Planet Solar

Can’t say enough good things about Planet Solar! Everyone from start to finish made the process smooth and efficient! Marilyn’s knowledge about the system options and her guidance to plan our build out, the install team’s professional and quick work, all the way to the very end with getting PGE onsite to get us checked and making energy. Thanks Planet Solar! Jeremy.

For a few years I have been thinking about going to a residential solar system given that my local energy provider’s electricity costs continued to rise, and the federal solar system rebate may be discontinued. In 2019 I decided it was time to act. I began seriously researching residential solar system information. I found Planet Solar, a locally owned and operated company, through Energy Sage. Energy Sage allows those interested in going solar the opportunity to thoroughly research all aspects of solar energy and also prepare a bid request that is then sent to interested solar companies to make bids. All of this is done in the comfort of your home without having to interact with high pressured sales tactics. Energy Sage allows prospective solar system buyers to ask questions of the companies providing quotes without revealing your identity. When you are ready to disclose your identity you may reach out and talk with the company(s) you wish to communicate with. Given the information that Energy Sage provided, and looking back through my electrical bills for the last 10 years, I had a good idea of the type of system I wanted (i.e. production level and type of solar panels to be used etc.). Because of the information Energy Sage provided I felt like I was sufficiently informed so as to not be taken advantage of by an unscrupulous salesperson etc. Since this was going to be a major purchase for me (~$30,000), it was imperative I get it right the first time. I received several bids for my solar system request and Energy Sage afforded me the opportunity to thoroughly look through the details of each bid quote. I ended up selecting a local company called Planet Solar. I ultimately chose Planet Solar because of Ben Siebert, their lead salesperson. Ben responded timely to my questions, of which I had many, in a timely and patient manner. When I was ready, under no pressure from him, he came to my house, we met in my garage, and he gave me a formal bid, and all the details that go with it like number and type of panels, panel location, construction costs, timing of construction etc. Ben was low pressure and left a trustworthy impression. I also went with Planet Solar because they offered a very good competitive price for the system I wanted to have installed. Also, Ben would interact with me in the manner I wished to communicate with him and that was via email. Another local company would not do this (Solar Negotiators) and as a result of this, and their insistence on not giving me a quote for what I believe was a superior solar panel, I stopped pursuing business with this solar company. Additionally my solar project required that I trim and/or remove several trees next to my house so that the solar system could work properly (i.e. not be hindered by shading). This was a big ordeal for me because my wife and I needed to come to agreement on which trees would remain and for those that remain how much trimming would be done. Ben was patient with me as I went through this decision making process, he found a very good and affordable tree trimmer, and my wife and I made the decision to move forward and get the solar system installed. My solar system goal was to have 100% percent of my overall electrical energy provided by solar. This effectively meant that I wanted a zero true up annual electricity bill with my local energy provider. This past June (2020), I received the first annual electricity true-up bill and it was for $0 (actually got a small credit for a bit of excess energy production). Planet Solar did what they promised to do and as such I am extremely happy and pleased with their performance. And to top it off, given I live in an area where dust can settle on the solar panels, Ben also showed me how to clean my new solar panels and gave me the materials to do it! By the way, cleaning solar panels is really easy and can be done with a hose and a spraying attachment (i.e. Fuller Brush Window Cleaner). Throughout the residential solar system purchase process I found Planet Solar, and all of its employees whether they be in administration, financing, billing, and/or construction, to be reliable, trustworthy, responsive, and a very friendly solar construction business that provides high quality affordable solar systems. I really enjoyed working with Planet Solar, am very pleased with their service and finalized product, and as such I highly recommend them.

After meeting with and discussing solar options with a number of companies, I ended up going with Planet Solar as they were local and had a good track record. From the time I signed the contract to when I turned on the inverter was less than a month. These guys are fast. The installation took place over 3 1/2 days because it got so hot inside my attic that the guys had to call it by around 1 or 2 each day. I honestly couldn't blame them and was fine taking an extra day, as they run the piping inside the attic and not on the roof so it's a nice clean look. The finished install looks great and I'm looking forward to years of "free" power. The one thing I would say they could improve on is to have one point person for everything, a customer service position if you will. I met with the sales person, who handed me off to someone who was going to come by to do measurements for optimal placement and then he handed me off to the foreman overseeing the crew who would do the actual installation. I then got e-mails from the accounting department asking for me to give checks to the crew that was coming that day. After the installation, it was hard to get information on the warranties from my original sales person and I think a customer service person would have been able to handle everything. I would still recommend Planet Solar for installation as they did a beautiful job. The system has been operating as expected and there are some days in the 110 heat that we only need to tap into PG&E for 10 kwH as opposed to the 50 before.

I chose Planet Solar for my installation. I was referred by a friend, and I chose them because I didn't want any pipes running on my roof. Their price was all-inclusive unlike others that had all kinds of added costs. My salesperson answered all my questions and was very friendly, and even though I took 2 months to make my decision, never bothered me but just checked in about weekly. Their crews were very clean and professional, and had the panels installed in two days. It's a very attractive system, and so far is making more power than promised. I highly recommend Planet Solar.

My boyfriend and I purchased a house a few years ago, and the first month we moved in, the PGE was outrageously expensive. We went from $180–$200 PGE bills to $650, so we decided to look into getting solar panels. We did a lot of research and had a few solar companies come and give us estimates. We had quite a few questions to ask, and Marilyn was the one who was so patient and answered all our questions, especially the financial ones. In the end, Planet Solar had the best offer with warranty and pricing, on top of the knowledge Marilyn shared with us too. So we decided to go with Planet Solar. Marilyn suggested we have 25 solar panels, but we asked for 3 more panels just in case because we heard a lot of horrifying "True-up" stories. Signing the paperwork to complete the entire process was easy and smooth. It took about a month and a half, I believe. We had some hiccups with the county of Fresno regarding the house (not ours or Planet Solar's fault), but everything was solved after a week or so. We had to wait for a few days for PGE to do the inspection and turn on the line too. The actual installation only took 2 days, and we really like the fact that on the roof, there are no wires exposed, they did such clean work. Once the panels were up and running, she even called me to check if everything was going okay. Since we had the solar panels, I haven’t had any "True-up" bills, only credit from PGE. I will use Planet Solar again if I need to add more panels. Their customer service is exceptional, and I would recommend them to everyone who is interested in getting solar panels.

The team and planet solar was very knowledgeable, helpful, efficient & professional . A great experience from start to finish. I would highly recommend!