3.3kW Array Installed Near Ashland, Missouri

Around 12:30 pm last Friday afternoon, LarryL2 (800x600)I took a phone call from a neighbor who asked “do you know Larry L. is installing a solar array this weekend?”.  One phone call later, I had introduced myself and Show Me Solar to Larry and three days and 32 Kaneka 60 Watt Thin Film Amorphous Silicon modules later I’m here to report on our progress.  A professional electrical engineer, Larry built his home with solar in mind.  The two and a half story home just east of Ashland, Missouri has a large steel roof oriented due south.  The roof angle is low so the array will favor summer sun.  To save money, Larry designed his own racking system from treated lumber and strips of aluminum.  The aluminum strips serve double duty designed as a grounding circuit complete with a lightening arrestor attached to  the end of the house.

Larry even constructed his own boom to lift the panels to the roof.  LarryL1 (800x542) Work mounting the modules began Saturday morning and by Sunday evening was more than half way complete.  Each column of four modules was wired in series and readings of open circuit voltage Saturday averaged 350 volts.  The amorphous silicon panels were producing a little over 1 amp of current. The voltage will subside over time by about a third to stabilize around 60 V yielding about 60 Watts of solar power per module and a total of 3,300 Watts for the entire 56 module array.  The modules are manufactured by a Japanese company named Kaneka and distributed here in the United States by Sun Electric out of Miami, Florida.  Sun Electric currently offers special pricing on the panels of $0.98/Watt which is extremely low for small residential arrays.  Larry mentioned Sun Electric required he order an inverter with the modules in order to qualify for the low price.  He selected a SMA Sunny Boy 4kW utility interactive (high voltage) inverter.  Wiring of the combiner box, DC disconnect and inverter are planned for this upcoming weekend.

Plans have been made to log progress and performance data for Larry’s system on ShowMeSolar.org’s SunBeams Blog so check back regularly for updates.  If you are interested in learning more about Larry’s solar electric system and it’s installation or have a solar system of your own the details of which you would like to share please contact the Show Me Solar team for more details at info@showmesolar.org

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categories Energy Raiser, Missouri, Show Us Your Solar Project | Jeffrey Owens May 10, 2010

25 Comments to “3.3kW Array Installed Near Ashland, Missouri”

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