About inverters What is an inverter? About partnership with Opti Solar How do I qualify for a partnership with OPTI Solar? About warranty What does the warranty cover? About installation What type of system do I need? |
An inverter takes DC power (from a battery or solar panel, for example) and converts it into alternating current (AC) for running electronic equipment and appliances.
How should I select the right size inverter? First add up the power ratings of all your appliances, then buy the next larger inverter. Some appliances, such as refrigerators, and microwaves have a surge requirement. Opti-Solar inverters are designed to supply such surges, but since every appliance has its own requirements sometimes you will need to get a bigger inverter than you might think.
What is advantage/ disadvantage of 12, 24, 48 volts? Higher voltage battery bank can be more efficient, due to smaller cable sizes which can lead to less current, less voltage drop and less heat. Also, higher voltage battery banks typically have multiple batteries in series to increase the voltage; this increases the amount of charge and discharge cycles your batteries are capable of handling. However, lower voltage battery banks are typically used for smaller systems and these battery banks may be less efficient and may consume more DC power than higher voltage systems.
How do I know if my inverter is defective? When an inverter is defective, a fault code appears on the inverter LCD or a fault light on the LED which is generally red.
How do I know which inverter to buy? Different devices require specific wattages to run correctly and efficiently. Please use this easy formula to determine the correct size inverter:
Has my inverter the Ingress Protection Marking(IP Level)? Yes. Most of our inverters have an IP level. To have more information about it, please take a look at the inverter specifications.
What is an on-grid or grid-tied inverter? An on-grid solar photovoltaic system refers to a system, which is only connected to a utility grid.
A standalone photovoltaic system refers to a system, which is not connected to the utility grid.
A hybrid solar photovoltaic system is a combination of solar & grid power technology to take the most advantage. MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) is a key technology to harvest the maximum amount of energy from a solar panel.
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) is effective means to achieve constant voltage battery charging by switching the solar system controller's power devices. When a battery voltage reaches the regulation point, the PWM solar charger slowly reduces the PWM solar charger will benefit you receive more solar energy acceptance and keep your battery longer life span.
Why would I need an external solar charger? Solar chargers are required for higher charging capacity, max efficiency and customized functions solar systems.
How do I qualify for a partnership with OPTI-Solar? Anyone trained on our solar products is qualified for being our partner in his region. However, knowing that the partnership with Opti Solar is about products distribution, it is possible to send us a mail for this matter and attach your company profile.
How does the partnership work? For long time partners, the payment terms can be negotiated such as discounts on our products, official recognition on our website to gain local customers trust.
I'm a new one in solar market, how do I get the technical training ? It is possible to arrange a training session by contacting us. The training sessions we organise are held in Taipei, Taïwan. It means that the potential trainee should be able to pay his flight ticket and accommodation fees in Taïwan. However, for long time partners, the accommodation fees can be negotiated.
What support can I get from partnership? Except the official recognition, it is possible to have some marketing materials (tee-shirts, pens, bags, etc) in order to improve the sale.
The warranty covers the products reparation, replacement and refund if needed.
How long is my inverter covered? Usually, we offer 2 years warranty for the inverter unit.
How can I tell if my inverter is still under warranty? The receipt can help to say when the product has been purchased. This can help to know if the product is still under warranty. Otherwise, the customer can contact the distributor who sold him the inverter. If the customer didn't buy his inverter with Opti Solar, we cannot tell if the product is still under warranty.
How can I get support if my inverter is out of warranty? The reasonable way is to contact the distributor who sold the inverter to you.
How do I make a warranty claim?
How do I find out the serial number of the inverter? On the box's side or the inverter's side.
What are the different photographs to be attached along with the warranty claim form? Take a picture of the LED and fault code on the configuration panel, and also a picture of the serial number sticker.
How do I know that I am buying from Opti Solar authorized retailer? You can check our authorised retailers on the website (www.opti-solar.com) at Contact us => Where to buy
If I bought an inverter from eBay or some auction/exchange website, do I still have warranty? It depends on the warranty status of the inverter you bought.
What type of system do I need? To put it simple, it depends on your situation: - Situation one: "My house doesn't have access to the national grid and I want electricity for my kids to have light to study at night." - Situation two: "I have access to the grid but I don't want to depend on it in most time, since it's too expensive, meantime, the power backup system is also required." In this situation, a Hybrid Inverter is recommended. On sunny days, you will consume the energy produced via PV arrays. This inverter also connect with batteries for power backup. PV will charge batteries as well. - Situation three: "Solar energy is most green solution, I want to use it to support my daily electricity, besides, the surplus solar energy can feed into utility grid for benefit. In this situation, we strongly recommend our On-Grid inverters, because it can efficiently transfer PV power to utility power (0.96~0.99%).
Connect your inverter to a battery using a DC installation kit and install the fuse that comes with the kit on the positive battery cable as close to the battery positive as you can. Connect the cables to the inverter first and then to the battery. There may be a small spark when you first make the last connection to the battery, which is perfectly normal ( this is the capacitor powering up). On the AC output side you can simply plug a device directly into the inverter AC outlet.
What is the battery configuration? Correct wiring of your battery bank is important. When your batteries are not wired correctly, your system may not work and/or permanent damage could occur. So, always remember that series increases the voltage, and parallel increases the amps. Series is achieved by connecting positive of battery one to negative of battery two. Parallel is achieved by connecting batteries positive to positive & negative to negative.
What size cables should I use? Cable sizing is determined by the size of your inverter. National Electric Code standards are strongly suggested when wiring a system. Recommended sizing is as follows; #4 gauge is not to exceed 157 amps DC (approximately 1500 watts), 1/0 is not to exceed 291 amps (approximately 3500 watts), and 4/0 is not to exceed 454 amps (approximately 5000 watts.) These ratings are based on a 12 volt system.
How can I D.I.Y the solar system? It is important to know that you need some basic electrical and math for designing a solar system. In 9 steps, it is possible to set up one on your own. Here is a nice tutorial about we are glad to share about it. http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-OFF-GRID-SOLAR-SYSTEM/?ALLSTEPS
Do your inverters have high and low battery voltage shutdown? Low voltage shutdown is 10.5 on all of our inverters. And high voltage shutdown varies between 15-17 volts on all of our inverters. These are 12 volt inverter shutdown voltages.
Can I connect the diesel generator as the utility input source? We could connect the diesel generator to our inverters as the condition below,
|
|