Sunrun

My experience with Sunrun has been nothing less than review worthy. Starting with my Specialist Alec, whom at our first initial meeting was very patient and answered all my questions and I had a lot. Alec did a great job informing me of what and why to go Solar. He was very clear in regards to the process and time frame of the project, and spear no cost in following up on the process whether with a phone call or a house visit. My installation team was on point, very sweet guys. Jose one of the technicians came back and made certain I was connected to my Wi-​Fi and such and that I understood the system… if you are considering Solar choose Alec and his team at Sunrun 3 102 008 924

My experience with Sunrun was great. From the day Eduardo Mora knocked on our door and scheduled our appointment, to the day (September 1, 2015) Ivan Pinzon (our rep) came by to explain the process. Ivan is very knowledgeable when it comes to solar. He addressed all of our concerns and answered all of our questions. He followed through with everything he said. It has been been almost 4 months since we first met and he still follows up to makes sure we are satisfied with the product — and we are. The install team was did very neat work as well. Ivan and the Sunrun team are true professionals and I would recommend Sunrun to anyone looking into going solar.

Don’t do it, you will regret it. My bills were $ 80-​$ 125 a month before solar. We moved into a house that already had a solar lease, we had to take it over, first thing was I was trying to get a hold of someone to ask questions and it took them over a week to finally call me back. Issue two they asked for a credit report and took three weeks to look at it then had the nerve to call and say they could not accept it because it was over 2 weeks old. Well hello!!! Why did you let it sit on hour desk for three weeks??? Took them one month to approve the application beyond that, then I get a bill from them and from Edison. I called to ask them what I used from them and make sure I am using solar they tell me what they generated I tell them that’s nice but how do I know I used that? They say they can’t track it, that Edison will show what they produce applied to my bill, it didn’t. I call Edison they say sunrun never notified them my lease was approved and transferred. sun run says to send them a copy of my Edison bill then tries to convince me I used 1500kw a month because they don’t want to fix their mistake!!! Do yourselves a favor or and stay far far away! If service is important you then you will regret going with sunrun. I wish they would just come take their worthless panels back since they generate energy that I don’t even get to use!!!

I went to about 6 companies and chose sunrun. Amir also has a degree in law I think and it helped me make a decision. Andrew did the panel upgrade, Barbara was the project manager, and Justin was the manager that installed the system. Andrew probably had the hardest job and did great, his worker had to go under house in 106 heat. Barbara was warm and answered all the questions. Justin and his crew did great getting the system installed with the main electronics.
I wish they also did air conditioning work, roof installs, and energy upgrade California work. Or even more outside work.
Now the big question is what will happen when the 20 year prepaid lease is up. However, I like the idea of leases as they come out if there is a problem a tree falls on it, someone steals it, or lightning hits it, or the inverter goes poof.
The city red tape slows installation and limits the size of the project. The big 2 month delay after it is installed and before the city turns it on is frustrating. There is another 6 month delay before it shows up on the bill (but you do get credit). Get the solar dashboard pdf on the city website. After the system goes «permit final» from the building inspector (see ladpw site) you can call the city to make sure you are in line (sunrun probably does this but I thought it might speed things up) for the ladwp inspector.
The solaredge inverter stats are more detailed than the sunrun stats. I waited to write this review after ¾ of a year. Wanted to see if the inverter held up in heat as it is on the sunny side of house. It held up to 106 degree heat fine. It went online December 6^th and as of August 25^th, I have a about a 1500 kwh surplus with a 6.5 KW west facing system. You will save money but get competitive quotes and do the math (or look on the sunrun contract).
added Sept 26^th, my surplus is down to about 800 as September has been really hot. Last 2 months electric bill was $ 52, but it would have been $ 650 without solar.

