Kimble Solar Reviews 85

Kimbletech installed Solar, Battery and a car charger for me.

The process was hugely professional from start to finish, I would strongly recommend them to anyone looking at a solar install

The sales team were excellent as were the technical team prior to installation. The fly in the ointment was the very poor communication after we had signed up. The fitters arrived on the Monday instead of the Friday, which was a problem for us as we run a B&B and it was very noisy. (We had blocked the Friday out) There was a hitch with the battery which had been wired up incorrectly, which used up 27 KW of power. They were quick to come out and rectify the problem. They were equally quick to present the final bill but not once have they offered us any compensation for the excess electricity their mistake caused us. That said the panels were fitted well and they are unobtrusive. I think they are a good company but they really need to improve communication with customers. Our experience could have been so much better.

As with many looking for solar installation, the market is somewhat of a minefield and often a stab in the dark with numerous cowboy outfits. What made Kimbletech stand out was the communication, the efficiency, punctuality, and outstanding customer service. The sales team did not promise things that couldn't be fulfilled, rather everything that they said would happen or be done was carried out, when they said it was going to be done.
Survey, installation, scaffolding, post installation, honestly could not have been better!
I have recommended to friends and family and would gladly use them again if I needed to!

Thank you to all the team! Amazing job and amazing effort!

From start to finish great people to do business with. They listened to our needs and made appropriate suggestions for the system. A detailed survey followed and further explanation as to the process. We were then kept informed all the way through as to when the teams would be on site. Everyone has been courteous and helpful. The installation was done with minimal impact to us. The operation of the system was shown and explained to us. Great job

Our solar journey began in June and it soon became clear Kimbletech’s approach was far more professional than there competitors, no estimates over the phone with the help of Google earth but a face to face appointment with a surveyor who explained everything and answered any questions we may have had. Next was a more detailed survey with loft inspection, cable routing and even a drone fly by measuring roof and surroundings.The installation began on time and both the roofing team and the electricians were polite and worked to a very high standard and kept us updated with everything as the work proceeded, any problems being resolved quickly. On completion the site was left clean and tidy and with the assurance that any help was only a phone call away and a follow up visit after 4 weeks to check everything was working correctly and according to plan. Overall I would not hesitate to recommend this local company for their professional approach and customer service.

Overall, the whole experience was well managed. The installation went well and aftercare, thus far, has been exemplary. If I had anything to say regarding areas of improvement, it would be…
- The scaffolding subcontractor could do with certifying their scaffolding as safe to use.
- Communication from Kimbletech was very good, albeit the scaffolders arrived a couple of days later than we were told to remove the scaffolding.

We can summarise by saying that the installation was excellent. The initial survey, the installation plan and execution, together with the workmanship were all of a high standard. Explanations were clear. The Kimble Solar team are well-designed and opetarate in a well-integrated way. Additionally, the after-sales service was brilliant.

My Wife and I are so happy with the service we have received from Kimbetech.
After looking at and engaging local and national installation companies for quotes we realised that there were massive differences in the approach all take to customer service.
Kimbetech were so easy to deal with and their commitment and engagement to us as customers has been excellent. From Sales to after sale review the team have been amazing.
The installation team were really helpful, detailed and polite. The standard of work is really high.
Having that personal touch from a local company has been a breath of fresh air and I have recommended to so many others that they should look into using them or if further away to try and engage with local installation companies as the service seems to be better.
2 months in we are so pleased and impressed with how our system is running.

Kimbletech designed and installed an 11-panel PV system with two 5.2 kwh batteries in the loft. The process was seamless from quotation to commissioning, and they were flexible with changes right up until a day before installation. The external installation took only a day, and the panels are both discrete and elegant. After the installation, all that was required was half a day of external electrical work, and then a single full day in the house. The design they came up with avoided the need for any intrusive internal wiring, and the house was left spotless . Everyone I interacted with, from the installation team, office team to technical support and management was professional and courteous. A minor fault was detected a couple of days after the system was commissioned, but before I could have determined this from the app I had been contacted to arrange to visit us as soon as possible. When I had questions about the app and performance of the system, I was able to get through to them on the phone without delay.
I would thoroughly recommend their services.

Ten companies were invited to send proposals for solar panels and batteries. Kimbletech were selected, not because they were the cheapest, but because their proposal met my needs and they offered a quality product and quality support.

