Full Disclosure

[Tulex]

Will here is my only issue with you and your forum. You have the podium and the megaphone. You cannot deny that SS has a history of not supporting its products. Despite that knowledge, your silence on this issue speaks volumes. Is it every man for himself after the sale?? You post review after review showcasing SS products knowing that many will buy these products because of your recommendation and are going to be left swinging in the wind. These people deserve better. As long as you tolerate it nothing at SS will change.

In all fairness, it's not Will's job to get things to change for SS. But, for all we know, Will's hope, with a bit of knowledge we don't have, is that SS is hoping to build customer support with it's growth that comes from increased sales. He did in fact acknowledge the perception of customer service issues with SS, did point out that they aren't the only ones selling the unit, and said he believes that customer support issues won't be an issue with this unit. Did he look like a kid in a candy store? Yep. Maybe rightly so.

 

[Will Prowse]

And thank you to everyone who is supporting me here, I loved all the messages. I try my best to give you guys every single bit of information possible. Everyone thinks that these companies like me, and most hate me! Or they like me at first until one of their products fails on my videos. But that's why I show everything on videos so you can see for yourself. If I do not have proof I will not make an assertion.

If I did make a claim that was false, at any time in the last few years of this channel, I would have been sued into oblivion. Please understand this. Every single word I say has to be correct. And how many times do I have to complain about the customer service? They're making massive changes with a new system so that this does not keep happening. Let's see what happens. Do I think that it will improve? I have no clue. I do not try to draw conclusions unless I have more evidence.

 

[JJJJ]

he looked like a kid in a candy store

Should have seen my face when I fired up my inverter for the first time. I’m sure everyone has felt that way during their own build. That is why we are on this journey.

Reason I appreciate this forum. So much to learn. So much support.

 

[SamDeleted]

Oh man if you saw the forum donations and how much I pay out of pocket,

And as far as the financial go , Jesus promised , what you give to God , he will give it back to you 100 times

This forum genuinely helps people, I'm sure it won't go unnoticed

 

[Crowz]

I personally appreciate the entire site and members here from my brief time posting on here.

Why? Its pretty simply actually. I started using solar back in the days when it was a ROYAL pain to get ANYTHING working. Very little information was on the net about the stuff. No builds to read about except the ones where someone paid someone to do it all for them and how much they liked or disliked what they bought but no information on why such and such was chosen or how it worked.

Someone like me that wasn't willing to buy it as a "complete" system and wanted to build/learn as I went was pretty much on their own.

But it was the journey that made it just as rewarding as when I finally finished it.

Having a place to chat with others with the same interest without bad attitudes is why I'm here. I really appreciate the site

 

[Will Prowse]

I’ve watched many and I still am unclear of if you’re being paid for reviews or not. What I really want to know is how do you justify the actions or lack thereof of Signature Solar toward your very own members of this forum but still recommend their products? I mean it’s your forum you see much more than I do. You see story after story day after day of SS dropping the ball on support after the sale. They say “they just fell through the cracks” like it is some rare occurrence but it’s not a rare occurrence. Aren’t you concerned about how these people, the ones that made you “famous” are being treated by a company you “may” represent but at least review their products? It’s it worth a mention In you videos that many of your members report problem with support after the sale? Isn’t that as important as specs and performance? Shouldn’t that also be a consideration before purchase?

From my side of the fence it appears you do a glowing review and then do your best to make sure any criticism ends up on the back page in fine print.

Tell it all and let the cards fall where they may. Perhaps a little conversation about service after the sale might make the difference and SS would do a better job.

Lately if it's a crappy product I don't like, I will charge 12-20K per video. I've never charged signature solar this or current connected or any distributor really. I mainly charge large Chinese mail forwarding companies trying to push absolute garbage on my channel. So I make a video showing people why they should not buy it. Very rarely are these products ever good, but when they do, they usually sell out. Case in point was weize batteries. but guess what! Their new ones suck. In my opinion after opening it up. Did pass the capacity test but who cares. Changed the cells and internals.

