<div id="ec293287-1297-46f3-b9e8-74d5a28a91a2" edition="us" like="~All in-house installers and employees~Strong customer service reputation" dislike="~Shorter than average warranties~No lease or PPA options~Not the cheapest option" editorschoice="false" editorsday="30" editorsmonth="06" editorsyear="2023" editorsdate="2023-06-30T19:31:46.480Z" innovationaward="false" innovationday="30" innovationmonth="06" innovationyear="2023" innovationdate="2023-06-30T19:31:46.480Z" offer="{"id":"c70ccd84-3832-403a-9b19-e451745894a0","slug":"renu","label":"Renu","edition":["US","ES"],"imageId":"","imgWidth":null,"imgHeight":null,"objectType":"content_product","typeLabel":"Tech Product","imgUrl":null,"icon":"type-icon ct-cmg-tech-product ct-small"}" techobjectinfo="{"uuid":"c70ccd84-3832-403a-9b19-e451745894a0","name":"Renu","slug":"renu","productType":"PRODUCT","updateType":"PRISM","mod":1698262306480,"displayDate":"Wed Oct 25 2023 12:31:46 GMT-0700 (Pacific Daylight Time)"}" usepricing="true" data-key="reviewcard__ec293287-1297-46f3-b9e8-74d5a28a91a2" position="NaN" subratings="true" embeddedimages="[{"id":"c09bed66-a920-4468-b84e-db3f93e70df0","filename":"renu-resi-1.png","dateCreated":{"date":"2023-07-26"},"alt":"A white, two story house with solar panels installed on the roof.","credits":"Renu Energy Solutions","caption":"
Renu warranties its installation work for 10 years and will cover any leaks from the installation for 5 years.
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Renu offers quality solar panels, batteries and inverters.
Increasingly, a solar energy system is becoming a key component of many homes. Just as broadband has become a must-have for any residence, big incentives, potential savings and an intensifying climate crisis are extending solar panels’ reach to more and more homes.
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Renu works with many major manufacturers in the solar industry, including Tesla, REC, Enphase, SolarEdge and Solaria.
Cruz said the company’s process starts with going over what equipment is available to find the best suite of products for a customer’s needs.
“We tell our customers we can get anything you want, but let’s talk about the product, the specs to see what’s the right solution for you, because they may not know,” she said.
She said customers often may change their minds after being briefed on all the details.
Renu is certified to install Tesla’s trademark solar tile roof in the Carolinas.
What warranties does Renu offer?
Renu relies on manufacturers’ warranties for equipment, which is usually 25 years for solar panels and inverters or microinverters. Battery warranties are typically around 10 years but can vary in details.
The company’s warranty for its workmanship runs for 10 years, but roof penetrations are guaranteed to be watertight for only five years. This is less than many other installers we’ve reviewed. The Carolinas have seen some rather epic hurricanes and other storms in recent years that have brought record rainfall to the region.
Does Renu offer monitoring services?
Renu doesn’t offer its own app or monitoring services. Instead, it advises customers use popular manufacturer apps like those from Tesla and Enphase.
Cruz said the company checks in about six months after installation to make sure a customer’s system is functioning properly.
Does Renu use subcontractors?
According to Cruz, Renu operates with all in-house employees and no subcontractors, except on some large complex commercial projects.
Renu offers quality solar panels, batteries and inverters.
Renu Energy Solutions
Is Renu the best choice?
While we’ve done our best to give you the necessary details on Renu, it’s still imperative for consumers to gather multiple quotes from installers in your area to compare. And remember, CNET has not performed any hands-on testing with any equipment mentioned in this post or tested Renu’s order and installation process directly. As always, do your own research and due diligence before signing a contract or putting any money down.
Our research and scoring formula puts Renu strongly in the middle of the pack of solar companies we reviewed. This is largely due to workmanship and roof penetration warranties that are shorter than we would like to see. Otherwise, there’s a lot to like, including the company’s strong reputation, use of in-house labor and close relationships with a number of equipment manufacturers.
Renu pros and cons
Pros
All in-house installers and employees; doesn’t use subcontractors
Solid reputation online
Cons
Shorter than average warranties
No lease or PPA options
Not the cheapest option
How we evaluate solar companies
Reviewing solar companies in a hands-on way is difficult. Accounting for all the differences from project to project is impossible. To provide a helpful review, we focused on what we can measure and meaningfully compare among companies.
We focus on three buckets of criteria: equipment, warranties and service.
Within the equipment category, companies receive scores for the panels, inverters and batteries they install. Warranties include the guarantees on the panels, workmanship and weatherization against leaks. Companies earn points for service if they offer a price match, a meaningful level of price transparency and a well-rated app for monitoring solar production. They lose points if there are major issues pertaining to customer service (lawsuits, investigations or clear reputations for shoddy service). These issues will always be detailed in the review.
We don’t consider the average price of a company’s installations in their score. This information is difficult to find and hard to compare across service areas (and even roof to roof). Companies are often slow to disclose it too. We also leave out easily found but not useful information like how many states a company operates in.
