Cost of works

[bazzy]

Hi All

as many probably know there has been a lot of electrical works carried out at my property.

the solar equipment that was installed 2 years ago a system totaling 15kw was not performing properly.

I called up a company recommended by haymans electrical wholesales.

They came out onsite to do a system check and report that they told me over the phone was going to cost $150

when they came out onsite they indicated "the system is dangerous due to the isolator being water ingress"

They began troubleshooting the issue with a bank of panels that where supposed to be connected to my secondary inverter. they found (as i did) the run was open circuit.

They then found the isolator on the roof had the panels disconnected inside so from the ground it appears to be on. Turns out that having them connected causes a system fault on the inverter because the voltage on the panels is below the startup voltage of the older inverter.

They said they don't know why this is happening. replaced the isolator then left.

when they sent the invoice to me they where asking for $800

when i called the billing team said their cars are GPS tracked and they where there 3 hours and that it was $155 per hour.

They where unable to resolve or even identify the issue with the inverter.

I was doing the math and $155 multiplied by the 3 hours they where on site (the guy said he was doing me a good deal because they didnt bill me for the travel time to my place and back) is $465 so that means the DC isolator they have charged me $335 for. the only problem is i looked up the isolator by the model number and it turns out it is $26 ebay job.

they also said they would pull the whole system down and replace the lot.

In the end I did the research on the issue myself and found out the issue is due to the panels at the front being in a bank of 4 new LG panels and the bank of 6 at the back are the orriginal ones. the inverter is a Delta unit with a single MPPT its very old unit that has a high startup voltage. I found a new Delta inverter available that has a startup voltage of 30V and an operational voltage of between 30v-500v with duel MPPT that has the same connections on it so its a direct swap. cost about $820. swapped it over and BAM front and back panels are working correctly producing what they are supposed to be producing.

So my questions are as follows.

1. Is there $800 invoice for essentially changing an isolator and connecting a wire on the roof reasonable?
2. Why was I able to with very little effort able to find the information i needed to rectify the inverter issue while i am still waiting for them to come back to me with what they "think" is wrong with it and how to fix it moving forward.
3. Why do Electricians just shrug and say don't know just buy a new $10000 solar system.
4. why do said Electricians then sit there saying how the quality of their own work is so good and all the other electrical work on the roof is sub standard and rubbish while at the same time not able to tell me what is actually wrong with it.

It seems to just come across as lazy to me and considering i have basically paid him $800 and was no closer to a solution its a hard pill to swallow,

[lsemmens]

It could well be a good question for consumer affairs or, perhaps one of the TV current affairs programs.

[bazzy]

It could well be a good question for consumer affairs or, perhaps one of the TV current affairs programs.

ok i will give Consumer affairs a call tomorrow when i take my lunch break.

[RedXT]

"15kw" system in Qld should be giving a pretty go return with the problems fixed

[bazzy]

"15kw" system in Qld should be giving a pretty go return with the problems fixed

I am hoping it will and with the battery should basically neutralist the bills completely