Author Topic: Surge Protection  (Read 1545 times)

RWS

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Surge Protection
« on: March 22, 2019, 08:22:39 PM »
Using surge protectors is a good idea.  Today I noticed my grid tied inverter was silent and the red (night time) LED was on.  Well I had just eaten lunch so I knew there was a DC voltage problem.  I went to the combiner box with a volt meter and phillips screw driver.  I found 344VDC coming off each of two strings of solar panels.  The fuses were blown (all 3 of them).  One fuse for each solar panel string and one fuse for the surge suppressor.  I must have had a lightning strike and the surge suppressor shorted to ground and blew the fuses.  It Works ! My Midnight Solar SPD (surge protection device) works.  They are expensive about $100 each.  I have one on every combiner box and one at the three points of entry for grid power to the house and shop.  You must understand that a surge can not only be caused by lightning, but also EMP or other grid event.  Anyway I replaced the fuses and the inverter connected and delivered power to the grid.  I am getting 3500 watts which is normal for this inverter.

http://www.midnitesolar.com/

John Galt 1

Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #1 on: March 23, 2019, 07:35:52 AM »
I also use Midnight Solar SPDs.       The whole house is protected except for the where the phone line comes into the house.     Because of this lightning strikes fry my DSL modum about once a year but the rest of the house is fine.      The neighbors without good surge protection lose major things every few years to lightning.
Talk is cheap, Actions count.

RWS

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Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #2 on: May 21, 2019, 06:43:49 AM »
I got a text form a customer the other day.  One of his charge controllers was shut down with a ground fault error.  I sent a text back and told him to cycle the power on the charge controller.  If it still had a ground fault, then I would come and trouble shoot.
He calls me on the phone a few minutes later while standing in front of his Power Distribution Panel.  I walk him thru turning off the circuit breaker to the battery, waiting a few seconds and turning the circuit breaker back on again.  The charge controller powered up and went to working normally.  I told him he most likely had a voltage spike, the Surge Protection Device shorted the spike to ground and the charge controller shut down when it saw the ground.  His lightning protection works ........
Midnight Solar SPDs.

RWS

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Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #3 on: July 29, 2019, 02:03:58 PM »
Time to make sure you have surge protection OR just unplug if possible.  There may be nothing to this, but !  Today is the 29th and 75 meter hf propagation was in the pitts.  Tomorrow it may be unusable....

https://dcdirtylaundry.com/a-large-solar-storm-will-hit-earth-on-july-31-or-august-1-at-the-same-time-that-the-black-supermoon-happens/

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/spaceweather/index.html#q4
« Last Edit: July 30, 2019, 07:01:54 AM by RWS »

primitive

Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #4 on: August 02, 2019, 04:30:26 PM »
@RWS

Did you observe anything significant the last couple days related to that predicted solar storm? I never saw anything else about it. Mostly curious to know if my news sources are reliable. Thanks.

RWS

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Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #5 on: August 02, 2019, 04:39:53 PM »
@RWS

Did you observe anything significant the last couple days related to that predicted solar storm? I never saw anything else about it. Mostly curious to know if my news sources are reliable. Thanks.
It was supposed to hit 7-31.  On 7-30 the 75 meter propagation was terrible as I had a very hard time copying stations I normally hear well.  Then on 7-31 I was net control for the Georgia Cracker Net.  Signals at 5AM thru 8AM were very good.  Evidently the increased signals were due to more ionization of the upper atmosphere.  Then 8-1 at 5AM the 75 meter band was stretched way out so that I was talking to Missouri and not able to talk to Statesboro, Ga.  (more than normal ionization of the upper atmosphere) What will tomorrow bring ?  We will see in the morning.

primitive

Re: Surge Protection
« Reply #6 on: August 02, 2019, 04:58:55 PM »
Interesting--thanks for the update.

 

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