News Single

Overclocking your inverter can improve average inverter efficiency.

The modern inverters operate at a high efficiency level.

When panels supply more than 30% of inverters capacity, its efficiency is fairly constant.

If you go below that it starts to decline and takes a big hit if you go below 15%.

When panels are oversized, inverters can work at better efficiency. As a result, you will get more electricity.

How to determine total panel capacity?

Solar panel capacity multiplied by no. of solar panels.

For example,

260W panels x 12 (qty) = 3120 watts or 3.12 kW

Factors which affect how much you can oversize.

If you are claiming any state or federal rebate, eg STC. Under the Clean Energy Council rules for claiming STC rebate / incentives the solar panel capacity can only exceed the inverter capacity by 33%. 

If you are using a 3Kw inverter, you can use a maximum of 3.9kW of solar panels.

If you are using a 4kW inverter, you can use a maximum of 5.3kW of solar panels.

Which means your 5kw inverter can use Maximum of 6.6 kW of solar panels.

(Good tip: Prefer to use high quality panels rather than trying to max out your panel capacity as much as you would like.)

Disadvantage of Oversizing Inverter

In a perfectly good condition, when the sky is clear and the sun is shining at a perfect angle on the solar panel it can produce more DC power than the max capacity of the Inverter. In that condition, it will result in excess power being lost. 

This is referred to as inverter output is being clipped.

We all know that rarely happens because the max capacity of solar panels are tested under absolute perfect conditions. But in a real environment that rarely happens. (maybe 10 to 15 days out of 365 days in a year)

In that condition, it will result in excess power being lost.

This is referred to as inverter output is being clipped.

Advantages

In most situations, when conditions aren’t ideal, its output will be more consistent.

This can help in increasing the self-consumption of solar power because high feed in tariffs days are almost over in most parts of Australia.

It can result in inverters operating at higher average efficiency which is what you want as an end user. You can save more money if you generate more solar power which is being used in your home.

Lifespan of the inverter

An inverter operating at its highest capacity will generate more heat and that can be bad for any electronic device.

In our understanding, the inverters with oversized panels will have their life span slightly reduced.

But it won’t be significant and most of the manufacturers are fine with it.

FAQs

1. Should I oversize my solar panel array?

If you are looking to get the maximum benefit of the installation then you should definitely go for it. As it can help you produce more solar power and reduce your reliance on the grid for your consumption.

2. Is it worth oversizing the solar system?

Yes. It will help in improving the efficiency of your solar system. As a result, you can save more money in the long run.

3. Will oversized PV arrays damage solar inverters?

As long as it doesn’t exceed the allowed voltage limit, it will work fine and won’t hurt the solar inverter. 

4. What happens if you overload a solar system?

Under good conditions, when the sun is shining at the right angle, it can produce more solar energy than the inverter’s capability to convert into AC. In that scenario, excess energy will be lost. That is called clipping.

5. How much can a solar inverter go while oversizing?

This depends on the inverter to inverter. Some inverters can even go up to 100% oversizing. 

If you are claiming any government incentives (eg: STC) the Clean Energy council (governing body) states that the solar panel capacity can only exceed the inverter capacity by 33%. That means for a typical 5kW inverter you can go up to maximum of 6.6kW of solar panel output within the rules