Wanted a well known energy company to install a powerful solar power system in our house and replace the main electrical panel. I got in contract with Tesla on November 23, 2022 to install (20) 450 Watts panels with mini-inverters (new technology) and install a new service electrical main panel 200A solar capable. Tesla unbeknown to me hired LA Solar, LA Solar hired someone in San Diego to install the solar system, someone else for the panel upgrade and another company for the stucco. These companies (except Tesla) are based off Los Angeles and I am in San Diego. A week after contract was signed, LA Solar sent a message to notify me they were going to show up 2 days later to install the solar equipment. Without pulling a permit with SDG&E or absolutely nothing. I asked if they were sure because time line was insane to me and this process usually take between 4-5 months. Appointment came and nobody showed up. 2nd appointment was set, no show. 3rd appointment with 8-10am eta: nobody showed up. I called and raised hell. One person showed up 1pm. He informed me he was just hired. Installed rails and several panels, a 2nd guy showed up at 4:30pm after he got out from his regular job to come help his friend. 5:30pm they come out, informed me installation wasn't complete because since 1st guy had never installed a system like this, they had to dismount panels, flip them and reinstalled up to 5 panels. Garbage was left behind. Informed he was coming back next day. Next day and over 1.5-2 weeks passed, nobody showed up. The day he left I received a message from LA Solar saying that now the the installation was "complete" they will notify me of next step. I told them installation was far from complete and informed of what had happened. 4th app was set, same unskilled guy showed up again very late. Said he completed reminder 25 panels in about 2 hrs. I contacted supervisor and instruct them to come inspect everything because I vet it was bad and risky. Weeks later the boss came, saw the mess. Came back weeks later with 2 other guys and re-wired panels and what not up there. I get a message from LAS to inform they were showing up next day to meet City Inspector to inspect panel installation. I informed them the panel had not been installed yet, SDG&E had not fielded the property, City Inspection had not issue permit either. I asked them to cancel appt immediately. Contacted Tesla and informed them of the horrible experience and in desperate need of their intervening since the company they hired had zero idea of how to install solar panels or further less a main electrical panel. They intervened. Luckily I had already applied myself on November directly with SDG&E for the solar install and panel upgrade, I obtained the project number and cc'ed LA Solar and Tesla throughout communications with SDG&E. One day, I asked LA Solar when they were going to replace the panel, they said they had not receive approval from SDG&E, I informed them they were notified and approved 1.5 weeks ago. Installation was scheduled 1-2 weeks later. Installers showed up early, he wrongly called City Inspector and SDG&E to show up to inspect and re-connect if approved way to early. Inspector and SDG&E showed, inspector failed the faulty grounds and panel wiring installation. Inspector ordered them how to do it, he told me to fire them because they had no clue of that what they were doing. Installer re-did his work as per Inspector instructions. He missed deadline 3pm for inspector to return and SDG&E to reconnect. He texted pictures of finished work by 5:00 pm, inspector approved via text. Installer left and left me without a generator to take us through the night as the inspector and SDG&E told me it was the law. Next morning SDG&E showed up, nobody here to ensure the re-connecting was safe and good, got re-connected to the grid and SDG&E crew stayed with me to ensure no electrical fire was developing. I had to flip all the breakers, several kitchens outlets not working now. They never r turn to fix their mess. I hired electrician to rewire my outlets at the panels so I could have electricity in the kitchen. Server to monitor the system was not provided but after I contacted Tesla to ask, they finally send it 1 month later vs the day the panels were installed. Refused to give me my log in and password information or what website or app to use despite the fact I received invoice saying it was paid in full ($50,000.00 project with loan closed/approved). Received message system is still not working, keep being told about a future appointment, no appointment. This company LA Solar and their installers are incompetent, a wreck and have no clue of what they are doing. Still not completed 09/17/2023. Horrible experience so far. Reply to Ara P.: It is against Yelp TOS to disclose personal information. Which job in San Diego did you installed (20) 450 Watts panels with mini inverters and panel upgrade, I can assure not that many. read more