It’s been 9 month since Sunrun installed our system. For people are considering installing solar system, please be very careful with the electricity that they promise. Don’t be taken away by the marketing terms.
I am talking about the Purchase Agreement type of contract, where you don’t pay anything upfront. You agree to pay a monthly fee with a quartered amount of generation. On the contract, they will promise to make up for the gap if the power generation is less. However they won’t tell you they will show you the number from their side. The Utility company (SCE in my case) is measured in a different way. For example, in July 2015, the system generated 400 KWh from SCE’s measurement but Sunrun showed 768 KWh. Sunrun told me the electricity is used by us when it’s generated that’s why it is different power generation.
Here is what’s their original words in email. «Please keep in mind that while the system may produce 400 kWh, some of that electricity is used immediately and your utility will only keep track of how much electricity is pushed back to their grid not all of the production. This means that they will likely show a lower credit than the total production of the system.»
That cannot be true. Since the gap is too big. Almost half of the power that is generated is used immediately, according to Sunrun. The solar panel work during the day when sun is up. But we are all out of house at work during the time. I don’t think the refrigerator will use that much of power during the day.
SCE showing I need to pay $ 400 cumulative net cost. Adding up the monthly payment to Sunrun, we do not save money. I have an open case with Sunrun, as of today, it’s been 8 days now and I have not heard back from their custom service. That’s why I post it here to warn everyone.
If you want to go solar with Sunrun, make sure you do your due diligence. Also check if you have the option to back out the contract.

Chinese panels, and they contract out their installations to third parties.

Although inconsequential I’ve added a star, since Kaleacia tried to reach out to me through Unilocal and as did Tyler through email. But in certain industries and business it’s hard to overcome a bad first impression.
In gist, I emailed 2 persons, to remove me from their automated list. It was annoying, but it just shows that my request was either too difficult or I was too insignificant to matter. So this indicated what I would expect in the future. My main issue was after a week I didn’t hear back after the consultation.
This was supposed to be a simple request for a quote and prior to the consult I had communications with their automated system, (over a dozen missed calls, in which I had already scheduled with them after the first call)(This told me that communications, technical abilities, process and attention to customers wasn’t up to par), John C., Tyler and Dan. So those 4 plus Kaleacia and Tyler again after the complaint makes 5 poc for something so simple. I don’t want to imagine if I had an issue during and after installation.
Also another company came out and actually looked at the house.

We weren’t sure at first if we wanted to go solar but the representative for Sunrun, Amir Maki, explained it all in such a manner that it didn’t make sense to keep living without solar panels. Amir was knowledgeable and friendly and genuinely helpful. Honestly a lot of times in sales situations like these you can feel really pressured to buy their product, but with Amir it felt more like I was just chatting with a friend who was merely explaining his take on solar panels. He was really helpful in determining just how many solar panels we needed and explaining where that best placement would be. The best part of our whole experience is that Amir doesn’t disappear after you sign the contract. We’ve had a few questions since our installation and Amir always answers his phone and happily answers any questions we have. The installers were clean, quick, friendly, and respectful of our property.
The best part is that Sunrun is backed by Costco which we know to a good reputable company .If you decide you’re even slightly interested in solar panels, give Amir a call and tell him that Jacquie and Mark Bryan sent you. (if you mention our names there are perks involved. for you :))
(909)223−8203

This is a post to the business owner. There is a person representing your business running around Lakewood Village/​Lakewood Center Mall area. Knocking on doors in some cases. Attempting to steal packages off porches in others. Harassing homeowners with suggestive behavior. If you would like details on times, dates and his description you can contact me. Or Lakewood crime watch.

This company quoted me the 4^th highest price-​per-​watt out of the 14 quotes I received. The person who gave me the quote was Jason Lehman.
As a reply to Christa K. of Sunrun:
She wrote:
–Sunrun solar service includes a roof warrantee and guaranteed solar production.
Comment: virtually every solar installer has this exact same guarantee. This is simply standard for the industry.
–While we do not claim to be the cheapest, we are competitive in our pricing, and our installers (formerly REC Solar) have been installing solar systems since 1997, before most solar installers were in business.
Comment: When you are more expensive than the average, I don’t think that’s justification for claiming you’re competitive in your pricing. Furthermore, most of the time when a company says they’ve been installing solar panel systems since [insert some date more than 5 years ago], it doesn’t mean solar PV systems were their primary source of revenue. This simply due to economics as solar has only become pseudo-​affordable in the past ~5 years.
–Our service also includes remote monitoring and service of the system over the lifetime of the agreement.
Comment: virtually every solar company has this exact same monitoring. This is a standard offering for the industry.

i met w/​four solar companies and rec solar was by far superior in their knowledge. rick was very patient and always answered every question w/​ease. i feel like i received the best product, the best customer service and the best price!

