Comments on: Micro Inverters (My Turn)- the boring technical stuff

By: Burt

Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:10:02 +0000

If enPhase is saying that none have failed in the field, they are not telling the truth. Locally we have already seen failures in systems that are only a couple years old.

By: George Sverlow

Thu, 27 May 2010 00:03:18 +0000

Senior Building Inspector.
I found your articles very informative and down to earth commentary. Countinue the good work. Maybe in the futher something on calculating microinverter strings sizes. This maybe to technical for some, but interseting to others.

By: Horea

Mon, 24 May 2010 15:38:10 +0000

Thanks for the article! I am interested in more details about the subject as I’m doing my bachelor work on Solar MicroInverter technology and connection to a Smart Grid. Any idea where I could find some more info (except IEEE and their $840 annual fee so I can read full articles).

Also I forgot to mention that I would love to make a few measurements on one of those beauties but I can’t seem to find a sponsor or someone that could borrow me one.

By: Christof

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 03:08:31 +0000

Agree, nice piece. I’m inclined to think micro-inverters are the way to go — but it’s too late for us (I think), we signed on to a system from REC Solar (to be installed in June 2010) with a Sunny Boy central inverter. For me, the big thing is the durability. It’s disturbing to me that I know that we’ll be shelling out $3,000 or $4,000 grand for a replacement central inverter in year 12 or so. What’s also disturbing is that many solar proponents (and companies) don’t calculate this major cost into the long-term cost projections of a solar system. That, to me, seems fundamentally misleading, and, when I get a chance to, I’m going to do a piece on this issue for my website, SolarChargedDriving.Com. Thanks again guys for putting up good stuff!
.-= Christof´s last blog ..‘EV Nut’ sticks it to Big Oil, fills up with sun =-.

By: Drifty

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:51:59 +0000

I am new to microinverters, and would like to learn more about the way in which they work. I am an electrical engineering student and would of course like to construct one. Any links to sources of that type of information would be greatly appreciated.

By: Silver

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 05:37:50 +0000

Good article David. We are moving into grid-tie systems from the off-grid becuase the grid has been extended to reached the off-grid areas. The micro inverter provides a way of utilizing PV energy into the grid using existing small PV system. Will the Enphase work under our 230VAC 60H system?

By: Dane Ericksen

Sun, 23 Aug 2009 02:36:29 +0000

So how “clean” is the AC generated by each micro power inverter? That is, is the output a good representation of a 60 Hz sine wave, or are we talking about a stepped inverter with lots of harmonics? What about RFI in the AM broadcast band?

By: Ye Old Solar FAQ & More

Ye Old Solar FAQ & More — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 19:56:05 +0000

[...] Popcorn “AC” energy. Dave also wrote another post devoted to what’s called micro-inverters. You may be seeing a lot more of these little guys in the coming years. They’re so cute and [...]

By: Greennose

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:19:34 +0000

Great article. The big reliability issue in micro-inverters is aluminium electrolytic capacitors – they’re chemical reactors in a can. That’s why the warranty on inverters is so much lower than the warranty for modules. At couple of companies are shooting to solve the problem buy the end of this year.

By: Jouvet

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 18:18:43 +0000

Solar Magic has been out for a month now. Any comparisons? Also what about SolarEdge?