SMA Sunny Boy Inverters
German made utility-tie power inverters
|
|
|
|
|
You don’t have to live out in the
boonies to use solar power!
The exciting line of Sunny Boy
grid-tie inverters from SMA makes it easy for the
majority of us that are connected to the utility grid to use the
clean energy from the sun. Founded in Germany in 1981 as an
engineering/control systems company, SMA started producing the
Sunny Boy line of inverters in 1996. They currently manufacture
1800 and 2500W units for use here in the United States as well as
700 and 1100W units for the European market. These inverters allow
you to install a photovoltaic system without having to worry about
purchasing an expensive heavy battery bank. The DC power that is
produced by the solar array is inverted to AC by the Sunny Boy
inverter after which it is either used by your AC appliances or
sold back to the utility grid to lower your monthly utility bill.
The Sunny Boy units are called "string" inverters
because they are designed to be wired to a single series string
of 12-24 solar modules. This makes the solar array wiring very
easy since you don’t have to worry about paralleling multiple
strings of solar modules together in a combiner box. However, the
high DC voltage that this series string of solar modules produces
needs to be handled very carefully because it can be lethal! To
minimize the potential shock hazard of this system’s high DC
voltage, the solar array wiring should be done with all of the
solar modules lying flat on the ground or roof after which the
entire array can be lifted or tilted into place. If that is not
possible, be sure to completely and securely cover each and every
solar module with a heavy opaque material (blanket, cardboard,
tarp, etc.) before wiring the array. A professional installer is
recommended for those not familiar with these systems.
The 1800 and 2500W Sunny Boy inverters are both UL listed, come
with a 5 year warranty and have a built-in ground fault protection
device that is required by the NEC for roof mounted solar arrays.
The optional Sunny Boy Display (SBD) can be ordered separately or
integrated into the front of the inverter at the time of purchase.
The SBD is the simplest meter option and it continuously scrolls
through the following 6 parameters: AC power (W), PV voltage (VDC),
total energy yield (kWh), daily energy yield (kWh), operating
hours and inverter status. The other option for monitoring and
controlling the output of a single Sunny Boy inverter is to
install an optional RS-232 module inside the inverter. This in
conjunction with the Sunny Data software running on your PC will
allow you to monitor the performance of your Sunny Boy inverter.
If you plan to install a large solar array that would require
multiple Sunny Boy inverters, then your best bet is to install a
power line carrier module in each inverter and connect them all to
a single Sunny Boy Control unit where the data can be monitored
and/or stored for later use.
 We could go on and on about all of the features and options of
the SMA Sunny Boy inverters, but we don’t have enough space here
to do so. We have listed some of the key components below along
with a short description and price. If you would like some more
specific information on any of these items or would like to place
an order for one of these exciting new grid-tie inverters, please
don’t hesitate to call us. |
6/11/07 update from the folks at SMA:
"...We will continue to manufacture and sell the 700 and 1800 as
well as
the new 3000-7000. We discontinued making the 1100, 2100,
2500, 3300, 3800 and older style 6000U prior to May 7th of this
year.
The SI4248 is sold out. The new SI5048 is not yet
available..."
|
MODEL NUMBER / DESCRIPTION / PRICE
- SWR 2500U, 2500W, 240VAC, 60 Hz, UL listed string inverter, ground
fault protection device included $2580
- SWR 2500U SBD, 2500W, 240VAC, 60 Hz, UL listed string inverter
with GFP device and LCD display $2780
- SWR 2500U-208, 2500W, 208VAC 3-phase, 60 Hz, UL listed string
inverter, GFP device included
$2580 - SWR 2500U-208 LCD, 208VAC 3-phase, 60 hz, UL listed inverter with
GFP device and LCD display
$2780 - SWR 1800U, 1800W, 240VAC, 60 Hz, UL listed string inverter with GFP device included
$2080 - SWR 1800U SBD, 1800W, 240VAC, 60 Hz, UL listed string inverter
with GFP device and LCD display $2280
- SBD Sunny Boy Display, 2-line LCD continuously scrolling
through six operating parameters
$235
Other options available, including data communications with
a PC, remote communications, and modular control systems.
email
us for more details.
**********
|
|
|
