PV Panels coming tomorrow - What Else ?

Dave_Fowler

Looks like two DC isolators - one for each PV string just below the inverter and one AC isolator near the switch box. All fairly standard necessary equipment.

Dave F

Sterlingtimes

Ectophile wrote: »

So what did they do instead? I can't imagine they just twisted the wires together and wrapped them in sticky tape!

I'm not really sure how it was wired. The solar generated power is fed to an isolation switch and then into the import meter and then into a fused spare position in the consumer unit.

By way of example, the Owl site indicates two different installation approaches: Type 1 with a Henely Block and Type 2 with a feed to the consumer unit: http://docs.owlintuition.com/index.php?m=2

I cannot make out from a Kirchoff viewpoint how the two installation differ. I'll need to put the consumer unit to pieces to figure that out.

Ectophile

Sterlingtimes wrote: »

I'm not really sure how it was wired. The solar generated power is fed to an isolation switch and then into the import meter and then into a fused spare position in the consumer unit.

By way of example, the Owl site indicates two different installation approaches: Type 1 with a Henely Block and Type 2 with a feed to the consumer unit: http://docs.owlintuition.com/index.php?m=2

I cannot make out from a Kirchoff viewpoint how the two installation differ. I'll need to put the consumer unit to pieces to figure that out.

It doesn't really make any difference from the Kirchoff point-of-view. It just moves the junction point from the Henley block to the live bus bar inside the consumer unit.

I think in my case, they decided they didn't want to fiddle with the old consumer unit (with the risk of them being held responsible if any fault showed up), so they just stuck in a mini "garage-type" consumer unit, connected to the meter tails through Henley blocks.

It's just a pity they didn't uprate the 30ma RCD that came with it. Every time there's a storm, I have to stick my head in the meter cupboard to see if it's tripped again. :wall: The inverter manufacturer recommends a 300ma one, which would be a lot less twitchy when a bit of damp gets into the panels' wiring.

Martyn1981

Ectophile wrote: »

It's just a pity they didn't uprate the 30ma RCD that came with it. Every time there's a storm, I have to stick my head in the meter cupboard to see if it's tripped again. :wall: The inverter manufacturer recommends a 300ma one, which would be a lot less twitchy when a bit of damp gets into the panels' wiring.

I don't pretend to understand too much about electronics, but your point has come up on the Navitron forum site (I visit) a few times.

Exactly as you say, the advice from some of the friendly installers/electricians is that 30ma just can't cope with some set-ups when they get damp.

In some cases where people have asked for help, and have dual RCD consumer units, simply moving the PV to the 100ma side has solved the problem.

Mart.

PS @ Sterlingtimes, I assume you meant generation meter. If your PV is feeding into the import meter, you're going to get an interesting bill! M.