no other customer immediately uses it.
  
  A few days after the solar system went live I made a trip to my pump house (houses the well) and noticed the controller box for the pump was flashing the alarm because it was receiving too much voltage.   Then readings were taken by us at various electrical outlets around my house and it showed the voltage was very high - reading as high as 129 (on the single leg).  As it was the weekend, I had to wait until that Monday to call both the electric utility (***) and Green Ridge Solar.  *** came to my house within 30 minutes as they took it very seriously and began taking readings.  They took a reading of ***** on the 2-leg power which is normally 240.  Green Ridge showed up the following day and took readings as well.
  
  In the last 6 weeks, *** has come out to take readings numerous times making sure the high voltage was not caused by their lines.  They even attached two different recording devices to my net-meter to record the voltages.  The high voltage only occurred during the hours of solar production, not at night and not if the system was turned off.  I have lived at this property over 32 years and have never experienced high voltage issues.

   

  I have been in close contact with Green Ridge, with numerous site visits, phone calls, and emails.  At first, Green Ridge appeared willing to work with me and offered an isolation transformer to protect the well (during a phone call on June 8 with ****, co-owner).

   

  I had previously talked to my well company on the phone and they said the well pump controller was being damaged due to high voltage and to turn off the solar array until such time as it was corrected.   The co-owner of Green Ridge, ****, said in a previous phone conversation that ***** "love high voltage" and it would not harm it.  To this date, he maintains the well issue is a nuisance from the 'clicking on and off sound.'  I do not live inside the pump house, and this is a DAMAGE issue, as my equipment is being worn out prematurely, as well as the fact I cannot pump water the entire time it is being over-volted.  During these days of high production (summer) that is 7 or 8 hours a day.

   

  After that initial phone call on June 8, **** sent me an email asking me to accept that well isolation transformer as complete resolution to the issue with no further action on my part ("We do this in exchange for considering this matter resolved").  I wrote back to him that I would not give up my right to free speech (taking actions like this one, writing reviews, etc.) unless the entire issue was resolved.  **** called me right back after I sent the email and asked in that 2nd conversation of June 8 if a whole house voltage regulator would resolve the issue.  I said it would.  Then he called back on June 14 and took back his offer of installing a whole house voltage regulator and said he would need to find out costs that I would pay for the installation of equipment "at his cost."

   

  On June 21 he sent an email detailing three options:  1) the well isolation transformer free to me, 2) a system that would lower voltage at a cost of $5600+ to me - a system that could cause voltage to be lowered too much when solar production was off as the *** voltage fluctuates and this reducer is set to lower voltage at a set rate only, 3) a whole house voltage regulator that would resolve the problem - costing me $43,000+.

   

  On June 23 **** suggested another option of setting the inverters to limit voltage to 126, however that also would be an additional capping of production.  My production is already being capped by the smaller inverters at 15KW.  I don't need more capping of production since I need the maximum the system was designed to produce to generate enough power to carry me through year-around.  

   

  My solar system cost almost $80,000 and will cost $100,000 by the time the loan is paid in full.  I ONLY installed the system so that I would never have another *** bill again (except the basic charge of $13).  Otherwise, the system has no value at that expense if it only produces 'some' of the power I use. It has to be offset 100%.  I'm retired and on Social Security.  It's not like I have any extra funds, and certainly not $43,000 to pay for the resolution to the problem I did not create and was not informed of in advance.

   

  While the issue with the high voltage is the most egregious of problems with Green Ridge, there certainly is a litany of them. Currently my larger inverter stopped working on June 26 and have been told it will take up to 2 weeks to replace it.  I could lose 1500KW during that time  - which I need to bank for my credits for the winter.  Now I have learned that the failure of these brand new inverters is common.  Another issue I was not warned about prior to final purchase.   These SolarEdge inverters are touted as 'top-of-the-line' quality but it's clear they are not. 

   

  There were problems with the installation when an installer vehicle ran into my fence, promised to fix it, and then bullied me into saying it was ok. 

   

  Previous to install, they had been 'ghosting' me for weeks - **** not responding to voice mail, email, or texts.  At that time I was being asked to sign a second net-metering agreement for ***.  The first agreement was the one that required me to buy a new transformer for ***.  I never could get in touch with ****; later, in fact, just recently, the co-owner of Green Ridge finally told me that **** was terminated months prior.  However, Green Ridge seemed unable to simply tell me that person no longer worked there and assign me to someone else, so I could get my questions answered immediately prior to install - the most critical time of the project.  

