PV Solar Electric Tuneup

We having been doing PV "Tuneups" on a request basis for years.    But with hundreds of systems out there now, it seems like a good time to offer a formalized tune-up for Solar Electric.

Please review the following, and consider doing the PV tuneup at the same time as the Solar Hot Water Tuneup, you will get significant savings since a big portion of our costs of doing a service is setting up the file, scheduling, and tech time loading for the job and getting to and from the site.

In case you have been living under a rock, LOL, and you didn't hear about the Big Solar Tuneup HE Buydown Sale, Which reduces the cost almost 40%, here are the details.    Instead of $405 its just $255 using limited HE buydown funds.    And we do the BEST TUNEUP in Oahu.     We even just signed up a licensed plumber to do the tuneup on his personal system, because he is familiar with our quality and the price is so great!

http://us9.campaign-archive1.com/?u=811f0a47091d9eb619ff2b764&id=747eb20162&e=ef0eadfd8c

Doing the PV tuneup will increase your system electricity production, and get a couple of expert set of eyes looking at your system.

The Islands BEST PV TUNEUP is being rolled out and here is what you get.

1. Pacific Energy will preview your system online and look for signs of anything wrong so we can be ready to fix them during the tuneup.
2. We will wash down all the PV panels, dust dirt and bird droppings do build up overtime, especially if there is construction in the area
3. We will operate the system disconnect switch and verify proper operation
4. We will open the rooftop "Combiner Box" aka junction box and inspect for loose wires or corrosion
5. We will inspect under the panels for any dangling wire and ziptie up where accessible
6. Report any other deficiencies that you should be aware of.

If you have "security" bolts on your system, please be ready to provide the special bit to the technician.   You can leave it on top of the system disconnect if you are not there.


The PV Tuneup Cost will be dependent upon the number of panels you have, and if you do at same time as Hot Water Tuneup we will provide a significant discount.   


Contact us, we will review your system and get you a LOW COST QUOTE

2015 Tune-up Super Sale, Bought Down to $255 Flat Rate

2015 Solar Tune UP, Limited Time Sale

2015 Solar Tune-Up Sale, Jan 17 until 80 slots have been filled

Very Important to do the Tune-Up at least every 3 years, to protect system and keep warranties in effect!

Please Respond by Jan 31, 2015 if you want to Get This Done

How is your New Years Resolution Going?    Either way, Resolve to take better care of your Solar Hot Water Solar. Scroll down to see what the tuneup is and why you should do it.   The tune Up gets you more energy savings and avoid huge surprise costs for component failure.

Doing the Solar Tune-Up is EASY!   It just takes an EMAIL or a phone call, and we will make it happen.

If you neglect your solar system, it will cost up to $1600 to replace your solar tank.    If your pressure relief valve doesn't work when it needs to (solar=high temp, high temp=high pressure), you can rupture up your house piping and if the piping is under the concrete slab, it can cost $8000 or more to fix.

We like to get as much Tune Up done as we can in Feb and March.   

Email (best) or call to be assured of a slot in the sale price.   

solar@pacific-energy.com

The tuneup takes 3 hours, it is a serious service, It is 3 important parts, not JUST an anode change which some people pretend is a "tune up".

Tune-up Extends System Life:Prevents Rust Out and Prevents over Pressure Pipe Blowouts

If you haven't done the solar hot water tuneup in the last 3 years......It is time for a Solar Tune-up.
You wouldn’t drive a brand new car for three years without performing the suggested maintenance, right? The same is true for your solar hot water system.
Hawaii’s water can be hard on hot water systems. A small investment now can prevent huge repair bills later.

Email to "solar@pacific-energy.com" to get a sale price slot for your 3-Year Tune-Up at this low price!
(or call 265-5971)

We Highly Recommend The “3 Year Tune-Up”

There are THREE important parts that require periodic replacement, and we do a complete check on the system, controller, pump, valves.
1)      Sacrificial Anode Rod (keeps the whole system from rusting, just like a Zinc on a boat)
2)      Pressure and Temperature Relief Valve (P&T) – Keeps pipes from bursting in the house or under the slab
3)      Pressure Relief Valve – Same, keeps pipes and the solar panels from bursting, except up at the roof level.

Also--do you know?   That the customer is supposed to be doing an annual flush of the tank and panels?    It only takes ten minutes?    Do you know how?    If not this is the perfect time for training or retraining, you just have to be there.


See picture below...a clogged up P&T relief valve.    This may not open, causing a house pipe to over pressure and rupture.



Recently, we have heard about companies offering a “Tune Up” service, and offer to “inspect” the parts and replace if necessary.   We find this to be misleading, since you cannot inspect a P&T Relief Valve unless you shut down the tank, remove the valve, put it on a test bench, and test it. If it passes, they reinstall the old part back into the tank.
Does this make sense to you? Will they really do the test?   It is not possible for a service technician.

