Trina solar panels reviews

Trina Solar is one of the largest manufacturer of solar modules in the world. In 2019, they shipped an estimated 9.7GW of panels, placing the company at no.3 in the world for global shipments. By October of 2020, the company says it reached cumulative shipments of more than 60GW.

In 2016 Trina were named the world's most bankable solar panel manufacturer and also that year, they broke the world record for multicrystalline solar panel efficency - and have broken a number of records since.

Trina Solar is a Chinese company. Canadian Solar is also a Chinese company. Given Canadian Solar’s name that may seem strange, but the rule of thumb is if a solar panel manufacturer's name makes you think their panels are made in a country that isn't China, then they are made in China.

Trina Solar has 21 offices worldwide, including one in Sydney. They employ 13,000 worldwide, mostly in China. They are based in Changzhou which, as every schoolchild knows, is just a one hour train ride from Shanghai. Well, maybe not every schoolchild knows that, but I'm sure all the schoolchildren in China who know it would add up to a hell of a lot.

In addition to Chinese manufacturing capacity in they have a plant in Thailand and another in Vietnam

Trina Solar Is A Tier 1 Manufacturer

Trina is a well respected name in solar panel manufacturing. They produce quality tier 1 solar panels that are installed around the world. They offer a 15 year product warranty and while there are other tier 1 manufacturers that offer a longer product warranty, Trina solar panels tend to be a lower cost option.

Trina Is A Leader In Sustainable Solar Panel Manufacturing

The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition produces a report each year on how foul solar panel manufacturers are and Trina Solar turns out to be pretty damn not foul. They were the world leader in the report, which measures environmental and social responsibility, in 2014. In 2015 they took third place. The good news is they didn’t slip from their first place because they grew worse. Rather, they improved on their score for the previous year, but were overtaken by two companies that managed to improve by more. In the most recent report for 2018/19, Trina was ranked second.

Trina's Honey Panel Is Pretty Sweet

When Trina introduced its Honey panel in 2012 it was the world leader in multicrystalline efficiency (there's a monocrystalline Honey range as well). Trina named it the Honey Panel on account of how they wanted it to be in the “sweet spot” between cutting edge technology and cost effectiveness and not at all to create the impression they are a hive like organization that wants to extract sweet consumer surplus from thousands of customers.

Salt Mist Corrosion Resistance

All Trina Solar panels now state on their datasheets they are corrosion resistant.  Certifications for corrosion resistance can be found on Trina’s download page.

Trinasmart Panels Have Built In DC Optimisers For Improved Performance

DC optimisers are little bundles of electronics that are attached to solar panels and enable them to act more intelligently and improve their overall output. So they simply live up to their name and optimise performance. These can be attached to panels when they are installed, but Trinasmart panels have DC optimisers produced by Tigo Energy built into the panels themselves, which makes installation a lot easier and faster.

DC optimisers generally don't offer enough of a performance boost to be economically worthwhile for many installations at the time of writing, but they can be very useful under the right circumstances such as trying to get the maximum amount of solar generation from a limited amount of roof space.

Trina Has An Energy Storage System

Trina has produced a home battery storage system called TrinaBESS Powercube, which is available in Australia.

Warranty procedure for orphaned Trina customers

If you have purchased Trina solar panels from an installer who has since gone out of business, the responsibility for warranty claims shifts to Trina. Their customer service line in Australia is 1300 874 627, and Trina have advised that orphaned customers can lodge panel warranty claims through their online portal available here. They will arrange for an installer in their network to replace the panels under warranty, with labor costs being covered by their warranty.

Trina Solar Panels Are A Good Choice

I have no problems recommending Trina solar panels as they have a cost effective combination of price and reliability. While there are panels out there I consider likely to be more reliable, you will have to pay a premium for them.

You can see what other Australians think of these modules in the reviews below - and if you're an owner, add your Trina solar panels review.