   

  And there are many things I was told along the way that turned out to be totally false.  I was told by **** that my electricity usage was extraordinarily high when I came to find out later my neighbors with smaller houses who heat with wood only (I do not) use double or triple the electric power that I do.  More importantly I was told that a person in ****** is not allowed by law to go 'off the grid.'  To be fair I was told this by dozens of solar installers also.  And I was also told by ***. I understood that the power company does not want a person to go off the grid but it made no sense by solar installers who sell batteries.  So I investigated and the *** *************************** assured me there is no such law, rule, or policy. It is 100% legal for a person in ****** to go off the grid if they can afford it.

   

  This does not cover the entire experience but highlights some of the issues. *** has emailed lots of graphs and charts from their recording when they had devices on my meter.  There are many emails. 

   

  

  Business response

  06/30/2023

   In response to the complaint, we'd like to first state that Green Ridge has followed all local and jurisdictional requirements for system design, interconnection review and approval with the Utility **************************** applied for and received all required permits, Utility net metering applications and approvals, and final inspections passed. Solar equipment interconnection with utility grid equipment requires certifications and licensing that can only be held by licensed Master Electricians in ******. As such, it is generally unreasonable to explain all nuances of voltage, current, frequency, power factor, and other electrical means by which PV produces, we rely on our education and manufacture equipment design to achieve the best optimal system performance. We take all complaints seriously, along with equipment malfunction or site-specific concerns.  

  Our first step was to contact the inverter manufacturer, SolarEdges, senior technical team to review the system and installation. Their official response after reviewing our system design and installation is as follows: 

  "To whom it may concern 
  I have reviewed the installation of the solar system installed at ******************* house. After reviewing the system and the way it is installed, I am confident in stating that this system is installed correctly. The site is in a rural area with the transformer only feeding this house. The ** voltage coming into the inverter from the grid without any power being sent back is around 123 vac line to neutral. When the system begins to send power back to the grid that voltage raises to ******* vac line to neutral. This in turn is causing the controller of the well pump on site to cycle on and off due to the voltage being above 125 vac. The voltage threshold for this site is still not being met and the voltage at no time is operating outside safe conditions. The voltage rise on site should not be an issue for any of the electronics in the home and when I spoke with ******, she made it clear that the only device behaving differently since installing the solar is the well pump and that none of the lights or other loads have had any issues. 
  Sr. Field Engineer - SolarEdge" - Sent June 20th, 2023  

  Our second step was to contact the customers utility provider, ************************* (PGE). PGE has been in close contact with our company to determine if there were any dangerous or abnormal voltage or line quality concerns. PGE sent out a power quality Senior Special Tester and has monitored the site with and without solar present. PGE has confirmed that there are voltage fluctuations ranging from 114vac to 128vac, but that they are not "Dangerous" or out of line with their IEEE and Voltage Tolerance Boundary requirements.  
  A response from PGE was given by a Special Tester engineer with PGE.  

  ******, By means of the data we have while recording at your meter. I have made the following determinations. The voltages at or above PGES standard +- 5% are almost exclusively from the inverters while they are producing. The one issue I did find on PGES we believe there is a large industrial start that happens on week days about 4:45pm. This is a feeders wide event and we see it at the substation. This is normal for large industrial operations and does not take us out of voltage range. We see a voltage that is above 5% of 120V for less than a minute at you meter while the solar is producing. The voltage would likely not go above 5% 120V if the solar was not on. This has been going on for a long time and we have had no customer complaints or ********************** quality issues from this event. PGE is allowed voltages above 120 +- 5% for certain amounts of time without any harm to customer equipment. Basically the higher the voltage the shorter time we can be at that voltage. These are industry standards. PGE is allowed to be at 126V indefinitely with short times at higher voltages with no harm to customer equipment. PGE is below this 100% during the recording period with out the solar inverters producing. My understanding is your 2- 7** inverters should produce a *** of 14**, this seems to be the case according to the ** graph in the recording. 
  Special Tester PGE Sent June 30th 2023 

  From this email we draw a conclusion that PGE considers safe voltages above 120 x +5%, or 126vac continuously, AND allows voltages above 126vac for certain amounts of time without any harm to customer equipment. The key here is, there is no Dangerous high voltage as the customer has stated. Dangerous would fall outside the standards set by PGE and all utilities. What the customer is failing to mention is that this has been discussed with them in detail already. The standards are stated in accordance with ANSI *************************************** C84. Also, all appliances must adhere to IEEE standard 1547-2018 - Voltage UV1 and UV2 threshold. That standard allows for up to 144vac for a ***imum of .16 seconds, and 132vac for up to 13 seconds. The customer has not seen any sustained voltages over 126vac. The customer has furthermore not experienced any appliance irregularities except for a well pump alarm which we believe had been triggered in the past (customer claims anything over ****** would cause this).  

