How To Install Solar

Introduction

Solar energy may be free, abundant and renewable but solar power is not. The money needed to generate the latter is quite the opposite. If you do not plan carefully, you may end up paying more than what utility power would have cost. The solar power options for escaping frequent power cuts can be quite different from the ones for eliminating or reducing the electricity bill. If you know what to choose, then a home solar power installation will be easy enough that you can do it yourself. However, it will not be so simple that anyone can do it. A lead-acid battery stores so much energy that if not handled properly it can maim or kill a person. Did you know that a 100-AH lead-acid battery can only provide 50 AH of backup power? Solar panels generate very high amperes of current that they pose an unusual fire hazard that conventional fire-fighting techniques are useless or counterproductive. In a home with a solar power system, all family members need to be briefed about its usage, maintenance and safety. The usage will have to change during rainy season. There is quite a lot to learn and remember. That is where this richly illustrated book can help. Even though it has been written for Indian home-owners and electricians, anyone can read this book and understand what it has to say. Specifically, How To Install Solar provides:

an easy introduction to electricity and solar power

affordable solar power options for home-owners

important information to be aware of before and after installing solar power

steps for installing

a cheap DC power system using a solar charge controller that can

cost less than ₹6000

run light loads such as DC lights or a DC fan

an affordable AC power backup system using a solar inverter that can

cost less than ₹30,000

run selected AC loads directly on solar power

provide a few hours' backup during power cuts

an extensive FAQs section based on online posts/reviews published by solar power users

Perhaps, if I describe the reason for writing this book, you will better understand the purpose of the book. At the end of February 2021, I took a break from writing. In the previous 12 months, I had written and published over 20 books. (No joke. (Actually, I published one of the biggest jokebooks ever during this time.) Check the last page of this book for a partial list of my titles.) During this time, I was harassed by frequent power cuts, more than a dozen times a day. It was as if some monkeys had taken over the controls. Throughout the day, there would be a lot of voltage fluctuations. (I assumed these monkeys were psychopathic.) Once a week, there was an entire day or night without power. While this was going on, I installed a low-cost solar power system based on a small 40-watt solar panel. It provided all-day lighting. It was not very bright (I used LED strips) but it was better than sitting in the dark. I had power banks for the wired network. If the power went off, the laptop battery provided backup for two hours. The rest of the day was wasted. After suffering like this for several years, I finally decided to buy a solar inverter. The lockdown ordered by the government after the moronavirus pandemic prevented me from hiring an electrician. I had to install the whole thing myself. In my book Cool Electronic Projects, I had described how I hated messing with AC. Now, I was forced to work with the darned thing. I did a lot of research and collected all the information I needed. I ordered the parts and did the installation including the AC wiring myself. Now, there are no disruptions. What a difference it makes! Strangely, the the number of power cuts has reduced after the installation. Still, it happens at least half-a-dozen times a day.

This book is the result of what I had learned. I will spare you the hassle, the confusion and the mistakes. Even electricians are not fully aware of everything there is to know. There is a lot of misinformation online. There are unscrupulous parts suppliers online and offline. If you are planning to do the solar installation yourself, then this book will definitely help you. If you are planning to choose a professional solar installer, this book will help you specify exactly what kind of solar power system you want and ensure that they install it properly.

Disclaimer

Accuracy : This book endeavours to provide accurate information but some errors are inevitable. Because this is a rapidly evolving field, some information may also become outdated/irrelevant by the time the reader gets to read it.

Focus : This book uses terms that are in convention in India. They may have different connotations in other countries. Non-residents can still use this book to familiarize themselves with the basic electrical and solar concepts but should take extra effort to study their local codes and conventions.

Scope : This book uses very simple terms so that anyone can understand the content. However, the book does not expect a total beginner to start working with electricity. The actual installation should be left to a professional installer. For a person who knows how to work on electricity, this book will be helpful in familiarising with solar power. Still, it is entirely dependent on the person's skill, knowledge and presence of mind to make appropriate decisions and take appropriate actions. This book's recommendations are very generalized. More consideration should be provided to manuals, datasheets, warranty terms and other documentation of the actual solar power equipment and components that are used.

Risk : The author, publisher, associates and assassins do not take any responsibility for anything. All risk is on the reader.

