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SolarMax Tech reviews
• updated APR 10, 2026Loading map...
The Verdict
SolarMax makes big promises but fails when you need them most. We analyzed hundreds of reviews and found a clear pattern: strong sales experience followed by a service breakdown that leaves systems down for months. In one case, a customer waited four months for a replacement inverter while owing $2,000 to the electric company, after SolarMax took weeks just to check if the part was in stock. In another, faulty panels sat bypassed with no follow-up while the homeowner called repeatedly, never getting a callback. We found 68 reviews describing recurring system failures and repair delays stretching beyond three months. Post-sale support scored just 3.7 out of 5, with 140 negative mentions, and customers report that once panels stop working, getting anyone to return a call becomes nearly impossible. The customer service team hangs up, ignores messages, or tells you they have no information for weeks on end. Several longtime customers say the company avoids warranty claims entirely, leaving 12-year-old systems broken and owners paying for both non-functioning solar and grid electricity. If you want an installer who'll still answer the phone when something breaks, this is not it.
If you value long-term support over a smooth sales pitch, avoid SolarMax. The install may go fine, but when your system fails, you'll spend months chasing callbacks and living without the savings you paid for.
3 Stories That Stood Out
Gary purchased a rooftop solar system in 2015 and enjoyed years of trouble-free service — it produced more energy than his household used and wiped out his Edison bill, prompting him to refer two friends to the same installer. In November 2022 the array began producing only sporadically, and because he monitored output daily on the company portal he knew right away when it fell to nearly nothing. Calls and voicemail messages to customer service went unanswered for weeks; after repeated attempts he finally landed a technician visit on 12/05/22, but the system worked for a day and then stopped again. Two weeks of more unanswered messages led to another appointment on 01/20/23, when a tech suspected an inverter problem and flagged it to the office. A follow-up visit on 02/13/23 uncovered two faulty panels; the tech bypassed them and said the array would run until replacements arrived, but the system failed again after a day. Frustrated, he drove to the company’s facility on 02/17/23 and found a customer-service rep who admitted they hadn’t even checked inventory for those two panels four days after the tech’s diagnosis — despite a warehouse stacked with thousands of panels. Three more
Robb had a SolarMax system on his home for nearly four years when the inverter, which had already been replaced once early on, failed again in the August heat. He spent weeks trying to book a service visit — bounced through phone tag and promises of callbacks that never came — and finally got an appointment scheduled more than three weeks out. When the technician arrived he confirmed the inverter was dead within minutes but then spent an hour on the phone to get approval to order a replacement. Robb waited without updates: calls over the next two months turned up no information about the part, and only after roughly three months did the company say the replacement had arrived and they could come back in three weeks. When they did return, the crew swapped the inverter in about 30 minutes and were polite and professional. The bottom line for Robb was that his system sat offline for about four months, his utility balance swung from a credit of roughly $400 to a $2,000 charge, and he felt like an afterthought compared with how he imagines new customers would be handled. He had previously referred three neighbors and now plans to stop recommending SolarMax; the lasting image is a quick,
Eleana T. had a SolarMax system installed 12 years ago and recently discovered the panels were failing and the inverter needed replacement — work she expected to be covered under warranty. She reached out and got initial promises that SolarMax would follow up with emails detailing options and pricing, but two months later the emails never arrived. When she called back, she often got the runaround: long holds, dropped calls, or no answer at all. Specific contacts she tried include Arianna, who never returned multiple phone calls, and Diana, who hung up on her. Talking with neighbors who had the same installer revealed the problem wasn’t isolated. As a result, she’s left paying for electricity while equipment under warranty sits unaddressed. The clearest takeaway from her experience: the company’s post-install support evaporated for older systems, and she now warns future buyers to demand clear, documented warranty-response commitments before investing.
Platforms Monitored
Performance by Work Type
How We Got To Trust Score 59
Buyer Beware
Unauthorized Activities
0 reports
Misleading Claims
9 reports
Background Check
Serving customers for 14 years
Among the longest-standing installers in the market.
BBB Rating: A
Good BBB standing.
Natural Review Patterns
Reviews were posted naturally over time.
What You Can Expect
Tom F. moved into a Redlands home four years ago and, on a neighbor’s recommendation, had SolarMax install solar panels and a battery backup. He relied on their ongoing accessibility and support over those years, so when he chose to expand the system this summer he turned back to the same team. SolarMax managed the project from design through paperwork—preparing the application, navigating the City review, completing the installation—and secured Edison’s final approval to operate. He found their responsiveness and technical competence kept the process moving smoothly and without surprises. The detail that stood out to him was continuity: the same crew who installed the original system handled the upgrade and the approvals, so the expansion felt like a seamless extension rather than a fresh, uncertain start.