Wanted a well known energy company to install a powerful solar power system in our house and replace the main electrical panel. I got in contract with Tesla on November 23, 2022 to install (20) 450 Watts panels with mini-inverters (new technology) and install a new service electrical main panel 200A solar capable. Tesla unbeknown to me hired LA Solar, LA Solar hired someone in San Diego to install the solar system, someone else for the panel upgrade and another company for the stucco. These companies (except Tesla) are based off Los Angeles and I am in San Diego. A week after contract was signed, LA Solar sent a message to notify me they were going to show up 2 days later to install the solar equipment. Without pulling a permit with SDG&E or absolutely nothing. I asked if they were sure because time line was insane to me and this process usually take between 4-5 months. Appointment came and nobody showed up. 2nd appointment was set, no show. 3rd appointment with 8-10am eta: nobody showed up. I called and raised hell. One person showed up 1pm. He informed me he was just hired. Installed rails and several panels, a 2nd guy showed up at 4:30pm after he got out from his regular job to come help his friend. 5:30pm they come out, informed me installation wasn't complete because since 1st guy had never installed a system like this, they had to dismount panels, flip them and reinstalled up to 5 panels. Garbage was left behind. Informed he was coming back next day. Next day and over 1.5-2 weeks passed, nobody showed up. The day he left I received a message from LA Solar saying that now the the installation was "complete" they will notify me of next step. I told them installation was far from complete and informed of what had happened. 4th app was set, same unskilled guy showed up again very late. Said he completed reminder 25 panels in about 2 hrs. I contacted supervisor and instruct them to come inspect everything because I vet it was bad and risky. Weeks later the boss came, saw the mess. Came back weeks later with 2 other guys and re-wired panels and what not up there. I get a message from LAS to inform they were showing up next day to meet City Inspector to inspect panel installation. I informed them the panel had not been installed yet, SDG&E had not fielded the property, City Inspection had not issue permit either. I asked them to cancel appt immediately. Contacted Tesla and informed them of the horrible experience and in desperate need of their intervening since the company they hired had zero idea of how to install solar panels or further less a main electrical panel. They intervened. Luckily I had already applied myself on November directly with SDG&E for the solar install and panel upgrade, I obtained the project number and copied LA Solar and Tesla throughout communications with SDG&E. One day, I asked LA Solar when they were going to replace the panel, they said they had not receive approval from SDG&E, I informed them they were notified and approved 1.5 weeks ago. Installation was scheduled 1-2 weeks later. Installers showed up early, he wrongly called City Inspector and SDG&E to show up to inspect and re-connect if approved way to early. Inspector and SDG&E showed, inspector failed the faulty grounds and panel wiring installation. Inspector ordered them how to do it, he told me to fire them because they had no clue of that what they were doing. Installer re-did his work as per Inspector instructions. He missed deadline 3pm for inspector to return and SDG&E to reconnect. He texted pictures of finished work by 5:00 pm, inspector approved via text. Installer left and left me without a generator to take us through the night as the inspector and SDG&E told me it was the law. Next morning SDG&E showed up, nobody here to ensure the re-connecting was safe and good, got re-connected to the grid and SDG&E crew stayed with me to ensure no electrical fire was developing. I had to flip all the breakers, several kitchens outlets not working now. They never r turn to fix their mess. I hired electrician to rewire my outlets at the panels so I could have electricity in the kitchen. Server to monitor the system was not provided but after I contacted Tesla to ask, they finally send it 1 month later vs the day the panels were installed. Refused to give me my log in and password information or what website or app to use despite the fact I received invoice saying it was paid in full ($50k project with loan closed/approved). Received message system is still not working, keep being told about a future appointment, no appointment. This company LA Solar and their installers are incompetent, a wreck and have no clue of what they are doing. Still not completed 09/17/2023. Horrible experience so far. Ara P.: It is against Yelp TOS to disclose personal information. Which job in San Diego did you installed (20) 450 Watts panels with mini inverters and panel upgrade, I can assure not that many. read more

This is a comprehensive review of my experience from initial contact to 3 weeks after receiving Permit to Operate from Edison. I do my homework, for any investment. I read reviews on yelp and watch youtube videos, I learn about the product first. These are the lessons I learned: 1) You want to use a site like energysage.com to get all the info you need, as well as get real quotes from competing local companies. Besides it allows them to email you instead of blowing up your phone. Doesnt mean you have to finish the process through energysage.com just helpful to get different prices. 2) If youre going to invest in solar, make sure you oversize your system by at least a 1kW, why? Panels degrade as well as usage goes up...if youre going to spend 20K, might as well spend 22K and be prepared. 