We always replace the P&T. If the P&T fails to operate when your tank gets hot and the pressure builds, that pressure might blow a hole in any of your pipes.Those pipes may be on your roof, or underground... Or under your house. If something were to happen, where would it happen?

 

Protect your solar investment and protect your home..

Our service includes 25 other service checks, check the temperature sensors, controller, pump, wiring, timeclock, valves insulation cleanups, and inspections to make sure everything is working the right way. 

And if you add Solar Electric (PV) through our companies within the next 12 months, we will refund the whole cost of the Tune-Up.
 

 

THIS TUNE-UP PRICING WILL APPLY TO ALL OUR CUSTOMERS ON OAHU
PRICE IS GOOD UNLESS YOUR SYSTEM IS IN A TIGHT CABINET

3 Year TUNE-UP Preventative Maintenance— 28 Point  Solar Service including:

Replacement of (3) Three very important safety and Corrosion protection items:

1. Sacrificial Corrosion Preventing Anode (to reduce corrosion on tank and whole system)

2. Pressure/Temperature Relief Valve (to relieve pressure from within tank and panels, prevents your plumbing systems from getting over pressurized and possible rupture)

3. Pressure Relief Valve on the Panels for safety and equipment protection.

 Replacement of up to 8 feet of insulation at rooftop, if needed. Coat all insulation on rooftop with protective UV coating.

 25 additional little tune-ups, set point verifications, and system checks.

 Pricing based on good access to the tank. If the tank is in a tight closet or under-house, we may need additional time to complete the task, we may need to even drain and move the tank to allow the replacement of the anode, in these cases we charge $55 /hour for the extra work.

*This price is based upon an easily accessible water heater, if the heater is in a tight closet, or tight area, there will be extra costs.

BIGGEST SALE EVER!

$255 Flat Rate, will apply to everyone unless your heater is in a tight spot.

All taxes included, does not include any other system problems that we may troubleshoot for you if you are indicating that the system is not performing properly.
See Standard Pricing Sheet for replacement of other components like pumps, controllers, temp sensors, etc.

If you don’t already have a Solar Attic Fan or would like an Additional Solar Attic Fan let us know ahead of time, we do a $150 discount on the Solar Attic Fan, which comes with a 25 year warranty and is the best on the market.   In asphalt shingle, the NET cost after tax credits is around $380!   Do this before you suffer through another summer or have to pay high air-conditioning bills.

Email to solar@pacific-energy.com today to schedule your 3-Year Maintenance at this low price!
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And a referral program to knock an extra $50 off your already low tuneup cost.

If you have neighbors, friend, family that should be doing this tuneup but just don't know, or keep putting it off because of finances, refer them to us and when they pay for their job, we will give you a $50 discount or a $50 check.

They can't be our existing customer, of course.   Just get us their name and phone, and leave your name too!   

How to Read a HECO NEM Electric Meter

Getting to Know Your Heater Timer (LGB)

Getting to Know Your Heater Timer (LGB)

Why is my Electric Bill so High?

Why is my electric bill so high?

A common question.

There are a lot of answers.

1. Cost of electrical generation (Oil in Hawaii) has gone up and thus electricity has gone way up, over 50% in around a year.
2. As governments print more money, the costs of real commodities will continue to go up.  Bernanke promised to print money for years to come.
3. People have more electrical devices in their houses.
4. More people are living in a single household, because of this, even people with solar hot water may not be generating all the solar hot water they need, and the rest is made with electric.  You know, the kids moved back home of the inlaws moved in, that kind of thing.

What can you do about it?

Change almost all your lightbulbs to CFL.   LEDs are still pretty expensive, they are neat but compared to CFL they are really not worth it from a payback point of view, quite yet.   Most people have already done the light bulb cvhange out.

In your frig is 10 years old or more, buy a new one.   If you have 2 refrigerators or even 3, consider getting rid of the oldest one.

Buy a front loading washing machine.  They cut your electric bill, they cut your water usage (and thus your sewer bill), and they cut the amount of soap needed.   The clothes come out dryer, and so your dryer has to work half as hard.

Take out any 10 year old aircon, and change to new super efficient variable speed mini-split systems such as Fujitsu, Mister Slim, and others.

Beyond these conservation measures, there is not too much that can be done that makes economic sense.

Now let's talk about producing energy.

Solar Hot Water, if you have 3 or more people, it is a no-brainer to get solar hot water.   With 65% tax credits available in 2012, the payback is enormous and quick.

Solar Electric PV.   Typical residential Annual Rate of Return on Investment is 25% to 38%.    There are various ways to finance it, although your best payback is if you can pay for the system yourself.

