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Does anyone know if they took last week off for Semana Pascua/Spring Break?  I sent an email last Sunday with my last 2 ridiculous CFE bills and didn't get a response.  Also, called throughout the week and didn't get an answer so yesterday, drove over to their place in West Ajijic and doors were closed.

Hoping they haven't closed up.  They've been wonderful to work with.  Anyone know?

Thanks,

Valerie  

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Yes, they had to close for Easter. They will re-open Monday. I don't think sending them CFE bills is the right thing to do... I would go to CFE. Once your system is installed and working, the rest is up to the owner, no?

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GREAT news, thanks!  In this case, no, they asked me to share the two bills with them.  When I received the first ridiculous bill, I called and asked them to come out and check our system to confirm it was working properly.  It was/is.  There was a little dust (not enough to cause any real issue) on the panels and they cleaned them.  They asked that when we received the next bill, to send it to them so they could see the results.  The second bill was even HIGHER than the first.  CRAZY!!!  So, that's what I have tried to do. 

Happy to hear they've enjoyed an Easter/Spring Break vacation and I'll chat with them this week.

Cheers!

Valerie  :)

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1 hour ago, thevalerieleigh said:

GREAT news, thanks!  In this case, no, they asked me to share the two bills with them.  When I received the first ridiculous bill, I called and asked them to come out and check our system to confirm it was working properly.  It was/is.  There was a little dust (not enough to cause any real issue) on the panels and they cleaned them.  They asked that when we received the next bill, to send it to them so they could see the results.  The second bill was even HIGHER than the first.  CRAZY!!!  So, that's what I have tried to do. 

Happy to hear they've enjoyed an Easter/Spring Break vacation and I'll chat with them this week.

Cheers!

Valerie  :)

Have you monitored your CFE meter to make sure that you are sending to CFE?

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With respect to CFE, there's not much they can do unless there is a definite meter reading error or electrical issue on their end.   In most cases, high bills are either a result of high(er) consumption or low production; and we review CFE bills for existing systems all the time, as comparing the net readings with the actual solar production is a good way to evaluate what has changed / happened.     Following a winter period of a lot of cold and not a lot of sun this year, a few bills headed toward or into the DAC rate, and should come out of it shortly again.     

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Tiny, no, I haven't monitored my CFE meter but intend to start doing so.  Since I don't understand what it's showing, I thought I'd make a habit of taking photos with my iPhone each Monday and share that with Opiere Solar to help identify the problem.  As 2 retired adults, our habits haven't changed so I don't believe consumption has increased.  We haven't purchased any new appliances so it seems reasonable to believe our usage would be similar each month.  Perhaps the production of solar is less but even though we had some cooler days/weeks, we had sun most of the time.  It's perplexing but I trust we'll get to the root of the problem.

As for dealing with CFE, trust me, I know that's like running head first into a brick wall.  Took us 3 years to get an additional transformer for our neighborhood.  Still having significant problems with low wattage and fluctuations between 103-127.  Profeco was completely impotent when working with us and their representatives.  It took us going there weekly, sometimes several times weekly for years to get the new transformer.  Now, if we can get them to increase the wire gauge to handle the new transformer and push more electricity through the lines, we may actually have made some progress, LOL.

Hope springs eternal,

Valerie  :)

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Opiere solar installed 12 panels at Have Hammer will travel A.C. carpentry school.

They know there stuff , 

my recommendations for a solar provider. Opiere solar
here's my experience of our research done FEB 2019.
 
It was extremely challenging to interview 11 solar providers.
 
Our Have Hammer board of directors and volunteers, 7 of us. Finally chose one, that met all our criteria and was competent to get the job done correctly.
 
Please pass this email to your solar selection team
 

Reasons why Opiere solar the best solar provider lakeside

We interviewed 11 solar providers for Have Hammer Carpentry solar installation Feb 2019 Opiere came out the best

1. Best price, (some quotes did any have IVA, or electrician cost in them they then appeared lower)

2. Best crew, all employees no subcontractors.  Means experienced installation first time around.  Some are  just a 1 person Businesses.

3. Best electrician lakeside. 8 Out of 11 did not have in house electrician. 2 told me to get my own electrician.

4. Use the best quality material for installation of rack, inverter, nuts and bolts and solar panels.

5. Had the best panels 370's watt panels in stock. Not 320’s, 340’s 360’s that  other vendors offered. Means less panels used. Less installation fees. Save money on installation per panel fees. By using 370's three less panels needed savings $200 US dollars per panels installation fees, savings $600 dollars in installation fees.

6. Had the best Inverter Sunny Boy 7.7 in stock  for up  to 24. solar panels.

7. Excellent reputation lakeside, they warranty there installation

8. Used anti theft Techniques when installing panels.

9. Much more. They provide service with more serve and less ice, professional,

no unusual solutions. Others providers did not understand at first what we needed. Had to teach them what we needed in order to prepare a quote I could understand.