  Also, the customer site is on a utility feeder near the end of a transmission line. Her primary feeders come from a transfer station that also supplies high voltage and current to an industrial mill just down the road. PGE has measured voltage spikes at 127-128vac at 4AM (without solar present), and in the evenings. These are not site-specific voltage spikes, but primary feeder spikes from the transfer station. PGE is still investigating the reason for this but seems to be due to large capacitor banks at the stated industrial mill and power draw demands from large industrial equipment startup and shutdown daily (as mentioned by the Special Tester). PGE stated that the customer likely has experienced this regularly before solar was present.  
  The customer has also stated that a larger transformer (25kva versus a 15kva) could have potentially resolved the stated issues and was not ever given to her as a solution. It is the position of Green Ridge and PGE that a larger transformer would not improve voltage variations. The ***imum recorded production level was 7kW, on a 15kVa transformer, this is nowhere near the ***imum throughput. Additionally, PGE has indicated they run transformers up to 120% of their rated capacity on a regular basis without power quality issues (stated by a Senior Quality Engineer). We invite the customer to reach out to PGE if she would like more information on this. 

  As to the inverter failure the customer stated earlier: We received a phone call to our office on the evening of June 28th, that the customer's inverters were not working. We looked at the system remotely and discovered several DC rapid shutdown events. We sent a technician out the next day and discovered the customer had not followed proper shutdown procedures, which were given to her in an operating manual. Each time an emergency DC disconnect is performed under load the components heat up and need time to cool down. SolarEdge equipment is rated for emergency DC disconnection 1 time in 24 hours, according to SolarEdges technicians. Instead, the customer opened the DC Disconnect over 15 times within a short space of time, causing permanent equipment damage to the inverter. SolarEdge confirmed these events from reviewing the inverters logs, and the customer also confirmed this in a voicemail. The customer performed negligent shutdown methods and further attempts will cause her warranty to be voided. Each time an emergency DC disconnect is performed, under load, the components heat up and need time to cool down. 

  Additionally, Green Ridge Solar does not guarantee production uptime, especially when the customer has been negligent and does not follow instructed procedures. If the customer wishes to seek reimbursement, we advise her to call SolarEdge to discuss downtime for her RMA. 
  Resolution response: we have given the customer several options to resolve this issue, many at no cost to her. I have sent several emails outlining options over the past few weeks. I will summarize those below:  

  1. Provide an isolation transformer for the well pump controller that is presenting a nuisance alarm. The manufacturer of well pump equipment has confirmed that the equipment is safely rated for up to 10% over standard 120vac, but because it has been bothersome to the customer, we have offered to install it for her at no cost. 
  2. Provide an isolation 50kVa rated transformer for the entire load side. This would come at the cost of time and materials to the customer. This does not guarantee Voltage *** tolerances but could help with voltage swings. 
  3. Provide a power conditioner for the entire load side of service which would come at a substantial cost to the customer due to the high equipment and labor costs involved in this solution. This would ensure tight Voltage tolerances. 
  4. Provide Power Factor adjustments on the inverters to limit how much power the customer would produce to ****** and above, which would come at no cost to the customer and could be performed remotely. This will likely cause lower production during the summer months, but very limited impact.
  5. Provide Voltage *** limit cut off adjustments on the inverters, at whatever voltage the customer desires and chooses, at no cost to the customer, performed remotely. This will likely cause lower production during the summer months, but very limited impact.
  

  The stated solution by the customer includes the wording "voltage regulator." In a single-phase ** application, there is no such equipment that will regulate voltage on a 200A split phase load. If the customer has found such a device or solution, we would not be able to install it for her as we require all equipment we install, to be IEEE or UL rated. Any equipment that does not have these certifications would be illegal for Green Ridge to install. Furthermore, the customer has access to online Monitoring as provided by SolarEdge. It is unclear if the customer is using that provided service. ******************************************* does not monitor customer systems outside of the initial startup period, after which it is the customer's responsibility to notify us of any production issues. 

  Customer response

  07/02/2023

   
  Complaint: 20246006
  
  I am rejecting this response because:  it does not resolve the issues.  Additionally, there is information from the business that is incorrect.  

  In regards to the accuracy of the instrument reading the voltage, we noted that our instrument was only .80 different than that of PGE's.  ***** from PGE rounded it up to 1.0.  There is NOT a difference of 2.0.  Without having other instruments brought in from totally uninvolved third parties, it is hard to say what instrument is 100% correct.  Since both Green Ridge and PGE are not neutral parties, to scientifically take accurate readings of voltage all day long, a completely independent entity would have to be involved. 

