Solar Photovoltaic Installation Course

Engineers/Technologist and Technicians

Roof Top Solar Panel

Installation

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 At the end of this module, the participant is able to

Learning Outcomes
1.)Understand how to prepare
the roof for installation

2.) Identify the various

types of roof.

3.)know how to install

panels and other system
components.

4.) identify various types

of cables and wires
Duration 1:30mins
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 SAFETY RULES WHILE INSTALLING SOLAR
PANELS ON ROOFS
 Always wear appropriate work clothes and protective equipment.
 Always wear protective equipment such as hard hat, insulated gloves, insulated boots
 Observe safety practices for climbing up and down ladders and step ladders in such a
way that:
a. Before use, always inspect ladders to make sure they are in good condition.
b. Use ladders with steps that are broad enough to permit safe work.
c. Choose a safe spot to anchor ladders and stepladders.
d. Always work with a partner so that one person should hold the ladder steady.
e. When using a two stage ladder, secure it with ropes to prevent it from sliding sideways,
and have your partner hold the ladder steady.
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 MOUNTING MATERIALS FOR SOLAR PANELS
Adopt the following material properties.

 Choose durable, corrosion proof and UV-resistant material.

 Make sure that mounting materials are adequately coated with anti-rust paint or
thoroughly galvanized to prevent rusting.
 Ensure enough back ventilation when installing the panel
 Choose mounting materials that is resistant to expansion and contraction due to
natural ambient temperature variations.
 Ensure the long-term stability of the installation material and location

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 INSTALLING MOUNTING SYSTEM
The mechanical and electrical layout and installation of PV arrays involves many interrelated
considerations and tradeoffs.
 Module physical and electrical characteristics
 Array electrical design and output requirements
 Mounting location, orientation and shading
 Type of mounting surface (roof or ground mount)
 Access, pathways, and setbacks for installation, maintenance, and fire codes
 Structural loads on modules, mounting system, and attachments
 Thermal characteristics of modules and effects of mounting system
 Weather sealing of building penetrations and attachments
 Materials and hardware compatibilities with the application environment
 Aesthetics
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 TYPES OF ROOFS

Source: homesthetic.net 6
TYPES OF ROOF PANELS

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 ROOF ATTACHMENTS
 Roof attachments must be installed per
roof attachment manufacturer's
instructions.
 Industry standard recommendations
include using products that are capable
of flashing fasteners as well.
 As a result, for the vast majority of
rafters/trusses, you must pre-drill a hole using
the proper drill bit diameter before installing
a lag screw.
 The drill bit must be long enough to
drill a full depth hole preventing damage
to the rafter by the lag screw.
 Lag screws should include threads for the
entire depth of embedment in rafters or
trusses.
 Sealant compatible with the roof materials
and temperature range should be applied
to all penetrations in conjunction with
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flashings.
 PREPARING A SHINGLE ROOF FOR
INSTALLATION
 Locate rafters or trusses on
the inside of the roof.
Fig 1.0

 Locate and measure the

locations of the rafters in the
attic or at the outside eave
and transfer measurements
to the roof. Fig 2.0

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 Preparing a shingle roof for installation
 Scan the roof with a high
sensitivity stud finder. Fig 3.0

 Measure up at least 400 mm

from the eave. Snap a chalk
line. This marks the location
of the bottom edge of the
slider bottom. This line
needs to be at least 5.5 mm
away from the nearest front
edge of the shingles. Fig 4.0
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Preparing a shingle roof for installation
 Measure up 20 mm from
chalk line and snap a new
chalk line. This marks the
location of the bottom edges
of the modules.

 Measure up from the solar

panel chalk line to the
desired module length to
form the array. Snap
horizontal lines at the
measured locations.

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 Preparing a shingle roof for installation
 Mark and layout of solar module vertical lines

 The array must be installed

at least 400 mm from the
eave of the roof and 300 mm
from the sides of the roof.
This distance should ensure
sturdiness.
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 INSTALLING SOLAR PANEL MOUNTS AND
SUPPORTS ON A PITCHED ROOF

Pitched Roof

Before installing sliders,

check the layout of rails
and splices.

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 Installing solar panel mounts and supports
on pitch roof continued
 Place all sliders in
desired locations

 Move the rails with

splices into position.
Ensure that there is no
overlapping between
slider locations and
splices.

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 Installing solar panel mounts and supports
on pitch roof continued
 If these overlap or seem too
close:
 Shift rails horizontally
 Move sliders to next rafter or remove splices
to switch the long and short rails to opposite
sides
 Reattach splices after rails are switched and
recheck for overlap. Do not permit overlapping

Caution: The maximum distance from the slider to

the edge of the array is 400 mm.

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Connecting Solar Panels
 Solar panels often come with a piece of solar
wire with a so-called MC4 (multi-contact 4 mm²)
connector. These connectors are weatherproof
and easy to plug together. There is a male and a
female connector (for positive and negative
connections), which makes it very easy to
connect solar modules in series.
 The pre-mounted MC4 connectors can
only be used to connect solar panels in series.
 When a parallel connection is required, you will MC4 connector, female (left) and male (right)

need to cut off the MC4 connector (male or female)

and use a common cable connector
(screw connector).

