PV Disconnects or breakers before the 6000XP?

[Onehand]

I have read allot of threads on this and unless you have strings in parallel, disconnects aren't required before the PV feeds land on the inverter. Still, I plan on putting disconnects at the arrays, along with the 15 amp fuses, 1 each per 8 panel string. I would also like to have a way to shut the PV down, before the XP and before the feeds land on the terminals so the terminals aren't hot if I need to take the covers off and work on it.

On the coldest days, panels would be supplying 435VDC at 15 amps I would prefer DC breakers over manual disconnects, (auto shutdown if something happens) something like 500volt at 15 amps. Is this a good idea or a waste?

 

[BentleyJ]

Your thinking is right on in my opinion. A breaker serves a dual purpose, means of maintenance disconnect and over current protection in one device.

 

[Onehand]

After talking to a couple different solar equipment places, turns out breakers on pv lines are worthless. Since panels are current limiting devices, if a panel puts out 10 amps, that's all it will ever put out even dead shorted. Only way a breaker could trip is if there was a lightning strike or something.

Might be a decent lightning arresting device at the arrays, connecting the neg sides to a spark gap, then to a ground rod. Hopefully that would stop the surge at the panels location and never make it to inverters.