Grid-Tie Stumper (for me) [RE-wrenches]

[matthew tritt]

Mo,

In this particular approach, has anyone checked the system for power
consumption with the solar feed turned off to determine if the problem might
be an incorrectly connected leg (like to neutral/ground). The SunnyBoys will
still produce power with one leg connected to neutral or ground.

Matt T
----- Original Message -----
From: "Greg Egan" <gegan at renewalaska.com>
To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
Sent: Monday, April 14, 2003 11:05 AM
Subject: Re: Grid-Tie Stumper (for me) [RE-wrenches]


Mo,

I had a customer who told me his wind turbine was using power. It was
mounted on
the roof of his cabin and the wires ran through a pipe fitting sticking out
of
the roof. The pipe plus the vibration or something must have chafed the
wires.
When I pulled it off the roof I found some wet, charred wires and
insulation.
There was enough of a short to heat the wires but not enough to trip the
breaker. And enough of a leak in the roof to keep the place from catching
fire!

You might want to hang your amprobe on the grounding electrode conductor and
see
if you have any current to ground. Might have a ground fault somewhere.

Greg


Mo Rousso wrote:

> Wrenches,
>
> I¹ve encountered a situation that puzzles me.
>
> Around 2 months ago, I went on a service call to investigate a system
whose
> performance was not meeting the homeowner¹s expectations.  This system was
> installed by another company and I had no knowledge of the installation
> prior to my visit.
>
> The system is composed of 1 SMA SWR2500U-SBD and 10 BP Solar SX-150S.  The
> owner claimed that their utility bill actually increased with the solar
> system operating.  I read their bills and the latter bills were indeed
> higher.  I looked at the meter and it appeared to be able to spin
backwards
> without a problem.  Putting my trusty Fluke on the usual inverter
terminals
> and wires showed appropriate numbers.
>
> I suggested that we needed to collect some data over the next billing
period
> or two.  I suggested that we call Edison and request a physical meter read
> since it was conceivable that due to their locked gate and large dog
> estimated reads were occurring.  I further suggested that once the
physical
> read was done, that the PV system be turned off and we collect some
baseline
> data.  I was suspicious that their energy habits had changed and that
their
> consumption had increased.  I asked them to be cognizant of their energy
> usage patterns and not to make any changes during the course of our
trials.
> At the start of the next billing cycle, they were to continue using power
in
> the same manner as the preceding billing period, but with the PV system
back
> on.  Well, that period is now over and the bills are significantly higher
> again!  They are considering having their PV system removed from their
home
> < not too cool.
>
> Any suggestions on other avenues to explore?  Could the PV system
> installation have caused some sort of path for those pesky electrons to
> disappear down?  Are aliens to blame??? :)
>
> Thanks in advance for any guidance < I appreciate the collective wisdom
> available here.  I need to return to the home this coming week.
>
> Mo
>
> --
> Mo Rousso
> President
> HelioPower
> Renewable Energy Systems
> Remote Power Solutions
> mrousso at heliopower.com
> www.heliopower.com
> 760.451.9374
>
> --
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
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--
Greg Egan
Alaska Renewable Energy
981 Gold Mine Trail Fairbanks, Alaska 99712
Phone: 907-457-4299; Fax: 907-457-4290; Email: gegan at renewalaska.com
URL:  http://www.renewalaska.com

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