Ground-Mounted 4.05 kW Solar Electric System in Phelps, NY
Challenge
This homeowner wanted some ground mounted solar panels installed at their Phelps, NY home.
Solution
This 4,050 W (4.05 kW) grid-connected solar electric system is installed as a ground-mounted array of eighteen (18) SunPower 225 W solar modules oriented due South on one (1) Direct Power and Water adjustable-tilt top-of pole mounts. The pole holds eighteen (18) modules arranged in landscape and has dimensions of approximately 15.4 ft x 9.7 ft x 14.3 ft (width x height x depth) at 25° tilt to 15.4 ft x 15.9 ft x 9.1 ft (width x height x depth) at 55° tilt. The system is configured electrically as two (2) DC circuits (strings) of nine (9) series connected modules providing input through one (1) DC disconnect switch to one (1) SunPower 4000m, 4.0 kW inverter. This inverter provides grid-synchronous AC output and interfaces to the electric utility as existing infrastructure allows. System power production (kW) and cumulative energy (kWh) monitoring is provided by a SMA WebBox monitoring system, as well as by a digital display on the inverters and an electromechanical meter. As designed, this system should generate an average of 12.3 kWh/day = 4,494 kWh/year, where daily energy production is both weather and seasonally dependent. This energy production is equivalent to 31% of the customer's present home electrical usage, and corresponds to a CO2 (greenhouse gas) emissions savings of 6,741 lb per year.
