North Hollywood, CA · November 2019 – April 2023 · LADWP / LADBS

Two modules went patchy under the glass. Then the claim began.

A 14.8 kilowatt array switched on in January 2020. Three years later two modules had large discoloured patches spreading under intact glass — and the warranty process turned out to be mostly photography.

A module warranty claim is not a phone call. The manufacturer's quality team decides it from evidence, and the evidence is photographic: the failure itself in high resolution, the serial number of each affected module, and a claim form that separates physical damage from low output because they are judged differently.

At a glance

System

14.8 kW

Modules

Panasonic VBHN330SA17

Installed

2019

Switched on

January 2020

Failure reported

April 2023

Modules affected

Two — large discoloured patches, glass intact

Claim decided by

Manufacturer's quality team

Utility / AHJ

LADWP / LADBS

The story

The installation was unremarkable and quick. The interconnection request went in at the start of November 2019; five progress notices arrived together on the nineteenth; the meter spot sheet followed three days later; the installation was released on the tenth of January 2020 and permission to operate came four days after that. Fourteen point eight kilowatts of Panasonic VBHN330SA17 modules on a flat roof.

Three years later the owner called. Two modules had developed large discoloured patches under the glass — brown and grey mottling across a good part of the cell area, visible from the far side of the roof. The glass on both was intact.

What that does to output is a separate question from what it looks like, and the two are worth keeping apart. A module with that much of its area affected will produce less than its neighbours. How much less is a measurement — per-module data, or a clamp on the string — not something anybody reads off a photograph.

Here is what surprised us the first time we did this, and what is worth knowing before you need it. The manufacturer does not send someone to look. The claim is decided by a quality team from photographs, and the photographs have to be good enough for them to analyse what actually happened.

The claim form itself is split. One set of pages is for physical damage — a module with broken glass. A different set is for low output. They are separate because they are judged by different criteria: a module that has stopped producing because the glass failed is a different argument from one that is simply producing less than it should after a decade.

What the quality team asks for is resolution. They want to see the pattern itself — its shape, where it begins, how it spreads — because that is what separates a manufacturing fault from something done to the module after it left the factory, and that distinction decides whether the warranty covers it. Which of the two categories a discoloured module belongs in is itself a judgement, and it is worth settling before the form is filed rather than after.

So most of the work on a claim like this is on the roof with a camera. Every affected module photographed from several angles at full resolution, plus the serial number label on the back of each one, because the claim is against specific modules rather than against a system. The set goes to the manufacturer's file share because it is far too large to email.

Then you wait. The quality team's judgement takes one to two weeks as a rule, and there is nothing to do in the meantime except keep the owner informed that nothing has gone quiet — the file is simply with the people who decide.

Two practical things to take away. First, keep the paperwork from your installation — the module model and the install date are the first two things a claim needs, and hunting for them years later wastes days. Second, when a module fails, photograph it properly before anybody touches it. A module that has been moved, cleaned or replaced before it was documented is a much weaker claim.

How it ran

Three years and three months between switch-on and the first failure.

What we did

• Attended the service call and established which modules the owner was reporting.
• Photographed each failed module at full resolution, from several angles, before anything was moved.
• Recorded the serial number of every affected module.
• Opened the claim with the manufacturer and completed the claim form.
• Uploaded the photographic set to the manufacturer's file share and tracked the claim.

System specifications

Is your project like this one?

• A panel on your roof has stopped producing and you do not know what to do.
• Your system is out of the installer's workmanship period but inside the equipment warranty.
• You have been told to file a warranty claim and want to know what that means.
• Your installer has gone and you need somebody to handle the manufacturer.
• You want to know what records to keep from your installation.

Cali Energy in North Hollywood

Frequently asked questions

How does a solar panel warranty claim work?

The manufacturer's quality team decides it from evidence rather than a site visit. That means a claim form, high-resolution photographs of the failure, and the serial number of each affected module. Judgement typically takes one to two weeks after the set is submitted.

Why does the manufacturer want such detailed photographs?

Because the pattern of the failure is the evidence. Its shape and how it spreads is what separates a manufacturing fault from damage done to the module afterwards, and that distinction decides whether the warranty covers it. Photograph it before anything is moved or cleaned.

A patch on my panel — does that mean it produces nothing?

Not by itself. Discolouration under the glass will cost you output, but how much is a measurement rather than something you can judge by eye. Per-module monitoring or a clamp reading on the string will tell you; a photograph will not.

Is a broken panel the same claim as one that produces too little?

No. The claim form has separate pages for physical damage and for low output, because they are judged against different criteria.

What records should I keep from my installation?

At minimum the module make and model and the date the system was switched on. Those are the first things a claim asks for, and finding them years afterwards is the part that wastes time.

Can you handle a warranty claim on a system you did not install?

Yes. What the manufacturer needs is evidence about the modules, not about who fitted them. Cali Energy holds B, C-10 and C-39 classifications under CSLB #1032379.

How long do solar panels last before something fails?

There is no single answer, and this is one project rather than a rule: this array ran three years and three months before two modules out of a fourteen point eight kilowatt system failed. The rest of the array was unaffected.

What this would look like on your roof

Related

• Three appointments. Nobody came to the door North Hollywood, CA · 6.24 kW DC · all inspections by video Solar
• Two years of nothing to do. Then the inverter went quiet Northridge, CA · SolarEdge HD-Wave · warranty case Solar
• The install took three months. The next year is the interesting part Northridge, CA · 5.4 kW AC-CEC · service and warranty Solar
• He read the warranty. Then he asked about the labor Sylmar, CA · 3.77 kW AC-CEC · REC Alpha Pure Solar

This timeline reflects this property and this permitting path. Updated September 2026.