Fafco Solar Energy

I had to contact a lawyer. NO! NEVER!EVER!! HIRE THEM!! Folks, they are incompetent and very unprofessional. They started installing on the neighbor's house, cut their pipes!! They installed the wrong solar controller, staff is very rude and extremely incompetent, not allowed back. They have no one else to send. 5 weeks (35 days!!) later and our solar is still not working!! The wiring is incorrect and the controller is not communicating with the pump, the valve has never moved. SO BAD!!!!

It went awesome! Everyone went above and beyond. I would highly, highly recommend!!

they were fantastic to work with.... on time, professional service, great response to any issue or question...would definitely recommend them for solar power.

Falco Solar did a great job from start to finish I did this work in conjunction with replacing the roof John worked with my roofing contractor for a seamless install. There price was very competitive I would highly recommend this company for any of your solar work.

I was very unsatisfied with the entire process. I had initially called a different company to fix our salt water pool chlorinator. That pool technician determined that the solar had malfunctioned , causing the water to superheat (it was scalding hot) and burn up our entire chlorinator. After we had it replaced, we called Fafco to try to determine the cause of the malfunction. Dottie, who we always get on the phone, was mostly unhelpful and unsympathetic. As usual, she did not listen to or understand the problem and treated me with indifference. It took them more than a week to get a service tech to our house. First off, the technician did not understand the problem as had been explained to him by Dottie; he implied that such miscommunication was commonplace. He scratched his head and shuffled his feet a bunch and made a couple of suggestions that he said might or might not work. In the end, he had no idea what was wrong, so we opted not to have anything else done. We payed the trip charge of $45, no wiser than we started. We are still left hoping that the overheated water problem does not recur and burn up any more expensive equipment. We have had 2 solar pool heaters installed by Fafco to the tune of ~$7000 over the years, and have used them for all of the repairs. We feel stuck with them and will continue to use them in the future, as we have few other choices, but we were left with a bad taste in our mouths. We feel that we are good loyal customers who are getting second-rate service.

Job done right....great job from initial contact by phone and the technicians work.

Excellent responsiveness and transaction. John answered our telephonic inquiry immediately and got the jump on their competitor who called me back about three days later and was surprise we had already hired somebody. Even though I mentioned Angie’s List, we were not offered the slight discount offered AL customers and my husband didn't want to ask for it. The installation was performed while we were out of town and upon our return I was disappointed that the PVC pipe material used in the installation was black and white rather than all one color. Not that a solar system is intended to be attractive but I believe it would have been less aesthetically offensive to have it all one color, namely black, so that blended into our roof color, bronze pool cage and gutters/downspouts more closely. I don't recall seeing a two tone installation previously. However the solar system has been functioning wonderfully and we have been greatly enjoying our pool despite the color issue. They did a great job and followed up nicely to assure we understood the system. They are pros who I would highly recommend.

It went very well. They were here and gone in one day.

Everyone was punctual and professional.

Spectacular! - From original quote, weekly updates, phenomenal installation process and follow up-it could not have been better! I love the product and have nothing but kudos for the crew.

They were fabulous. They analyzed the system, got it working and even got it set up for online monitoring. They were fabulous, easy to work worth. If you are thinking of installing solar they are great.

Disappointed. The office contact and installer were very pleasant to work with. The installer spent significant time in the attic and on the roof analyzing the installation requirements and determined that the skylight could not be installed in my desired, and only logical, location in the kitchen ceiling. He apparently left the attic insulation out of place in the area where the skylight would have gone - not a very energy saving move. The price quoted for the job, had it been accomplished, was very fair. Not convinced, I had another company quote and subsequently install a 14? Solatube tubular skylight in the very location that I was told was not possible, and the flashing/dome is not even near the troublesome roof valley, and this is with a straight tube from the lens in the kitchen ceiling to the dome - no bends required.

Fafco coordinated scheduling the work well with the roofer, and did a great job of installing the skylights, even though there were some issues to deal with due to roof truss location and our preferred location of the skylights in the ceiling. The owner and the worker were pleasant to deal with, informative, and knowledgeable. When a small leak developed inside one skylight tube after the first heavy rain, They came out and fixed it quickly. In the 10 months since the skylights were installed we have had no problems with them. This is a family owned business, and the current owner, third generation, grew up in the business. I highly recommend them for this type of work!

