
Adjust playback speed to fit your pace, skip optional exercises and individual video lectures, and explore bite-sized subtopics as you begin this solar power home course, with Udemy requesting feedback.
Master configuration options for solar modules by linking in series or parallel and analyzing voltage and current changes with design choices. Understand cell, module, and array distinctions and open-circuit voltage.
Examine series versus parallel wiring for solar modules. In series, six panels raise voltage to 216 volts; in parallel, two six-panel strings keep 216 volts but double power.
Explains using an online solar calculator to estimate six panels’ total watts and open circuit voltage, highlighting series versus parallel wiring and noting cell versus module design.
Explore how partial shading affects photovoltaic modules and compare series versus parallel wiring, showing how bypass diodes protect strings and can preserve two-thirds of output.
Discover how bypass diodes protect photovoltaic modules during shading and malfunctions, and learn to verify their presence and count by checking the specification sheet and junction box on a module.
Explore the basic concepts of voltage and current, understand electrical pressure and flow, and visualize how voltage, amperage, and power relate in solar power systems.
Explore how voltage and current determine electrical power, with the formula power equals voltage times current, and learn how raising voltage or current increases output using a water hose analogy.
Understand amp-hours and watt-hours as cumulative energy over time, driven by voltage and current. See practical calculations: 5 V, 3 A for 4 hours yields 60 Wh.
Learn to compute electric vehicle charging energy and power in a home solar context by applying voltage, current, and duration, converting between watt-hours and amp-hours to kilowatt-hours.
Compare alternating current and direct current through a visual sine-wave model, explain voltage, current, peak vs. effective values, frequency, and how generators and inverters convert between DC and AC.
Discover how alternating current is generated by moving a magnet through a copper coil, producing current that reverses direction, and learn wiring basics for solar systems.
Compare the American wire gauge and metric systems, explain connectors and junction boxes for solar components, and cover IP ratings, DC breakers and fuses, and grounding.
Learn how the American wire gauge and metric systems differ, compare diameters and cross-sectional areas, and use a visual table to find the closest AWG or metric sizes.
Explore weather-resistant electrical connectors, their IP ratings and voltage limits, and locking mechanisms, with a focus on the MSI four-mm multi-contact connector and identifying male versus female by metal contacts.
Use a PV wire crimping tool to squeeze the wire around the metal contact for a solid connection, preventing corrosion and resistance that result from a poor clamp.
explore how junction boxes connect module wiring to main leads and interpret ip65: dust tight and protected against water jets, not immersion.
Learn how to locate the IP rating for your photovoltaic module from the spec sheet. The example shows a junction box rated IP68.
Learn how fuses act as sacrificial safety devices in solar power systems, detailing operating voltage, breaking current, and response time, with practical examples from wall outlet plugs and automotive fuses.
Explore fuses and fuse holders used in solar systems, noting two types with voltage ranges up to 3000 volts DC or 1500 volts, and holders rated up to 32 amps.
Dissect circuit breakers to reveal instantaneous and long-term trip mechanisms, including a solenoid, a bimetal strip, and an arc extinguishing chamber that safely trips and suppresses arcs.
Explore how a DC arc extinguishing chamber uses a solenoid, a bi-metallic strip, and a calibration screw to trigger instantaneous tripping and dissipate arc energy to safely interrupt current.
Explore dc circuit breakers for solar power, learn how miniature breakers clip into a rail, understand interlinked units and instantaneous tripping, and review installation and removal tips.
Combine multiple solar strings into a single circuit using a combiner box, with protection via fuses or breakers and a main breaker and bus bar for positive and negative outputs.
Grounding provides a safe return path for fault currents and a reference point to earth. A grounding rod and wire divert fault current to earth, triggering protective devices.
Learn how to ground solar arrays by inspecting a datasheet and identifying six grounding holes on a Canadian Solar high-density monocrystalline module, including hole positions and a five millimeter diameter.
Review grounding, wiring, MC4 connectors, breakers and fuses, and PV technologies, installation, and configurations completed across the four solar panel subchapters and the end of the course.
Hello Solar Energy Enthusiast!
My goal is to make sure you will enjoy this course! Since you are reading this, it means you are looking for a reliable source of information related to Grid-Tied Solar Energy Systems: Through this course, I will share with you my extensive knowledge and experience.
And lucky you! Through this course you will get a condensed version of all the fundamentals you need to be aware of. I have included several short multiple choice questions, through which you can self-test whether you have absorbed the knowledge adequately throughout the course. And to spice it up, we will also take numerous virtual excursions to websites of manufacturers of different components of a solar system. Through this approach, we make sure that we bridge the following gaps:
We make sure that you get the relevant and unbiased knowledge from an experienced professional
You have the possibility to test your knowledge and freely browse through the content of the course as per your preferences
We will bridge the gap between theory & real-life examples by reviewing numerous product options which you might come across as you will be shopping for your system components
I am glad you are interested in this course: It will teach you all the relevant knowledge, without any 'fluff', and includes several brief multiple-choice questions to test your knowledge.
I have created this course for you, fueled by my academic background in Renewable Energy Engineering and extensive field experience in the design and installation of PV Energy Systems. You are getting a very good deal: I will summarize for you all that I have learned over the years, and all you have to do is push the button and starting soaking up the information. Lucky you!
During this course, we will review and learn about the following topics:
Module-to-module configuration options
A review of the voltage, amperage and power values
Series versus Parallel wiring
The differences between cell & module configurations
Module versus Photo Voltaic [PV] cell voltages
PV array power output and voltages
Online solar PV calculator examples
Overcast & Partial shading conditions
Bypass diodes and wiring options
The effect of voltage fluctuations on power output
Watthours & Amphours
Battery charging calculations & examples
The principles of Alternating Current [AC] versus Direct Current [DC]
AC frequency and the effective versus peak voltage
DC versus AC appliances
The American Wire Gauge [AWG] and it's origins
The AWG chart and gauge steps
Wire drawing principles: How it's made
The Metric Wire system
AWG-to-Metric wire size conversion and vise versa
PV single contact solar connectors & MC4 connectors
Solar crimping tools and their advantages
Solar PV junction boxes
Bypass diodes in junction boxes & where to find the specifications
The Ingress Protection [IP] rating system
Fuses, their operation principles and design ratings
Solar PV breakers & Arc Extinguishing Chambers [AEC's]
Instantaneous versus Slow Tripping Current rating
The characteristics and components of DC breakers
DC Arc's and how they are being extinguished
Examples of DC circuit breaker models
PV Solar Combiner Boxes and configuration examples
Examples of 'plug & play' PV combiner boxes
Earth & Grounding: The operating principles
Grounding rods and how they protect you and your system
The location of grounding holes in your PV modules
The main outline of this course is as follows:
Configuration:
Series & Parallel
Cell versus Module
Series versus Parallel
Partial shading
Voltage & Current
Amphours & Watthours
AC & DC
Wiring:
Wires & Connectors
AWG versus Metric
Connectors
Junction Boxes
Breakers & Fuses
Fuses
Breakers
Combiner Boxes
Grounding
Take action now! Educate yourself by staring this course, so that you will be able to make well-informed decisions for your system. TIP: Udemy offers a very generous refund policy in case the course content turns out different than expected.
See you soon!
Jesse
Jesse Gorter
Renewable an Sustainable Energy Engineer, Master of Engineering
Mechanical Engineer, Energy Technology, Bachelor of Engineering