Sheesh. The COVID-19 pandemic has left little time for the Solar Builder editorial staff (me) to keep up with and report on solar industry fallout and impacts while also keeping the rest of our editorial plans on the tracks (from home, of course) and launching a wacky new video idea.Read More

As part of our 2020 Solar PV Inverter Buyer’s Guide, we asked manufacturers “Should 1,500 volt solar inverters be installed on rooftops?” Here is what they had to say. Should 1,500 volt solar inverters be installed on rooftops? Matt Marx, Strategic Marketing Manager at SMA: “No, because current code requirementsRead More

We chat with Eric Hill, energy storage and systems manager at Outback Power, about why sizing your home’s energy storage system properly is important, and then we get a quick lesson on how to size a system correctly. Solar Distancing archive Episode 2: What should solar installers work on duringRead More

Solar businesses, like all businesses, are having a rough go of it because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this forced down period, it might be time to review your sales and marketing efforts. Andrew Azure, senior marketing and communications director for Outback Power, joins us to discuss some of hisRead More

As part of our 2020 Solar PV Inverter Buyer’s Guide, we asked manufacturers to tell us one trend emerging in the marketplace solar installers should be considering. Here is what they had to say. Residential Inverters as a strategic hub Lior Handelsman, VP of Marketing & Product Strategy and FounderRead More

Welcome to episode 1 of Solar Distancing with your quarantined host Chris Crowell, managing editor of Solar Builder. Solar Distancing is a reaction to our current predicament — the pandemic isn’t time to panic – it is a time to prep! Solar Distancing will be a short series of informalRead More

Industrial property owners are increasingly turning to rooftop solar facilities to add value to their portfolios and maximize the profitability of their assets, as well as to increase renewable energy sources for the greater good. While the general principles of commercial leasing apply to rooftop solar leases, there are aRead More

  As multiple data collection shows, DC cabling is 1% of the total project cost, but it is also the number one source of technical failures in PV projects and greatly affects the LCOE and safety of your project. Stäubli would like to share our 20 years of experience inRead More

With the provisions of National Electrical Code (NEC) 2017 article 690.12 now being applied in over 30 states and growing (and which we re-examined this week), many suppliers and contractors are struggling to determine which Rapid Shutdown Devices (RSD) on the market are compliant and compatible with the modules andRead More

The use of solar string inverters impacts AC collection systems across commercial, industrial and utility-scale solar PV projects. If peak solar project operating conditions are ignored when sizing the AC collection system, it can lead to equipment overheating, nuisance tripping, system failure and reduced power generation. Adding complexity to theRead More