Solar Cell electricity effect on Audio???

[Alrainbow]

Thanks for the honest reply
a short story
At my place in nyc my property has a lot of roof top space
About 2500 square feet.
years ago like 15 or so solar had a big push
I have soo much area I could have enough to power my shop and both 3 family houses
I never did as quickly as the utility company was willing to buy back they stoped.
I never did solar installs directly but did have a small crew doing them as a side project
what I did do was micro installs of energy systems
in short large factories and apartment buildings have large boilers
the generators was to use the extra power to make power and sell it to the utility company
This too stoped fast.
solar does not work financially unless the utility company charges high kilowatt hours cost
but even if you bought your own and it was the type that makes electric and hot water now it’s useful.
very few people in cheaper kilo watt areas have it.
now I am fine for anyone to use them I’m not one to make comments on carbon footprint stuff.
there use for audio equipment makes sense
To me any noise produced is high freq hash. way above our hearing and I think stops at the power supply for a few reasons
ralph can make comments on this.
if using solar panels makes sense then its great.

 

[A-Line]

Solar activity may effect power lines and most certainly FM radio broadcasts.
As for solar panels I have no idea.

My other hobby is amateur solar, lunar, and planetary astronomy. I've several sub-angstom solar filters for viewing solar activity through my telescopes. Right now the sun is quite active.

I would also say that after sunset my hifi generally sounds better due to the reduction of charged particles/ions, (just a educated guess), in the atmosphere, this is especially true of FM radio broadcasts and reception.

 

[Alrainbow]

Your observant
remember back in the day we had 12 foot dishes to watch tv
there was a few days a year where the signal went out or close to it.
you can say exactly why I’ve long forgot

the power grid is also best at night or early morning
less usage unless it’s hot out.
solar is a massive amount of energy but we don’t have the best ways to absorb it just yet
snow , ice , rain and darkness all hurt it.

 

[Tabl10s]

I am seriously considering placing Solar cells on the roof of my house electricity wise i can be energy neutral thats a good thing but how about the effect on sound system?
All inputs and your experience will be welcome......!

Some say solar energy is clean whit out dirt others say solar energy is a primitive way to produce electricity and will have bad effect on your system..?

In my meter cupboard I have three phases coming in the house i am using two of them for all the house and one only for my audio groups.

View attachment 73049

A friend has the Tesla thingy and along with his Power Plant, he's very happy.

 

[PYP]

We live in a very sunny state. Often, people hide from the sun. Turning that dreaded fireball into energy just makes sense. There for the taking. They paid for themselves years ago. I notice lately that there are more homes in our neighborhood with panels. Given the summer blast furnace, a solar hot water heater is practical too.

Never noticed any difference in SQ depending upon solar vs. grid power. From my own experience and many others, this doesn't seem to be an issue.

 

[Alrainbow]

The noise they do generate of micro is I think high freq noise
Even if this noise modulates to lower frequencies it still tiny.
the only issues are if the sign wave is distorted, this would effect many things in our homes not just audio.
having batteries is nice but does have its own problems too.
Batteries make noise all types at discharging , then the inverter does its own.
one thing to consider no solar power has Dc offset this is the major problem with utility companies
in general power distribution is complex
and solar power is most times isolated this is a good thing.

 

[PYP]

The noise they do generate of micro is I think high freq noise
Even if this noise modulates to lower frequencies it still tiny.
the only issues are if the sign wave is distorted, this would effect many things in our homes not just audio.
having batteries is nice but does have its own problems too.
Batteries make noise all types at discharging , then the inverter does its own.
one thing to consider no solar power has Dc offset this is the major problem with utility companies
in general power distribution is complex
and solar power is most times isolated this is a good thing.

the batteries are still very expensive and often look like a science project when set up (although if in the garage, who cares?). Of course, many of us are retrofitting an existing home. The maximum setup is during the design of a new home -- direction the home faces, where large vegetation is located, etc. And now some planned communities are designed with a centralized battery backup for all the homes in that community -- very convenient.

At any rate, it would be great if there was attention paid to noise generated by the inverters. As you say, the inverters will affect everything powered by electricity in the home. But I'm assuming that wouldn't be a selling point unless true damage could be shown (if in fact there is any damage done). "Cheaper is better" is the usual philosophy even if it doesn't make long-term sense.

Perhaps WBF will add a forum for "WB Solar" and start to influence the industry! But then we might be chasing the never-ending cycle of upgrading our converters to the latest model.

 

[Kingrex]

What Is Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) in Solar Inverters? Effects + Mitigation

Learn about the causes and effects of harmonic distortion in solar inverters. Discover ways to mitigate its impact and maintain power quality.

solarbuy.com

Good basic read

 

[A-Line]

the batteries are still very expensive and often look like a science project when set up (although if in the garage, who cares?). Of course, many of us are retrofitting an existing home. The maximum setup is during the design of a new home -- direction the home faces, where large vegetation is located, etc. And now some planned communities are designed with a centralized battery backup for all the homes in that community -- very convenient.