10. Best of all. They giving us the 8 extra panels we need,

 

 With Affinity

 H Wayne Renz

 Have Hammer Will Travel A.C.

 Treasurer, Officer of Philanthropy and Major Gifts   

 (AKA Head Honcho for Gifts of Passion and Love for the Kids)

(También conocido como Jefe por los Regalos de Pasión y Amor por los Niños)

taxexpat@aol.com    Mexico 376-766-1860      USA Vonage 718-204-1851

Giving While Living

 

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49 minutes ago, thevalerieleigh said:

Tiny, no, I haven't monitored my CFE meter but intend to start doing so.  Since I don't understand what it's showing, I thought I'd make a habit of taking photos with my iPhone each Monday and share that with Opiere Solar to help identify the problem.

Since I don't know which CFE meter you had, I recommend taking a photo of the two numbers and post them here.  Then we can tell which number is what being used from CFE and what number is being sent to CFE.

Then I recommend either taking pics or recording the numbers twice a day for several days.  One time early in the morning and then when the sun starts to go down.

The period between morning and evening shows the extra that is being sent to CFE. The period between evening and morning shows what you are using from CFE.

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Can't you run reports of your solar generation data?  We are able to do this with our system (installed by Go Solar's company)?  We can monitor production live from each panel, from anywhere (currently we are in Europe).  And can do ad hoc reports very easily.  I thought all the newer systems have this computer access.....no??

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26 minutes ago, Bisbee Gal said:

Can't you run reports of your solar generation data?  We are able to do this with our system (installed by Go Solar's company)?  We can monitor production live from each panel, from anywhere (currently we are in Europe).  And can do ad hoc reports very easily.  I thought all the newer systems have this computer access.....no??

Yes But there is three pieces to this puzzle. 

1. What you mentioned. The generation from the solar plant.

2. The transmission to CFE thru the meter. That is what I was talking about. What is sent to CFE is the net amount after what is used in the house. That doesn't show with the on-line display of the solar plant.

3. The recording and billing at CFE.

Each step needs to be check.

Edited by Tiny
Add net amount.
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I would start with online report of solar generation for the same time period as the CFE bill and compare that to the usage on the CFE bill.  Taking a photo (or a series of them) only tells you what is going on now, not during the billing period. 

Maybe Newfhugger (from this thread https://www.chapala.com/webboard/index.php?/topic/83141-cfe-bills/) will report back on his visit to CFE.  

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22 hours ago, thevalerieleigh said:

When I received the first ridiculous bill, I called and asked them to come out and check our system to confirm it was working properly.  It was/is.  There was a little dust (not enough to cause any real issue) on the panels and they cleaned them.

 

1 hour ago, Bisbee Gal said:

I would start with online report of solar generation for the same time period as the CFE bill and compare that to the usage on the CFE bill.

Maybe it is something else than the solar plant.

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The piece of equipment that generates the online report of solar generation is optional. I consider it money well spent because I can easily see if the panels are working or not. It eliminates one of the variables to check immediately.

If you change to a different modem though, you will have to have a service call to have a tech tell the equipment where to send the info. There was no charge for this service when I bought a new Telmex modem. When I get iLox installed, I will have to do that again.

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13 hours ago, traderspoc said:

Opiere solar installed 12 panels at Have Hammer will travel A.C. carpentry school.

They know there stuff , 

my recommendations for a solar provider. Opiere solar
here's my experience of our research done FEB 2019.
 
It was extremely challenging to interview 11 solar providers.
 
Our Have Hammer board of directors and volunteers, 7 of us. Finally chose one, that met all our criteria and was competent to get the job done correctly.
 
Please pass this email to your solar selection team
 

Reasons why Opiere solar the best solar provider lakeside

We interviewed 11 solar providers for Have Hammer Carpentry solar installation Feb 2019 Opiere came out the best

1. Best price, (some quotes did any have IVA, or electrician cost in them they then appeared lower)

2. Best crew, all employees no subcontractors.  Means experienced installation first time around.  Some are  just a 1 person Businesses.

3. Best electrician lakeside. 8 Out of 11 did not have in house electrician. 2 told me to get my own electrician.

4. Use the best quality material for installation of rack, inverter, nuts and bolts and solar panels.

5. Had the best panels 370's watt panels in stock. Not 320’s, 340’s 360’s that  other vendors offered. Means less panels used. Less installation fees. Save money on installation per panel fees. By using 370's three less panels needed savings $200 US dollars per panels installation fees, savings $600 dollars in installation fees.

6. Had the best Inverter Sunny Boy 7.7 in stock  for up  to 24. solar panels.

7. Excellent reputation lakeside, they warranty there installation

8. Used anti theft Techniques when installing panels.

9. Much more. They provide service with more serve and less ice, professional,

no unusual solutions. Others providers did not understand at first what we needed. Had to teach them what we needed in order to prepare a quote I could understand.

