Inverter Operation in Cooler Climates

[Andrew445]

Does anyone have experience with inverters, in particular the SMA Sunny Central line being used in cooler climates such as Massachusetts? The minimum operating temp. is stated as -13?F. I wonder if this inverter should be avoided here because of that temperature, or how you would even make that decision. Thank you for your help.

 

[Besoeker]

Does anyone have experience with inverters, in particular the SMA Sunny Central line being used in cooler climates such as Massachusetts? The minimum operating temp. is stated as -13?F. I wonder if this inverter should be avoided here because of that temperature, or how you would even make that decision. Thank you for your help.

Will the inverter be located outdoors?

 

[SolarPro]

This is from the installation manual:

4.7 Low-Temperature Option
With the "Low-temperature option", the temperature range is extended from ?40?C to +62?C (?40?F to +144?F);
however, the Sunny Central will only maintain feed-in operation down to ?25?C (?13?F). If the ambient temperature
falls below ?25?C (?13?F), the Sunny Central switches to the operating state "Stop", communication is shut down and
the auxiliary heating element is activated. As soon as the ambient temperature exceeds ?20?C (?4?F),
the Sunny Central resumes feed-in operation

You'd really have to do some performance monitoring to see how that might impact system production. An enclosed power station might effectively eliminate the problem. That's how SMA's inverters would be installed in Europe, and the inverters themselves would be indoor-rated. The US market generally prefers outdoor-rated products.

 

[SceneryDriver]

I imagine the temp limitation probably has something to do with the electrolytic caps in the inverters. They really don't like getting too cold; they tend to fail with a bang if the electrolyte freezes.


SceneryDriver

 

[69gp]

Does anyone have experience with inverters, in particular the SMA Sunny Central line being used in cooler climates such as Massachusetts? The minimum operating temp. is stated as -13?F. I wonder if this inverter should be avoided here because of that temperature, or how you would even make that decision. Thank you for your help.

-13 is on the extreme of being cold in MA. We have several setups with SMA Sunny centrals mounted outdoors in the shade on racks that have presented no troubles due to the cold weather. This in in the Northwest corner of the state where it is colder.