Also I don't sign any contracts and I have zero agreements with them.

Many 12V battery companies will send me a few grand just to respond to their email or even look at their battery. They are Chinese companies that have massive marketing budgets. it really bites them in the butt when I find a million things wrong with the device. and I show to everyone how bad the product is.

If people actually did their job, I wouldn't have a job. The reason I can make so much content in this space is because there's scams everywhere. There are numerous Chinese companies that shut down after running for 6 months or so. And then they come back with a brand new name a month later. I try to charge these companies as much as I possibly can and I also tell them the reason why.

Also when people start to order a lot of stuff from one company, like signature Solar, I am doing everything I can to find a new competitor to beat them. Or I try to convince the other distributors to beat them. I do this all day long. I want more competition. At the end of the day these steps help the consumer and me. It helps everybody.

What in my strategy is not good to you? I am pushing these products forward with these videos. A lot of new software changes and hardware changes are because of my videos. I don't even know where to start because it happens so often.

 

[Will Prowse]

I personally appreciate the entire site and members here from my brief time posting on here.

Why? Its pretty simply actually. I started using solar back in the days when it was a ROYAL pain to get ANYTHING working. Very little information was on the net about the stuff. No builds to read about except the ones where someone paid someone to do it all for them and how much they liked or disliked what they bought but no information on why such and such was chosen or how it worked.

Someone like me that wasn't willing to buy it as a "complete" system and wanted to build/learn as I went was pretty much on their own.

But it was the journey that made it just as rewarding as when I finally finished it.

Having a place to chat with others with the same interest without bad attitudes is why I'm here. I really appreciate the site

Awesome

 

[Crowz]

Man just do a forum search for SS support problems. It’s WAY more than a couple

Probably but does it matter?

As you mentioned a search will show the problems. The fact that you CAN search those problems is the point I'm making. If Will was in their pocket or siding with them you can bet those complaints wouldn't be there for you to find.

It's not his responsibility to police their business. It's his CHOSEN responsibility to provide accurate reviews on their products when he reviews them on his youtube channel. That's all he claims to do and your only responsibly for what you say your doing in this situation.

Keep in mind the YOUTUBE channel is the core and this forum is just a free offshoot of that.

Something we benefit from so giving him grief about what a business that he doesn't directly work for just doesn't make much sense to me.

Also I'm not trying to attack you on this or anything just pointing out my viewpoint and you have every right to your opinion on all of this stuff too.

 

[Will Prowse]

I want people to disagree with me here. The whole point of this forum was to prove me wrong or to show your own evidence of problems I missed.

There were a lot of people that like the 8K unit that I disliked. And I hope they post here on the forum and show me their system and how well it's working for them.

So far the 18K is incredibly good. Especially compared to the software issues I've been having recently. I think anybody using these devices would agree with me. But as I say in every single video, we never know until a lot of people have them for a long time. There is inherent risk in buying new products. And that's why we have the forum.

 

[Will Prowse]

Also, if anybody thinks I'm running the forum in a bad manner, ask the other mods what they think. They see how I've handled reports over multiple years now. Up north and personal even had access to my credit card information and the password for the server hosting website and everything. I had to trust him very early on with making changes to have this site function properly. His help and the other mods help have built this website into what it is today. I changed the password periodically but I have told these people everything. This forum is wide open for people to complain about anyone. And the data is not being sold to anybody either. We do not have any back end people connected to signature Solar or anyone else. We are all individuals who have lived off-grid or who have built electrical systems for our whole life.

 

[timselectric]

I want people to disagree with me here.

No you don't.

That was me disagreeing. lol

 

[DIYrich]

People are not into raw cell systems anymore unfortunately.

Going off topic (hope you don't delete it or close the thread) ...
I had to buy rack initially because of all the permitting and interconnection. Now that I have an installed system, I can soup it up DIY.
I can add storage for 1/2 the cost of the rack. I don't get closed loop, UL listing, and pretty case, but I can live with that.

