Sylmar, CA · 2017 – 2024 · LADWP / LADBS

Six years later, we came back.

Fifteen modules on a Sylmar roof, installed under the utility's incentive program in 2017. In 2024 the inverter failed, and the same company that put it up took it down.

An incentive-era system is not finished when the rebate is paid. The equipment warranty runs for years afterwards, and using it means someone has to open the case with the manufacturer, receive the replacement and do the work.

At a glance

DC System

4.43 kW

Modules

15 × SolarWorld 295 W

Inverter

SolarEdge SE3800H-US

Orientation

137°, 21° tilt

Service

Underground

Incentive

LADWP Solar Incentive Program

Meter set

January 2018

Utility / AHJ

LADWP / LADBS

The story

Fifteen SolarWorld 295-watt modules and a single SolarEdge SE3800H inverter, mounted at a 137-degree azimuth and 21 degrees of tilt with a three-to-six-inch standoff. The service on this property is underground, which is a detail the utility asks about early and which changes what photographs it wants before it will set a meter.

The project ran under the utility's Solar Incentive Program, which in those years paid a rebate against the installed system. That program has its own sequence: a reservation is confirmed before the work counts, and a claim is filed afterwards against the system as actually built. The reservation came through in December 2017.

In January the utility's field inspection produced a correction list. That is a normal outcome rather than a failure — the utility looks at the finished installation against its own standards, not the building department's. The corrections were made, the installation was approved a week later, and the solar meter went in on the twenty-second of January 2018.

The incentive claim followed: the system details on the claim form had to match what was actually installed, module for module and inverter for inverter, and the payment was approved in early February.

Then nothing, for six years, which is what a working system looks like.

In January 2024 the inverter failed. A case was opened with the manufacturer, a replacement was authorized and shipped within three days, and the new unit went on the wall eleven days after the case was opened and eight days after it shipped.

Replacing an inverter is not only bolting a box to a wall. The communications side has to come back with it — the module paired, associated to the gateway, talking to it, and monitoring data flowing again. Until that last line reads as it should, the owner has a system that produces power and tells nobody about it.

How it ran

Two phases six years apart: the installation and incentive claim in 2017–2018, and the warranty replacement in 2024.

What we did

• Installed fifteen modules and a string inverter on a property with underground service.
• Reserved the utility incentive before the work and filed the claim against the system as built.
• Cleared the utility's field inspection corrections and carried the project to the solar meter.
• Opened the manufacturer case when the inverter failed six years later.
• Installed the replacement inverter and re-established the communications link.
• Confirmed monitoring was reporting again before closing the visit.

System specifications

Is your project like this one?

• Your system was installed years ago and something has stopped working.
• You took a utility rebate and want to know what happens after it is paid.
• Your inverter has failed and nobody has told you whether it is still under warranty.
• Your system produces power but no longer shows up in monitoring.
• Your Sylmar property is served by LADWP, while permits are handled by LADBS.

Cali Energy in Sylmar

Frequently asked questions

How long does a solar inverter last?

On this system it ran from 2018 to 2024 before it failed. Manufacturers publish their own warranty terms for inverters, and those terms are shorter than the ones on the modules — which is the number worth reading before you sign rather than after something stops.

Who replaces a failed inverter under warranty?

The manufacturer supplies the replacement; someone still has to open the case, get the authorization, receive the unit and do the work. On this house the case was opened on 5 January 2024, the replacement shipped on the eighth and it was on the wall on the sixteenth — eleven days end to end.

Does monitoring come back on its own after an inverter is replaced?

On this SolarEdge system it did not. The communications module had to be paired, associated to the gateway and confirmed to be talking to it before monitoring data flowed again. A system that produces power but reports nothing looks fine from the street and is invisible to the owner, so that check belongs in the same visit.

What was the LADWP Solar Incentive Program?

A utility rebate paid against installed systems. It ran on a reservation first and a claim afterwards, and the claim had to match the system as built — module model, count and inverter. On this project the reservation was confirmed in December 2017 and the payment approved in February 2018. The program closed to new applications on 31 December 2018, so it is not available to projects starting now.

Does Cali Energy service systems it installed years ago in Sylmar?

Yes. This system was installed in 2017 and the inverter was replaced by us in 2024. Sylmar is inside City of Los Angeles boundaries, so permits run through LADBS and interconnection through LADWP.

What this would look like on your roof

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