Outdoor electrical
systems attract lightning.
Lighting doesn't have to hit your installation, a strike close by can destroy
components in a renewable energy system, leading to costly repairs and
unpredictable power outages. Protect your investment from the hazards of
nature with a lightning arrestor on the DC and AC circuits of your renewable
energy system.
Use a surge arrestor also
referred to as a Surge Protection Device or SPD or erroneously a lightning
arrestor to protect
AC and DC circuits of a photovoltaic or wind energy installation from lightning
strikes. Three wires make installation quick and simple, while
rugged electronic components can handle an infinite number of "surges" however a
heavy or continuous high voltage can burn them out.
In the event of a lightning
strike or surge the surge arrestor conducts the charge bleeding it out of the
circuit to ground.
PV systems are mounted in
locations vulnerable to lightning. The cost of surge protectors are negligible
compared to the cost of the equipment being protected. Consider installing
both a DC and an AC surge protector within your system. The DC surge protector
can be mounted close to and electrically prior to the solar charge controller.
The AC surge protector can be mounted on the AC load or distribution panel. Both
should be connected to the grounded service conductor, or service equipment
grounding conductor or a separate grounding conductor.
The Midnite Solar surge suppressor
is a solid state device. The MidNite Solar 115V Surge Protector Device (MNSPD)
is a Type 2 device per UL1449 rev3 and has an outdoor rating of 4X for outdoor
use. Protection for battery circuits.
The basic design of the DELTA silicon oxide varistor (SOV) arrestor is a pair of
metal electrodes separated by a silicon oxide compound. Under normal conditions,
the silicon oxide is a good insulator so that no line current flows between the
electrodes to ground. When an excessively high voltage occurs on the electrodes,
the high energy electrical flood ionizes the silicon oxide, changing it from a
compound to silicon separate from oxygen. Since the silicon ion is a good
conductor, the high energy current is conducted to ground. When the voltage
falls toward normal, the silicon and oxygen recombine, forming silicon oxide and
shutting off the conduction.
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