Terrific! They were prompt, professional, and cleaned up well after themselves. Their sales guy was also outstanding.

n December of 2009, we purchased eight 12 foot Revolution Pool Solar Panels from Fafco Solar in Cape Coral, Florida. Fafco Solar installed the solar panels. The purpose of these panels was to heat our swimming pool. In December of 2014, we noticed a stain on the ceiling of our kitchen. We investigated immediately and determined that we had a leak in our roof above the kitchen. We called Camp-Rigby Roofing Contractors the same day the leak was discovered. They came shortly thereafter and repaired the roof. Please see the attached invoice for $343.00. Camp-Rigby indicated that the reason for the damage was determined to be, ??Solar system not installed flat to roof & not sealed good?? In August of this year, I was contacted by a representative of Sanibel Holiday (our property manager) and told that she found a stain on the ceiling in our living/dining area. We called Camp-Rigby Roofing Contractors and they came out, inspected the roof and found several leaks in our roof. Again, these leaks were a direct result of improper installation of the Solar Panels to our roof. We have photos that show daylight around the fasteners that Fafco used to attach the solar panels to our roof. Camp-Rigby Roofing Contractors estimated the cost of roof repairs to be approximately $2,000. I told Camp-Rigby that I wanted to have a representative from Fafco Solar come and look at the roof damage before we had Camp-Rigby repair the damage. Immediately thereafter, I contacted Fafco Solar and explained our situation. The receptionist indicated that they would send a technician out to look at our roof damage. I gave her the contact information for Sanibel Holiday with instructions for the Fafco technician to contact them when they planned to inspect the roof. The Fafco technician did not contact Sanibel Holiday as instructed but simply showed up at our home. Our property manager mentioned that she had stopped by our home early that afternoon and the (single) technician was leaving our property. He mentioned to her that he had re-sealed the areas where the water was leaking into our roof. Thereafter, we authorized Camp-Rigby Roofing Contractors to make the additional repairs. In addition to the repairs to our roof, we required interior painting to repair the stain on the ceiling. I never received a return call from Fafco regarding their technician?s visit to our property, so I called them after about a week. During this conversation, I was told by the receptionist that they were not responsible for any of our damages (even though the Fafco technician re-sealed the bolts that you could see daylight around). She went on to say that ?These things happen in high wind areas?? I told her that if these solar panels cause leaks when they are installed in high wind areas, then it would seem that they shouldn?t be selling them to homeowners in Southwest Florida. I asked to speak with the manager or owner and she refused to connect me or provide their name(s) so that I could contact him/her. After I continued to press her for the contact information of her superior, she told me that she would have the manager contact me. Thereafter, I received a call from Troy Hayes, General Manager of Fafco Solar. During this conversation, Mr. Hayes agreed to reimburse us the cost of repairs to our roof, less the cost of their service call. Several months passed and Fafco never provided us with an invoice for their service call. When I received the paid receipt from Camp-Rigby Roofing Contractors in the amount of $1,947.00, I promptly passed it along to Mr. Hayes at Fafco, with instructions for mailing the reimbursement payment to us. Instead of payment to us as promised, we received a letter from Mr. Hayes which included an invoice created and backdated to 8/11/2015 in the amount of $1,658.75. The invoice claims that two men worked 8 hours at our home. Mr. Hayes then offered the remaining $288 in the form of a ?credit,? rather than the "reimbursement" that was promised us. Why would Fafco wait nearly 6 weeks (and until after we provided them with the proof of payment to Camp-Rigby Roofing for the roof repairs) before showing us their invoice? Our property manager stopped by our home as the one (and only) Fafco technician was wrapping-up his work. It was mid-day. Indeed, it did not take Fafco 16 man hours to install the entire solar system when it was first purchased. We have correspondence from Mr. Hayes of Fafco provides the following admission from Mr. Hayes: ??Solar panels expand and contract on a daily basis causing them to sometimes ?walk? themselves back and forth along the roof. Due to this expansion and contraction the panels sometimes shift and rub against the brackets occasionally causing leaks..." As evidenced in Mr. Hayes statement, the solar panels sometimes cause leaks as they did in our case. He obviously felt it was Fafco?s responsibility to repair the leaks, but not the resulting damage. This is puzzling and in light of his earlier promise to reimburse us the difference between our roof repair expenses and their service call, dishonest. His statement also references ?roof damage due to a long time leak?? While we did sustain some minor roof damage in 2014 that we took upon ourselves to repair, the roof damage that is the subject of this complaint was completely unrelated to the 2014 roof damage and we notified Fafco as soon as we became aware of these leaks. To date, Fafco has refused to reimburse us for the damage to our roof. Ask yourself whether you want to do business with a group who will not stand behind the installation of the product they sell, despite admitting that their product sometimes causes roof leaks. I have never dealt with a business that promised something to me (reimbursement) and refused to deliver. I would NEVER do businesss with Fafco Solar again. nor would I recommend their services.

