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diy solar

Any recommendation for buying Solar Panels in US.

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Nov 28, 2019
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I wonder if anyone would like to share some experience and recommendation of (US or Chinese) retailers
selling large 400W solar panels, for DYI instalation and for an amount of 20 to 24 pieces.
I am located in Northern California.
 
A couple in that wattage range, others a bit smaller. A few new, many "previously loved"


Also contact them to ask about inventory; not all posted on website. We like this vendor.
And check with other liquidators. I've found them on eBay and Craigslist, also be search engine.

There tend to be large quantities taken off solar farms, small quantities of new leftovers from jobs (spares bought)

Learn what you can about the brands/models you consider. They ain't all the same in terms of durability.
 
A couple in that wattage range, others a bit smaller. A few new, many "previously loved"


Also contact them to ask about inventory; not all posted on website. We like this vendor.
And check with other liquidators. I've found them on eBay and Craigslist, also be search engine.

There tend to be large quantities taken off solar farms, small quantities of new leftovers from jobs (spares bought)

Learn what you can about the brands/models you consider. They ain't all the same in terms of durability.
I was looking at this option:

First Solar Series 6 440W Thin Film Solar Panel – SAV
$202.00

- for an order of 40 PVs, shipping for about 2,700 miles would be in the order of $2k, or $50 additional per PV.

Shipping seems a little bit high, I got a quote of shipping my car to the east coast for less than $1k?
 
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CED Greentech has several locations in northern CA.

I noticed a whearouse in San Jose, CA and San Leandro, CA.
This will avoid shipping costs. I will try to stop by to have a look.
 
I was looking at this option:

First Solar Series 6 440W Thin Film Solar Panel – SAV
$202.00

That solar panel is a strange animal, make sure you can assemble an array meeting your inverter/scc specs

"
Specifications:

  • Rated Power: 440W
  • Open circuit voltage (VOC): 220 V
  • Max power voltage (VMP): 184.7 V
  • Short circuit current (ISC): 2.55 A
  • Max power current: 2.38 A
  • Maximum system voltage: DC1500 (IEC/UL)
  • Fuse Rating: 5 A
"

- for an order of 40 PVs, shipping for about 2,700 miles would be in the order of $2k, or $50 additional per PV.

Shipping seems a little bit high, I got a quote of shipping my car to the east coast for less than $1k?

Was that quote from SanTan?
They got pretty decent shipping for me, but I may be closer. Freight rates are all over the map from various carriers.
I took delivery at a freight terminal, forlifted into my pickup truck, rather than paying them for the last mile.
 
I bought 24 370 watt panels last month, shipping was $350 from Texas to Oregon. $2k is absurd.
 
Renvu and CED Greentech are both convenient in your area. I bought my system components from CED about ten miles from me in Santa Rosa. Considering some more panels in the next six months.
 
Was that quote from SanTan?
They got pretty decent shipping for me, but I may be closer. Freight rates are all over the map from various carriers.
I took delivery at a freight terminal, forlifted into my pickup truck, rather than paying them for the last mile.
I completed an order on the website and after providing my address I got this quote.
I will contact SanTan directly.
 
That solar panel is a strange animal, make sure you can assemble an array meeting your inverter/scc specs

"
Specifications:

  • Rated Power: 440W
  • Open circuit voltage (VOC): 220 V
  • Max power voltage (VMP): 184.7 V
  • Short circuit current (ISC): 2.55 A
  • Max power current: 2.38 A
  • Maximum system voltage: DC1500 (IEC/UL)
  • Fuse Rating: 5 A
Hmm putting together 40x220v panels is going to require a lot of parallel strings!
The description is also very odd, “NEW, Open Box and cleaned.?
 
 
That solar panel is a strange animal, make sure you can assemble an array meeting your inverter/scc specs
  • Rated Power: 440W
  • Open circuit voltage (VOC): 220 V
  • Max power voltage (VMP): 184.7 V
  • Short circuit current (ISC): 2.55 A
  • Max power current: 2.38 A
  • Maximum system voltage: DC1500 (IEC/UL)
  • Fuse Rating: 5 A
Thank you to point out this issue, I noticed the VOC and VMP are quite high.

I started describing my project in another thread, that I need to update, however the layout that I have in mind is as follow:

- I plan to have 3 sets of 6 x 400W panels: Flat, East vertical, West vertical, and an other set of 2 South vertical panels.

- Having flat or vertical panels is not optimal for an all over the year production, however in winter this will in fact produce the maximum result.

- I have a minimum constraint of 15 kWh a day, which seems doable in this configuration, and I could use summer surplus to produce hot water.