  
  The inverter was shut off repeatedly and frequently by PGE when they were coming out to my house, daily, sometimes multiple times in one day, over a period of several weeks trying to access the voltage issue and take readings, install meter recorders (2), etc.  However, if that repeated shut-off by PGE 'harmed' the inverter then both inverters would have malfunctioned rather than just one.  And sooner.

  
  My larger inverter malfunctioned on Monday, June 26, in the morning, which was when my reply emails to the business were received. 

  
  My inverters are two different sizes, not both 7KW as stated by the business.  One is larger than the other.  One takes care of 30 panels and the other has 15 panels.  They are referred to by the business employees who come on the site as "Master and Slave" inverters since the larger one "leads." The larger one is about 10KW (***** w) and the smaller one 5KW (5040w).  This totals ***** KW, not 14KW as mentioned.  Photos attached.  The business respondent does not appear to be familiar with the actual equipment onsite. 

  
  The well pump is clicking off (due to high voltage) 6 to 8 hours a day.  PGE's average voltage when the solar is not running (at night) is about 123. According to SolarEdge, inverters raise it at least 3 volts, which means the voltage when the solar is on, at a minimum (very early and very late - not full production) is 126.  It goes higher during peak production. Measurements of 127 volts have been taken for 3 hours continuously and even higher voltages (of 128+) for sustained periods of time - not short spikes. 

  
  And my maximum output is capped at 15KW, which is I do reach on sunny days.  My SolarEdge app shows my production reaching 15KW and then leveling off.  With the original inverter (single) that was in the design for my system, my solar panel system could reach it's true maximum production of 18+KW. However, with PGE's 15KW transformer it had to be capped unless I wished to buy PGE a brand new 25KW transformer.
  
  
  

  ***********************************************

  

  Business response

  07/18/2023

  In response: 
  

  We have previously addressed many of these items I will touch on here in this response. On ****** first comment about voltage variations, we meet all the *** and IEEE standards, along with the Utility requirements (please see last response). I would ask her if the Utility found her voltages to be unsafe or causing damage, why has PGE not decided to shut the system down? I have attached the latest email from *****, a PGE Special Tester who says the following:

  "This has been going on for a long time and we have had no customer complaints or ********************** quality issues from this event. PGE allows voltages above 120 +- 5% for certain amounts of time without any harm to customer equipment. Basically, the higher the voltage the shorter time we can be at that voltage. These are industry standards. PGE can be at 126V indefinitely with short times at higher voltages with no harm to customer equipment."

  PGE concluded that the system was operating as designed, and within their range of safety. ****** has yet to show us any other concrete evidence, including asking if any of her appliances or lights have been affected.  

  In response to the sizing of the inverters, we have followed all design requirements by SolarEdge. ******** system is comprised of a 5kW and 10kW inverter. SolarEdge does not make an inverter larger than an 11.4kW in single phase 240vac (see attached spec sheet). We would have never given you a single inverter. You have 15 modules @ 400W each, for a total of 6kW on the 5kW inverter, and 30 modules @ 400W each for a total of 12kW on the 10kW inverter. We do this as it is recommended by SolarEdge in places like ****** to achieve quicker ramp up and slower ramp down periods while producing solar. This is commonly known as clipping. Clipping is also allowed up to 135% in ****** as recommended by the ********************** (SolarEdge allows clipping up to 155%). When an inverter is converting DC to AC, the inverter operates on a bell curve. When the inverter is not at its peak production rating (5kW and 10kW), the inverter is operating less efficiently somewhere around 92%, instead of 99%. In the *** we experience a few months, and a few minutes/hours/day during those months, where we see peak output of solar. But for the majority of the year, we are nowhere close to maximum and in many cases 25-50% below. When we design these systems, we understand that to maximize all 365 days per year, we must consider fall, winter, and spring. In those months, it's better to ramp up earlier and ramp down later, than to save a few kW of clipping in just the summertime. I have attached the DC oversizing snippet from SolarEdge which discusses this. 

  Furthermore, we decided in our own investigation to put our system design and installation to the most stringent reviewer of all; SolarEdge themselves. We did this because they are the manufacturer of ****** system equipment and who could be a better candidate than the manufacturer to confirm the design and installation were performed correctly? As I mentioned before (and attached again to this email), SolarEdge wrote the following email to ******: 

  "I have reviewed the installation of the solar system installed at ******************* house. After reviewing the system and the way it is installed, I am confident in stating that this system is installed correctly ... The voltage threshold for this site is still not being met and the voltage at no time is operating outside safe conditions." 