When installing the system they failed to put new connection on the panel box that regulates the water flow and temperature. Stating my husband told them they didn't need to, however my husband had passed away 1 yr previous to having this work done.The solar panels have cracked and leaking, and are charging me $45 each time they come to repair them. The threshold on the roof is rotting from the leaking and the will not come out to correct it. The are actually trying to get me to come out to Cape Coral which is too far to travel. Every time they have scheduled to correct it they do not follow through with appointment.

From Start to Finish a very professional outfit. They came out to do estimate and were on time. Very fair price, Install team was very efficient. Excellent Job all around.

Not sure he knew what he was talking about. We're not sure if he's experienced. We have a problem with roof access. He has to get to the other side through a crawl space. They can't get equipment through there. Somebody else said they could and would use the same type of equipment but were twice the price. Maybe if somebody else from Fafco would come out and figure out how to get the equipment to the roof we would use them.

From the initial contact, they were very professional. They were very prompt with the estimate & the explanation of what would be installed. When we agreed to the purchase, they emailed the contract. The same day, we emailed it back, & they gave us an installation date. They installed it on time & for the exact amount of the estimate. They came back to explain the operation when when returned to town. This was an enjoyable experience, & I will gladly recommend this company to everyone.

It went very, very well. They were professional and it was a great experience! I would definitely use them again.

cannot contact do not return calls

They are coming back to more skylights next week. They did a great job.

Excellent install and product. Extremely happy and SATISFIED with purchase and would recommend FAFCO Solar to anyone looking for solar heating. Although I had to install the panels (440 ft2, 10 panels) (350ft2 pool) on an East facing roof due to site considerations, I have solar heat from 0830 to 1800 in May (SW Florida area). It will be interesting to see the duration of heat I have in the winter time here in South Florida. FAFCO Solar installed the panels 1 week prior to the promised date. They arrived on time and the install was completed in approx 7 hrs with 3 installers working. One minor problem (a pinhole leak on one panel-the panel was replaced the next morning in 30 min. Believe the leak was shipping damage (e.g wood grate nicked on of the small tubes) and not an install error based on the location of the leak. Install proceeded smoothly and all construction debris was removed at job completion. Installers were friendly and curious. Very happy with the install looks. The pump area appearance where valve manifold ad controller were installed is impressive, very orderly appearance with everything in its proper place and aligned. Pipe run appearance also impressive, and it was not easy with my tile roof which has pronounced roof peaks. Worker pride in their work is evident. Very happy with the solar controller install (Pentair SolarTouch). The controller controls the pool temperature within 1F of set (hysteresis of the controller is + or - 1F-turning off system when pool temp is 1F higher than setting and turn on when 1F lower than setting). Since I have a Pentair VS pump, the controller also controls pump speed when solar is called for. My pump has to run 2500rpm to get proper flow and pressure up to the panels on the roof, where as I normally run the pump at 1500rpm to save electricity.. On first full day of use, the solar panels heated the pool from 84F to 91F in approx 5 hrs. The water at the pool discharges is much hotter than my heat pump-approx 4F to 5F heating delta between pump suction and solar panel discharge where-as my heat pump was 1F-2F so the solar heats the pool much quicker Bottom line, I received a system as promised on time and with promised results. The install crew was very efficient and friendly and freely answered all my questions during the install. The office staff was very responsive and also very friendly. I received 3 estimates (FAFCO, Solar Industries, and Heliocoil. The product provided by the three companies appeared to be similar in construction and long term reliablity based on my by internet reviews and owner reviews. The main difference between the three was the excellence of the estimator and the ratings on Angie List. The estimator (Dominick) knowledge and presentation made the difference and made my decision easy. The estimator even brought satellite views of my house with the proposed install and how the panels would fit/look. Also of note is that there was considerable amount of internet chat by the FAFCO Solar VP (Jason) as to solar issues and solar advice-gave me confidence as to the knowledge of the company design. From my viewpoint, FAFCO Solar experience and owner satisfaction far exceed the others in the area and this was confirmed at job completion. FAFCO Solar earned another Gold rating from Angie List

Don't try to go for a ground-mounted system if you do have the available roof space and building orientation. The costs are very high for ground mounted solar panels due to the wind load design requirements. The cheaper option is using your available roof space. Do take advantage of FAFCO's assistance with utility company rebates and federal income tax credits. They can potentially save you a huge amount of money.

Everyone we dealt with was very professional and helpful. Couldn't fault them in any way.