Amir was great. Thought that if costco used them, they would be good. Sadly once they have your money their customer service is miserable, talk about buyers remorse! If you want to talk to them it’s like a big bother. Don’t ever ask them to come out to check your system! Your peace of mind is irrelevant, they will tell you to read the contract, they decide when they will come out, the «stats» on your Sce bill or on theor website mean nothing. Very haughty young arrogant and condescending, but worst of all their supervisors teach them that. Seniors and middle aged stay away, a lot more friendly and helpful companies out there you can pay 20 – 30 thousand to. Amir said he would attempt to help, but it’s obvious he has no authority over customer service.

Amir Maki was amazing to work with. I don’t know crap about technology but I need solar panels for my home since I have a Tesla (electric bill), and Amir explained everything to me and explained my options. I signed up and his company will install the solar panels and make my home GREEN!!! If you want solar panels, contact Amir and he will get it done for you. Mention my name (David Inpyo Lee) and I get credit.
Thanks,
:-)

We interviewed 5 companies for our solar system and narrowed it down to 3 until we decided that REC Solar was in our best interest. Rick J. was a wonderful, extremely helpful, responsive sales person and he went above and beyond to make sure we had all the tools available to make the most informed decision.
Price: affordable and competitive along with all-​inclusive warranties and a very CLEAR contract with no hidden verbage.
Service: timeline was followed, all workers were professional, timely, and great to work with.
Follow-​up: all questions were answered in a timely manner, all possible issues were addressed immediately, service was simply great from start to finish and even after. Edison was slow to get us the permission to operate and Barbara did all the back-​and-​forth work with them to get us up and running as quickly as possible.
I would highly recommend REC Solar to anyone looking into solar.

I had a really great experience with REC. Their rep Amir Maki was one of the best reps I ever met in any business. He really knows his stuff backwards and forwards. I grilled him for hours that first day, and then for weeks on end until I felt completely comfortable signing that 20 year contract. He made everything really make sense to me. I would never have done it otherwise. We’re really glad we did. We have locked in our monthly bill for the next 20 years, and that includes all maintenance. So we will never have to pay anything other than our locked in monthly for the next 20 years. And we only put $ 3k down. I also really like the fact that REC uses better equipment than the other guys.
I just want to take a moment to refute some of the other comments because there is a lot of misinformation in those reviews. One guy talks about a 30 year term, but it’s only 20, and that includes all maintenance costs. And while it would have been nice to buy my system outright I still would have gotten the maintenance agreement. I’m not a handy guy and I don’t want to have to deal with any contractors if I ever need something fixed. That’s just me. The other bad review from, Peter V, has got to be from a competitor. Everything he says is false and can be proven false beyond a shadow of a doubt. They don’t use Chinese panels and there are no hidden charges. Too bad he had to mess with REC’s rating. They really deserve the highest marks.

I had been looking at Solar for years and over the years have looked at a lot of Companies. What sold me was there track record and the fact that they are endorsed by Costco and also do work for the United States Government.
The process moved pretty much exactly as presented. The installers were great. They were very neat and clean. Since install we have had no issues to date.
Our bills were running from the mid $ 200 to the mid $ 300 in the summer. So far our bills have been basically a few dollars each month. Our system was installed in May 2013 and have generated 8,757 kWh of electricity. Its nice to go online and look at the power you are generating on a daily and monthly basis.
We are very happy with our system.
Our contact at REC Solar is Amir Maki
(909) 223‑8203
Give him a call and see what he can do for you in reducing you bill for years to come.
Robert M

