Lightning is a common cause of failures in solar systems. The purpose of lightning protection is not to stop the lightning from striking. You can’t do that. Lightning protection controls the path of the lightning after it hits.
A damaging surge can occur from lightning that strikes a long distance from the system, or even between clouds. But most lightning damage is preventable. Taqon Electrico provides a comprehensive protective solution to secure solar systems against destructive overvoltages generated by lightning. At Taqon Electrico we offer high standard surge protection devices when doing solar installations as a way of securing client’s solar systems. Click the link to view our solar installation projects https://www.taqon.co.zw/projects/
Most electrical and electronic damage in both grid-tie and off-grid solar systems are NOT due to a direct hit. In fact, direct hits are rare. Current may strike a pole or tree and the current then travels to several nearby houses and other structures and enter them through wiring or plumbing. In this way they can indirectly get to your solar system and damage it. Most damage occurs from nearby hits, usually within a few hundred feet. A near-strike can induce thousands of volts onto the house and solar system wiring if not protected. In a ground hit, it can also spread out and travel into buried conductors, such as pipes and buried cables.
It is very important to note that lightning does NOT have to hit directly to cause damage. Your solar power system can be damaged by a nearby strike. The wiring in a house or photovoltaic system makes it easy for lighting voltage to pass through, and if unprotected and/or ungrounded can feed thousands of volts back into your inverter and other equipment, hence damaging your solar system.
Here are some of the most cost-effective techniques that are generally accepted by power system installers
Proper grounding
proper grounding ensures that a lightning surge will bypass your solar equipment and be safely discharged into the earth. When the lighting strikes the solar panels are not the biggest victim as inverters and controllers are. Panel frames and mounts are grounded in order to provide the easiest path for lightning to get to the ground. You would much rather have it go down the mounting pole or your ground rod than down your wiring to your controller or inverter or new wide screen TV.
Without proper grounding, lightning can damage your solar system equipment as it can jump around all over while trying to get to earth. If your inverter happens to be in the way, you will probably be buying a new one. You cannot stop lightning, but you can usually direct where you want it to go.
The battery banks on most off-grid PV systems act as a fairly good surge protector if you have good connections and a good ground, but it may take out the controller on its way. If the battery bank is not grounded, damage can be much more severe – it may then leap around all over trying to find a path to ground. Follow this advice, and you have a very good chance of avoiding lightning damage to your solar system
The purpose of lightning protection is NOT to stop the lightning from striking. You can’t do that. Lightning protection controls the PATH of the lightning after it hits. Like it or not, that is about the best you can do. It’s not lightning that causes the damage, it’s lightning going through places you don’t want it to.
Surge protectors
Surge Protector
As an addition to a proper grounding system, surge protectors can help keep your solar system safe from lightning. They are typically installed at both ends of any inverter communication cable and the inverter power circuit, including ethernet communication cables and the lines leading from your AC to the inverter. Surge protectors work by absorbing voltage spikes and allowing the surge to bypass your equipment and power wiring.
Lightning rods
Lightning rods are designed to protect your solar panels from direct strikes. They are static discharge devices typically installed above a solar system and connected to the ground. A lightning rod is designed to prevent static charge build-up and reduce the risk of lightning strikes. Additionally, they can provide an alternative direct path to ground if a lightning strike does occur.
If you install a lightning rod on your roof you need to avoid shading the solar panels with it.
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