Carport Maximum Voltage 1500V?

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I would say it's not a building, just a structure, but the NEC definition could be read to include it. Article 100. It says:

Building: A structure that stands alone or that is separated from adjoining structures by fire walls.
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Good luck. In my opinion this is one of the dumber definitions in the NEC.
 
Carports are in a grey area. The NEC pretty much equates structures and buildings. Some AHJs are requiring rapid shutdown on carports because of this. So I would say it's up to the AHJ and how they choose to interpret the NEC.
 
The IRC says carports are open on two sides.
what About the metal carports people are having installed?
 
Hv&Lv said:
I really thought 1500 volts was a mistype.
apparently not. So you want 500kW and 1000 volts in a carport???

:unsure:
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1000V isn't a problem on a carport; the only structures that are restricted to 600V or less are one and two family dwellings. I don't know about 1500V, though I know such systems exist.
 
I’m just kind of confused as to why someone would need 500kW and 1000 volts on a carport...
 
Hv&Lv said:
I’m just kind of confused as to why someone would need 500kW and 1000 volts on a carport...
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Think giant, purpose built structures over large parking lots, not just some residential thing. This kind of solar installation is a big thing. Good dual use of parking lot space, also dual purpose as shade structure. And unlike rooftop it doesn't need to be totally leak proof.
 
jaggedben said:
Think giant, purpose built structures over large parking lots, not just some residential thing. This kind of solar installation is a big thing. Good dual use of parking lot space, also dual purpose as shade structure. And unlike rooftop it doesn't need to be totally leak proof.
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Got you!!
the term carport threw me. We have a solar installation here that is 1MW over a parking lot. Just never heard it called a carport. The cars stay much cooler in the summer under the shade.
makes sense now..

thanks!
 
jaggedben said:
And no experience to share re: rapid shutdown?
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Rapid shutdown wasn't required on some of them because they weren't on buildings, and some were built before it became an issue. For the one or two that were subject to RSD because they were recent and over rooftop parking we used SolarEdge. One was on the downtown network, which was a forking nightmare.
 
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