Sales of plug-in solar devices are booming. The small PV systems with a feed-in of up to 800 watts, like many other renewable energy products, have been exempt from sales tax for private individuals since the beginning of 2023. Balcony power plants are inexpensive, easy to install and cause hardly any bureaucratic effort – making them ideal for reducing energy costs.
The supply is also continually increasing, which leads to falling prices. In addition to specialist retailers, balcony power plants are now also available in hardware stores and discounters. Depending on the performance and installation location, the costs will be paid off in two to three years – from then on you will save money every year. How long depends on the lifespan of the individual components. However, this cannot be predicted, so it makes sense to pay attention to the warranty conditions when purchasing. In addition to the statutory two-year warranty, specialist retailers often offer an extended warranty.
What is the difference between guarantee and warranty?
The terms guarantee and warranty are often mentioned in the same breath, but they differ significantly from one another. While a guarantee is a voluntary service provided by a manufacturer or dealer based on their conditions, warranty rights exist based on legal regulations. The warranty period for newly purchased goods is usually two years. For used goods, commercial providers can shorten the validity period to one year, provided they point this out separately. A short note in the general terms and conditions or a casual reference is not sufficient. Instead, the guarantee is a service voluntarily granted by the dealer or manufacturer. Under what conditions this applies depends on the provider. There are no uniform legal requirements for guarantees.
The following applies to guarantees and warranties: In order for them to be claimed, the manufacturer or dealer must exist – so you are generally better off with well-known brands than with small dealers.
How long do dealers give a guarantee?
We were very interested in this answer ourselves, but unfortunately the question cannot be answered in general terms. The background is the sometimes enormous differences between the providers and the different guarantee periods on the various individual components. Here are some concrete examples.
Some shops, such as EPP-Solar, do not offer their own warranty service; the general warranty conditions of the respective manufacturers apply – but finding out these for all components is not that easy given the large selection. Even at the Greensolar shop there is only a vague statement about the guarantee. The manufacturer’s warranty varies between 5 and 12 years depending on the product. There is also a performance guarantee of 25 years for solar panels with a maximum reduction in output of 0.7% per year. The dealer Mc Sonne is more specific and offers a performance guarantee on the panels of up to 30 years. The Deye inverters come with a 15-year manufacturer’s warranty, and those from Hoymiles come with a 12-year manufacturer’s warranty. The storage units for balcony power plants from Anker (test report) offered by Mc Sonne have a 15-year manufacturer’s guarantee. However, these only apply to the manufacturer’s memory! Other components from Anker sometimes have very different warranty periods. Anker offers a 12-year guarantee for the RS40 balcony power plant and even 15 years for the RS40P. The Mi660 and MI80 inverters also have a 12-year guarantee. The warranty of the adjustable solar panel brackets is valid for two years. Extension cables and the cable between the Schuko socket and the inverter only have a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty – however, the two-year warranty that is required by EU law applies here.
It becomes easier and more convenient at specialist retailers. Priwatt offers a flat 10-year guarantee on all of its solar packages – the only exception is the cable between the inverter and the socket. Individual components can even have a longer guarantee and so the solar panels have a 25-year performance guarantee.
Solakon and Yuma offer an even longer guarantee. There is a 12-year performance guarantee on the inverters and a whopping 30-year performance guarantee on the panels. Record-breaking? Not quite yet – the dealer Yuma will be getting solar panels with their own label in the next few months – these will even have a 40-year performance guarantee.
This clearly shows that the warranty periods differ significantly, but the quality of the components appears to be continuously increasing. Two years ago, manufacturers still offered a ten to fifteen year performance guarantee on panels. Nowadays you shouldn’t settle for anything less than 20 years old.
What happens in the event of a warranty claim?
If individual components fail due to a defect within the warranty period, they are usually replaced with a similar product. This must be equivalent, but not necessarily new or identical. Equivalent or revised products also often have to be accepted when using the guarantee.
While smaller shops, discounters and hardware stores quickly refer warranty claims to the dealer, specialist retailers like Yuma take care of almost the entire process themselves. An exception at Yuma are the storage systems from Zendure (test report) and Ecoflow (test report) – in the event of a warranty claim, you must contact them Manufacturers are included. However, the dealer replaces defective solar panels or inverters directly, so the customer does not have to go through the manufacturer.
Are systems with a long guarantee more expensive?
No – ultimately the guarantee only makes up a small part of the sales price. If you compare the costs for complete sets, specialist retailers are slightly more expensive overall, but they offer everything from a single source, including the warranty. The experience report from a customer of a discounter balcony power plant on heise.de shows how valuable a competent contact person can be in the event of a warranty claim. In view of the up to 10-year longer guarantee and the electricity costs saved during this time, it is definitely worth making sure that the guarantee period is as long as possible.
Prices
Here are some popular balcony power plants from the price comparison.
Conclusion
If you want to save yourself trouble and work in the event of a warranty claim, it is better to buy directly from a specialist retailer. In addition to significantly better service overall and competent advice (advice service for balcony power plants), they also often take over the manufacturer’s warranty. Here the retailer then takes over exchanges and returns. When buying from hardware stores and discounters, long performance guarantees often apply, but these must then be claimed from the manufacturer, which can be difficult in individual cases. Our Solar Package I guide shows more about the innovations in the recently approved solar package: Balcony power plants with 800 watts are finally becoming legal.