[RE-wrenches] module / panel

[David Brearley]

It tells me their marketing people have never read the NEC‹no big surprise
there‹and maybe they are new to the PV industry.

But the term PV panel is also used so ubiquitously in place of the term PV
module‹both in common parlance and in the industry‹that it¹s probably going
to supersede the terms in the NEC over time. Since the NEC terms were
defined when modules were 50W each, one could make the case that a 250W
module bears some resemblance to a panel, as originally conceived.

One new company that does know the difference is Solyndra. Each cylinder in
Solyndra-speak is a module. They refer to the field-installable assembly is
a panel. Technically perfect use of the terms.

My personal pet peeve is not keeping power and energy straight. We can all
distinguish between between miles-per-hour and miles. So how come some
people in this industry can¹t keep kW and kWh straight? That smells fishy to
me, especially in ³technical sales² literature.



On 2/8/11 5:20 PM, "benn kilburn" <benn at daystarsolar.ca> wrote:

> Dave, thanks for the reply.
> What are your thoughts when you see (in various publications and/or websites)
> solar PV distributers and even "module" manufacturers using the term 'panel'
> to describe a 'module'?
> benn
> 
> DayStar Renewable Energy Inc.
> benn at daystarsolar.ca
> 780-906-7807 
> HAVE A SUNNY DAY 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2011 17:02:32 -0600
> From: david.brearley at solarprofessional.com
> To: re-wrenches at lists.re-wrenches.org
> Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] module / panel
> 
> Message body People in and out of the industry misuse the term PV panel all
> the time. The NEC is pretty clear that the basic building block for a PV
> system is a module, the complete unit. Assemble some of these together & now
> you have a panel. (This is less common now that we have 250 watt modules and
> not 50 watt modules.) An array is defined in the NEC as a mechanically
> integrated unit; I tend to think of an array as all of the modules on site.
> They added a definition for a subarray in the 2011 NEC; this is an electrical
> subset of an array.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On 2/8/11 4:49 PM, "benn kilburn" <benn at daystarsolar.ca
> <http://benn@daystarsolar.ca> > wrote:
> 
>> Wrenchers,
>> 
>> Which term do you to describe a single framed unit with either a j-box or two
>> wire leads on the back, module or panel?
>> Which term do you believe to be correct and why?
>> 
>> My interpretation is that a single framed unit is a module.  Any number of
>> modules attached to a single detached 'rack' is a panel, and a group of
>> panels with the same orientation or mounting location/type is an array.
>> 
>> If you agree with my interpretation, what are your thoughts on the widespread
>> use of the term 'panel' to describe a module.
>> 
>> thanks,
>> benn
>> 
>> DayStar Renewable Energy Inc.
>> benn at daystarsolar.ca <http://benn@daystarsolar.ca>
>> 780-906-7807 
>> HAVE A SUNNY DAY
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>        
>> 
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> 
> David Brearley, Senior Technical Editor
> SolarPro magazine
> NABCEP Certified PV Installer 
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David Brearley, Senior Technical Editor
SolarPro magazine 
NABCEP Certified PV Installer 
david.brearley at solarprofessional.com
Direct: 541.261.6545
Fax:  541.512.0343

Visit our Web site at solarprofessional.com

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