Overkill Solar Not taking Support Calls ?

[LanduytG]

I understand.

But he's in business. A business that relies on word of mouth to grow.

If he's swamped, wouldn't that mean business and revenues are good? If I owned a business that was swamped I might try to remember that customer service is THE number one priority. In fact, that is what gave Amazon it's explosive growth IIRC.
Perhaps having an answering service take calls would be a good alternative as he grows?

Don't get me wrong, I'm totally a believer in their products. And things happen.
So I'm not upset but I do find it odd that calling the phone number they give for support rolls into a message that says they have not set up their voice mail.

Good to hear Steve is busy.
Maybe I should apply for a job? Customer Service Manager.
Overkill Solar would grow like watered ivy

Steve is a one man show and I don't believe here makes his main living at selling a few BMS's. Unless you have been in business for yourself you have know idea what it's like.

Greg

 

[snoobler]

Steve is a one man show and I don't believe here makes his main living at selling a few BMS's. Unless you have been in business for yourself you have know idea what it's like.

Greg

This is my understanding too.

There have been rumblings of poor customer service. Frankly, I consider quality and workmanship to be 10000X more important than if a phone gets answered when I call. Given the resources available in the manual and the workmanship of the unit, if you need support, it's almost certainly because you didn't RTFM, or you didn't order what you wanted.

He's committed to replacing the BMS under warranty even if THE CUSTOMER screws it up and damages it. For that, I'll wait for his email if I really need to communicate with him.

 

[Brewman]

Wills review was a double edged sword, great for business but like a few of you have said, it's probably not his full time job and the increase in orders would put anyone in the weeds.

 

[OnTheRoadAgain]

Steve is a one man show and I don't believe here makes his main living at selling a few BMS's. Unless you have been in business for yourself you have know idea what it's like.

Greg

If you only knew.

Really? A one man show?
I honestly had the impression Overkill Solar was a big, international corporation.

I'm not being sarcastic at all.

Still the call did roll into a mailbox full message and that was disappointing.
Had I only known he was a one man operation at the time.

 

[LanduytG]

If you only knew.

Really? A one man show?
I honestly had the impression Overkill Solar was a big, international corporation.

I'm not being sarcastic at all.

Still the call did roll into a mailbox full message and that was disappointing.
Had I only known he was a one man operation at the time.

I guess you should hang around more and do some reach instead of a knee jerk decision.
"I honestly had the impression Overkill Solar was a big, international corporation."
Are you for real? What made you think that? Do some thinking for yourself instead of listing to others. Their are a lot of great people on here and I listen to all the opinions these people have. But I still weigh them all and form my own.

Greg

 

[Loadtoad]

I emailed Steve that I couldn't find the 2 wire pigtail used with a switch to turn off the BMS charging function. It is provided with the BMS. I told him I either lost it or it wasn't sent. He promptly sent me a new one at no charge. Good customer service. Regarding the Bluetooth, I know that with my phone I can only be connected with one Bluetooth device at a time. I have to remove a connected device before I could connect to the BMS. Ensure you are not connected to another device when you attempt to connect to the BMS. Mine works flawlessly.

 

[OnTheRoadAgain]

I emailed Steve that I couldn't find the 2 wire pigtail used with a switch to turn off the BMS charging function. It is provided with the BMS. I told him I either lost it or it wasn't sent. He promptly sent me a new one at no charge. Good customer service. Regarding the Bluetooth, I know that with my phone I can only be connected with one Bluetooth device at a time. I have to remove a connected device before I could connect to the BMS. Ensure you are not connected to another device when you attempt to connect to the BMS. Mine works flawlessly.

Cool.
I'm pretty sure I picked the right BMS.
And I'm sure Steve is an upright hardworking guy.

 

[OnTheRoadAgain]

I guess you should hang around more and do some reach instead of a knee jerk decision.
"I honestly had the impression Overkill Solar was a big, international corporation."
Are you for real? What made you think that? Do some thinking for yourself instead of listing to others. Their are a lot of great people on here and I listen to all the opinions these people have. But I still weigh them all and form my own.

Greg

Noone told me that....I thought of it all on my own.
Being "swamped" with orders...seeing YouTube discussions.....lots of presence on the Internet.
And lastly....the product seemed well designed...as if a team did it.

A better question might be...."What would lead someone to think overkill solar was a one man operation" ?

 

[snoobler]

Noone told me that....I thought of it all on my own.
Being "swamped" with orders...seeing YouTube discussions.....lots of presence on the Internet.
And lastly....the product seemed well designed...as if a team did it.

A better question might be...."What would lead someone to think overkill solar was a one man operation" ?

It's common knowledge here.