Translations

I invite Indian publishers interested in translating this book to Indian languages. I will give them permission on very favourable conditions.

𝒱. 𝒮𝓊𝒷𝒽𝒶𝓈𝒽

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Kerala, INDIA

www.VSubhash.in

Table Of Contents

An electricity primer

A solar primer

Install a solar charge controller

Install a solar inverter

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Some terminology

Power utility: The outfit that supplies electricity from a street pole near your home is the power utility. In India, the state electricity board (EB) is the usual power utility. In places where the EB has been divided into a gencom (power generation company) and a discom (power distribution company), the discom is the power utility. Our national power grid connects EBs, power producers and transmission companies with which power can be bought and sold across state lines. In other countries, national and regional power grids may exist. In many countries, the local power utility is a private company that does the end-user connectivity and billing. This private company may not have any in-house power production. They typically buy the power from the grid and stick you with a bill every month. In such cases, this notional power company is the power utility.

Power cut: When there is a disruption in the power supply from the power utility, it is referred as a power cut. In the US, it is known as a blackout. The technical brownout has the same effect.

Backup: Alternate power that is available in case of a power cut.

AC load: An electrical appliance that consumes current in an AC circuit.

Essential AC loads: AC loads that are connected to the inverter or provided power backup by the inverter. It is also referred as critical loads, backed-up loads and even connected loads in some places.

Mains power: This is AC supplied by the power utility.

Solar power: This is DC supplied by solar panels.

Battery power: This is AC or DC supplied by an inverter or a solar charge controller from a battery.

Inverter power: This the AC supplied by an inverter in case of a power cut.

Inverter input: This is a power outlet (heavy-duty 16-amps three-pin wall socket and switch) to which the AC input plug of the inverter is plugged in. In other words, the power cord of the inverter is connected to this socket.

Inverter output: This is a power outlet (heavy-duty 16-amps three-pin wall socket and switch) to which the AC output of the inverter is connected using a custom-made three-wire cable. The inverter line (usually with white insulation) in the house wiring system is supplied power from this socket. Unlike ordinary sockets where the power is drawn out, this socket draws in power. A two-way switch might be used for this outlet, making it easy to alternate between mains power and inverter power. If a one-way-switch is used, then a cumbersome multi-step process has to be followed for both connecting to the inverter and bypassing it.

Inverter output cable: The custom-made three-wire cable (with three-pin plugs on both ends) that is used to connect the AC output socket on the inverter to the inverter output socket on the wall. In India, this cable is usually wired with just the live wire. This makes the inverter and any connected AC loads extremely unsafe, as they become ungrounded if the AC input plug is unplugged for some reason, say during a lightning storm. It also makes the live pin of the input plug capable of delivering a fatal/injurious shock. This is because the AC input plug and the AC output socket are directly connected to each other inside the inverter. This book recommends a three-wire cable for the inverter output.

An electricity primer

Start with some theoretical physics:

All matter or anything you can touch is made up of atoms. These atoms have certain sub-atomic charged particles known as electrons. Electrons are negatively charged and almost weightless. Because of their negativity, the presence of electrons causes a negative charge and their absence causes a positive charge. In certain types of material, such as metals, some electrons can be easily knocked off the atoms. They are known as good conductors of electricity. In some other materials, such as wood or plastic, the electrons are strongly bonded to the atoms or the atoms are so haphazardly arranged that it is not conducive for electrons to move around. These materials do not conduct electricity and are known bad conductors or insulators. A copper wire is such a good conductor that its atoms are essentially sitting in a sea of electrons. Free electrons will naturally move from a place of high concentration to a place of lower concentration until the difference is eliminated. (Like charges repel.) If the electrons are removed as soon as they arrive or if the electrons can be concentrated in one place, the imbalance is continued and a stream of electrons known as electric current begins to move in the direction of the deficiency. In a dry cell (‘battery’), chemical energy is used to create an imbalance of electrons. In a solar panel, light energy is used for the same effect.

When electrons move, they essentially act as a carrier of energy. This energy, known as electrical energy, can be put to good use. Instead of simply passing the electrons through a metal wire conductor, they can be routed through an electrical component or an electric appliance so that the electrical energy can be converted to other forms of useful energy.