My brother in law has had his panels for seven years now out in Arizona and his first inverter went out around year four. The replacement itself was covered but he still had to pay for the labor, which ran him about $600 out of pocket, so that "covered" part can be a bit of a gray area depending on the warranty terms. He also ran into a real problem most people don't bring up, which is that his home insurance company gave him a hard time when he needed a new roof last spring because they wanted the panels taken off and put back on and nobody wanted to pay for that part. The savings on his monthly bill are real, that part I won't argue with, but the fine print on what's covered and who pays for removal during roof work is where the math can get ugly. Dave's deal sounds solid and I'm glad it worked out for him, but one good repair story doesn't mean every company handles it that way. I'd want to see the actual contract language on labor and roof access before I'd call the whole thing a slam dunk.

Ever try a wood float before the steel? Changes everything.