Wire Size & fuses for solar install
I have 4 140 Watt 12v panels connected in parallel on the roof. I took the guy at Solar Blvd's advice and bought #10 AWG wire for the run to the controller. Controller is a Mornigstar TS-45 PWM. It is...
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#10 is too small. I will guess your panels Isc is around 8 amps. 4 of them in parallel is 32 amps coming into the controller. You need at least #8 but larger would be better.
The output of your controller could potentially be well over 40 amps. I'd say #6 is a minimum on the output. Larger would be better given the distance.
Don't forget you need a fuse in series with each of your parallel connected panels. This prevents 3 of them from shorting all their current thru the 4th one if it ever shorts out. The device commonly used for this is called a combiner box. Your panels should list their maximum series fuse on the label.
The output of your controller could potentially be well over 40 amps. I'd say #6 is a minimum on the output. Larger would be better given the distance.
Don't forget you need a fuse in series with each of your parallel connected panels. This prevents 3 of them from shorting all their current thru the 4th one if it ever shorts out. The device commonly used for this is called a combiner box. Your panels should list their maximum series fuse on the label.
