We have been in the solar industry for over a decade and have noticed a recurring pattern: customers who previously installed solar systems from unreliable and amateur installers often experience low electricity generation, frequent damages, and the need for constant repairs.

A study conducted by India’s reputed think tank Council on Energy, Environment and Water in collaboration with PV Diagnostics, surveyed the performance and condition of residential solar installations on the ground. The study revealed a whopping 50% of home rooftop solar systems were underperforming, generating an average of 30% less power than expected. 

What does that mean? Imagine a family excited about saving on electricity bills and switching to solar, but meeting with disappointment because their solar performed 30-40% less than expected. Such gross underperformance undermines the entire return on solar investment. 

Why does this happen? 

1. Most families going solar are first-time buyers. It is a new revolution and thus, the awareness about quality and performance risks with solar are low. 
2. While purchasing a solar system, consumers worry more about the cost they are paying today rather than the savings they will get in future. The result? At lower prices, they got lower power production and lower savings. 
3. Since investing in a solar system requires a significant amount, families can’t afford to redo this mistake and have to live with low generation and breakdown issues for many years. 

There is a lack of support and accountability in these situations.

Listed below are the major root causes of a solar system’s underperformance. 

1. Dust Deposition/Bird Droppings

80% of homes surveyed reported this issue. Without regular professional maintenance and panel deep cleaning, this issue is one of the leading causes of underperformance.

2. Shadow Effect

50% of the homes surveyed reported this issue. The issue occurs frequently because untrained technicians install solar without seasonal and hourly shadow analysis. 

Rooftop solar systems work on sunshine. Installing them in areas with shadows (even for a few hours of the day) will lead to performance issues and cause fire safety risks. 

3. Shattered Modules

30% of the homes surveyed had one or more solar panels shattered either due to temperature shock caused by hotspots (hotspots on panels are caused by dust, bird droppings and shadows) or mishandling of modules during installation.

4. Scaling/Cementation

15% of the homes surveyed reported this issue. Improper cleaning practices or poor water quality can lead to dust layer deposition, creating mild-moderate hotspots and accelerated degradation, thus reducing performance. 

5. Cable Damage

12% of the homes surveyed reported this issue. Damaged cables from improper wiring structures, reckless activity like general tampering or pulling wires, or improper maintenance can cause high resistance and grave safety concerns. Rooftop solar produces 1000 Volts of direct current and any electrical safety hazard is a serious concern. 

6. Inoperative/Faulty Inverter

10% of the homes surveyed reported this issue. A non-functioning inverter can lead to a complete system shutdown with no energy output. The primary causes include connection or component failures, or readings outside the safety parameters provided in the inverters.

7. Visual microcracks and Snail trails

Visible trails or markings on PV modules are caused by underlying cell cracks or moisture ingress. These factors can reduce the power output of the module and can further aggravate solar cell performance.

8. Uneven Orientation

5% of homes surveyed reported this issue. Uneven solar panel orientation reduces system performance to the poorest level due to inferior installation practices, low-quality structures, or roof orientation issues.

Amidst such cases, claiming the warranty can become frustrating when issues like low generation, inverter problems, or panel cracks arise. Given such poor installation practices of inexperienced installers, the manufacturers of panels and inverters often reject any warranty claims. 

How can customers protect themselves from this fate? 

Enter a solar solution with Reliable Performance and Guaranteed Savings 

All of the above may have sounded overwhelming; well, it is. But to make the switch to solar easy and completely risk-free, we have launched SolarSquare GoodZero.

What is SolarSquare GoodZero? 

India’s first and only rooftop solar solution with 5-year guaranteed savings!

Good savings, zero risk, zero stress. 

How does it work for you? 

The 5-Year Savings Guarantee ensures you enjoy peak performance and savings from your rooftop solar for five years.  If your system doesn’t generate the committed electricity units, we’ll compensate you. Additionally, we guarantee you no surprises expenses on spares or repairs for the next 5 years. It’s peace of mind. Completely. No fine print. 

Your roof, your rooftop solar—our responsibility.

How do we deliver guaranteed savings?

It takes some serious heavy lifting – 

1. 360-degree maintenance of your solar
2. Regular panel deep cleaning by professionals – every single month 
3. Thousands of lines of code written to elegantly allow real-time performance monitoring of every single solar panel installed on thousands of homes across India

And a lot more might of our team of IITians and Ph.Ds at SolarSquare.

Join India’s solar revolution and make the switch now! 

With SolarSquare GoodZero there are Zero reasons to wait. 

Book a free consultation today.