I got a visit from their surveyor. He looked at everything. Roof, roof access, battery and inverter location, consumer unit location. He even measured the size of the roof beams (presumably to check they take the weight). We discussed options. I had thought of getting an EDDI - a device that directs spare solar power (after the house and battery needs are satisfied) to create hot water. He did not think I would gain anything with this device with my layout so it was dropped.

Shortly after I got a call to arrange installation. We agreed a date and they turned up on that date at 8 o'clock. It was a wet day. That didn't stop two guys working on the roof installing 10 panels. They did break two tiles (and found another broken one). All three tiles were replaced that day at no extra cost that day.

Meanwhile two more guys installed the battery and inverter (the clever box that links solar panels to the battery, the house and the grid) in the loft. Neat job.

The following day the system was commissioned. First by Kimbletech then a remote test of the battery (checking charge and discharge rates) and inverter by the equipment builder GivEnergy. GivEnergy supply a really smart app that allows you to monitor and control the system.

We had one glitch, noted in the evening after the commission, but an email to Kimbletech that evening prompted a quick response the following morning and an electrician visit a day later (on a Saturday!) to diagnose and fix the minor problem.

I'm happy. The system is performing as expected and as specified.

Do I have any regrets? Yes. I should have done this years ago.

Thank you Kimbletech.
Thank you GivEnergy.

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Update 1st October 2023

I have now had the system for 6 months. Here is a summary of my experience.

-Kimbletech gave good advice on the size of system required
-The Perlight panels have performed extremely well
-The GivEnergy battery and inverter have been flawless
-The GivEnergy app provides superb control and monitoring
-Money has been saved, not just on electricity, but also on gas following minor changes to the house
-Confidence in the system has grown and other changes to system and tariffs are being considered, but these will wait until a full winter has been experienced.
-The delay in getting my DNO certificate from SSEN has been the only disappointment.

For the record the panels have generated 2792Kwh over the summer. 595Kwh went directly to the house; 708Kwh went to the battery (which powers the house at night) and 1489Kwh went to the grid. If only i'd been paid for that! I would have been £200 richer.

Drilling down, there was not a month when the amount of total electricity generated by the panels did not exceed the amount of total demand from the house for that month. The minimum margin was 40%.

Drilling further down, there were days (cloudy, wet days) when the panels failed to meet total house demand. 18 days to be precise. 7 in September and 5 in July.

Last year my Energy direct debit was £130 a month and the energy company wanted to increase it to £180. It was kept down by paying my pensioners winter fuel allowance directly into the company's accounts and the Government £400.

Yesterday, my September energy bill arrived. £34.54 + VAT.
Broken down, this is :
Electricity standing charge £14.16
Gas standing charge £8.93
Electricity usage £10.78
Gas usage £0.82

The gas usage (£0.82) was down to a visit by a gas service engineer who needed to test the system. Gas usage in July and August was zero. On advice of a heating engineer, hot tap water now comes from an electric boiler, powered by the solar panels. Gas is now only used for central heating.

Electricity usage (£10.78) was due to a very wet September where there were 7 days when electricity from the grid was needed to plug the gap in Solar power. Additionally we have a 10.5Kw electric shower. The solar panel/battery can only supply 5kw maximum so the grid supplies the rest.

I expect October's bill to be less because for the first time, following the DNO certificate delay, I will be paid for my excess energy.

For those who do not know, you need two certificates to allow you to be a generator and get paid for your excess electricity. The MCS certificate was provided on 12th April. The DNO certificate arrived 14th September. DNO stands for Distribution Network Operator - the people responsible for the electricity network in your area. In my case it is SSEN. They are supposed to produce the certificate within 80 days (yes eighty days!). SSEN took a little longer.

Happily recommend KimbleSolar who have just completed a PV and battery install for me in Stoke Mandeville. I had a number of quotes, and while KimbleSolar weren't the cheapest, they were prepared to have sensible conversations about my equipment preferences, fully investigate availability and were prepared to undertake the necessary training in order to become a GivEnergy accredited installer.

The main install took two days after the scaffolding had been erected (which was a complicated wrap-around over the extension), two of the team on the roof installing the 12 panels, and two in the garage installing the wiring, inverter and battery. All were very friendly, professional and cleaned up the site at the end of each day.

System commissioning and user portal setup took a morning and a follow-up final handover visit has been booked for next month. Communications with the technical and planning team have been clear and responsive to questions. The staged payment plan gave comfort over our investment and with KimbleSolar having achieved their MCS accreditation, means my system is approved to earn me £ by exporting excess solar in the summer too.

