Hurricane Matthew hit the Charleston area the day after we started installing this solar system in Mount Pleasant, and our crew struggled to secure the materials on site and move panels back to our North Charleston warehouse. The biggest challenge was handling the panels when the wind hit them and they became big, heavy wind sails. When the rain stopped and the storm passed, it still took weeks for the roads to get re-opened and for our crew to be able to resume installation. But solar stops for no one, hurricanes included. Solar panels used in the Charleston area are wind tested for loads required by permitting and solar racking is tested for 120 mile per hour winds, but fortunately no damage was sustained.
The owner of the 12.6 kilowatt solar system qualified for a zero down loan with Dividend Solar. A solar loan like Dividend can be an even better deal if the owner applies some down payment, but either way, the goal is for the payment to be equal to or less than the monthly energy savings.
Yes Solar Solutions used 45 REC 280 watt solar panels and SolarEdge inverters with 45 Optimizers and monitoring. Optimizers on the back of each module are a great solution for some partial shade, since the optimizers help each panel work independently. A little shade in the afternoon doesn’t mean the whole system stops generating energy.
We were grateful our homeowner had no damage, and our crew came home safe, and there is one more solar rooftop in Mount Pleasant, S.C.