At any rate, it would be great if there was attention paid to noise generated by the inverters. As you say, the inverters will affect everything powered by electricity in the home. But I'm assuming that wouldn't be a selling point unless true damage could be shown (if in fact there is any damage done). "Cheaper is better" is the usual philosophy even if it doesn't make long-term sense.

Perhaps WBF will add a forum for "WB Solar" and start to influence the industry! But then we might be chasing the never-ending cycle of upgrading our converters to the latest model.

Should solar power panels become a thing for audiophiles then the industry will be ripe for fads/trends & gimmicks.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone came up some sort of moon powered panels also.
Another black hole to explore... lol

 

[Kingrex]

Should solar power panels become a thing for audiophiles then the industry will be ripe for fads/trends & gimmicks.
I wouldn't be surprised if someone came up some sort of moon powered panels also.
Another black hole to explore... lol

Its the inverter and battery that could become popular. Inverters vary in quality and design.

 

[Alrainbow]

I would not have the batteries inside my home
nor any electric car. This is purely my opinion
if the batteries were inside or in an attached room they would be in a an approved metal cabinet and vented outside the home and some positive airflow
I doubt most people have a clue
To the amount energy end and chemicals used
solar is here to stay and micro inverters are the way to go
I’ve been a RC flyer for many years
Gas first
But now all batteries even small ones are to be cared for properly

 

[PYP]

I would not have the batteries inside my home

I've seen them mounted in the garage which typically does not connect to a living space. But agree that maintenance is essential as is some vigilance. And surely wouldn't want an EV parked in the garage to burst into flames while recharging. Has happened, apparently.

What Is Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) in Solar Inverters? Effects + Mitigation

Learn about the causes and effects of harmonic distortion in solar inverters. Discover ways to mitigate its impact and maintain power quality.

solarbuy.com

Good basic read

Thank you. Excellent article. Will contact my solar panel installer to ask about how they measure THD and the performance of our inverters. Interesting that inverters operating outside of established parameters can indeed shorten the life of motors and transformers. Makes sense.

 

[Alrainbow]

I've seen them mounted in the garage which typically does not connect to a living space. But agree that maintenance is essential as is some vigilance. And surely wouldn't want an EV parked in the garage to burst into flames while recharging. Has happened, apparently.


Thank you. Excellent article. Will contact my solar panel installer to ask about how they measure THD and the performance of our inverters. Interesting that inverters operating outside of established parameters can indeed shorten the life of motors and transformers. Makes sense.

They most likely will have no idea
look up your inverter model there website will have more information I think.
Next look up a forum for solar and your type.

 

[PYP]

They most likely will have no idea
look up your inverter model there website will have more information I think.
Next look up a forum for solar and your type.

thanks. the website info is limited for the inverter. there is a weighted efficiency (97), but I don't know if that tells me anything about THD. The solar panel itself is highly rated by third parties. I'm going to ask the installers. Good company and very responsive.

 

[PYP]

Regarding batteries, if I lived in a location that is very vulnerable to hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fire, etc. and therefore significant potential for interruptions in power (for days, weeks), I would have invested in batteries long ago. Perhaps they are a good investment in that situation. Not sure how they compare to backup generator, either in cost or practicality.

Might be an interesting question for audiophiles: If you had to use battery backup power in your home after a loss of power, would you use the backup power for running your hifi vs. refrigerator? We might be surprised by the answers.

 

[Kingrex]

Most high frequency "pure" sine wave inverters are in the 5% and less thd. Low frequency inverters like Sungold are about 10% thd.

Hybrids like Victron are 3% and less.

There are also Modified sine wave. They suck. .

I tried to look up information on Enphase micro inverters. They talk about high frequency and semiconductor and light weight. Very much sounds like high frequency inverter. So a clean sine wave. Good for small home appliances and computers.

 

[Alrainbow]

Regarding batteries, if I lived in a location that is very vulnerable to hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fire, etc. and therefore significant potential for interruptions in power (for days, weeks), I would have invested in batteries long ago. Perhaps they are a good investment in that situation. Not sure how they compare to backup generator, either in cost or practicality.

Might be an interesting question for audiophiles: If you had to use battery backup power in your home after a loss of power, would you use the backup power for running your hifi vs. refrigerator? We might be surprised by the answers.

I have a whole house gen 22kw propain
I also have total isolation for cable tv outside to inside. lighting strikes happen often and do kill stuff too.
I also have many ups boxes and surge protectors
in my audio room just surge and a lock out breaker for that panel so if power blinks it shuts all down.

 

[SoundMann]

Wjats the effects on the system, inverter noise much ..?

Inverters are noisy devices so filtration is a must.

 

[PYP]

Most high frequency "pure" sine wave inverters are in the 5% and less thd. Low frequency inverters like Sungold are about 10% thd.

Hybrids like Victron are 3% and less.

There are also Modified sine wave. They suck. .

I tried to look up information on Enphase micro inverters. They talk about high frequency and semiconductor and light weight. Very much sounds like high frequency inverter. So a clean sine wave. Good for small home appliances and computers.

Our installer sent me spec sheets. One specification is for "harmonics." That is less than 4%. Is that the same or similar to THD?

 

[PYP]

Inverters are noisy devices so filtration is a must.

such as?