Re: [RE-wrenches] Using the North Facing Roof
Chris, Just enter the address as lat,long with negative for south or west. For example, USVI: 18.3500,-64.9333 Leave the city, state, zip blank. No spaces. Let me know if that doesn't work. It's going to pick the closest TMY3 weather station. Jason On Thu, Jul 30, 2015 at 5:42 PM, Chris Mason cometenergysyst...@gmail.com wrote: Could you add the ability to use coordinates instead of zip code, otherwise it is no use outside the US. On Thu, Jul 30, 2015 at 1:16 PM, Jason Szumlanski ja...@floridasolardesigngroup.com wrote: I figured while I'm at it I might as well release something else that you can actually print out and present to your clients or use for your own visualization purposes. This is a very similar tool that will output a web page with a radar chart (like a spider web representing the compass) and a data table down to the secondary intercardinal directions. Hover over the points to see the value. http://floridasolardesigngroup.com/pva/do-site-analysis.php Run it at two different tilt angles and check out the differences. Eventually I plan to update this to compare two (or more) tilt angles on the same radar chart. For now, this is all you get. :) Once again, enjoy! Jason On Wed, Jul 29, 2015 at 10:56 AM, Jason Szumlanski ja...@floridasolardesigngroup.com wrote: I want to give back to this forum that has been so valuable to me, so here it is... a tool for you to quickly compile data for multiple compass orientations for a given pitch... http://floridasolardesigngroup.com/pva/do-pvwatts-wrenches.php This PVWATTS derived tool will give you 36 data points for solar energy production with every azimuth from 0º to 350º at 10º increments for a given location and pitch. You can enter your desired system size to model its output and include your desired PVWATTS derate (system loss) factor. It will download a .CSV file each time you run the tool. You can run it for a variety of tilt angles based on your needs to compile data for your own study. There are limits on use, but if everyone does not run out and use it at the same time it should be fine. Once you get your data into a spreadsheet you can easily slice and dice it any way you want and make some great visualizations. Enjoy! Jason Szumlanski On Tue, Jul 28, 2015 at 7:01 PM, Allan Sindelar al...@sindelarsolar.com wrote: I am paying close attention to this thread, but for different reasons. I have designed and will install next month an off grid system for a high-elevation research hut. At 14,242' I believe this will be the highest elevation off grid system in the continental US (Alaska too?), at the Summit Hut atop White Mountain, east of the Sierra crest in eastern California (wmrc.edu/facilities/bar/summit.html). For me it's sort of a post-retirement summer working adventure. A nearly identical system will serve an older observatory at 12,700' in the same area. The Summit Hut will get a roof array where winds of 190 mph have been measured, I'm told. The roof has about a 5º north-facing tilt. I'm old-school too, thinking in terms of a 25º tilt to south. But other than powering an internet repeater all year, the system is only used during the summer months, mid-June to mid-October, when the snow has melted and it's accessible by a long jeep trail. So in that respect it's similar to a flat- or north-facing array in a grid-tied system, where only summer gain matters much and a southern tilt matters less that I want to believe. Jason's chart is pretty useful here, suggesting that I should pay more attention to handling wind loads with a low angle than maximizing summer gain. Allan *Allan Sindelar* ___ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org
[RE-wrenches] AFCI error on SunnyBoy
I was called to do an evaluation of a SB / SI AC-coupled system installed by others. One of the 4 SB's(9000watt TL) had a hard arc fault error which could not be reset. Apparently a fault since commissioning (sic).After checking all visible connections, I isolated each one of three sub-arrays feeding this inverter's combiner. With only sub-array 1 connected (fuse holders closed) the inverter powered up normally. So I opened up 1 (and 3) and closed circuit 2 fuses. Open circuit voltage OK. I powered up the inverter and immediately heard a loud pop. One of the interconnects in that sub-array literally blew apart and opened up. So I isolated arrays 1 and 2 and tried 3 alone. Same thing, vaporization of an interconnect. FYI - no fuses were blown on either defective circuit, but I guess that's not surprising in this scenario. So the inverter operates fine and only good sub-array is #1. I'm curious as to why when all three sub-arrays were combined, there was not a meltdown of 2 3 connections before the AFCI error shut the inverter down, but individually the faulty circuits were not caught by the AFCI circuit before the damage occurred. Thoughts anyone? Thanks. At least I know where the loose connections are / were.. Kirk Herander VT Solar, LLC Proven PV provider since 1991 www.vermontsolarnow.com dba Vermont Solar Engineering NABCEPTM Inaugural Certificant VT RE Incentive Program Partner 802.863.1202 ___ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org
Re: [RE-wrenches] Solectria PVI Series inverter problems
We have used the 100 k model and have had it repaired soon after the install and it took some time to get the tech available so we will need to wait and see if it was one time or not Jerry On Wed, Jul 29, 2015 at 1:58 PM, Solar dahlso...@gmail.com wrote: I haven't used the PVI so I can't comment on the mounting issue but my past experience with Solectria and tech support was similar to yours. Jesse Sent from my iPhone On Jul 29, 2015, at 6:19 PM, William Miller william.mil...@millersolar.com wrote: Friends: We have just begun using the Solectria PVI series inverter. I fear these inverters may fall off the wall. There is no positive way of attaching the inverter to the bracket, it just rests on there by the grace of gravity. The bracket is very narrow, about 4 inches wide, and the height of the inverter presents a lot of leverage on this small bracket. The electronics sections is seperateable from the connection box, but the connection box will then be left floating in the air, suspended only by the conduits. Point 2: The manual indicates the inverter needs to be mounted on “non-flammable” surfaces. This makes me wonder how hot the inverter gets? This limits mounting options: you can’t mount them on wood siding and you can’t use plywood to span studs. Point 3: There are also some problems with the manual. I have detailed all of these problems in a web page called, “What’s wrong with the Solectria PVI Series?” The link is: http://www.millersolar.com/MillerSolar/case_studies/Solectria/Solectria.html I contacted Solectria about these problems and all I get are promises. I am curious: Does anyone else feel that this mounting system is inadequate? Unfortunately, we started using these just after we attended a seminar presented by Solectria. I was not able to ask them in person why the PVI series inverter has such an inadequate mounting system. If anyone else has complaints about the Solectria, I’d like to hear them. I am real close to banning them from our inventory until these problems are resolved. If there are other problems I have not encountered, I want to factor that in to my decisions. Thanks in advance, William PS: Point 4: Just to get all of my complaints in one place, tech support is pretty marginal with Solectria. A few weeks ago I called and the tech support person did not have access to any of the manuals! I have called them for 4 weeks now and have not received one call back. I called again just now and waited on hold for several minutes, only to be presented with a recording to leave a message. This is pretty bad in itself, but then the mail box was full and would not accept my message!? This is not the indication of a well-founded company. William image002.jpg Lic 773985 millersolar.com http://www.millersolar.com/ 805-438-5600 ___ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org ___ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org ___ List sponsored by Redwood Alliance List Address: RE-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org Change listserver email address settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org/maillist.html List rules etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out or update participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org
