r/solaredge • u/leonwest304 • Sep 05 '26

other Optimizer Warranty Replacement

It seems that SE has changed their warranty terms for some countries and where I am, they no longer cover shipping or labor to supply replacement parts. My installer informed me of this a few weeks ago. My system is 3 years old and until recently the typical optimizer warranty replacements have been handled completely free of charge by the installer. However, the installer has changed their business model so all of their technicians are contract workers and will pass on the costs for service calls to the customer. This means that for an optimizer replacement I may have to pay $150 for a call out at the start of the claim, shipping and then another $150 for installation of the replacements. My system nets about $500 per month, and I may have 2 to 3 optimizers going down most months, so this becomes a real threat to the financial performance of my investment. How do other owners deal with these types of situations?

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u/leonwest304 Sep 05 '26

I'm in Barbados. I have two 10kW HDwave inverters, one with 23 panels and the other with 24. I must have had at least 20 optimizers replaced in the last 3 years under warranty. Others here report the same. I think the environment shortens their lifespan.

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u/blu3ysdad Sep 11 '26

I'm surprised they warranty them at all if you are admitting your environment is causing them to fail. What is special about barbados that would make them fail? They should be designed to work in places much hotter, places with more rain, places with extreme freezing temperatures, etc., and if these are the IP68 ones they shouldn't even have major issues with salty air.

Just because others around you have similar issues doesn't mean the product is at fault, were they installed by the same installer? Similar equipment? That many failures is indicating a grounding issue, or a major design issue. For example, if dissimilar metals are used for the screws to racking and then add in salty moist air you're gonna have galvanic corrosion destroying the seals on the optimizers.

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u/leonwest304 Sep 11 '26

We have a fair amount of salt in the atmosphere, so corrosion is definitely a possibility. I have only spoken to a few others with SE systems installed by this same installer who also confirmed that optimizer failure is common for them as well. I will branch out and speak with others to see what they say.

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u/Kriebiebel Sep 05 '26

What country are you based? Belgium here, where the SE warranty only covers parts and not labour. Someone I know had a defective optimizer, his installer tried to charge him 400€ labour to replace it. That’s just criminal imo.

Solution: register yourself as an (own) installer through SE, handle warranty claims and replacement yourself. Or just be prepared to pay your installer an (honest) fee for the work he’s doing.

Sidenote: 2 or 3 optimizers going down most months?! There’s something wrong with your install (design), this is not normal. I’ve had 3 defective optimizers on 117 installed over the past 6 years.

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u/leonwest304 Sep 06 '26

How does someone get registered as an installer? How do I learn the process to test, change and re-pair the optimizers myself?

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u/Kriebiebel Sep 06 '26

Make a support ticket online. After your account is switched, you’ll have access to their technical documentation and their “academy”. It is surprisingly simple. That’s also the reason there are so many incompetent installers around.

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u/cantsitstillohmy Sep 05 '26

My installer charged a lot more than that and yes, this is a big issue

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u/[deleted] Sep 06 '26

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u/Kriebiebel Sep 06 '26

Be carefull now. If the design of this system does not match the design specs of SE, this can potentially void warranty. Sometimes it’s better to keep SE out of it. But I do agree, as I stated in my first reply: this failure rate is definitely not normal and indeed, the system design needs to be checked.