Installers and Installation

I have found selecting the installer to be the most difficult part of the process..  At one point in Ontario there were only a few solar installation professionals and then Ontario introduced microFIT.  This was a golden opportunity to grow businesses or create new businesses in the PV arena.  The only problem was there are no certification bodies out there that will train and certify the installers thereby providing a measure for the consumer to judge the installer with.  It was the wild west and still is, as as far as I’m concerned.  So how do you find your installer?

A properly tethered installer

I would have to say in regards to determining who you will have to install your system the guidelines should be:

• References-call the people, visit their site and ask specific questions about the installer
• Length of time in business, a lot of people saw this as an opportunity, took some training and workshops and voila became an installer or Solar Installation company
• Knowledge and expertise-what is the companies and installers background, what projects have them installed in the past?
• is there an Electrician on staff that has a Master License or do they hire outwhat licenses do they have
• what insurance do they have. Ask to see their certificate
• are their crews permanent employees or hired as needed/how
• will they accept a contract setup so that there is no payment until you get your OPA Application Approval Notice
• what is the warranty on all hardware and their workmanship
• confirm how the installer will provide you with confidence that the installation meets MicroFIT requirements.  In Ontario it is 60%.  Yes there are actually inspectors that can come by and request you prove that the installation met the 60% Ontario requirement.  It is your responsibility to show the government that the installation meets microFIT requirements.
• • what type of survey have they taken of your house.  If it is just a Google Earth image survey; that is just the first step.  They should then visit the home, go up on the roof use an instrument to analyze your roofs shading and other issues that would affect your solar potential.  The 2 instruments that I have seen are the Solmetric Suneye and Solarpathfinder. Both will be able to show shading and sun angle over the year

http://www.solarpathfinder.com

http://www.solmetric.com/

Here is a website an individual can get a sense of the amount of  sunlight (insolation) and position of the sun during the year:

http://www.gaisma.com/en/dir/001-continent.html

Timelines

 I had one company provide a timeline from initial OPA application to final contract approval of  6 months.  My installation from start to finish took approx. 3 months.

An once the job is done, confirm that all paper work, site plans, passwords, serial numbers etc. will be provided to you prior to final payment.   Keep in mind once the project is installed and operating, you still have to fill out additional contracts and forms from your local LDC and the OPA in order to finally get into the LDC's payment system.