A quick look of his user page gives a very very strong hint:

OverkillSolar

diysolarforum.com

 

[OnTheRoadAgain]

It's common knowledge here.

A quick look of his user page gives a very very strong hint:

OverkillSolar

diysolarforum.com

I'm relatively new to this forum.

Hadn't gathered that yet. Didn't know he was a member here.

Good to know.

 

[Terrapin]

Is the Bluetooth dongle changing to a blue color? Mine change to blue, that's how I initially knew which one I was talking to.

I am up and running TY. Some screen text that describes what the obvious buttons below it are ('Refresh") is actually a button also. clicking on text description of thee refresh button is how I opened the connection and program... It's a pretty sloppy interface with the BMS. They should hire someone to redo it from scratch.

 

[HRTKD]

I am up and running TY. Some screen text that describes what the obvious buttons below it are ('Refresh") is actually a button also. clicking on text description of thee refresh button is how I opened the connection and program... It's a pretty sloppy interface with the BMS. They should hire someone to redo it from scratch.

Are you running the Android app? From what I hear, it sucks compared to the iOS app. Not that either of them are going to win any awards.

 

[Terrapin]

Are you running the Android app? From what I hear, it sucks compared to the iOS app. Not that either of them are going to win any awards.

Yes. Android Galaxy S7. there is quite a bit of guesswork. Fortnitly overkill put a youtube post up that show you can't change the parameters on the page labled change paramiters, you have to do it from the page to display them... I mean come on, change the page titles if nothing else.....

 

[MrM1]

Fortnitly overkill put a youtube post up that show you can't change the parameters

Link?

 

[Terrapin]

Link?

 

[HRTKD]

I think it works on either page. If you go to the Parameters Settings page and make a change, you have to click the checkmark in the upper right corner to commit the change(s).

 

[Gazoo]

Yes. Android Galaxy S7. there is quite a bit of guesswork. Fortnitly overkill put a youtube post up that show you can't change the parameters on the page labled change paramiters, you have to do it from the page to display them... I mean come on, change the page titles if nothing else.....

I have Parameter View and Parameter settings on my app. There is a slight learning curve using this BMS.

I think it works on either page. If you go to the Parameters Settings page and make a change, you have to click the checkmark in the upper right corner to commit the change(s).

That's what I have always done. I also think changes can be made on the Parameter View page. I know when a setting is tapped a pop up displays the setting then if that setting is changed it can be confirmed. I have never tried it that way.

 

[Terrapin]

I have Parameter View and Parameter settings on my app. There is a slight learning curve using this BMS.

You are correct G.G. I did not have it open and have only had it a few days ....and I am getting older every day... hmmmthat's all the excuses I can muster right off..

 

[Hedges]

I understand exactly how frustrating that can be ..... They need to have enough staff to support what they are selling.

I recently called a car dealer service department about a quote for work .... after some conversation, they switched me to the parts department and it went straight to voice mail .... so I left a message. After a couple days of no return call, I went to the dealership parts department and a surly looking guy emerged. I asked him for a price for replacement headlight lenses .... after puttering around for quite a while he gave me a price which was surprisingly good .... so I said is that for both headlight lenses .... he said ... Oh, that was for the tail lights ...... I said that was supposed to be for HEADLIGHT LENSES .... and mentioned I had also left a voice mail a few days ago and never got a response ..... He said .... that can't be true because the voice mail box has been full for months ....
I just turned around and walked away ..... I used to be happy with this dealership, but the ONE guy is going to single handedly ruin the place if they don't wise up and get rid of him.

Sorry for the long story, but I get more frustrated every day with the lack of understanding of the importance of good customer service.

I would send him an email and tell him they need to have someone answer the phone and the voice mail needs to work .... and you have posted your experience on this forum.

eBay. Seriously, they have everything.

I bought a pair of headlight lenses for a Honda Civic (new, aftermarket) on eBay. $65 for the pair. Arrived in a couple days.


But yeah, for a one-source tech product we do need access to support. I prefer email to sitting on hold on the phone. Precise details can be shared, there is a message trail, and it can be addressed in an appropriate order.

A good FAQ and problem/solution tree that grows as people are helped would be useful.

 

[Bob B]

eBay. Seriously, they have everything.

I bought a pair of headlight lenses for a Honda Civic (new, aftermarket) on eBay. $65 for the pair. Arrived in a couple days.


But yeah, for a one-source tech product we do need access to support. I prefer email to sitting on hold on the phone. Precise details can be shared, there is a message trail, and it can be addressed in an appropriate order.

A good FAQ and problem/solution tree that grows as people are helped would be useful.

Yeah ... I ended up buying them online and installed myself .... pain in the backside to install though. ..... But, I didn't have to take the whole front off like they tried to tell me when estimating labor. Found a YouTube shortcut.