 

[629658]

So i challenge all of you do a search SS problems. Page after page. Yes I guess I could just get inline like the rest but SS target buyer is the poor guy that can barely put food on the table that wants to get into Solar to save some money. So he has scraped up his last nickel to buy a cheap system. SS takes his money and then they are done. Poor sap ends up screwed. This forum is filled with stories just like this. I’ve been blessed and do not have to worry about that but I feel a duty to do what I can with the tools I have available. I’m not pushing any brands just business practices and SS is preying on those people. IMO those of you that think this is acceptable shame on you.

 

[Gavin Stone]

So i challenge all of you do a search SS problems. Page after page. Yes I guess I could just get inline like the rest but SS target buyer is the poor guy that can barely put food on the table that wants to get into Solar to save some money. So he has scraped up his last nickel to buy a cheap system. SS takes his money and then they are done. Poor sap ends up screwed. This forum is filled with stories just like this. I’ve been blessed and do not have to worry about that but I feel a duty to do what I can with the tools I have available. I’m not pushing any brands just business practices and SS is preying on those people. IMO those of you that think this is acceptable shame on you.

Those with morals hate SS and those without promote them. Got it…

 

[ChillnGrill]

Here we go again

 

[JJJJ]

Lots of new threads….

 

[SolarShimmy]

So i challenge all of you do a search SS problems. Page after page. Yes I guess I could just get inline like the rest but SS target buyer is the poor guy that can barely put food on the table that wants to get into Solar to save some money. So he has scraped up his last nickel to buy a cheap system. SS takes his money and then they are done. Poor sap ends up screwed. This forum is filled with stories just like this. I’ve been blessed and do not have to worry about that but I feel a duty to do what I can with the tools I have available. I’m not pushing any brands just business practices and SS is preying on those people. IMO those of you that think this is acceptable shame on you.

Why don't you take your beef up with SS directly? There are a lot of satisfied customers on this forum and any company that goes through huge growth will have growing pains. You're probably just a paid shill writer for a competitor anyway. Who are you to judge and attempt to shame people on this forum...

 

[EastTexCowboy]

I haven't ran a forum in something like 20 years. I got away from that because it was too time consuming, too expensive, and wasn't appreciated. The technology has improved a lot since then but the reasons I stopped doing it haven't. It's a pain. In fact, probably more time consuming now with all the threat management. That said, it can be rewarding as well. I missed that part but not enough to keep doing it.

I'm just glad Will is willing to spend the time, money, and aggravation to provide this platform. I can't imagine there are many even occasional visitors here who can say they haven't benefitted from it.

 

[42OhmsPA]

Wow this thread....

@Will Prowse keep doing what are you doing, you are one of the few people I'd trust in real life. Your videos and demeanor on the forum show a lot about your character, not many people like yourself left in the world it seems. There are a lot on this forum from what I've seen in my short time here.

Also a huge thank you to all the mods.

My takeaway, signature solar is growing at an exponential rate and it's great to see a US business doing this. It's also great to see current connected continuing to grow and be active on the forum.
Does signature solar receive lots of complaints? Yes. Are people more likely to complain than praise? Yes. Do I agree with everything ss has to say in there replies? No. Do I appreciate ss owning there mistakes and admitting they have shortcomings and room for improvement? Yes. Am I back and forth on purchasing from SS? Yes. Do I believe a large majority of issues posted here are user induced? Yes. Do I believe it's a crapshoot dealing with reselling in large volumes because OEMs are always trying to save a penny? Yes. Am I done with QandA? Yes.

Thank you SS and CC for continuing to come back. Keep doing what you do.

My day job is manufacturing in an upper management role. I see relatable issues every day... Always trying to cut costs and increase profits on both ends, that's part of business. This is only possible when the proper systems and procedures are in place to ensure the end user receives a quality product that meets specifications.
Finding reliable help that gives a damn and has a clue is nearly impossible these days; so many don't want to work and get a paycheck it's sickening.
I'm done, I need to go check my solar assistant for the 5th time in 4 hours...

 

[mvonw]

So, how much does it cost to run this forum? I’m curious.