CIGS panels are shorting, melting, and delaminating

[standardhuman]

Hi all,

Purchased an 80-watt CIGS from Rich Solar in March '21 after seeing Will's video. It worked perfectly for my application atop my cartop box and charging a Bluetti AC50. After a few months, I noticed some delamination along the edges along and what appeared to be burn marks near the connector end of the panel. Contacted Rich Solar in August. They promptly sent out a new panel but also said the issues are cosmetic and shouldn't affect the performance.

The performance has definitely degraded (more than 50% drop in voltage) and the delamination, as well as the burn marks, have worsened significantly.

See video for details.

I sent the video to Rich Solar and they have maintained that the defects are cosmetic, sometimes caused by shipping, and should not affect performance.

Most recent correspondence with Rich Solar is below. They had recommended taping the edges of the panel to prevent delamination but did not address the burn holes. The voltage output on this panel has been reduced by more than 50% compared to the new panel.

Anyone else having these issues with these panels or advice on how to avoid them? A friend who bought this same panel a couple of months after I did is seeing the same pattern.

Begin screenshots of correspondence with Rich Solar:





Image of the BACK of the panel (I removed all the eternabond tape)


End of forum post!

 

[standardhuman]

Update: Latest response from Rich Solar says they originally didn’t understand the severity of the problem and they are now contacting the manufacturer.

 

[Perrybuilds]

I was going to order some 160watt ones then I saw two of these 80s on a overland rig with that exact issue already as well, delamination and burn spots. Too bad I really digged them but it seems like they are really shit quality for serious coin. You dont see those issues with genuine sunpower flexible panels, but alot of us really want cigs so hopefully they fix it.

 

[Swagon]

Hi all,

Purchased an 80-watt CIGS from Rich Solar in March '21 after seeing Will's video. It worked perfectly for my application atop my cartop box and charging a Bluetti AC50. After a few months, I noticed some delamination along the edges along and what appeared to be burn marks near the connector end of the panel. Contacted Rich Solar in August. They promptly sent out a new panel but also said the issues are cosmetic and shouldn't affect the performance.

The performance has definitely degraded (more than 50% drop in voltage) and the delamination, as well as the burn marks, have worsened significantly.

See video for details.

I sent the video to Rich Solar and they have maintained that the defects are cosmetic, sometimes caused by shipping, and should not affect performance.

Most recent correspondence with Rich Solar is below. They had recommended taping the edges of the panel to prevent delamination but did not address the burn holes. The voltage output on this panel has been reduced by more than 50% compared to the new panel.

Anyone else having these issues with these panels or advice on how to avoid them? A friend who bought this same panel a couple of months after I did is seeing the same pattern.

Begin screenshots of correspondence with Rich Solar:

View attachment 67773
View attachment 67775


Image of the BACK of the panel (I removed all the eternabond tape)
View attachment 67774

End of forum post!

Hi all,

Purchased an 80-watt CIGS from Rich Solar in March '21 after seeing Will's video. It worked perfectly for my application atop my cartop box and charging a Bluetti AC50. After a few months, I noticed some delamination along the edges along and what appeared to be burn marks near the connector end of the panel. Contacted Rich Solar in August. They promptly sent out a new panel but also said the issues are cosmetic and shouldn't affect the performance.

The performance has definitely degraded (more than 50% drop in voltage) and the delamination, as well as the burn marks, have worsened significantly.

See video for details.

I sent the video to Rich Solar and they have maintained that the defects are cosmetic, sometimes caused by shipping, and should not affect performance.

Most recent correspondence with Rich Solar is below. They had recommended taping the edges of the panel to prevent delamination but did not address the burn holes. The voltage output on this panel has been reduced by more than 50% compared to the new panel.

Anyone else having these issues with these panels or advice on how to avoid them? A friend who bought this same panel a couple of months after I did is seeing the same pattern.

Begin screenshots of correspondence with Rich Solar:

View attachment 67773
View attachment 67775


Image of the BACK of the panel (I removed all the eternabond tape)
View attachment 67774

End of forum post!

I bought two of these for my van. The first is almost a year old and severely delaminating. The 2nd is newer and just starting to delaminate. On my van, I didn’t look close enough to notice any burn marks, but I will check that this weekend. I also bought the 160W version for my daughter’s van. On that one, we put a bead of lap sealant around the entire perimeter. I will have to see if that is preventing delamination. At the moment, I just started a warranty claim. I don’t trust these panels any longer and would prefer my money back. But I will be surprised if Rich Solar would do that.

 

[curiouscarbon]

wow! sorry that you experienced this! wow!!

4 rich solar 80w CIGS panels have been installed stationary outside where i am for less than a year. and they are delaminating too, seemingly from water exposure, even though the ad said weather proof with droplet icon and snow icon. hm... they were rather costly.

sorry that this happened to you!

@Will Prowse have you seen this failure mode? wow!