Solar Energy Services Inc

Couldn’t have been more professional and committed to project, despite local bureaucracy

Unethical and Extortionist practices - 14 months ago, my wife and I had solar panels installed on our home. The contract was brokered through a third-party (Zuna Solar - based in Texas). The installation went well, and everything is operating as it should. However, during August 2023, we experienced hail damage to our roof which has resulted in leaking that is slowly growing and causing damage to our living room ceiling. We had the roof inspected and confirmed the best way to deal with the leak is to have the roof replaced. We filed a claim with our homeowner's insurance and have had our claim approved and funded. With these funds, we contracted with a Northern Virginia roofing company to replace the roof. In order for this to occur, we need to have the solar panels dismounted, and then remounted after the roof replacement is completed. This is provided for in the contract on page 7, in the paragraph with the heading "Removal and Reinstall". Please note that the estimated cost on the contract is listed as "the greatest of $135 per panel or $2,700", although the contract also states this is subject to change. When we contacted Sustainable Energy Systems, they initially provided an estimate for the dismount/remount for a figure of $13,800 (drastically higher than "the greatest of $135 per panel or $2,700" figure provided in the installation contract), then went on to state that they would perform the work only if we canceled our contract with our current roofing company and paid SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS, LLC to perform both the roof replacement AND the solar panel dismount/remount. I refused to accept either the radically inflated cost for the dismount/remount work or to cancel my contract with our current roofer (we have already paid a 30% deposit), so we are no longer in discussions with Sustainable Energy Systems. I will never do business with them again due to these unethical and extortionist business practices.

I interviewed four solar companies and settled on Solar Energy Services because of price, product, and layout. The installation was excellent and finished on schedule. The installers were polite and excellent workers. I have shown my installation to several neighbors which resulted with several new installations in my neighborhood by this contractor. Everyone was very satisfied with their installation by this contractor.

SES was great to work with. They fulfilled every representation they made, provided the best value of three companies I contacted and executed the project as promised. I had many questions along the way and they patiently answered every one even though it sometimes took extra analysis and time to explain. Great company, great products and great workmanship. Can’t go wrong with Rick Peters and his crew.

I have used this company twice. The second time was to add more panels since I replaced a car with an EV and added a home battery backup. I wanted them to do some complicated work. They were able to do what I wanted well, and at a good price.

Solar Energy Services installed our 13kW home solar system in Annapolis, MD during October 2022. The entire quote, communication and install was done professionally and we are very happy with the result. I would highly recommend this company.

I am a return customer, this is the second house I have had SES put panels on for me. I went back to them because, (1) they offer custom solutions that match your roof characteristics, (2) they worked with me to maximize production while minimizing costs and time to completion, (3) great customer service and customization, (4) On my request, they were able to complete an almost invisible installation, so there is no sign the system is in place on my historic home. Once other companies looked at my roof in person, SES was also the only company who had the technical ability to install panels on my weird roof that was sloped and 1/2 slate and 1/2 rolled metal. They also gave me the cheapest of three quotes initially, so that's tough to beat.

Solar Energy Services just did an excellent job installing our new solar system! They provided a reasonable timeline (and actually completed the work ahead of the timeline!), communicated updates regularly, were responsive to all questions and have followed up with us regarding our satisfaction after installation. All the staff have been polite, friendly and respectful. We definitely recommend Solar Energy Services!

I have recently (finally) gone solar, after a long period (years, actually) of going back and forth doing research and trying to cut through the maddening cacophony of "expert" advise online. At the end of the day, serendipitously and fortunately, I went with Solar Energy Services: I can't recommend SES strongly enough. Erin was our project coordinator, she was amazing, but the entire team was truly outstanding, remarkably professional, educating me and guiding me throughout the process. I am sure most people (like me) can find this process a bit intimidating (so many details and options to consider; companies sound all alike; prices are all over the place) but having found SES was a turning point. I have read so many horror stories that I consider myself very lucky, it is obvious that SES cares about its reputation. Should any of you readers out there decide to go solar, I have no doubt Erin and her people will be happy to educate you and help you get there, just like they did for me. Ruben B.

The bottom line is that I did a ton of research on solar installers and purchase vs. lease. Ultimately we decided to go with SES because of multiple, personal, reviews on the company from friends and people who had used them and who gave me feedback on NextDoor. All of them had done the research I had and all of them came to the same conclusion; SES was reputable, did great work, and backed up their claims with actual performance. SES worked with me for weeks leading up to the eventual installation of our system. There was design, permitting, and financing to consider. Once the permits came through, they put me on their schedule and showed up exactly when the said they would. There were multiple steps to the installation (AC work, DC work, panel conversion, interface work, cabling, and a battery installation). Through all of it, SES provided me with delivery dates and they showed up when they said they would. The multiple teams (electricians and installers) that were here were made up of workers I wound up chatting with and wanted to be around; they were clean in their work and in their manners. There was one problem that came up that turned out to be a misaligned cable that must've jiggled loose from the manufacturer (not their fault), but they sent someone out to my house at 6:45am to get it working again. I can't say enough positive things about dealing with them. Take a look at the interface and inverter installation on the side of my house; if you know anything about cable management, you can see that this is artwork that they performed. They even took steps to make sure that all of my state, local, and environmental credit applications were completed and filed properly so that I received the maximum benefit for the installation. Would I used them again? ABSOLUTELY. Would I recommend them to neighbors; WITHOUT QUESTION.

