Updated Summary: Good products on offer, middle of the pack in price, takes feedback well, and ZEN can be fast with communicating but my recommendation would just be to make your expectations around that clear from the start.
Updated from 2 star to 4 star review two weeks later. The project coordinator got in touch the next morning after I wrote the review and emailed them, they informed me that the sales person I had been trying to get in touch with had left ZEN and that's why I was not hearing anything back. After discussion ZEN moved quickly to resolve the Redback portal account issue, and to organize for the installer to return and set up the relays. The operations manager also called me to explain that the gaps in communication that I experienced during the initial process had been addressed, so it's great they took that feedback on. They also reduced the bill for the installer to return from about $1500, to $500. However, getting the relays installed at the same time as the system would have been ideal because the relays only required a few cable runs, two new RCDs, and most of the time was spent retrofitting to the already installed system.
Initial Review: I got in touch with ZEN and many other providers at the end of October and aimed for an install before Christmas 2023. ZEN were about second quickest out of eight companies to get back to me and after a video call and a bit of back and forward, just after a week I had a mid-range quote in hand. After two weeks only four of eight companies had come back with pricing and I preferred the Redback inverted over the Huawei and other brands because it is an Aussie brand and has built in relays and EBS. I made it very clear that going forward that the level of communication I had received up to that point is what I would continue to expect.
Once I decided to get on board I was passed onto an project coordinator* and received the deposit invoice, then things were very quiet. After chasing up, install was done the week before Christmas but I wasn't told at any point before the installers were present that the system wouldn't be active until it had been inspected, or that the system wouldn't export until the energy meter had been changed, or when either of those things would happen. Simply a failure to communicate these things.
I had trouble getting responses out of the project coordinator* and a couple* of times was told I would get sent some info by email which didn't happen until chasing up.
Since the system has been fully up and running I've been trying to get in touch about utilizing the relays in the inverter, and there's been account issues with the login portal but most of my emails are not being replied to.
In summary - not the cheapest, communications were more of a battle than expected considering how much the system cost, after sales support is rather wanting, but the Redback itself is a decent product.
*corrections and edits...
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