@prepared_life
Newbie to Solar here for Knowledge
I just ordered a EG4 cabinet for six batteries a week and a half ago for $599. It is now $1000 plus. Guess I should have ordered that new Chargeverter at the same-time. 
Holy Price Increase Batman!!
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timselectric
If I can do it, you can do it.
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It's funny that I received an email from Signature Solar, yesterday. Stating that they wanted to show full transparency. And was letting me know that prices would be increasing in April.
Gosh, is it April already?
Gosh, is it April already?
DPC
Canada, Great already
I would make sure you don't get stung with a huge bill trying to cross..
Canada border services are sending everything for inspection and you pay a tariff on it.
I would be surprised if the US side isnt doing the exact same thing.
The border is very " thick " now...
Brucey
Velcro Man
DPC
Canada, Great already
Its all gone to hell now....
I have a package coming in form the USA I might be upset by the cost...
I have a package coming in form the USA I might be upset by the cost...
Trkarl
New Member
No kidding. I was getting ready to order an eg4 12k hybrid mini split for my garage from Signature Solar. They now want over 2k for it when last I checked it was 1199. Found it at Santan for 1199 and ordered it today from them.
The present tariffs should not be increasing prices at SS that much. Maybe they are using this opportunity to reset the prices to transition to their new 50-man manufacturing facility in Texas?
Brucey
Velcro Man
In another thread sig solar James mentioned that the flexboss 18, 21 and 12000xp would be the first to be presumably assembled in the US.
timselectric
If I can do it, you can do it.
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I don't see how adding more labor costs to a product, can ever lower the end price.
wiseacre
Solar Addict
Groan 
"Grid Gone Wild"
let me see your busbars
"Grid Gone Wild"
let me see your busbars
42OhmsPA
Who likes Electrical Gremlins?
Thanks for that. SKD Manufacturing... (aka skirt the tarrifs manufacturing).
I think final assembly or finished in the USA would be a more ethical description, assembled in the USA is a bit misleading.
Regardless I'm glad to see jobs brought to the USA.
Tariffs may actually drive some jobs out of USA. For example, if you sell products worldwide, like my company does, you suffer tariffs TWICE. Once to bring the products or parts into the USA, then again when you ship to other countries that have tariffs on USA imports (often as retaliation).
Solution?
Build the product outside USA and then you can ship worldwide without as many tariffs. You do suffer the USA tariffs on import of your product, but only ONCE now, which was no different than before for USA customers. Plus you get lower cost production.
Tariff is just another word for "tax".
Mike C.
Solution?
Build the product outside USA and then you can ship worldwide without as many tariffs. You do suffer the USA tariffs on import of your product, but only ONCE now, which was no different than before for USA customers. Plus you get lower cost production.
Tariff is just another word for "tax".
Mike C.
DPC
Canada, Great already
We used to have Branch plants in Canada.
These were small factories that made basically the same thing as US factories but on a smaller scale
You could buy a Pontiac Laurentian which looked like a American Catalina, but it came with a Chevy engine and might have components from other GM products....
Wierd....
But these were cost saving measures before the Autopact made parts free to move back and forth across the border.
A Coleman lantern In Canada might be completely unique like the 335 or it may be an old model produced on old un used US tooling
Coleman stopped making table lamps in the USA in the 50s but kept making them in Canada until 1970.
A Johnson Iron horse engine was a modestly successful engine in the USA.
But the Canadians were everywhere and exported widely around the world.
Some were unique and not just used power washing machines but little generators and water pumps....
A Canadian Speed queen washing machine is a creature all its own...
Nothing about looks like its American Cousin....
When free trade came in all these branch plants closed.
All the jobs slowly trickled across the border back to the USA.
What did happen is we got very good at building cars and car parts almost to the exclusion of all the things we used to make.
In some cases Like Coleman they made many different products for export to other countries and it was expected they would be made of brass instead of steel and nickel plated instead of painted.
Tariffs against US products might not have applied to Canadian ones or the unique combination of parts might be sold for local production in the UK or Australia from Canadian parts...
I think we are heading back down that path now where parts and production might shift to to where its cheapest with fewest restrictions
You know what was a real fucking nightmare?
Mercury Marine products.
They were made in the USA Canada and the UK with so many different parts and combinations of things that it can be difficult to tell what parts you need or even what year something was made.
If you lost the name plate or had some kludge made of parts from under a work bench in marina good luck trying to fix what was already a difficult motor.
These were small factories that made basically the same thing as US factories but on a smaller scale
You could buy a Pontiac Laurentian which looked like a American Catalina, but it came with a Chevy engine and might have components from other GM products....
Wierd....
But these were cost saving measures before the Autopact made parts free to move back and forth across the border.
