Solar Combiner Box
See Examples
Solar Combiner Box is the answer when you have many solar panels harvesting solar energy. It accomplishes following main functions
• It consolidates individual outputs into one main supply feed
• This is fed to an inverter converting DC to AC
• Provides protection, monitoring, and freedom to add or isolate panels
• Reduces power loss being co-located with the solar panel groups
• It also helps consolidation of AC outputs
• Offers various design options to suit the unique needs of the application
• Design conforms to the UL1741 standard
• NEC Article 690.53/ 690.54/705.12 which describes the Photovoltaic power system requirement for DC/AC/ Dual power sources in an excellent detail. NEC Article 705.12(D)(2)(3)(c) deals with AC combiner panel.
The solar combiner enclosure specification would be chosen based on the behavior of the environment at the target geographical location. The enclosure specification will follow the local, national or international standards and in minimum will include the following parameters.
• Dimension
• Material of construction such as steel, fiber re-enforced etc
• Ingress protection
• Mounting requirements
• Cable entry and exit plan
• Door and paint specs
• Electrical termination requirements
• Ventilation requirements
• Residential\ Commercial\ Industrial purpose
There are lots of considerations involved in planning PV systems and combiner panels locations. Following are few of them
• The DC or AC combiner panels shall have proper disconnects\ circuit breakers installed to make sure that isolation / de-energization / disconnection could be performed in the events of fire.
• The final AC/DC combiner output shall be connected through a disconnect which shall be located in an easy to access location for first responders.