Solar charge controller selection help needed
I am looking to put in a solar system that will produce about 30 amps per day. I choose a semi-flexible 135 watt panel made by Sunpower which meets my capacity needs. My only problem is choosing t...
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Here's my take on voltage drop with wire gauges: The cost of wire between 12 AWG and 4 AWG is is about $.50/ft.-> $.75/ft., depending on where you source wire. I paid some fairly good money for my solar system and spent a lot of time on it, both in front of a screen, researching, and in the shop fabricating pieces of it.
My trailer is 22' long so the greatest amount of wire run could be 50' (both phases) to connect modules with controller. I asked myself, " will I try to cut costs and live with any voltage drop for the maximum of $25 saved?", when selecting wire sizes. Answer to self was, "NO, I don't want to lose a single watt of power harvested, if possible". Granted, all wire has resistance and there will inevitably loss of power but I chose not to go with the accepted 3% or 5% of loss due to the cost of wire.
As the wiring schemes of my install developed and I started searching for sources of wire, I ended up with a 150' reel of 4 ga. and that's what I used throughout. I'm not advocating that you use the same, my point is that there is little sense to use wire that impacts the efficiency of your system beyond 1%.
Southwire voltage drop calculator
Waytek wire is where I sourced wire and connectors. They are local to me and establishing a contractor level account is necessary.
Genuine dealz is a distributor used by many on the Forum, they will make custom cable/connectors and offer a variety of different wire products.
Good luck with your wiring!
My trailer is 22' long so the greatest amount of wire run could be 50' (both phases) to connect modules with controller. I asked myself, " will I try to cut costs and live with any voltage drop for the maximum of $25 saved?", when selecting wire sizes. Answer to self was, "NO, I don't want to lose a single watt of power harvested, if possible". Granted, all wire has resistance and there will inevitably loss of power but I chose not to go with the accepted 3% or 5% of loss due to the cost of wire.
As the wiring schemes of my install developed and I started searching for sources of wire, I ended up with a 150' reel of 4 ga. and that's what I used throughout. I'm not advocating that you use the same, my point is that there is little sense to use wire that impacts the efficiency of your system beyond 1%.
Southwire voltage drop calculator
Waytek wire is where I sourced wire and connectors. They are local to me and establishing a contractor level account is necessary.
Genuine dealz is a distributor used by many on the Forum, they will make custom cable/connectors and offer a variety of different wire products.
Good luck with your wiring!