A Coleman lantern In Canada might be completely unique like the 335 or it may be an old model produced on old un used US tooling
Coleman stopped making table lamps in the USA in the 50s but kept making them in Canada until 1970.
A Johnson Iron horse engine was a modestly successful engine in the USA.
But the Canadians were everywhere and exported widely around the world.
Some were unique and not just used power washing machines but little generators and water pumps....
A Canadian Speed queen washing machine is a creature all its own...
Nothing about looks like its American Cousin....
When free trade came in all these branch plants closed.
All the jobs slowly trickled across the border back to the USA.
What did happen is we got very good at building cars and car parts almost to the exclusion of all the things we used to make.
In some cases Like Coleman they made many different products for export to other countries and it was expected they would be made of brass instead of steel and nickel plated instead of painted.
Tariffs against US products might not have applied to Canadian ones or the unique combination of parts might be sold for local production in the UK or Australia from Canadian parts...
I think we are heading back down that path now where parts and production might shift to to where its cheapest with fewest restrictions
You know what was a real fucking nightmare?
Mercury Marine products.
They were made in the USA Canada and the UK with so many different parts and combinations of things that it can be difficult to tell what parts you need or even what year something was made.
If you lost the name plate or had some kludge made of parts from under a work bench in marina good luck trying to fix what was already a difficult motor.
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CTS
New Member
Was hoping to finally jump into solar at the end of this year or early next year, guess that's all on hold now.
SunSurge
New Member
Know the feeling. We are in the middle of our solar project and fortunately for us we had already purchased the inverter, Mid, batteries and solar panels in Jan/Feb before the price increases. However, we were waiting for the weather to improve, and had not purchased the PV wiring, combiner switches etc. and other supplies needed to build the panel mounting structures. Now we are in a hurry to obtain the rest before prices go even higher. We also wanted to purchase the EG4 Chargeverter to maintain charge on our batteries but at $720 will be looking for an alternative.
HarryN
Solar Wizard
If you look at the "total cost" of parts, assembly, taxes, regulations, facilities, warranty, after market support --- sometimes the assembly labor portion becomes just noise. That is the situation here in CA - assembly labor cost is just noise.
timselectric
If I can do it, you can do it.
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If it costs more, there's only two options.
Increase prices or lower profits.
I just pray EG4 counts the cost I would hate to see them get stuck in a growth trap. A possible recession could cause them to unwind things fast.
A "business growth trap" occurs when a company expands too rapidly, overwhelming its resources, processes, and people, leading to potential stagnation or failure. It's like trying to scale a business without the necessary infrastructure and capacity.
A "business growth trap" occurs when a company expands too rapidly, overwhelming its resources, processes, and people, leading to potential stagnation or failure. It's like trying to scale a business without the necessary infrastructure and capacity.
Zwy
Emperor Of Solar
I would think it would be built in the US now as the BOSS box is being built in the US from what I gathered from the videos.I just ordered a EG4 cabinet for six batteries a week and a half ago for $599. It is now $1000 plus. Guess I should have ordered that new Chargeverter at the same-time.
One does the math and it doesn't work out like the price increases. For instance, the box sold for $599 originally. The tariffs apply to the price EG4 paid in China. Let's say $300. 20% total in additional tariffs comes to $60. Yet the price has doubled.
In defense, there is a possibility there might be additional tariffs coming and maybe EG4 is covering for that possibility. At a 100% tariff, the cost would double. But that doesn't explain the final price of over $1K.
I paid $200 for my large battery box. I did have to paint it, that cost more than I paid for the cabinet. It holds 114 Kwh.
We're scaling back the size of a building project we have planned for this summer because of these idiotic tariffs. That's going to be less material sold (much of it from the US, but we need things from other countries as well), less work for the 100% US crews building it, etc. And if I weren't getting to an age where it's now or never, I'd likely just put the whole thing on pause. I've seen a lot of stupid things in my life, but these tariffs are near the top of the list. Punish your own citizens because you have a beef with someone else. Unbelievable.
teal95
Solar Wizard
It's the best leverage we have. The rest of the world has been screwing us for decades.
Zwy
Emperor Of Solar
They have had tariffs on our products for years. It has not been free trade.
The US dairy industry has been in shambles for a long time due to Canadian exported milk is just one example. Back when I was a kid, we lived on a farm on a 7 mile stretch of highway. Every farm on that whole 7 mile stretch had dairy cattle. Basically a dairy farm every 1/2 mile on both sides of the road. There isn't a single dairy farm on that road now. The creamery much of milk went to made cheese for Pizza Hut (back when it was pretty good), went out of business because the milk supply dried up. Any large dairy farms left in this corner of the state send milk hundreds of miles each day to processors in MN and WI.
It's time someone did something about the tariffs on US produced goods. Many industries here went out of business because of other countries having tariffs on our products. Ross Perot was 100% correct regarding trade.
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