  Additionally, ****** has commented that her inverter failed. We have already addressed this to ****** in an email that was sent (see attached). ****** was given a customer manual, which shows the proper start up and shut-down procedures for her system. After doing our own investigation (including SolarEdge's technicians) and reading the inverter's log history, we found the customer failed to follow these procedures correctly. The customer instead decided to throw the emergency rapid DC shutdown switch multiple times (more than 15 in a 24-hour period), causing permanent hardware failure. Throwing the DC disconnect while under production load, can only be done once every 24 hours in emergency conditions. By exceeding this x15 times, ****** caused damage to her own equipment. Furthermore, we indicated her warranty would be voided if she continued to perform actions that were grossly negligent and SolarEdge and Green Ridge both are not going to warrant further damage. 

  As to the well pump as was mentioned. We have already given ****** a solution for this nuisance. If she is concerned about damage to the pump, we do not understand why she would not want us to install an isolation transformer at the well pump, free of charge? We previously concluded from that PGE also says voltage above 125vac is fine and is not unsafe. I would ask that if the voltages were unsafe or outside of PGE's acceptable range, why has PGE not decided to shut down the system? Wouldn't that be of concern to PGE? The answer here is, there is no concern and as ***** states, "no harm to customer equipment."  
  

  On the issue of resolution, what ****** is asking for simply does not exist. In single phase AC current, there is no plug and play "voltage regulating device." You cannot achieve this with AC current. We have given her several options yet have had no response as to how she would like to proceed. 

  Customer response

  07/26/2023

   
  Complaint: 20246006
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Since beginning this communication with the BBB, I have been in touch with dozens of various companies and organizations.  I have spoken with electricians, electrical contractors, solar companies, Energy Trust of ******, and the *************************** section.  To a one, they all say that the voltage being increased [by 3+ *****] over what PGE supplies is dangerous and needs to be corrected by the solar installer. I have maintained the over-voltage is damagingrather than dangerous.  The damage occurs over time and will be evident in the shortened life span of various electrical devices. 
  

  Already, the heating element of my dishwasher (brand new as of 01-2022) has gone out.  According to the service provider, that is very uncommon for brand new appliances.  I have not yet had it replaced due to service scheduling, but it may have been over-volted and shorted out.  I will not know more until my service appt. at the end of August.

  The non-functioning inverter was replaced on July 12, 2023. I lost about **** KW during those 16+ days it was not producing.  Without that banked credit I most likely will not be able to meet my complete power demands over the course of the annual cycle.  My system was designed to completely cover my annual power needs but it did not take into account such a long outage. Obviously, financially, there is no point in spending $80,000 for a system that does not COMPLETELY cover my utility costs (except for the monthly $13 basic fee).

  As far as to why the inverter stopped functioning, I addressed that in my prior communication. The inverter was shut off repeatedly and frequently by PGE when they were coming out to my house, daily, sometimes multiple times in one day, over a period of several weeks trying to access the voltage issue and take readings, install meter recorders (2), etc. However, if that repeated shut-off by PGE 'harmed' the inverter then both inverters would have malfunctioned rather than just one.  And sooner.

  Lastly, to address the comment, we do not understand why she would not want us to install an isolation transformer at the well pump,free of charge?  After that initial phone call on June 8, **** sent me an email asking me to accept that well isolation transformer as complete resolution to the issue with no further action on my part ("We do this in exchange for considering this matter resolved").  I wrote back to him that I would not give up my right to free speech (taking actions like this one, writing reviews, etc.) unless the entire issue was resolved.  **** called me right back after I sent the email and asked in that 2nd conversation of June 8 if a whole house voltage regulator would resolve the issue.  I said it would.  Then he called back on June 14 and took back his offer of installing a whole house voltage regulator and said he would need to find out costs that I would pay for the installation of equipment "at his cost."  To this date, he maintains the well issue is a nuisance from the 'clicking on and off sound.'  I do not live inside the pump house, and this is a DAMAGE issue, as my equipment is being worn out prematurely, as well as the fact I cannot pump water the entire time it is being over-volted.  During these days of high production (summer)that is 7 or 8 hours a day.

  I would be happy to accept the free installation of an isolation transformer to protect the well. However,that is ALL it would protect and the other electrical devices on my property would continue to suffer from over-voltage. I will not accept a very partial solution in exchange for considering the matter resolved which I interpret as taking away my Constitutional right to freedom of speech as well as my right to seek complete resolution through any and all means available to me.  Ive been told by many involved professionals that it is not appropriate for a business to ask for an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) or something similar. 

  
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