3) Give LA Solar the chance to earn your business, if at all possible just work with Ara directly. They were the best price I could find and handled everything very well. As for my review of the entire process, I originally worked with a sales rep who was lacking in comm, sure he was responsive at first but LA solar almost lost my business when the sales rep just disappeared, if this happens to you I suggest giving them a 2nd chance. I did and do not regret it at ALL. I ended up posting a negative review on yelp, which seemed to get LA Solars attention, I received a call and email from Ara within the hour. They care about their reputation and I appreciate that. He apologized for the previous rep and handled my quote/contract from their on. I had no issues signing the contract, everything was very simple, clear and dont be afraid to ask questions or ask for changes before signing. La Solar was flexible with all my requests. I signed the contract on September 29th....my system was installed, main panel upgraded, city permits approved (FONTANA) and permit to operate from edison and turned on by Oct 30th. OMG! Insane work and speed. Now of course depending on your city and if you have HOA (i dont) im sure this can be longer for you, but still my case had to be no accident. These guys know what theyre doing. I am completely happy with my system, the work they did and of course the price/speed. Only thing left pending is to make sure I dont have any leaks when the first rains come, but I'm sure they wont let me down IF that happens. Room for improvement: This is me nitpicking but I still think LA Solar should learn to take recommendations from customers. Communication with customer can be improved, for example the installers showed up at my house out of no where, and I had to call LA solar to find out if they had sent them or if they had scheduled with me (maybe i missed the email). They apologized and said sorry, someone should have told you they were coming. Not the end of the world, but still, looks a little unorganized from the customer end. I had to ask ALOT of questions during each stage, trying to understand what was next, there wasnt necessarily a dedicated rep for my install, I would ask Ara and he would quickly answer all my questions but still, proactive is much more professional looking then reactive communication. Wrap up of project would have been better if there was a final phone call from them or hand over all documents and explain what everything is and what was done. Just my 2 cents, but I think this would put a bow on the overall project and finish it nicely. Again thank you for your excellent work, thank you for earning my business and thank you for helping me save money on my electricity bill!!! I was paying average with edison on the Level Payment Plan $220 monthly year round, my first Edison bill says.... -$40. NEGATIVE....I really dont understand why more people arent doing this! read more

FOR NEW CUSTOMERS: I worked for LASG as an employee between 2017-2021. Till this day, there are some communication things that can be improved but overall, they are the best engineering and solar/battery installation company I partner with as an independent contractor. They use innovative ways to solve problems quicker than most companies I have worked with (over 7 different companies in my 10 year career). Custom jobs and specific customer requirements are LASG's specialty but you need a good sales rep who knows what they are doing in order to achieve your goals. Ara and his employees really care about providing the best experience possible for homeowners. They make the necessary adjustments and take feedback seriously to eventually improve their process and it's starting to really show now. LASG has installed over 25,000 installations in California so the ~119 "1 star reviews" at the moment are only about .00476 of the total amount they have completed. THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE TRACK RECORD. Any solar company lasting longer than 7 years has historically become a successful company in the industry and LASG is in their 13th YEAR OF BUSINESS. Kudos to DeAnna in customer service, Albert in engineering, and Roxanne in management. They GET THINGS DONE. LASG's own manufactured solar panels out of Armenia and the Hoymiles option has created a lot of very happy customers for me over the last couple of years (surprisingly less failures than Enphase). The process was not easy a year ago during the NEM 2.0 deadlines before NEM 3.0 was implemented as timelines were stretched from 3 months to 6 months to 1 year, and maybe a little more at times. There were lots of no shows on installation day and it was a pain to create happy customers during that time. Now that the NEM stuff has blown over, LASG has been installing solar within two to three weeks from signing and batteries about 2-4 weeks after that. Ask about the NEW Smart Main Panel (SMP) because it really is a game changer. Ara had been working on dozens of patents on the SMP since before I worked there so it's awesome to see his idea finally come into fruition. Lots of other installers have gone out of business since the NEM deadline in April of 2023 (including 2 large companies I personally worked with). I am grateful LASG is still alive. Contact me directly on Linked IN if you want to work with LASG and me as your sales guy/ project manager. FRANKIE THE SOLAR CONCIERGE FOR PREVIOUS CUSTOMERS: The number one issue every solar company is trying to solve is communication after everything has been completed. This can be the difference between an awesome 5 star experience when everything was done to not knowing what to do when there is an inverter failure, panel failure, or communication device failure 5 years later. You have a great warranty and LASG WILL COVER