Chris:
If you do provide transformers I think they are called step-up/step down. Buck/boost transformers I believe are to make adjustments to voltages. I have learned that you need to account for the current flow and direction. For one-way flow, the upstream transformer has a slightly different turns ratio than the downstream transformer to account for voltage drop. With two-way current flow, you might want to consult an engineer (application or electrical) to determine the best, most efficient transformer pair. You can incur a lot of losses with transformers so design is critical. One other complication can occur: In-rush currents can cause nuisance beaker tripping. You may need to buy a breaker with higher AIC rating to compensate for this. Also, I bought a transformer from a reputable manufacturer that had mis-labeled terminals. The smell was hard to forget. I suggest you ohm-out any transformer to identify terminals on the same and different windings. In general, this kind of project can have some unforeseen complications. I am not that experienced, but the experience I do have has come at some cost. I hope to help you and fellow wrenches avoid some of that pain. Sincerely, William Miller [image: Gradient Cap_mini] Lic 773985 millersolar.com <http://www.millersolar.com/> 805-438-5600 *From:* RE-wrenches [mailto:[email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Chris Mason *Sent:* Tuesday, August 16, 2016 10:39 AM *To:* RE-wrenches <[email protected]> *Subject:* Re: [RE-wrenches] Buck-Boost transformer to mitigate high voltage drop? How much of the power produced will be self-consumed, how much will be exported? On Tue, Aug 16, 2016 at 12:16 PM, Howard Arey <[email protected]> wrote: Good day, I have a potential client that has an existing 1,000 foot run from the meter and transformer at the street to the home. This is 4/0 Al and quick calcs show the voltage drop at over 12%. He acknowledges that the wire is undersized to keep voltage at/about 240 volts (I have not measured directly at the street / transformer yet). I know the wire has the necessary ampacity to carry his current service needs and to carry amps from the to-be-suggested solar system. My concern is that the voltage drop will change the 240 volts at the street/transformer/meter to 211ish (or will I see a higher 268’sh voltage at the far house end?) at the house. The inverter will try to synch to this voltage but of course this is outside of typical inverter parameters. So, instead of re-running much large wire, does anybody have experience and comments about potentially using a buck-boots transformer at the home to get us back to 240 volts? This would need to be service entrance sized. *Howard “Scot” Arey* Owner, Solar CenTex 254-300-1228 [email protected] _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: [email protected] Change listserver email address & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org -- Chris Mason NABCEP Certified Solar PV Installer™ Solar Design Engineer Generac Generators Industrial technician www.cometsolar.com <http://www.cometenergysystems.com> 264.235.5670 869.662.5670 Skype: netconcepts
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