10. Best of all. They giving us the 8 extra panels we need,

 

 With Affinity

 H Wayne Renz

 Have Hammer Will Travel A.C.

 Treasurer, Officer of Philanthropy and Major Gifts   

 (AKA Head Honcho for Gifts of Passion and Love for the Kids)

(También conocido como Jefe por los Regalos de Pasión y Amor por los Niños)

taxexpat@aol.com    Mexico 376-766-1860      USA Vonage 718-204-1851

Giving While Living

 

Do they have a web site or app where you can monitor the output of your solar plant?

Did they show you how to read the CFE meter?

These are a couple of things you can keep an eye on during the month instead of waiting for the bill.

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11 hours ago, Ferret said:

The piece of equipment that generates the online report of solar generation is optional. I consider it money well spent because I can easily see if the panels are working or not. It eliminates one of the variables to check immediately.

If you change to a different modem though, you will have to have a service call to have a tech tell the equipment where to send the info. There was no charge for this service when I bought a new Telmex modem. When I get iLox installed, I will have to do that again.

We did not have to make a service call or change any settings when we switched to Ilox.  We go to the same webpage, same login, same password; we can access our data (and produce reports) from anywhere in the world.  There was no addl charge for getting access to this info online. They also have a free phone app. Our system is with SDI, the company Go Solar is associated with.  

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On 4/27/2019 at 2:48 PM, thevalerieleigh said:

GREAT news, thanks!  In this case, no, they asked me to share the two bills with them.  When I received the first ridiculous bill, I called and asked them to come out and check our system to confirm it was working properly.  It was/is.  There was a little dust (not enough to cause any real issue) on the panels and they cleaned them.  They asked that when we received the next bill, to send it to them so they could see the results.  The second bill was even HIGHER than the first.  CRAZY!!!  So, that's what I have tried to do. 

Happy to hear they've enjoyed an Easter/Spring Break vacation and I'll chat with them this week.

Cheers!

Valerie  :)

Thanks for clarifying. I see now what you were getting at in terms of sending them copies of your bills, so they can figure out how best to help. My initial reaction was based on a number of other clients I know who immediately call Opiere when the power goes out in the neighbourhood, and just can't understand the connection between their installation and CFE.

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20 hours ago, Ferret said:

When I get iLox installed, I will have to do that again.

 

8 hours ago, Bisbee Gal said:

We did not have to make a service call or change any settings when we switched to iLox.

I believe what Ferret is talking about is changing the network name and password on the solar control panel so it can access the home network. Normally the installers would do that initially. But if you change the Internet provider after the solar system is installed, someone will need to change it. Just like any other computer devices.

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8 minutes ago, Tiny said:

 

I believe what Ferret is talking about is changing the network name and password on the solar control panel so it can access the home network. Normally the installers would do that initially. But if you change the Internet provider after the solar system is installed, someone will need to change it. Just like any other computer devices.

SDI's box (my solar company) that generates the data is plugged directly into our modem with an ethernet cable.  I am currently in Portugal.  I just checked my current Ajijic solar production by going to the website provided by my solar installer (SDI) and voila! there's my solar data.   It does not matter who my Internet provider is or where I am.  Same as if I want to sign into Yahoo mail from anywhere. 

 

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The APS (AP systems) micro-inverters supplied and installed by STI Solar Technology deliver per-panel data in real time, and full history, via either PLC (power line communication) or ZigBee wireless, to the ECU, which does connect to the internet modem.     The user can access the full info via computer, or iPhone / Android app.    This secure portal also allows for remote diagnostics and adjustment if needed by our engineers and techs.     

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12 minutes ago, Go Solar said:

The APS (AP systems) micro-inverters supplied and installed by STI Solar Technology deliver per-panel data in real time, and full history, via either PLC (power line communication) or ZigBee wireless, to the ECU, which does connect to the internet modem.     The user can access the full info via computer, or iPhone / Android app.    This secure portal also allows for remote diagnostics and adjustment if needed by our engineers and techs.     

And it works like a champ!

 

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Sounds like a very good system to have. The PER PANEL would be an excellent diagnostic tool! I can get daily generation, per hour generation and monthly generation or a specific date to a specific date generation. If the electricity goes out, it keeps it in memory until it can send. But having to have a direct connection via an ethernet cable would be a deal breaker for me.

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9 minutes ago, Ferret said:

Sounds like a very good system to have. The PER PANEL would be an excellent diagnostic tool! I can get daily generation, per hour generation and monthly generation or a specific date to a specific date generation. If the electricity goes out, it keeps it in memory until it can send. But having to have a direct connection via an ethernet cable would be a deal breaker for me.

Why?

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2 hours ago, Bisbee Gal said:

SDI's box (my solar company) that generates the data is plugged directly into our modem with an ethernet cable. 

For some reason I made the assumption from the start we were talking about a WI-Fi connection. I just could not understand why you would not have to change the network infomation.  Now I understand.

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