Great service! Willing to try to service a 9 year old Schuco system they didn't sell. Hard to find good people to do that! Reliable scheduling and transparent/understandable and fair pricing. Knowledgable service tech who arrived on schedule and fully recharged system - he was very diligent/thorough. Exceeded my expectations! Solar Energy Services earned my trust!

Great! These guys are consummate professionals and have great wisdom in executing solar projects. Each was delivered ahead of schedule and no change orders. Love working with Lisa and the rest of the team.

Excellent. All promises that were made were kept.

Solar Energy Services made the project and process easy fron start to finish. They were very competitive price-wise, but their service and professionalism was outstanding. From the sales contract, project construction and administration, to even help with grant paper filing and setting up an SREC account - all went very smooth with their help. I have recommended them several times already, and will continue to do so.

From the initial sales/presentation appointment to installation/inspections and even the utility company coming out promptly to exchange the electric meter, SES was great. My phone calls were answered promptly, as were emails. The installation process stayed on schedule with no hiccups. They showed me how to turn on the system today (9-25) and 20 Kw have been produced! SES was a pleasure to do business with....

SES truly made everything effortless for the best price of any of the other local solar panel installers.

I got an immediate response from Solar Energy (sorry I forgot the person's name) who passed my information on to Caitlin. Caitlin communicated with me almost daily working to get an accurate idea of what I needed and how many workers/hours it would take. I had sold my home and was working against a deadline to get this done as part of the home inspection corrections. They were able to get it done before my deadline and at a reasonable price.

It was great. The system works well and their crew is terrific.

Extremely disappointed with this company. Was told that the system they installed would cover my energy use age and it does not. I voiced my concerns prior to the project being completed and was told it should be fine. Now I am paying an electricity bill as well as a loan for the panels which by the way placed a lean on my house that I was not informed of either. The first month the panels were installed they all blew off during a storm because they weren’t installed properly. The contractors cut my cable and their own cables during the install meaning they had to reinstall all of the cable as well as destroyed my yard and never fixed it. All the manager had to say was that I should spend more money to make my house more efficient and there was nothing he would do for me. When people ask me how I like my solar I will be sure to tell them the truth and to never use this company.

Amazing response from first call to installation to system activation

From the get go the whole deal went smooth. Lisa Walsh was helpful and patient with our end-user questions, technical and financial. The credit approval was a breeze, the installation crew was done in no-time, despite of the challenges that my roof presented. The electrician did his thing seamlessly and accommodating to our awkward schedules. Dealing with the office was always always easy and my calls would ALWAYS get a call back from Erin, with the answers that we needed. Couldn't be more pleased and relieved that I made the right decision. I initially quoted Tesla, but they backed out when realized the shingles in my home were too much of a challenge for their installation team... SES got it done. Leon Cadavid (lekdavid1@hotmail.com...feel free to ask about my experience)

This is an Update after 21 months. “Solar Energy Services” installed a 28 Panel (7.98 kW) solar system that went live part way through March 2017 so 2018 was the first full year of operation. Our roof has a southern exposure and since we are in an older neighborhood, the panels are in the shade from 4 PM on which reduces the production by at least 20%. I have detailed records of our utility usage since 2013 to see the impact. Our electric usage was AVG KWH Avg. Monthly Per Month Elec. Bill 2013 27 $ 99 2014 29 107 2015 28 104 2016 32 119 2017 xx 48 2018 34 48 2018 was very warm during a couple of the months and it was also the wettest year ever recorded with rainfall 50% above the annual average. While billing makes it difficult to estimate what the extra cost would have actually been, I estimate that the KWHs we used would have averaged $108 per month instead of the $48 we were billed. There is a minimum charge of $7.56/mo. and we had 6 months with zero usage. Aug, Sept, Oct. accounted for $460 of our full year charge of $574. Virginia offers no incentives for solar so our only savings is the net metering and based upon the above analysis we will recover the cost of the system slightly quicker than was estimated. If we didn’t have the shade issue, we would only being paying the minimum $7.56 per month and breakeven more quickly. Solar Energy Systems did an excellent job from start to finish providing a completely turnkey system including adjusting the system when it turned out there were unexpected shadows on one row of panels. I would totally recommend them.

Solar Energy was amazing. We met several companies who pushed a very hard sales pitch. Solar Energy did not. They were up front, honest and sent out their tech team to look at my property before giving me a quote. I had a complicated project because my house has a slate roof. They were willing to replace any broken slate pieces that would naturally happen from doing work on a slate roof. Since having my panels installed we have had some really strong thunderstorms and heavy rain storms. My roof has not leaked one time. They replaced every shingle broken and took pictures for me to see what the roof looked like when they were finished. They helped me with the permitting and sign up for SRECs and were always positive, helpful, responsive and professional. Whether you have a slate roof or a regular shingle roof, I would highly recommend. It's daunting to invest a great deal of money on solar panels, but they took all the worry away and delivered a quality product. Thank you!

Installation was started and completed early. System operation was brought to specification quickly.

No surprises. The numbers presented to me before signing the contract were the numbers I paid in the end. Everything went as planned. The install crew did a great timely job. Communication was excellent through out the entire process. You don't see too many companies like this today. Very Happy!