I installed the BOS for an Atlantis Sunslates system back in 2003-04, and commissioned the system. Based on my experience I couldn't recommend them, unless they have fixed the product.
The customer had already contracted with Atlantis and an approved roofer to install the Sunslates on his residence. I was around during the install of the slates and while indeed time consuming it actually went pretty smoothly and looked good. I was worried though when I saw all the series connectors and realized that the system didn't offer any airflow under the slates. The system performed subpar right out of the gates (as compared to framed mods on racks) - especially during the summer on hot days - remember there was no airflow. However after just 2 years the system production really nosedived (50% of similar framed mod system) due to poorly designed connectors (not MC type but funky cam-closures that I had never seen before) that built up high resistance connections and slates that failed due to poor internal connections. Troubleshooting was very difficult due to poor access to the connections. Atlantis did send people out often over the years to try and correct the situation, and they added more slates to the roof to compensate for the poor production. But the system continually had problems, and the customer never really got any satisfaction. It's actually way to long a story to tell here. I think BIPV always has these challenges inherent: Expensive product. Expensive labor intensive install. Lots of connections. Difficult access to connections. Poor airflow and hot operating cell temps. Well designed products can help mitigate these. Poor designed products make these issues worse. There is a reason why BIPV has not proliferated on residential buildings. Maybe Atlantis has fixed these issues? I was never interested in promoting the product so I've never looked into it. But anyone looking to put this product up should really do some homework. And one more thing - anytime a customer gets a system installed from 2 parties - one for the array and one for the BOS, it becomes difficult for all involved should the system not perform well. I learned a lesson and never got involved in a split up job like this in the future. Bob Evans NABCEP Certified PV Installer Evans Energy Systems Santa Cruz, CA 831-345-3459 On Mon, Oct 1, 2012 at 11:51 AM, Aladdin Solar <cpick...@aladdinsolar.com> wrote: > Anyone familiar with SunSlates from Atlantis Energy ( > http://atlantisenergy.com/?page_id=255 )? We have a customer interested in > this system. We usually try to steer our customers to components from well > known manufacturers. I've not run across this one before. Looks like a > pretty involved roofing project. Can you comment on your experience > installing these and express any opinions on quality? > > Thanks. > > Charlie Pickard > NABCEP Certified Solar PV Installer ® > Aladdin Solar > 952-401-7073 > cpick...@aladdinsolar.com > www.AladdinSolar.com > > > __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature > database 7536 (20121001) __________ > > The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. > > http://www.eset.com > > _______________________________________________ > List sponsored by Home Power magazine > > List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org > > Options & settings: > http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org > > List-Archive: > http://lists.re-wrenches.org/pipermail/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org > > List rules & etiquette: > www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm > > Check out participant bios: > www.members.re-wrenches.org > > _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Home Power magazine List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Options & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/pipermail/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org
