A common term that sales companies and manufacturers use is the ‘Tier 1’ rating. The Tier rating is a Bloomberg New Energy Finance Corporation value and is used to rate solar panel manufacturers in terms of their financial position/strength of balance sheet.
A Tier 1 ranking does not mean a panel offers the highest performance or quality. With most established panel manufacturers now rated as Tier 1, it is more important than ever to know how to distinguish a high quality and reliable panel.
Have your BS radar on high alert as soon as you hear a company leading with Tier 1.
So, a $3,450.00 solar system can be Tier 1. Will the panel be reliable, well possibly in the short term say 2 to 3 years but cheap solar dumped in Australia leads the field in failures and rooftop fires.
If you could buy great quality at $3,450.00 every solar company in Australia would be selling them with their ears pinned back. Sadly, far too many Australians have been hoodwinked by the sales hype and marketing and end up purchasing rubbish solar.
Cheap solar requires cheap installers, installers that will work for below market incomes. It is little wonder why and when a system fails the installer is nowhere to be found. A little-known fact is that the workmanship warranty, support, and the like rests with the installer and not the sales company.