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 Connecting Solar Panels
Observe the following rules while connecting solar panels:

 Be aware that a solar array

already generates its full
voltage with only a little
sunshine.
 Choose a main feeder cable
from the array to the charge
controller which keeps the
voltage drop below 3%.
 Avoid unnecessary cable
length.
Feeding of module wires through roof sheets

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Connecting Solar Panels
 Use screw connectors for all
connections; splicing is very
unreliable.
 Connect solar module cables to a
charge controller feeder cable
inside a junction box or DC
combiner box.
 Observe the colour code,
positive = red, negative =
black.
 Junction boxes must be
protected from the rain,
preferably inside the roof.
 Secure cable, protect from
mechanical stress and
impact from stones.

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Types of wires and cables
 For solar power installations, you should use well
insulated copper cables.
 These cables can either be stranded (with many
small wires) or solid (one solid core).
 These cables can be used when installing solar
systems; however, note their individual
advantages and disadvantages

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 Solar system circuits
Solar power systems can typically be divided into the following circuits:
 Solar source circuit: Interconnection between solar panels terminating at the PV
combiner box.
 Solar output circuit: Circuit between the combiner box and the DC disconnect
which is used to isolate the solar panel array from the rest of the system.
 Charge controller input circuit: Interconnection between the DC disconnect
and the charge controller (solar panel array and battery bank).
 Charge controller output circuit: Interconnection between the charge controller
and DC loads.
 Inverter output circuit: Interconnection between the inverter and the main
distribution board. 20
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 Batteries are the
most volatile
component in a
photovoltaic
system. Work done
on batteries
always poses a risk
and maximum
care must be
taken to avoid all
Battery Bank
forms of injury.

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SAFETY PRECAUTIONS WHEN WORKING WITH BATTERIES

1. Care should always be taken to 2. Remove

prevent arcing at or near battery
terminals. Always
open the main DC disconnect
switch between the batteries and
the inverter prior to
servicing or working on the
battery bank.
personal jewelry and only use
appropriate tools when working 3. Always wear eye protection
on batteries. This is to avoid when working on liquid lead-acid
accidental short circuiting of the batteries.
battery terminals which could
lead to serious injury and battery
damage

5. The
4. Choose the installation must also
correct cable size and the right allow some airflow,
connectors to connect batteries. as batteries generate
warmth during use.

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 Battery Connections

Series Parallel Series Parallel

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 MISMATCHED BATTERIES IN A
BANK

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  Read the manual
 Mind the specified ventilation
space around the inverter
according to the manual
 Use the battery connection
cables which are usually
supplied with the inverter.
Otherwise, use 16 mm2 cables.
 Check if the voltage rating
matches the battery
 Mind the polarity
 Make sure all connections are
tight

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 Cable Sizing
The inverter draws high currents from the battery during especially at full load
hence, the right cable size most be adopted to avoid damage to the
system. For example, a 24 V/2,000 VA inverter might draw 2,000 VA/24 V = 83
A under full load.

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  Read the manual
 Check if the voltage and current ratings match the solar
array
 Mind the specified ventilation space around the charge
controller according to the
manual.
 Mind possible setup options for different battery types
 First, connect the battery
 Second, connect the solar array
 Make sure all connections are tight

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 STEP BY STEP INSTALLATION

 Confirm the location where the PV modules will be installed.

Confirm that there is no shade or shade-causing feature, which could interfere
with
the irradiance that the solar panel array receives. This might include trees,
buildings or other man-made structures such as electricity poles.
 Develop a safety plan to be implemented once installation work begins.
 Determine the installation location of system components and cable routes.
 Prepare equipment and tools to be used during installation and ensure that
they are available before installation work begins.
 Prepare the installation diagrams, i.e. a single-line diagram or wiring
diagram, which shows the interconnection between system components
 Install conduits (pipes and trunkings) along the planned cable route.
 Install cables in conduits.

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 STEP BY STEP INSTALLATION
 Label all cables according to circuits.
 Install solar panel mounting systems.
 Install system components in the pre-determined locations.
 Mount PV modules on structures at an appropriate angle (15⁰) and
orientation (facing south).
 Connect PV modules according to desired series/parallel connection.
 Connect batteries according to desired series/parallel connection.
 For an AC system, connect batteries to the inverter (input side). Ensure that
the inverter output switch is in the OFF position.
 Ensure that the main distribution board (MDB) breaker is in the OFF position.
 For an AC system, connect the inverter output to the home distribution
board. Take care to ensure that only relevant circuits are connected.
 Connect the battery bank to the charge controller.
 If the system consists of DC loads, connect the loads to the charge
controller.
 Connect the solar photovoltaic array to the charge controller
 Switch on the inverter.
 Turn on all switched off breakers on both the AC and DC sides.
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References
 Olatunde I. ,Hartmut A. ,Dr. Helmut S.,(2016) Solar Photovoltaic Installation Supervision. Deutsche
Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH,Nigerian Energy Support Programme
(NESP).
 SMA solar Academy(2015), PV/wind O&M course.training for NAPTIN‘s staff
 NABCEP(2019).certification guide

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