Parallel And Series Connection Of Solar Panels

When doing a series parallel connection you are essentially paralleling 2 or more equal strings together.

Parallel and series connection of solar panels.

The connection of multiple solar panels in parallel arises from the need to reach certain current values at the output without changing the voltage. For example if you installed 5 solar panels in series with each solar panel rated at 12 volts and 5 amps you d still have 5 amps but a full 60 volts. The set of solar panels connected in series is known as a string. Parallel wiring increases the current amps output of a solar array while keeping the voltage the same.

The capacity of a solar panel to produce energy is measured in watts which is calculated by multiplying a solar panel s voltage by the amps of current it produces when a solar installer builds a solar energy system they need to find the right balance of voltage and amps to ensure that the system performs well. Lower voltages imply higher currents and higher voltages imply lower currents. Here is an example of what is found in most. Similar to batteries solar panels also come with a positive and negative terminal.

Parallel wiring is when the positives of multiple modules are connected together and all the negatives for the same modules are connected together. You may think what is the purpose of this weird combination of series and parallel connection of both solar panels and batteries instead of simple series or parallel configuration well it depends on the system needs i e. Increasing both charging voltage and battery storage capacity in amp hour ah by connecting both solar. So let s start with the series wiring of a solar panel system as it is less complicated than the parallel wiring.

In the series connection the voltages of all solar panels are summed up and the current is maintained the same for all the panels. When installing solar panels in series the voltage adds up but the current stays the same for all of the elements. Comparing solar panels in series vs. Wiring solar panels in parallel causes the amperage to increase but the voltage remains the same.

If you decide to apply a mixed connection it s practical your solar array to comprise an even number of panels a multiple of 2 for example 4 panels 2 in series and 2 in parallel or 6 panels 3 in series and 2 in parallel. With parallel solar panels the positive terminal from one panel is connected to the positive terminal of another panel and the negative terminals of the two panels are connected together. A series parallel connection is accomplished by using both a series and a parallel connection. Series vs parallel wiring of solar panels.

With the help of these terminals you can connect the solar panels in the desired fashion. In fact by wiring several solar panels in series we increase the voltage keeping the same current while wiring them in parallel we increase the current keeping the same voltage.