PV Leases--PV leases are only good in one situation---you don't have the money or the ability to finance the system.    In that case, you have nothing to lose.  

DON'T DO A LEASE!

Solar Attic Fans -- These should be on every house, they produce their own power, they remove the heat from your attic, keeping your house way cooler.   There will be many more months where you don't even have the need to run the aircon if you have one.  It will protect you whole roof, shingle, and tar paper which are all adversely affected by high heat.

A new interface for owners on Enphase

The following message is from Enphase

KEEP this NUMBER handy, it is hard to find.    Enphase tech support 1-877-797-4743.      It is probably best to call Enphase if you think you have an inverter out, or are getting warning type emails regarding inverters.    They have proprietary methods of looking at your system that is very powerful.   Plus, if you do need replacement parts under warranty, they are the only ones who can issue the RMA (return material authorization) and send out parts.  

Enphase Tech Support 1-877-797-4743

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We're excited about the launch of MyEnlighten. MyEnlighten is now the default view for all new system owners. Existing array owners will continue to use Enlighten Manager until they choose to opt into MyEnlighten.

Installers and Integrators will continue to use Enlighten Manager. The following links will be very helpful moving forward.

For a high level summary of Enlighten Manager and MyEnlighten
http://enphase.com/enlighten/

The MyEnlighten Tutorial:
http://enphase.com/enlighten-help/training-center/

How to sign up for MyEnlighten now.
http://enphase.com/enlighten_content/myenlighten-beta/

After watching the MyEnlighten tutorial, if you have any questions please let me know.

Thanks for using Enphase Microinverters.

An Email from a reader - HECO Halts Solar Boom

A resident of Oahu sent this email out to all the solar stakeholders on Oahu, OK, well maybe she didn't send it to HECO.

Aloha! My name is Cathryn Takanishi, I am an Oahu resident. I have been following solar articles in Hawaii.

In the year of 2014 finding that there is a problem with solar panel installation, solar in Hawaii can no longer excel.

I wonder, why has it been taking so long to make a transition; while more and more people suffer over these limited resources? If we were all more progressive with solar, we could prevent hundreds of people from their suffering because of the battles to obtain these resources. I still see lights left on all night at empty schools, parks and recreational areas and think about the lives of the people who got that electricity there, I think of my son who in the future may not be able to live in such a beautiful place because of the constant rise in the cost of utilities and living here in Hawaii. Thinking if there were proper solar systems installed into these schools (and residential homes) how many lives it could save and how it could improve our large family here at home.

Thank you!

Scientific American A Solar Boom So Successful, It's Been Halted - 12/20/13 
Bloomberg Utilities Feeling Rooftop Solar Heat Start Fighting Back - 12/25/13
Daily Finance Utilities Set Stage for Long Battle with Solar Power - 1/2/14
Sourceable Industry News Hawaiian Electric Halts Local Boom in Solar PV - 1/10/14

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/1/9/hawaii-s-solar-boomistoomuchof

2014 Solar Tune UP, Limited Time Sale

2014 Solar Tune-Up Sale, Jan 17 until 40 slots have been filled
Very Important to do the Tune-Up at least every 3 years, to protect system and keep warranties in effect!

Please respond by Jan 13 (Monday) If you want a guaranteed slot in this sale.

How is your New Years Resolution Going?    Either way, Resolve to take better care of your Hot Water Solar. Scroll down to see what the tuneup is and why you should do it often.   in the long run it gets you higher savings and saves money on more costly maintenance.

Doing the Solar Tune-Up is EASY!   It just takes an EMAIL or a phone call, and we will make it happen.

If you neglect your solar system, it will cost up to $1600 to replace your solar tank.    If your pressure relief valve doesn't work when it needs to (solar=high temp=high pressure), you can rupture up your house piping and if the piping is under the concrete slab, it can cost $8000 or more to fix.

We like to get as much Tune Up done as we can in Jan and Feb.



Email (best) or call to be assured of a slot in the sale price.    We try to do 3 Tune ups a day, in the same neighborhood, so after you Email (or call) we will contact you with a proposed  date for the neighborhood.


The tuneup takes 3 hours, it is a serious service, It is 3 important parts, not JUST an anode change which some people pretend is a "tune up".

Tune-up Extends System Life and Prevents over pressure pipe blowouts

If you haven't done the solar hot water tuneup in the last 3 years......It is time for a Solar Tune-up.
You wouldn’t drive a brand new car for three years without performing the suggested maintenance, right? The same is true for your solar hot water system.
Hawaii’s water can be hard on hot water systems. A small investment now can prevent huge repair bills later.

