Maintenance and Troubleshooting

 

Important: The GT Inverter will reduce its energy output to protect its electronic

 

circuits from overheating and possible damage in high heat conditions. For maximum

 

output in hot climates, mount the GT Inverter in a shaded location with good air flow.

Angle of the sun

The angle of the sun in relation to the PV array surface—the array

 

orientation—can dramatically affect the PV array output. The array energy output

 

will vary depending on the time of day and time of year as the sun’s angle in

 

relation to the array changes. Sunlight output decreases as the sun approaches the

 

horizons (such as in winter in North America) due to the greater atmospheric air

 

mass it must penetrate, reducing both the light intensity that strikes the array’s

 

surface and spectrum of the light. In general, you can expect only four to six hours

 

of direct sunlight per day.

Partial shade

Shading of only a single module of the array will reduce the output of the entire

 

system. Such shading can be caused by something as simple as the shadow of a

 

utility wire or tree branch on part of the array’s surface. This condition, in effect,

 

acts like a weak battery in a flashlight, reducing the total output, even though the

 

other batteries are good. However, the output loss is not proportionate to shading.

 

The GT Inverter is designed to maximize its energy production in all of the above

 

situations using its MPPT algorithm.

Other Factors

 

 

 

Other factors that contribute to system losses are:

 

• Dust or dirt on the array

 

Fog or smog

 

• Mismatched PV array modules, with slight inconsistencies in performance

 

 

from one module to another.

 

Inverter efficiency

 

Wire losses

 

Utility grid voltage.

 

For additional information and technical notes concerning PV array performance,

 

please visit our Web site at www.xantrex.com.

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