I-Team: Hidden cameras reveal dark side of solar power

By Randy Travis
Published May 16, 2022

DOUGLASVILLE, Ga - A hidden camera FOX 5 I-Team investigation takes the shine off some big promises made to Georgia homeowners about solar power.

With rising energy prices, you may be paying closer attention to those ubiquitous ads on social media:

"The government will cover the cost to install solar."

"Get paid to go solar!"

"Reduce or even eliminate your electric bill by using solar energy."

Amie and Nathan Tatro of Lafayette saw the same ads. So they signed a contract with Power Home Solar -- now Pink Energy -- to outfit their home with solar panels, a deal that cost $91,000 with monthly installments over 25 years.

"It’s not turned out to be what was promised," Amie admitted. "Almost everything he said turned out not to be true."

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[scottmyers]

This isn’t the “dark side of solar.” This is the dark side of crappy companies and not being able to hold them accountable.

[Hobbies]

They paid $91, 000 to SAVE ON ELECTRICITY COSTS!!!! How long would it take to use $91, 000 in electricity so that they could break These people are nuts.

[MojoPup]

Tip: If you have the land, don't mount the panels on your home's roof. I have them mounted on my pole barn, workshop. and out in the yard providing shade for my dogs...but not my home's roof. No problem with homeowners insurance and since I preformed the installation myself, no weird leases with shady companies. I also don't have them tied into the grid because our utility is a pain when it comes to solar. In my area, AC is a must...so they provide the majority of the power demand that my HVAC system needs during the hot summer months. The electric utility still gets some money, just not nearly as much...and I have basic power when hurricanes come thru thanks to battery backup and a small generator.

[andyg]

Spending 10's of thousands of dollars, even as much as $100k, to save a couple hundred bucks a month! Solid thinking there.

[pheddupp]

The salesman was crapping himself when the reporter came out to confront him. This is good investigative reporting. We need thousands more just like you all over the world.

[cpfoims]

I like it when news stations get back to doing stories and investigations that actually help people.

[mgweir]

I live in Colorado and used a solar co-op for purchase and installation of 7.5 kwh system. It has eliminated my electric bill except for a $15 a month connection fee. After tax credits, it cost approx $15K for the system and it works fantastically.

[JSabh]

I built my own system for 5 grand. Been off grid for a couple years now and they are great. The most expensive things are inverters, batteries and charger controllers. Renogy supplies almost everything I have. Great prices and customer service if your looking.

[By-s]

I really miss this kind of investigative journalism, especially these days.

[anthonyromo]

It's astounding that none of the cited companies are being charged with any criminal violations.

[stevelopez]

$91, 000.00 I could buy electricity until I’m 130 years old and I live in SoCal. Lol.

[magicmegan]

I’m glad this news report helped that family get out of their contract and get those panels taken down.

[richardgarrett]

When I had solar put on my house, I entertained a couple of these company's sales pitches. What they didn't know is that I did enough research to know what the panels and inverters cost, how many I would need to achieve my goals, and the efficiency for different parts of my roof to fit 50 panels. I was quoted $45k-$65k total price for ~$20k in materials. They had no answer on why the costs were so high when I showed them the retail prices of the components used (exact panels and inverters).

I ended up finding a contractor to do the install, purchased the panels and pulled the permits myself. My total cost was $28k before my 30% federal rebate.

There are many people that seem to be against solar due to ignorance in the comments. In many cases, solar may not ever pay for itself. In my case, it will do this in < 8 years. I'm almost 3 years into this journey and have produced 57.4MWh in electricity on my roof. My average electricity bill was $260 and now I average $10/mo ($25 when the FU minimum kicks in).

[cklindo]

Gimme me $91K and I will pedal the water-wheel to produce the power for the house.

[MH-ocde]

Ten years ago I used to have coffee at the same cafe every day. Many mornings a couple of guys from Solar City would sit near me and brag about how they strong-armed their customers. A few years later they were purchased by Tesla. I wouldn't touch them with a 10 foot pole.

[MrBobochow]

I can’t believe anyone would put a solar system on their house and spend 60k just to save $ 10 a month.

[AppaTalks]

I built an off-grid solar battery (after the great Texas Freeze last year), have 6x100W panels and a 300Amp-hour battery connected. Spent about 3K total on the project and super happy that it can take anything I throw at it. Not a 1-1 grid replacement but definitely Peace of mind.

[noelleonard]

Yes, there are scammers out there, but paying 300+ dollars a month for 25 years just to pay for the system is insanity.

[issameQ]

Companies are completely out of control. The funny part is that they get mad and uncomfortable when you start asking questions and digging into the details before you sign a contract.

[LetsTakeWalk]

The problem here was not the solar pannels. The problem was the ones selling them without proper permits to connect them to the powergrid.