SolarWorld Recalls Solar Systems with Copper Grounding Lugs Due to Electrocution, Electric Shock or Fire Hazard

Recall Insight

This CPSC action (record #14260) was formally reported on August 21, 2014. It is classified under Moderate severity, with a current status of Active. SolarWorld Americas, of Camarillo, California, a subsidiary of SolarWorld AG, of Bonn, Germany. is listed as the recalling firm. Federal records indicate About 1.3 million in the U.S. and 210,000 in Canada units are affected, placing this recall in the million-unit bracket that typically triggers nationwide consumer alerts and retailer sweeps.

The documented reason for this recall is: SolarWorld solar panels installed with bare-copper grounding lugs can corrode which could result in a faulty ground circuit, posing an electric shock, electrocution or fire hazard. Distribution information was not included in the agency filing, so consumers should assume broad potential exposure until the firm publishes point-of-sale details. The remedy documented by the agency is: Customers may be able to identify from the ground whether a tin-coated lug (silver) or a bare-copper lug (brown) has been used on their solar panels. Consumers who can identify the improper lugs shou… — consumers holding this product should act on that instruction rather than relying on general guidance.

To put this record in context, PlainRecalls indexes 83,949 recalls across the FDA, CPSC, NHTSA and USDA FSIS going back to 1995. Within the same product category, the database holds 6 closely related recalls, of which 1 were also issued by CPSC. That clustering is a signal — repeated actions in a narrow category often indicate a systemic quality-control issue, a supplier-wide contamination, or a design defect that has propagated across product lines. This recall is roughly 12 years old; older recalls can remain relevant because many units enter resale, rental, and secondary-market channels where the original warning never reaches the end user. Always cross-check the recall number against the official agency page before relying on any summary.