- I was thinking to have each set of 6 panels (Flat, East, West) in a 2P 3S combination and to put then the 3 sets in parallel: 3P x (2P 3S)

- Or could use two separate MPPT inverters, one for each set of 3 panels, such as: 3P x 3S.

- The 2 South panels should be in serie and use a smaller separate MPPT inverter, to avoid having 30ft of wires running on top of a flat roof.

So finding Solars Panels and matching MPPT inverters is a kind of catch-22 situation that I have to solve, any recommendation is welcome.
 
Thank you to point out this issue, I noticed the VOC and VMP are quite high.

I started describing my project in another thread, that I need to update, however the layout that I have in mind is as follow:

- I plan to have 3 sets of 6 x 400W panels: Flat, East vertical, West vertical, and an other set of 2 South vertical panels.

- Having flat or vertical panels is not optimal for an all over the year production, however in winter this will in fact produce the maximum result.

- I have a minimum constraint of 15 kWh a day, which seems doable in this configuration, and I could use summer surplus to produce hot water.

- I was thinking to have each set of 6 panels (Flat, East, West) in a 2P 3S combination and to put then the 3 sets in parallel: 3P x (2P 3S)

- Or could use two separate MPPT inverters, one for each set of 3 panels, such as: 3P x 3S.

- The 2 South panels should be in serie and use a smaller separate MPPT inverter, to avoid having 30ft of wires running on top of a flat roof.

So finding Solars Panels and matching MPPT inverters is a kind of catch-22 situation that I have to solve, any recommendation is welcome.
When you say "vertical" Are you going to have them standing absolutely plumb? I would think having some tilt would be much better than truly vertical because only at sunrise and sunset will the panels be pointing toward the sun. The amount of insolation is very weak at these times because of all the atmospheric haze, smog, etc. the suns energy has to go through. Add to that as soon as the sun starts rising your panels are going to be increasingly misaligned. If you tilt them back somewhat you should have much better results, in my opinion.
 
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Sounds good. Which model would you recommend in the 72 Cells 400W in a 3S combination?

How many volts can you controller take in? Take the 3 panels and triple the voltage for 3s and see what you get vs need

Is space an issue? Why are you trying to get such high wattage panels? If space is not an issue then lower wattage = lower heat and older proven panels/tech so more reliable in my opinion.

Canadian solar are some of the best panels and I think they are $1 a watt new last I looked for a friend on santan
 
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Renvu and CED Greentech are both convenient in your area. I bought my system components from CED about ten miles from me in Santa Rosa. Considering some more panels in the next six months.
@Ampster thank for pointing out CED Greentech, who's Web site provides an incredible choice of PVs.
I contacted the San Francisco Bay Area location and I had a very good talk over the phone.

However, when I went there they were not able to find any 72 cells.
They only carry 60 cells, and mostly the Hanwha Q-Cells type,
and mentioned that the 72 cells were used for industrial applications.

They also mentioned that they would not sell to me any electrical hardware devices,​
telling me that those were very complex (meaning risky..) to use and they could not provide any help.​
But instead, I could get from them any mounting hardware that I might need.​

In particular they recommended to use the IrondRidge website which provides a tool to design solar installations.​
This tool indeed allows you to determine the hardware needed to design your roof or ground mounted solar system,​
using ASCE 7-16 (American Society of Civil Engineers) wind design code or recommendations​
and ATC (Applied Technology Council) hazards information.​

While everything looks so simple as an armchair developer,
I realize that becoming a hobbyist solar installer is more challenging than expected.

I contacted some PV distributors but in general they sell palettes stack of PVs​
weighing above 3,000 lbs, more than a one-ton pickup truck could carry.​
Beside shipping cost (that I found similar to shipping a car by truck...),​
I have also issues with shipping company no willing that​
a semi truck double park in order to deliver in residential area.​

I am feeling now going back to square one.
I have some space constraints so I would prefer getting efficient new PVs, even if I need buying a full stack.
I would be interested reading about any recommendation or previous experiences from getting PVs.
 
However, when I went there they were not able to find any 72 cells.
They only carry 60 cells, and mostly the Hanwha Q-Cells type,
and mentioned that the 72 cells were used for industrial applications.
I saw plenty of 72 cell panels on the Santa Rosa website. My recollection is that 96 cell panels are the commercial/industrial size. I bought some used Sunpower 96 cell panels off Craiglist a few years ago. Some of them are working fine on a string inverter. Four of them are on micros and I had to get IQ7+96 micros to handle the higher voltage.
 
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