IT if it's in the original agreement. The best way to contact LASG is through https://la-solargroup.com/ Click on "Resources" at the top and then click on "Support" and then to "Service Request". This inquiry will usually result with communication within 48 hours and will get the process started to take care of your issue. DO NOT CALL. Not even Muskk Ellon's company has a number to call anymore on their website because it's a terrible way of getting solutions if lots of people are trying to call at once. Use this online method and you'll see that LASG is still trying to provide good customer service (even if it sometimes takes a little longer). Most customers that are leaving 1 star reviews are just trying to get communication or service and they don't know how to get it so I understand. Work with them and they'll work with you. God bless read more

We had an LA Solar system installed at our California house (north end of San Bernardino) in March, 2016. Because our daughter was a fairly new Southern California Edison (SCE) customer with some very high Summer consumption historical billings, we asked to have our solar system "super-sized," knowing full well if SCE could find an excuse to shoot it down based on prior levels of consumption they would likely try to do so. Well, we must have caught the installation period at a great time with mostly high consumption months on her historical billings, as SCE actually approved a whopping 46 panel installation! As I understand it most residential installations are 16 to 18 solar panels, which gets some great results. But, I wanted "more" for our daughter, her husband, and our grandkids... The array we selected, with Optimizers, was a larger investment than many folks will likely experience. But, my intention was to ensure our daughter and her family had every opportunity to achieve a Net $0.00 billing over each 12 month "Relevant Period" for the annual SCE settling up of consumption vs the excess kWh being sent back into the grid. Plus, we wanted them to be able to enjoy 71-72 degree indoor thermostat settings in the Summer months. We knew it was an unusual request, but our LA Solar rep did as we asked, and the results speak for themselves. To date, April 18, 2019, the two Relevant Periods, and all interim monthly billings, have resulted in no amount being due for payments from our daughter to SCE. Not one penny. In fact, at the end of both Relevant Periods SCE ended up mailing us a refund check for the overall annual excess kWh energy we sent back into the grid! Both checks were used to pay into the SCE account just to make certain we maintain always maintain a credit balance even in heavy electrical consumption months in Summer. But wait, there's more! We referred LA Solar to two other friends. One was a residential installation in Woodland Hills, CA. They did not get as large an array as they could have, "only" 35 panels. But it was enough to help them attain a Near Net $0.00 billing over their annual Relevant Periods also - where they are essentially only paying the LADWP monthly customer base minimum fee assessed to their account. They are thrilled with that impact. The 2nd friend has a mixed commercial and residential installation for a compound that provides sanctuary for Wolves and Wolf Dogs in the Acton/Lancaster, CA, area (WWW.WolfConnection.org). We donated the needed funds for their system - that is how strongly we feel about the benefit of having a great solar system design and installation. The residential part of the installation is done, and the results are tremendously positive. The commercial installation required some various permits and building changes to meet certain codes. We are anticipating that commercial array will be completely installed by early Summer, 2019. Between the residential and commercial arrays we are expecting that they will be running at a Net $0.00 billing also, saving over $600.00 per month from their SCE billings! For an operation that depends on donations for its success that is a huge impact to realize. So, does it sound like we are happy campers? We are. And I LOVE monitoring the solar systems every few weeks to see their routine performance as compared to the utility billings, just to see how much power is now coming from the Sun. It never ceases to amaze me how we are getting this power from the Sun day after day, month after month, and year after year. And, thus far we have not had a single system interruption of component failure. Yeah, happy campers... read more

We investigated going solar in 2014, reaching out to four companies. We were planning on getting an electric car and wanted to use the a/c more this time of year. But we have a small roof and the panels that were available at the time couldn't supply a break-even, either for producing power or reducing our LADWP bill. By June of this year we'd had the electric car for eight months, so knew what our new power usage was, plus we had a feeling it was going to be a hot summer/fall. We decided to try again. We now have a system that cost 1/3 less and is producing 40% more power than the best proposal we received in 2014. Since we'd already been through it, I didn't feel like we needed to talk to every solar provider in LA, so I only contacted the two top rated companies on Yelp, LA Solar, and Solar Optimum, both with all 5 stars, on 6/1. LA Solar gave us a provisional proposal within three days. I say "provisional," because ours was not a textbook install--it required planning to