How To Wire Solar Panels

How Solar Power Works

Whenever the sun shines, the solar cells create power. The grid connects inverter converts the DC power created by the solar panels to 240V AC power. Which may subsequently be employed from the property/household.

If a grid link system is generating more energy than the house consumes. The Surplus is fed to the grid. Some power companies meter the Electricity fed into the grid. How much youre paid is dependent on the feed-in tariff.

If the solar cells arent producing power, Such as at Night. Electricity comes in the mains electricity grid as normal. The energy merchant charges the typical rate for the energy used.

As all elements in a system have no shifting components. You can anticipate a very long hassle-free lifestyle from the solar energy system.

Read more: How do solar panel works for your home

Remember These About The Solar Wire Gauges

There is a standard scale for the gauges of solar wires, known as the AWG . Wires come with different gauges and capacities. Whatever operation you seek from a wire, the gauge number will influence it.

So it is safe to say the higher you aim for the gauge number to be, the more resistance the wire will offer, and therefore the lesser will be the flow of current. Different usages will need different wire gauges. If you need it to be connected to the battery bank, the gauge might differ from charger controllers, etc.

The changes might also result because of the solar panel you are using. Commercial and residential both have different demands with it comes to wire gauges.

How To Connect Two Solar Panels To One Controller Correctly

Are you planning to purchase or have you already purchased portable solar kits but are slightly baffled on how to connect two solar panels to one battery charge controller? If so, the good news is that there is nothing for you to worry about. The process is not as complicated as you imagine.

In this post, well help you with your concerns about how to connect two solar panels to one controller. Likewise, well discuss the materials youll need to prepare as well as the step-by-step guide on how to carry out the task correctly. Lets keep the ball rolling!

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Solar Information And Wiring Diagrams

Pair the Power System 360x with our line of solar products to charge on the go. We are your one stop shop for all vanlife electrical needs. You can also pair panels from other manufactures with our system.

This page has detailed instructions on how to connect any panel to the Power Station 360X. You can attach up to 360W of solar for a standard 12V system. If you need more than 360W of solar, you must configure the solar array for 24V. If you’re not sure, contact us and we’ll help you out.

Solar Panels Wired In Series And Parallel

Wiring solar panels in parallel or series doesnt have to be an either/or proposition. To generate the maximum amount of power, wiring solar panels in series and parallel is possible, though it is complex. This is a normal configuration for large installations. The ability to configure series-parallel depends on the maximum possible total output voltage and output current of the solar array. In turn, these are limited by the maximum possible total input voltage and input current of the charge controller if an off-grid system, or an inverter, if youre dealing with a grid-tied system.

To do this wiring, make two sets of PV panels and connect them in series. Then, connect the two sets of series-connected solar panels in parallel to the charge connector.

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How Do Solar Panels Wired In Series Compare To Solar Panels Wired In Parallel

A charge controller is a determining factor when it comes to solar panel wiring. Maximum Power Point Tracking charge controllers are for wiring solar panels in a series, where Pulse Width Modulation charge controllers are used to wire solar panels in parallel.

To understand how wiring in series works in comparison to how parallel wiring works, lets think for a moment about how Christmas lights used to work.

If a bulb burned out, came loose from its socket or broke, the entire string wouldnt light up. This was because the lights were wired in a series. You would have to locate the problem bulb and replace it or reseat it to get the string of lights to work again.

Today, most Christmas lights feature a form of parallel wiring that allows for strings of lights to stay lit even when there is one troublemaker in the string.

Circuits wired in series work the same way for solar panels.

If there is a problem with the connection of one panel in a series, the entire circuit fails. Meanwhile, one defective panel or loose wire in a parallel circuit will not impact the production of the rest of the solar panels.

In practice, how solar panels are wired today depends on the type of inverter that is being used.

Find out how much solar panels can save you annually

Complete Solar Panel Wire Size Guide

• Solar System

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Confused about which wire gauge you need to build your solar array? This solar panel wire size guide will teach you EXACTLY what size wires youll need.

Using too thin of a wire is a potential fire hazard. But selecting too thick of a wire provides no tangible benefit and just wastes your money.

So if youre ready, lets get to it!