Leasing saves you *a little* money — Buying is much better.
I spent more than 2 weeks researching solar systems (there are differences), installation companies, and buying options (lease vs. buy).
After learning the facts, I contacted 3 leasing companies:
REC (via Costco), Verengo, Solar City
and contacted 3 installers that sell systems to obtain quotes.
I then spent another week comparing and analyzing the total cost of each system.
Here’s what I found:
1) REC (and other leasing companies) require a 20 – 30 year agreement (each company has different terms. They tempt you with a monthly price lower than your current electricity bill from LADWP or Edison. They may quote you a savings of 25-​$ 100 per month in the first year.
2) The lease is like buying a mobile phone — it locks you into a contract. Mobile phones are 2 years — Solar systems lock you into paying for 20 – 30 years! Canceling a phone contract is several hundred dollars. Cancelling a solar lease will cost you thousands of dollars !
3) Their lease requires you to pay higher monthly bills in the future. Prices increase based on their «prediction» of how much utilities will raise their prices. Even if the utilities keep their pricing the same, you will not get a rebate for the higher price factored into your payment.
4) Buying a solar system is much, much cheaper. I financed and pay a lower price per month than my utility bill. I have a $ 0 electric bill and a monthly payment less than what I paid DWP. Best of all — I will pay it off in 10 years and have free electricity for the next 10 years (vs making lease payments for 20 years)
5) California requires solar installers to warrant and maintain systems for a minimum of 10 years, so maintenance is covered even when buying.
The NET:
REC’s price was 250% more expensive than the system I purchased and had professionally installed. I’ll be done in 10 years and pay much less money than an REC lease.
And BTW — REC’s price (even after Costco pricing) was about 30% higher than the other leasing companies.

When we decided it was time to invest in a solar panel system, we were at the crossroads of uncertainty and confusion in terms of which company to go with. We took bids from a company that a neighbor had used and another from a company that advertises frequently with a familiar spokesperson. We also inquired with REC Solar as they have a working relationship with Costco — a company that does not sell or associate with junk.
It did not take long to see how the standards and professionalism of REC Solar stood above the rest. There was absolutely no pressure and no salesperson needed to nudge their way through the door. Everything was handled initially by phone and internet as REC was able to download an aerial view of our roof along with any obstructions. From there, they were able to provide a system design with a price quote and output expectations.
The company that advertises frequently insisted on sending us a sales rep who naturally applied pressure in hopes of leaving with a signature. What made matters worse is he arrived with a thirteen-​year-​old photo of our roof that did not reflect structure changes which occurred following a remodel. Additionally, his plan called for placing panels on the north-​facing aspect of the roof which is not in keeping with industry standards.
Our installation was made more complicated due to the need to replace the underlying material beneath the roof tiles. REC’s personnel worked in a mutually coordinated effort with the roofers to make both operations seamless and timely.
From the initial inquiry, the design process and throughout the installation, REC remained informative, courteous and treated us as valued customers. This still holds true following post completion questions and inquiries.
I feel assured recommending REC Solar to family and friends with confidence in knowing they will be completely satisfied.

I was considering going solar with this company, but the person i spoke with explained things so poorly, I was more confused after our meeting than I was before.
Also, their contract is riddled with hidden charges, and they tried to install different equipment than was listed on the contract we signed. The equipment they recommended was cheaply-​made Chinese crud. The panels in particular have a reputation for stopping working after 5 years. Just say no.

REC Solar made going solar a snap! I called, they Google Earthed my house and a few days later came out with options for me to consider. There were 3 options. Lease or Buy (the third is a lease hybrid that makes no financial sense, so I skipping that). I don’t want to maintain the system myself so ownership is out of the question. I went with lease. There is NO COST to install the panes or maintain them. You just pay a monthly fee for a fixed amount of power. It is really straightforward. I did have to have part of my roof replaced before the panels could go up and trim my trees.
It is a multi-​step process for installation which they walk you through in detail and they have a cool email follow up process so you know what is happening. The DWP just turned my system on yesterday and I think I started the process 2 months ago. So not bad start to finish. I don’t plan on saving very much money, but we will see. Every little bit helps. It all depends on how much roof you have and your sun exposure, but they explain it all to you.
I have recommended them to a few neighbors and friend who are considering solar.