come up with a layout that would make maximum use of the space available. This is an area in which LA Solar really shines. From our first conversation Antoinette and Ara were totally focused on getting it right. After learning that our monthly payment on an eight year contract would be about the same as what we pay LADWP with no down payment, financing was a no brainer. Antoinette handled everything, and we were approved on 6/20. Ara continued tweaking our proposal, and finally settled on 19 LG 365 panels. Their estimate was they would produce as much as 35kWh a day. Install was on July 7 and 8. Crew was great--friendly and professional, with Antoinette watching over the operation like a mother hen. City inspection took a little over a week. Two more weeks to receive DOS. System was turned on 8/2, eight weeks from my first call to LA Solar. In 23 days of operation, our system has averaged 40kWh per day, exceeding their best estimate by 5 kWh. PS And what about Solar Optimum? The person I spoke to on 6/1 had a computer problem receiving our LADWP bills to determine our usage. I tried emailing them again, then tried sending them to her via FTP. Nothing seemed to work. A week later, with LA Solar's proposal in hand, I tried emailing them to Solar Optimum again. There was no response. I still felt we needed a comp, so called her again. She said engineering had our usage info and would get us a proposal ASAP. That didn't arrive for another week, and was for more panels than would fit on our roof, with 1/3 less production than the LG's, and for $10 K more than LA Solar's proposal. That's the day I told Antoinette to proceed with our installation. I had no more communication with the Solar Optimum rep until last week. In other words, it took her over two months to follow up with me after they sent us their proposal. I told her we had a system and how disappointing it had been trying to deal with them. She thanked me politely for my feedback. I looked at their Yelp reviews again. While they are mostly all 5 stars, there are a few people who had the same experience we had. Since we didn't use their service, I won't write a review for them, but I did respond to one of their spam messages last week, telling them of our experience, and suggesting that they spend less on spam, both email and on FaceBook, and more on their customer support. There was no response. read more

Anaheim Public Utilities (APU) is one of the utility companies that still give good rebate ($1.25 AC-CSI watt currently) through its Solar Energy Incentives (http://www.anaheim.net/article.asp?id=1644) in addition to the federal tax incentive. However, APU only accepts rebate applications within certain windows of the year. During the application window 2 years ago, I contacted a few contractors to see if they could help me with the rebate application, but I did not reach the right ones because some of them were not aware of the Anaheim rebate and others asked for a large deposit before they would do anything, so I backed out of my plan going solar. This year, a home remodeler company knocked on my door and told me about solar and incentives, which brought my solar plan back. I was convinced that going solar is a good investment and it's also good for the environment. However, I ended up not continuing with that company after some online research, knowing that they provided me with some inaccurate information and their quote was way overpriced. It was already January 20th and I must look for a contractor soon to make it in time for the application window that ended at 5 pm, January 29th. One of the online resources I used was the official Go California Solar website (http://www.gosolarcalifornia.ca.gov) to get statistics and the list of contractors in the area. I googled the contractor names that were listed with a reasonable price to look up their official website and reviews. LA Solar Group was one them. That night, I submitted the request quote form to around 5 or 6 different companies that I believed may be the contractor that could help me in time for the Anaheim rebate. One detail I noticed from the LA Solar Group's website that stands out from the others was that they had an option for me to attach my electric bill, so I attached a summary of my electric usage for the past year. LA Solar Group was the only one that responded the next morning (the next quickest one responded weeks later) with 3 attachments that include detailed quotes for string and micro inverter along with the FAQ. The quote I got was quite reasonable, and along with their 5 star reviews, I had no hesitation going solar with them. From then on, my experience with LA Solar Group was very satisfied. They were very professional, honest and answered all my questions and concerns very fast, whether by phone or email, as other reviewers have stated. They also took care of all permits and paperwork, which I just e-signed all of them, except for the net metering agreement that I had to sign directly for APU. Now my 4.8 kW system is up and running since April 15th and I've been looking at it everyday (the Enphase Envoy has its own web server that we can view before the enlighten website updates). If you live in Anaheim and plan to go solar, it looks like their next rebate application window for this year, 2015, is coming soon, from 5/14 - 5/28. Also, I think you should take action soon because the rebate amount were once $4/W (http://www.solarsourcepower.com/anaheim.html) and now it's only $1.25/W. read more