In 2020 Aaron V. began getting bids for a home solar system and kept seeing $40,000-plus estimates — then a coworker recommended Dan Cooley from SolarMax. He landed on SolarMax after their quote came in around $18,000, far less than the other offers, and because the whole sales process was unusually low‑touch: Dan and the team mapped the roof with Google Maps and completed agreements via Docusign instead of a drawn‑out in‑person pitch. The system went in and, four years later in 2024, it continues to produce at the same rate with no problems. The takeaway that stuck with him was simple and concrete: a significantly cheaper, largely remote sales experience that resulted in a reliable system still performing years on.
R. L. ended up stuck with a 29-panel solar system and a 20-year warranty after paying cash for the installation, and the trouble only started once a panel quit working. At first, everything seemed smooth, but when he needed help, the service all but disappeared. For more than 10 months, he kept hearing that the company had reached out to the manufacturer for a warranty response and was still waiting, while the faulty panel remained unfixed. What stood out most was how a system sold as a long-term investment turned into an endless wait over a single panel worth only a few hundred dollars, leaving him wondering whether the delay was coming from the company or the overseas manufacturer it bought from.
Paul arranged for solar panels to be installed more than 11 years ago and watched the whole process go smoothly — careful, top‑notch work from start to finish. Over the ensuing decade the system’s power output stayed steady. When a small problem, one he had caused, appeared, the company turned up promptly and courteously to make it right. What stood out was their willingness to stand behind their work even after many years — a quick, professional response that left him very satisfied.
Kevin, a Realtor in South Orange County who lives in Rancho Santa Margarita with his wife Julie and their three boys, connected with Brandon Mezzanato at Solar Max when he decided to go solar. From the first meeting Brandon walked him through the whole process in plain language, set realistic expectations and then exceeded them, patiently answering every question and shaping a system aimed to break even or deliver a small positive return each year. Fourteen months after the system went live he ended the year with a credit on his Southern California Edison bill that rolled forward into the next year — a tangible sign the design worked. Because he leased the array, he also locked in a fixed monthly payment for 25 years that turned out to be meaningfully lower than his pre-solar bills, and he now feels better positioned to absorb future electricity price increases. Beyond the numbers, the standout detail is Brandon’s ongoing availability: more than a year later Kevin can still pick up the phone, reach Brandon directly and be greeted by name when complex billing questions come up. He also appreciated that Solar Max is a local Riverside company that manufactures its own panels in a 165,
Baldomero hired the company in 2021 for a full solar setup on his home, including an LG whole-house battery, and the system ran for a while before the battery died completely. After several service visits that never solved the problem, the last crew came up with an accusation that the wiring had been tampered with and used that claim to void the warranty, cutting off contact soon after. An independent evaluation later revealed the bigger problem: the LG battery had already been under a manufacturer recall when it was installed, and he had never been told. That left him stuck spending hours on LG’s recall line with no fix in sight and weighing legal action while the recalled battery remained the heart of a system that had already turned into a dead end.
Aaron bought a 28-panel solar system from SolarMax about six to seven years ago; the sales rep moved quickly, answered questions, and the array produced roughly 3–4 kWh per hour at peak. About a year ago he opted to add a 20 kWh battery backup and asked about more panels. SolarMax advised adding only three panels to avoid being pushed into NEM3.0 — a piece of local SCE know-how he appreciated — but that decision marked the turning point where the experience began to fray. What followed were a string of small but frustrating issues. An installation window slipped from an initial two months to three or four. The field techs were personable and willing to explain technical details, but they left some clamps behind. The crew that came to inspect and paint accidentally spilled paint on the concrete and didn’t mention it; he eventually removed the dried stain with a pressure washer. The biggest problem emerged after commissioning: the batteries barely charged and the companion app reported confusing information. He discovered a widespread equipment bug that affected charging; technicians corrected it, but he lost out on generated kWh and dollars while it was unresolved. Even under best
Paul W. has lived with this company's solar installation on his home for twelve years and gave it a five-star review. Over that span he found the equipment still performing reliably, and whenever a small issue came up the company moved quickly to fix it. The lasting impression: durable gear plus fast, responsive service for the little problems that do occur.
Steph’s experience shifted sharply once the sale was done. During the buying process, SolarMax had been quick to answer and eager to move things along, but years later, after the original sales rep had left, getting help with system and billing questions turned into a drawn-out hunt through customer service. She ended up making repeated calls just to get through, then more follow-ups because the answers had to be routed to other departments and never made it back promptly. After nearly a month, her question was still unresolved, and a February 26 reply from Nicole pointed to staffing shortages as part of the problem. What stood out most was how much the company’s responsiveness seemed to depend on whether it was trying to earn the sale or support an existing customer.
Long-term Satisfaction
Long-term satisfaction for SolarMax Tech drops to 3.2 ★ compared to early reviews. This decline is worse than 73% of installers we looked at.
Long-term reviews carry the most weight in our methodology because they are most representative of what you should be paying for: a system that will perform for years.