Email to "solar@pacific-energy.com" to get a sale price slot for your 3-Year Tune-Up at this low price!
(or call 265-5971)

We Highly Recommend The “3 Year Tune-Up”

There are THREE important parts that require periodic replacement, and we do a complete check on the system, controller, pump, valves.
1)      Sacrificial Anode Rod (keeps the whole system from rusting, just like a Zinc on a boat)
2)      Pressure and Temperature Relief Valve (P&T) – Keeps pipes from bursting in the house or under the slab
3)      Pressure Relief Valve – Same, keeps pipes and the solar panels from bursting, except up at the roof level.

Also--do you know?   That the customer is supposed to be doing an annual flush of the tank and panels?    It only takes ten minutes?    Do you know how?    If not this is the perfect time for training or retraining, you just have to be there.


See picture below...a clogged up P&T relief valve.    This may not open, causing a house pipe to over pressure and rupture.



Recently, we have heard about companies offering a “Tune Up” service, and offer to “inspect” the parts and replace if necessary.   We find this to be misleading, since you cannot inspect a P&T Relief Valve unless you shut down the tank, remove the valve, put it on a test bench, and test it. If it passes, they reinstall the old part back into the tank.
Does this make sense to you? Will they really do the test?   It is not possible for a service technician.

We always replace the P&T. If the P&T fails to operate when your tank gets hot and the pressure builds, that pressure might blow a hole in any of your pipes.Those pipes may be on your roof, or underground... Or under your house. If something were to happen, where would it happen?

 

Protect your solar investment and protect your home..

Our service includes 25 other service checks, check the temperature sensors, controller, pump, wiring, timeclock, valves insulation cleanups, and inspections to make sure everything is working the right way. 

And if you add Solar Electric (PV) through our companies within the next 12 months, we will refund the whole cost of the Tune-Up.
 

 

THIS TUNE-UP PRICING WILL APPLY TO ALL OUR CUSTOMERS ON OAHU
PRICE IS GOOD UNLESS YOUR SYSTEM IS IN A TIGHT CABINET

3 Year TUNE-UP Preventative Maintenance— 28 Point  Solar Service including:

Replacement of (3) Three very important safety and Corrosion protection items:

1. Sacrificial Corrosion Preventing Anode (to reduce corrosion on tank and whole system)

2. Pressure/Temperature Relief Valve (to relieve pressure from within tank and panels, prevents your plumbing systems from getting over pressurized and possible rupture)

3. Pressure Relief Valve on the Panels for safety and equipment protection.

 Replacement of up to 8 feet of insulation at rooftop, if needed. Coat all insulation on rooftop with protective UV coating.

 25 additional little tune-ups, set point verifications, and system checks.

 Pricing based on good access to the tank. If the tank is in a tight closet or under-house, we may need additional time to complete the task, we may need to even drain and move the tank to allow the replacement of the anode, in these cases we charge $55 /hour for the extra work.

*This price is based upon an easily accessible water heater, if the heater is in a tight closet, or tight area, there will be extra costs.

BIGGEST SALE EVER!

Regular Price - 3 Year Tune Up....................................................        $390 + tax
Winter Sale Jan 17 to Around Feb 15, about ......................................-$50 and we pay the tax
Your Cost...............................................................................................$340 all tax included

All taxes included, does not include any other system problems that we may troubleshoot for you if you are indicating that the system is not performing properly.
See Standard Pricing Sheet for replacement of other components like pumps, controllers, temp sensors, etc.

If you don’t already have a Solar Attic Fan or would like an Additional Solar Attic Fan let us know ahead of time, we do a $150 discount on the Solar Attic Fan, which comes with a 25 year warranty and is the best on the market.   In asphalt shingle, the NET cost after tax credits is around $380!   Do this before you suffer through another summer or have to pay high air-conditioning bills.

Email to solar@pacific-energy.com today to schedule your 3-Year Maintenance at this low price!

Petitition to Restore Solid Support for Nascent Solar Industry

 The solar industry was just breaking into a stride, exactly what a decade of Utility and Governmental support was trying to achieve.     Then the State abruptly chopped off a good amount of support, last year, with a large and confusing tax credit cut.   Then the electrical unions tried to take over the market utilizing DCCA "rules", when that happens, costs will go WAY up.   Then HECO started throwing impediments into peoples way, delaying or not allowing NEM agreements and meters, or adding unexpected costs.

All of these are questionable not just in practicality, but in legality.   There is a long standing State Energy policy related to renewable energy, and that is LAW.

Using temporary administrative rules to change the tax credits is not right.      They should NOT change the LAW--the State Energy policy by using a "temporary decree".

Nor should the DCCA use rules to favor a union over others who have been in the business for decades, there should be a well studied law change to make such a critical decision.

And finally, HECO should not just change the "rules" in midstream.   The rules should be well thought out and only changed by PUC law change.

Amazing that an up and coming industry can be attacked from so many directions. 

How to save electricity