I will be getting them to fit my EV charger when it arrives, which helpfully will integrate into the whole GE system for smart charging too.

I used Kimble Solar in June 2022 to carry out an 11 panel installation with 10Kwh worth of battery storage.
The initial enquiry, sales meeting, paying the deposit and arranging the technical survey all went really well. Each person I spoke with was friendly and helpful, they were easy to get hold of and communicate with. I was especially grateful for the way they explained it all to me in easy terms.

It was a lot of money to part with so I was quite anxious about how the actual install would go and if I would see the energy bill savings they predicted. I needn't have worried. The install took 2 days and the four men that came were all smart, respectful and tidy. Benji took time to help get my app up and running so I can monitor the system from my phone. He even came back a month later to look over the data that had been generated in that time, and answer any questions I had, I think they called it a follow up visit.

It's been nearly a year and I can happily say I have made great savings on my energy bill. I only wish I had got solar sooner and it could replace my gas usage.

When we had that cold snap back in December, I noticed my battery was performing differently. I emailed the office asking what might be going on and had responses back straight away from Rob and Benji explaining all about the extreme sub temperature and the battery's ability to go into safe mode. I was very impressed at the continued after care and my mind was put at ease.

I am having Kimble Solar come and install a hot water diverter this month so I can do away with the boiler completely over the summer. I have an EV coming after the summer and will be sure to get them to install that too!

Wouldn't hesitate to recommend this company to everyone.

We used Kimble to install a EV charge point at our business premises. Everything about the quoting, install and aftercare was excellent. They even found a fault we didn't know about with some wiring and helped sort that. Excellent company we would recommend and use again.

Kimble tech were not the cheapest option but we were impressed with their service and back up support.
The installation was completed within the timeframe and the staff were all lovely.
The after care has been good and being a local company you know that help is never far away.

Everything about Kimbletech is exceptional. From initial query into solar panels to completion. Stephen the salesman’s survey was more in-depth, accurate and more helpful than other suppliers that came to quote. The team followed up on the quotation but there was no pushiness from them, but always helpful. Chris and Rob were then great in the detailed survey and ordering stage, Kimbletech were also surprisingly quick to source supplies and start work. When the work commenced Ash and the team seemed to work well and there was an emphasis on getting the job right rather than rushing it.

Further follow up correspondence have confirmed the function of the system and answered any questions.
I would not hesitate to use Kimbletech if I ever moved house and wanted solar panels again.

After lots of research and meetings with various companies, I opted for Kimble to install solar and batteries in my house. They were great from the start, surveys, workmanship, attention to detail and post care service has been top notch! They know what they are doing and go out of their way to deliver and ensure there are no hiccups. I highly recommend them and will be using them again for future works.

I found Kimbletech on a list of local installers for the MyEnergi Zappi electric vehicle charger and contacted them. Their response was terrific - quickly got back to me, came to inspect the site, walked me through my requirements, and got the installation done super quickly and professionally. That prompted me to ask them to quote for my solar/battery installation, a few months later. Again, they really delivered - from working with me to plan the installation, to programming the work, to the installation itself, and then follow-up and after care, the service has been first class. I was particularly impressed at (a) how quick they were - a month from getting the quote to putting my solar panels and batteries in, and (b) finding creative solutions to get around difficulties in sourcing components. I have an ongoing relationship with them to keep an eye on my system, and I know that a couple of neighbours have also gone with them based on my experience. I might have found someone to get it done more cheaply, but I'm quite certain I got great value for money by using Kimbletech.

Would highly recommend kimbletech. Everyone was so nice and helpful and couldn’t do enough for me. Turned up on time did the job really well couldn’t fault them! I would use them again!

Chris and team were excellent throughout. Even from before our extension was in a state that could accept a "walk-round", Chris gave us advice on what would work and what we should think about.

Once the house was in a state that could be viewed, Chris and Becky spend a couple of hours making sure that we were happy with the placement of all the sockets and switches, the data points and the main electrical feeds so we knew exactly what we were getting.

The entire team spent a few days on-site for first and second fix, with Phil then accommodating our picky requests to get us back into the house with working electric, heating and internet. Kimbletech also moved the main BT socket from the front the back of the house.

Thanks Kimbletech!

Chris and team were excellent from start to finish, and not forgetting Bec in the office. Great service, from initial (and thorough) survey to installation! I would highly recommend.