Learning Objectives

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What Is The Ideal Gauge Of Solar Panel Wires

American Wire Gauge is the average scale used for wires. The residential usage and gauge are readily available on the internet with correspondence to the amperes. But here are some examples to make the work easy for you:

Should You Wire Solar Panels In Series Or Parallel

This might sound vague and repetitive at this point. Still, you have to understand that the decision to wire your solar panels either in series or parallel highly depends on the conditions you need to satisfy.

Conditions to satisfy? What are those?

Recall that connecting solar panels in series increases the total system voltage sent to your inverter. On the other hand, parallel-connected solar panels increase the whole system current received by the same power inverter.

So when choosing a wiring configuration, your job is to make sure that the total system voltage, total power injected, and total system current fall within the inverters voltage, power, and current ratings, respectively.

The best way to drill this concept into you is through practice. So, in the next section, we will use all the things we discussed to decide which wiring configuration/s to use for a 1kW and a 5kW solar system.

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Use The Right Design Software To Plan Systems

Which wiring configuration to use ultimately depends on the PV system in question. And this involves crunching the numbers as you run through multiple solar power system designs for each potential project.

Fortunately, an emerging generation of solar design software is helping to automate this process complete with wiring recommendations, energy production calculations, monthly savings, and 3D renderings all generated with a few mouse clicks. This software not only helps save time, but it can also move you closer to making that sale.

The Anatomy And Specifications Of A Solar Panel

The first solar panel wiring configuration we will look at is the series connection. But, before you wire your solar panels in series , you first have to familiarize yourself with the anatomy of a solar panel.

Each solar panel also comes with a manufacturers datasheet. For this session, we will take advantage of the voltage, current, and power ratings highlighted in red.

of a Solar Panel

All solar panels have positive and negative terminals where you attach the conductors. For example, one of our previous articles discusses solar panel rating at length.

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Wiring Solar Panels When Using A String Inverter

String inverters have a rated voltage window that they need from the solar panels in order to operate. It also has a rated current that the inverter needs to function properly.

String inverters have maximum power point trackers in them that can vary the current and voltage to produce the maximum amount of power possible.

In most crystalline solar panels, the open circuit voltage is around 40 Volts. Most string inverters have an operational voltage window between 300 and 500 volts. This would mean that when designing a system, you could have between 8 and 12 panels in a series.

Any more than that would exceed the maximum voltage the inverter could handle.

The thing is, most solar panel systems are larger than 12 panels. So, in order to have more panels in the system, you could wire another series of panels, and connect those series in parallel. This allows you to have the right number of panels to meet your homes energy needs, without exceeding the limits of your inverter.

Get Your Solar Panels Installed

Finally, the big day arrives. Your solar installer will show up and begin preparing your roof, specifically by verifying that all tiles or shingles are securely attached. Then, the installer will place the wiring thats needed to connect your residential solar system to the electrical system.

After the wires are placed, your installer will place racking, which is used to hold the solar panels in position. The panels are placed into the racks, and the inverter is connected to the panels.

If you have a battery bank, your installer will also set that up. One of the most common questions about installing solar panels is how long the work will take. It all depends on the size of your home and the scope of the solar panel installation, but you can anticipate a timeline of one to three days in total. If your solar system is properly designed and planned out, this step of the process should actually be the most straightforward.

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Tips For Wiring Solar Panels

Based on the above, its reasonable for your solar energy clients to conclude that series wiring is best for installations that receives some shade and parallel wiring is better suited when shading isnt a problem.

They wouldnt be entirely wrong. Unfortunately, its not that simple. There are some additional factors worth considering.

Wire For Solar Panels

How to choose and use the right wires with your solar system.

Solar wire types refers to the type of wires used to connect your solar panels with the rest of your photovoltaic system.

Choosing the right wire for your solar energy system is critical to it’s functioning properly and remaining undamaged. If you get this wrong and choose a pv wire too small for your pv system, your battery bank may not charge fully and as a result your appliances might not work as well or at full power.

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How To Install Solar Panel Brackets

Solar panel brackets are just a nut and bolt attachment. They come in a variety of styles, and each is slightly different. Many slide onto the solar frame railings and then tighten to hold the panel in place.

The basic is to position the bracket to capture the panel and then tighten the bolt that clamps the bracket to the panel. You may need only a single socket wrench with the correct socket type, or you may need two socket wrenches one to work the top bolt and one to hold the nut onto the bolt.

