Alternate Energy

Alan K.

I installed my PV system in May 2013 after shopping around and meeting with 5 different companies. I ended up going with AEI. Rene sat down and presented to their Mitsubishi system, but also discussed other options in a no pressure environment. I've been in sales myself for almost 20 years and can honestly say that his honest, soft sales technique is similar to my own. You really don't need to sell anything if you're honest and can truly stand behind your product as being the best, let the product and warranties sell itself!
I was impressed with the entire process; initial presentation, Rene's immediate follow up calls to my additional inquiries, having the installation installed soon enough to meet my timeline (within 3 weeks), the workmanship and cleanup, logon into the online monitoring. Further, the inspection and HECO meter change out all occurred within 4 weeks after installation. I know of a few other friends and family who are still waiting for their net metering change out after 10 months! Of course, they used a different company instead of AEI. I am mostly impressed by the amount of energy that my system is producing, way, way more than what was determined that it would produce, in fact over 30% more.
After learning about the different panels and inverters, i opted not for the Mitsubishi, but for a non-traditional package of (28) LG 255w panels with a central inverter utilizing Solar Edge 270 optimisers (1/panel). I figured this option was best since the optimisers would convert the maximum electricity that the panel would generate. My analysis was totally correct! Unlike most systems that market a quality panel that may produce 270w, the Enphase microinverters can't match that amount and usually only convert 215, thereby wasting over 20% of what the panels actually generate (i saw recently that they now go up to 250). Anyhow, during the presentation, it was determined i need a system that could produce 28kwh/day to reduce my HECO bill to $0 ($17/mon). However, the system i went i opted for is still kicking out an average of 40kwh.
So why only 4 stars? I believe my system was oversize, I could've used only 20 panels and produced enough electricity to reduce my HECO bill to $0, saving me approx. 30% of the installation cost. I believe the formula AEI used to determine the system size is flawed by basing it on a Mitsubishi panel system and Enphase microinverters.

Alan K
Kailua

Art W.

Researched solar energy options and spoke to various companies at BIA and home improvement events at Blaisdell over two years. Being a Kapolei Villages resident, I had questions on how panels were installed on Monier tile roofs. Alternate Energy's rep Radford Nakamura provided straightforward guidelines and reinforced my product research with Mitsubishi panels. All documents were completed and install schedule was as programmed. HECO net metering was completed one month after work completed. I just had to paint insulation to roof to meet covenant requirements.

Harriet D.

We met with Energy Consultant, Mark Ida from AEI for a consultation and we also consulted with another company prior to this meeting and felt pressured. Mark was very awesome and his knowledge of the whole concept was excellent not to mention no pressure and professional. They did everything regarding setting up the permit, getting the electrician and even coordinating with Hawaiian Electric Company.

It's so amazing; we installed our PV in March 2013 and so pleased to see our electric bills shrink. I have since referred many friends and one of my friends had their PV installed this month... Can't wait to see how the tax credit will work out.

Gayle H.

I met and talked with many solar panel companies, but was most impressed with Alternate Energy for their product, Mitsubishi 255w panels and price. Miles was very knowledgable and was able to answer any question I had. The communication with this company is spot on. I was sent e-mail reminders of when they would come to measure my roof and for the two installation days. They did all the paperwork (opening and closing of building permits, MIlilani Town Assn, HECO and CC of Honolulu approval) and sent us copies of everything. On top of that, workmanship is neat and they cleaned up after themselves when done (I've heard horror stories about some companies leaving a mess). I live in Mauka where it is always raining, so I figured I wouldn't see much savings until summer (our panels were put in at the end of Nov. 2012). But since getting the panels my electric bill has only been $17 each month! I'm loving this because my average bill was $300+ and this was WITHOUT our AC being on!
I put in 25 panels and it's been more than enough. I've been able to bank a lot via net metering.
FYI Another well known company gave me an estimate of needing 40 panels which would have been approximately $20,000 more in cost. According to them this is what I would need to be able to turn on our AC for a couple hours a day. So glad I did not go with them. The 25 Mitsubishi panels covers what we needed to run our central and split AC systems and still get a net metering credit!

Conor I.

Alternate Energy is the place to get your Photovoltaic setup. Mark Ida was our energy consultant. He was awesome! We have since referred multiple people his way and everyone of them have been really happy with his knowledge and being able to design a perfect system for them.

This company isnt one of those pop-up companies like some of the others you might have heard of that are just trying to cash in on the fad of solar. They have been in business for many many years doing solar water originally. I have no doubt they will be around in the future if we ever need to use our 25 year warranty.

Reasons we went with Alternate Energy

- Quality Japanese made Mitsubishi panels
(beware of other companies selling subpar quality panels)

- 25 year warrant parts and labor
(other companies only provide 10 year part, 5 year labor)

- Been doing Solar since 1993
(not here to just make a quick buck off the solar fad)

- Employees not sub-contractors do the install
(no finger pointing of faults)


Call them ask for Mark and tell them I sent ya!

Lenora I.

The presentation was thorough and the installation went well. Four months later I called Hawaiian Electric Co. and was told no request for a meter was made. I notified AE. Our application was found after five months and reminders. It took seven months to get our meter installed. There were months when our bill was more than $18.00.

billy s.

They had a nice presentation (about an hour)... very thorough. I was considering going w/ this firm but after the initial presentation, they did not return any of my calls, emails or texts. They never sent a formal fee proposal either. Thus the 2 star rating.

I've since decided to go w/ a different company.

Customer service is paramount, especially w/ PV... you want a company that is responsive to your needs. If they can't even return a phone call, then, how can you expect them to attend to your needs if you encounter a problem w/ your PV.

Nate M.

I have nothing but good things to say about this company. We were building a new house and wanted to have a PV contractor that would install their conduit within the walls before they were sealed up. Got estimates from 5 different contractors and Alternate Energy's bid was the most reasonable for the size of the system that we wanted. Craig did all the paperwork for the permits and we had everything submitted in time and it didn't hold up our construction. Once the construction was done, we had them come back in to install the panels and get the system up and running. Our system was installed in March and all of our bills so far have been $16.

George W.

Solar and/or Photovoltaic???

I spoke to Ari and he answered all my questions about the combination. I wanted to know if my family size (3) would justify going with the Solar/PV combo. The answer was no. As demand rises, supply increases, costs are lower. Demand for solar has diminished thereby increasing solar cost. Solar might be right for families of 3 adults or more. The more hot water you need the greater the savings. However, with lower solar demand, costs are going up making the break-even point, ROI, requirements higher. In my situation I had committed to a friend for the PV needs and wanted to explore how solar might offset my KWH and lower PV panel requirements.

Ari spoke clearly and candidly about my specific situation which lead me to go 100% PV. If I wasn't already committed, without hesitation, go with Alternate Energy.

Michael D.

Called them 10/2011 to setup an appointment to have my solar system serviced and to check what it would take to get a Photovoltaic system installed; talked to the Manager (Tanya); she said the sales manager would call (never got a call); she was also going to send a maintenance contract for me to sign (never did come). The reason i'm writing this now is because I forgot about till this day - solar just started leaking; Can you guess who I'm not calling.