panel swap 1 week out from install

[marnao]

I was scheduled for install of a 7.56 kw system next Wednesday (315 Watt panels) along with 2 Powerwalls and Gateway 1. I got an email saying I had a new document earlier this week. They changed my panels to the 340 watt panels. They did not adjust my price despite the fact that I previously called and got a price match per watt. The solar portion is $14823.

I'm not going to complain about this obviously but the size difference did mess up the panel layout. I'm now stuck with more north facing panels. Their estimates claim that it's pretty much a wash and the system will produce roughly the same amount in this configuration.

One other interesting item I noticed is that the Gateway 1 disappeared off my component list. I inquired twice in 2 separate phone calls about this and the first person said I'm still getting a Gateway 1. The second person said I'm getting a Gateway 2. Seems like it's a coin toss! I'll let everyone know on Wednesday what happens. For reference, I'm located in NJ.

Just wanted to share my experience!

 

[JeremyWhaling]

Seems like they may have ran out of stock of the 315W panels, at least in your area.

 

[marnao]

Has anyone ever got the install crew to make minor adjustment to panel layout on the day of install? I'd really like to squeeze 2 more panels on the south facing side of my house. I don't believe the satellite imagery they're using to estimate the size of my roof is accurate. I have the plans for my house so I know the exact measurements.

Should I delay my install to have them come out and survey or should I see if the crew will make an adjustment on the fly after they measure?

 

[BrettS]

Has anyone ever got the install crew to make minor adjustment to panel layout on the day of install? I'd really like to squeeze 2 more panels on the south facing side of my house. I don't believe the satellite imagery they're using to estimate the size of my room is accurate. I have the plans for my house so I know the exact measurements.

Should I delay my install to have them come out and survey or should I see if the crew will make an adjustment on the fly after they measure?

Minor adjustments can definitely be made. In my case on install day they discovered that one panel wouldn’t fit where it was shown on the drawing and they moved it to another location and just had me sign off on the change. Ironically I just found out that this might be why I’ve had such a long delay for the system to be inspected. Apparently since the panel layout is now different than it was when they applied for the permit they needed new signed and sealed drawings with the new layout and then they need to file the modifications with the city. It seems like that process is taking a while.

But that said, If your talking about adding additional panels I’m not sure that would really be a ‘minor adjustment’ not would it be able to be accommodated. I believe that they installers only brought enough panels and optimizers for my system. So I don’t think they would have had any extra panels to use even if they could have fit a few more panels in. If you really want additional panels you probably need to request it now and it may delay your install depending on how far along you are in the permitting process.

 

[marnao]

Minor adjustments can definitely be made. In my case on install day they discovered that one panel wouldn’t fit where it was shown on the drawing and they moved it to another location and just had me sign off on the change. Ironically I just found out that this might be why I’ve had such a long delay for the system to be inspected. Apparently since the panel layout is now different than it was when they applied for the permit they needed new signed and sealed drawings with the new layout and then they need to file the modifications with the city. It seems like that process is taking a while.

But that said, If your talking about adding additional panels I’m not sure that would really be a ‘minor adjustment’ not would it be able to be accommodated. I believe that they installers only brought enough panels and optimizers for my system. So I don’t think they would have had any extra panels to use even if they could have fit a few more panels in. If you really want additional panels you probably need to request it now and it may delay your install depending on how far along you are in the permitting process.

Thank you for the response! I should have been more clear.. I want to move panels from the north to the south. Not suggesting a change in total number of panels. That sounds promising that they made an adjustment for you on the fly! Maybe I'll just talk to them when they get here and see what they can do.

 

[wjgjr]

Minor adjustments can definitely be made. In my case on install day they discovered that one panel wouldn’t fit where it was shown on the drawing and they moved it to another location and just had me sign off on the change. Ironically I just found out that this might be why I’ve had such a long delay for the system to be inspected. Apparently since the panel layout is now different than it was when they applied for the permit they needed new signed and sealed drawings with the new layout and then they need to file the modifications with the city. It seems like that process is taking a while.

Just to highlight this issue - while it seems like they can make adjustments in most jurisdictions (there might be some exceptions) my personal experience is Tesla did not handle permit changes well. We had delays in inspections because Tesla did not file some pre-install changes immediately and then had to add some changes made during install, which had to wait for the prior changes to clear. Then, they failed to submit the changes to the utility until after the county inspection (even though they could - like the county, they are supposed to file the plans before install, but they will accept changes after, with another full review.) So, I would suggest to anybody who is aware of changes being made during install - whether it is moving a solar panel to another part of the roof or just some changes in the electrical wiring - to make sure the permitting people at Tesla are aware and submitting the paperwork to any and all relevant authorities in a timely manner. We probably could have gotten PTO a good two months or more earlier had Tesla filed all the paperwork when they should have.

I know some of this varies by jurisdiction - ours is apparently a stickler for the electrical diagrams all being precise - but it is worth keeping on top of.

 

[njhtran]

Seems like they may have ran out of stock of the 315W panels, at least in your area.

the 315w panels have less than half the hardware warranty (not the performance warranty) of 12yrs vs 25yrs.

 

[destructure00]

Thank you for the response! I should have been more clear.. I want to move panels from the north to the south. Not suggesting a change in total number of panels. That sounds promising that they made an adjustment for you on the fly! Maybe I'll just talk to them when they get here and see what they can do.

My installation team moved panels for me on the day of install. I just added 12 more panels to my existing 24 panel system. The original layout had 8 of the new panels on east/west slopes and 4 on the north slope of the house. I asked the installers when they got here if it was possible to split the 4 north facing panels and move them as shown below, they accommodated with no problem.

Original:

Final:

 

[marnao]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! We'll let it ride. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[marnao]

Update: We ended up doing a slight modification of the panel layout on site.. unfortunately I didn't get any panels off the north facing roof but I did get them in a slightly better configuration on the south roof.. they're not done putting them up yet, but the Powerwall install is complete... and surprise, surprise.... I got a Backup Gateway 2! They said they've been installing them for a couple of weeks now.

 

[SoCal Dave]

My installer was fine with making changes, but he required the plans to be updated first. I didn't want to reschedule so I had them proceed.

 

[cridinger82]

Update: We ended up doing a slight modification of the panel layout on site.. unfortunately I didn't get any panels off the north facing roof but I did get them in a slightly better configuration on the south roof.. they're not done putting them up yet, but the Powerwall install is complete... and surprise, surprise.... I got a Backup Gateway 2! They said they've been installing them for a couple of weeks now.
View attachment 572828

are you not doing a whole home backup? they are using the gateway 2 internal panel board for the generation panel for me. that way i don't have to down rate my main breaker to meet the 120% rule.

 

[marnao]

are you not doing a whole home backup? they are using the gateway 2 internal panel board for the generation panel for me. that way i don't have to down rate my main breaker to meet the 120% rule.

We are doing whole home backup. I asked if they were going to use the gw2 internal panel as my generation panel and he told me they only use that for non-backed up loads. I didn't have the heart to tell him to read the instructions. It clearly states you can do this. I don't think they're familiar with the system yet. Anyway, that's how I ended up with a separate generation panel. Oh well.

If I want to add another powerwall down the line having a separate panel probably makes it easier, actually. I think the internal board would probably be full with solar + 2 powerwalls.

 

[marnao]

My installer was fine with making changes, but he required the plans to be updated first. I didn't want to reschedule so I had them proceed.

The lead installer called a hotline and got the changes approved prior to proceeding.