• Once you have installed the first panel, it is a simple task to place the second panel and then clamp it. The slide clamps sit between the panels, so you would lock the first panels top into place as you lock the bottom of panel two to the frame.
• The process is straightforward. For roof applications, you may need to wire the panels as you install them. Many styles of solar panels for roof applications will have a hinge that allows the panel to swing up so that you can access the roof, frame, and the backside of the solar panel. That is an advantage over a clamp system.

Wire Sizes For Solar Panels In Series Vs Parallel

The wiring diagram is fairly straightforward on this one, so check it out:

For series, at the 57 volts and 9 amps, we can use 10 gauge wire for anything under 70 feet from the panels to the charge controller.In Parallel, we can use 10 gauge wire from the solar panels to the combiner box, but only if the longest wire length is shorter than 24 feet.After the Combiner Box, since our amps ramp up to a little over 27, weve got to step it up to 6 gauge wire but we have to make sure our solar controller is closer than 15 for the 6gauge to be big enough.Also, those lengths dont give us much wiggle room. We REALLY have to try to make the runs as short as possible because if we have much voltage drop, it further decreases what our charge controller has to work with in terms of voltage.Remember, if the voltage of the solar panels is lower than the voltage of the batteries, they cant charge.On both setups, both series AND parallel, 8 gauge wire is recommended from the charge controller to the batteries given we keep that distance under 5 feet, which is pretty feasible as thats good system management anyway.

Breakers for wiring Solar Panels in Series vs Parallel

Now, we need to talk about breakers because we all know that none of this matters if your wires rub through, short out, and catch your camper on fire. Dramatic, yes but lets get to it.

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Defining Common Electrical Terms

From grid connectivity to solar permitting to feasibility studies, you likely deal with technical terms every day. But the average homeowner normally doesnt understand these concepts. Most barely understand the basics of solar power production.

This is why you should always go to inspections and consultations armed with a few definitions that are easy to understand.

1. Voltage

Represented with a V, voltage is the difference in charge between two separate points in an electrical circuit. This difference is what causes electricity to flow explaining why voltage is often compared to the water pressure in a homes plumbing system.

2. Amperage

Amperage represents the rate at which electrons move from areas with high pressure to areas of low pressure. Known as electrical current, this rate is measured in amps or A. And in plumbing terms, amperage is analogous to the flow of water.

3. Wattage

Voltage and current are instantly created whenever sunlight hits a PV module. Pushed by voltage, the electrical current courses through the installation until it encounters resistance. Its this resistance that allows the flowing electrons to perform work like powering lights. Work is measured in watts .

These three values can be combined into Watts Law:

Watts =

Basic Concepts Of Solar Panel Wiring

To have a functional solar PV system, you need to wire the panels together to create an electrical circuit through which current will flow, and you also need to wire the panels to the inverter that will convert the DC power produced by the panels to AC power that can be used in your home and sent to the grid. In the solar industry. This is typically referred to as stringing and each series of panels connected together is referred to as a string.

In this article, well be focusing on string inverter . Each string inverter has a range of voltages at which it can operate.

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Which Wire Is Positive On Solar Panels

Solar panel wires and connectors work together to make the job easier. Use MC4 connectors, which have a locking mechanism, making them ideal for outdoor environments. If youre an installer, the modules youre working with will most likely have been manufactured with this connector attached to the junction box on the back of the panel. The junction box will contain two wires:

• One wire is the DC positive : this solar DC wiring is typically for the female MC4 connector
• The other is the DC negative : this is for the male connector

• Lets say a 60-cell panel as shown above produces 30 volts at 7.25 amps
• In series wiring, were looking at a total output of 150 volts , at 7.25 amps

Although our example is about identical panels, panels with different power ratings can also be series wired. With different power ratings, the amperage will vary panel to panel as well. Lets say the highest panel is 4 ampere and the lowest is 1. In this scenario, the overall amperage will be restricted to the lowest value, which is 1 ampere, which is incredibly inefficient.

The advantage of series wiring is that electricity transfers easily over long distances. The disadvantage: if just one panel becomes shaded or covered with leaves or other debris, it impacts the entire string you wont see much production.