Hot solar inverter

A

ardman

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We got solar PV panels installed almost 3 years ago. We live in a dormer type house where attic and storage space is very small. We have our inverter installed in one of these tight spaces. Most of the time everything is fine but in very hot weather the inverter becomes extremely hot ( can’t touch it and it radiates extreme heat). It’s worrying. Even opening the cupboard door doesn’t solve the problem. Does anyone have a similar experience and advice re same? Thanks
 
Similar set up however in mine there is air circulation within the tight space, if your inverter is stuck in a cupboard or tight space with no ventilation then it’s in the wrong place and cannot be operating within safety specs.

It needs your attention.

I have a smoke alarm installed in the space and can recommend.

Ventilation is critical to safe operation.

How is your battery pack. Is it stored in the same place ….Assume hot as well and not operating within safety tolerances.

The App should give you the temperature of the batteryz
 
That would concern me for two reasons. The first is obviously safety and if it’s that hot I would be taking it very seriously and frankly not using it again until you’ve sorted it out. The second is longevity, heat kills electronics and at those heat levels you will not get long from that inverter.

You’ll either need to move the inverter to somewhere cooler or add active cooling where it is. If it’s in a side attic you can probably add a fan ducted to an eave vent relatively easily?
 
Thanks for replies. The battery seems to be okay. Now that we’re in October the heat is not pronounced. It’s in the hot summer days where the heat is scary. I’ve brought it to the attention of installer and while I’m finding it difficult to get them to deal with the issue they sent out a man to put a vent in the roof but it’s made no difference. App says Inverter Operation Temperature (up to 105 degrees). When mine goes above about 50 a fan/motor kicks in but I have seen mine reach 70 and the heat in the nearest bedroom is suffocating. I’m wondering could it be a faulty inverter or is it just location. I’m in a housing estate where houses are similar and others don’t seem to have the serious heat issue. I know inverters do get warm. We got ours installed in December 22 and we have the same issues every summer.
 
So you seem to be in an estate where similar plant was installed in the same area as your home but no neighbours have any heat issues ?

If so then you have a problem that should not be ignored, yes, it could be a faulty inverter or an installation issue but please do not ignore this, get it examined by an electrician that works for the original plant installer would be my first step as it is under warranty still
 
Yes a lot of the neighbours used the same installer around that time and the ones I’ve spoken to don’t seem to have the level of heat that we have. I will deal with it as I’m worried about the safety of it. Thanks for your replies
 
A friend may have something like this which would help you a lot I think, daily measuring at different times kept in a log.
 

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Will do. It’s good to post these things and get opinions and ideas. I wrote out a list last night to follow up on.
 
I posted a thread on hot inverter in Oct 25. Here is a follow up on the same thread. I eventually got installer to move inverter and battery outdoors and I've had a couple of months to monitor how it's working. The system is working much better and the inverter is working at a temperature which in my opinion is normal. They are mounted on an outdoor wall and quite sheltered. Has anyone theirs mounted outside and how is it working? As I said I've only had a couple of months yet. Has anyone got covers/shelters for theirs and if so what do you recommend?
 
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