Operate two balcony power plants or several balcony power plants:
We are often asked whether it is legal to operate two or more balcony power plants in one house. Or a satisfied user would like to expand their existing balcony power plant with solar modules.
To clear up the confusion here is the following article. Please note that our contributions are informational in nature. In individual cases, legal advice or your electrician should be consulted.
Two or more solar modules to one inverter:
In principle, more than two solar modules may be connected to operate a balcony power plant . The decisive factor is the fed-in power of 600 watts. This is controlled by the inverter anyway. The panels can therefore generate more than 600 watts. It is particularly important to emphasize here that modules with higher output, for example 800 watts, generate significantly more energy, especially when it is cloudy or in winter, compared to solar modules with less output.
However, when operating several solar modules, the permissible power should be taken into account. Microinverters tend to be designed for one to two modules. The permissible input power for your inverter can be found in the inverter data sheet. Over-occupying an inverter, for example with three solar modules instead of two, can lead to overvoltage. What often works in the winter months or when it is very cloudy can lead to defects in the inverter in spring and summer. Mandatory loss of warranty. We strongly advise against this.
Two inverters/balcony power plants or more on one circuit:
According to the VDE, two inverters that are connected to a circuit with a separate connection cable are taboo. An example is two inverters with separate cables connected to two sockets on the same meter circuit.
In a balcony power plant, the power fed in per circuit/meter must not exceed the 600 watt limit. (The limit will probably be raised to 800 watts on January 1st, 2024)
We would still like to show the technology of how microinverters can be coupled to operate more than one balcony power plant. Most modern houses offer the infrastructure so that the electricity produced by two balcony power plants can be easily processed. It is important to mention again here that this is not permitted according to the VDE and the network operator. If you operate several balcony power plants, your system is no longer a small generation system with simplified registration, but a standard photovoltaic system . Please have your electrician check the cables. It is advantageous for us to have a separate feed directly into the meter cabinet, with our own protection, if necessary also via a cable with a larger wire cross-section, e.g. 2.5mm² and more.
The setup:
In order not to have to connect each balcony power station to individual sockets and "waste" your sockets, identical inverters can be coupled. With common models (e.g. Hoymiles, Envertech, Deye) the connection is made directly with the Betteri plug or suitable adapter cables. The connection is direct in AC (alternating current), so that the "finished" alternating current from one inverter is only carried out by the second inverter. The last inverter is finally connected to the house network.
Two balcony power plants or more on separate circuits:
The VDE standard simply says a balcony power plant with 600 watts per separate meter. This means that in a house with separate meters, for example, rental apartments or separate meters for the heat pump etc. can be operated with their own balcony power plant. The only important thing is that the balcony power plants also feed into the independent circuits.
We wish you much success for your solar project and look forward to your feedback or call. Feel free to share our posts via social media.
Comments
Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren, Ich habe mir für mein 1 Familien Haus eine Pv Anlage gekauft. Ich habe aber Zweifel, ob ich sie auch betreiben kann. Sie besteht aus 4 Solarplatten und 2 Wechselrichtern. 1 Wechserichter ist mit je 2 Solarplatten verbunden. Die Wechselrichter sind von 800 auf 600 Watt drosselbar und der Strom soll im meinem Haus verwendet werden. Ist das erlaubt?
Kann man zwei Mikrowechselrichter (zB 2 x Hoymiles 800) mit jeweils zwei 400W PV-Modulen (zwei Module mit WR-1 nach Osten bzw Südosten und die beiden anderen Module mit WR-2 nach Südwesten bzw Westen) an zwei Steckdosen anschließen und dann über zwei Zeitschaltuhren regeln, dass immer nur einer der beiden Wechselrichter einspeist (WR-1 bis Mittag und WR-2 dann ab Mittag)? Danke!