Canadian Solar announce 25 year warranty
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Canadian Solar recently announced that they’re increasing their “limited product warranty’ for the below modules to 25 years.
CS3L-XXXMS black frame or all black module (Solar Wholesalers most commonly used module)
CS3N-XXXMS black frame or all black module
CS7A-XXXMS black frame or all black module (new product – details coming soon)
Most people may shrug this off as they have assumed all panels have a 25-year warranty as this is often used as a throw away comment by solar sales people, however this is actually a big deal. I will explain why below.
Solar panel warranties can be confusing as they are broken down into two parts, a performance guarantee (limited performance warranty) and also a manufacturers or equipment warranty (limited product warranty).
The performance guarantee, or what is sometimes referred to as the “output” or “power warranty”, is almost always 25 years (there are couple of exceptions that offer 30 years). This is the one that sales people may be referencing when they say a panel has a 25-year warranty.
The warranty that, in my opinion, matters more is the “limited product warranty”. This warranty can sometimes be as low as 10 years, however in recent times more commonly in Tier One modules has been 12 or 15 years.
Canadian Solar now offers 25 years on both product and performance for the modules listed above (likely what we would use on your house)!! There are a couple of other manufacturers that are at this level, but not many, so do your research.
What does all this mean?
Limited Product Warranty
The product warranty is on the panel itself; the manufacturer is warranting that the panel will be free from any defects in the materials and workmanship that may have an adverse effect on the panel’s functionality. This would be things like the junction box/es, the protective back sheet, the glass, the EVA that holds the panel in the frame, the aluminium frame, basically anything included in the makeup of the panel. This is the warranty that Canadian Solar have increased to 25 years and is still somewhere between 10 and 15 years with most other manufacturers.
Limited Performance Warranty
This warranty is on the output of the panel, manufacturers usually have a linear decrease in performance (output) expectations over the 25-year period. Canadian Solar state that “during the first year, the actual power output of the panel will be no less than 96% of the labelled power output” and “from year 2 to year 25, the actual annual power decline will be no more than 0.55%; by the end of year 25, the actual power output will be no less than 84.8% of the labelled power output”.
A quick summary would be solar cells that are still producing even 90% of the rated power output in year 25 are no good without the rest of the panel, the glass, the frame, the junction box, all of these things are just as important in ensuring actual power is still being produced at your home, not just the ability for the cells to do so. Canadian Solar increasing their product warranty to 25 years in line with their performance warranty shows they have faith in their product to stand the test of time.
You should be able to find warranty details on the specification sheet for the panels you are considering, if you need help ask the sales consultant for more information. The image below is how Canadian Solar detail their warranties on their spec sheet. You can find the spec sheet and detailed warranty information for Canadian Solar, as well as the rest of the products we provide, on our website at https://www.solarwholesalers.com.au/solar-system-equipment
When choosing solar panels for your home keep warranties in mind, however also ensure you are buying a product from a proven Tier One manufacturer, with a presence on the ground here in Australia. If you buy from Solar Wholesalers, we will ensure that this is the case. Just as importantly make sure you are buying from a solar installer that knows their product, has stood the test of time and has a proven track record with customer service. This way should you have any issues your solar company should take care of the whole process.
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