4

Recently I have installed a set of 10 panels connected in series with 1 single Inverter. I have realised that for the first 2 hours 2 PVs have a cast shadow on them from a neighbourhood tank (that cannot shoot down :) ) and this will reduce the overall current of the system to the bare minimum.

I was thinking of using a timer to bypass the 2 PVs and take energy from the 8 remaining PVs for the first 2 hours. I was thinking of fitting 2 MC4 T-Connectors.

Should this incurr any implications due to short circuit currents in the last 2 PVs. Should I insert a low OHm load just in case?

enter image description here

Improve this question
1
  • To add a comment to this thread, I have tried the above setup but did not get any big improvement that worth the hassle. This is because the overall string voltage is reduced which will counter balance in the Current-Voltage, power output.
    – NotForFun
    Nov 23, 2015 at 7:54

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
4

You must open circuit the panels you're not using, do not short circuit them. Open circuit is fine, the panel just sits there and no current flows. You'll see quite a high voltage on the terminals (it'll be listed on the panel data sheet as "maximum open circuit voltage". If you short the panels you'll get up to "maximum short circuit current" which risks overheating the wiring inside the panel.

If you can I would test the idea by installing the plug/socket in the string and manually bypassing those two panels to make sure that you get enough extra power to make it worth doing properly.

Improve this answer
1
  • Sure makes sense.
    – NotForFun
    Nov 23, 2015 at 7:54

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.