Sky Power Systems

I wasn't furnished with the layout plans prior to the construction although I paid for them and they are supposed to be part of the agreement. The panels block some views and are unsightly. They have to be moved to another part of my roof at my expense. The problem could have been avoided with good communication. I was simply told "this has never happened before".

Great! Very pleased

It was a real pleasure working with SkyPower... they answered all of my questions in detail (and there were many!). I talked to two other solar companies but decided to go with them because of their diamond rating and their obvious knowledge. They were as good as I expected. In fact, after they had provided the quote, it turns out that the LG Panels we were going to use would take 6 weeks to procure. SkyPower shifted to a slightly lower power panel (which of course required two more panels).. but they stuck to their quote - absorbing the difference in price.

We got several bids, all roughly in the same ballpark price-wise. But it turns out that solar costs are all over the map. We wanted a straight purchase (no leasing the panels or buying the power from the solar company), so that's all I'll discuss. Depending on the solar panels and inverters you select, you can choose what you want to spend. PV panels from China are cheap. Panels from the USA are more expensive, but if I need parts or service, I don't want to phone Hong Kong. I chose Solar World panels and Enphase inverters, both American-made. (I decided not to select SunPower panels, which are the most well known and best looking panels available, because their polarity is opposite from all other panels. The only panel that can replace a SunPower is another SunPower.) The SkyPower guys did a great job. The job took about 3 weeks - longer than we'd anticipated - because we had some rainy days which meant no roof work. (A different solar installer's sales rep tried to sell us the job by promising a 2-day install, which was patently ridiculous. That same non-SkyPower sales rep made other statements which struck me as less than fully truthful, which was one reason that company did not get my business.) SkyPower took care of the PGand E rebate and provided information about the federal residential energy tax credit. (If you are seriously considering solar, do it before the 30% tax credit expires at the end of 2016! This is a significant amount of money - over $11,000 in my case.) In hindsight, I wish I had installed solar at the same time I installed my new roof a year ago. Circumstances made that difficult, but it would have been an easier job and a much shorter time with guys crawling the roof. Lightweight concrete roof tiles don't like to be walked on. To their credit, the SkyPower guys replaced every tile they broke at no extra charge. There are PV solar installers on every street corner these days. The equipment (panels and inverters) should not be part of the equation when you choose an installer. Any installer can get you any equipment. Choose your installer based on quality of workmanship. You won't regret choosing SkyPower.

Tom explained the SunPower pre-paid lease, which helped make the SunPower system very competitive with the other bidders. In the end, we went with a Roof and Solar company as we required a new roof at the same time and felt it would be easier on us if there was a warranty issue in the future.

I chose Sky Power because of their price and they carried the solar panels I wanted to use, which were Sun Power. I had a limited amount of space on my roof and the Sun Power panels were the most efficient at the time. Sky Power was friendly and reliable. They were responsive and came out several times due to trees making shadows on the panels and eliminating solar production.

They are absolutely first rate company, top-notch. I investigated all the solar companies in the area at that time and this company just stood out. I am really glad that I picked them. I would hire them again in a heartbeat.