Solar  PV  Design    

Best  Practices  
White  Paper  
April  2013  

   
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 Solar  PV  Design      
 

   

Best  Practices  for  a  highly  efficient,  cost-­‐effective  residential  or  

commercial  Solar  PV  System  Design  

Background  
Designing   a   Solar   PV   system   is   more   of   an   art   than   a   science.   Sizing   the   system,   calculating   the   sun   azimuth,   defining   inverter  
capacity   or   energy   storage   are   some   of   the   complex   parameters   Solar   PV   designers   baffle   with   in   each   installation   whether   it   is  
residential   or   commercial,   rooftop   or   ground-­‐mount.   Each   installation   is   unique   and   hence   requires   a   careful   and   meticulous  
planning  during  the  design  stage  to  develop  a  highly  efficient  and  cost-­‐effective  design.  At  Gridscape,  our  designers  have  perfected  
this  art  and  developed  a  powerful  set  of  best  practices  for  efficient  Solar  PV  design  based  on  our  experience  designing  dozens  of  
these  systems.    

Process  
Any  Solar  PV  Design  follows  a  three-­‐step  process  

Site  Survey   System  Sizing  

(PV  selec]on,  placement  &  
Design  Approval  
(site  inspec]on,  gathering  
informa]on  &  requirements  &   orienta]on,  inverter  &  storage   (Local  Permits,  Client  Approval,  
preliminary  es]mate)   sizing,  grid  connec]on,  cost   final  design  changes)  
analysis)  
 

Site   Survey   involves   site   visit   and   location   inspection   to   determine   whether   the   site   is   suitable   for   a   PV   system.   The   location   geo  
coordinates   of   the   site   determine   the   availability   of   direct   sunlight.   The   area   needs   to   be   inspected   for   tall   trees   or   any   other  
structure   obstructing   the   sun   path   and   angle.   Further,   this   step   also   includes   understanding   client   requirements   on   power  
generation   and   cost   estimate   for   the   system.   Gridscape   designers   use   various   commercially   available   and   homegrown   tools   to  
determine  the  sun  path,  tilting  and  other  requirements  for  a  good  design.      

Once  the  client  approves  a  preliminary  estimate  based  on  the  site  survey,  System  Sizing  starts  with  deciding  what  type,  placement  
and   orientation   of   PV   system.   Depending   upon   the   power   generation   and   electrical   requirements,   designers   decide   number   of   solar  
PV  panels,  controller  and  inverter  size  required.  Given  the  installation  area  where  direct  sunlight  is  available  for  the  most  hours  in  
the  day,  designers  orient  the  panels  in  a  portrait  or  landscape  mode  providing  optimal  clearances  for  shading,  walking  space,  air-­‐
conditioning   or   cooling   vents   and   so   on.   The   NEC   compliance   is   also   considered   in   the   design   to   ensure   appropriate   electrical  
clearances.  All  panels  are  connected  in  a  series-­‐parallel  combination  (string  sizing)  to  the  inverter,  with  or  without  battery  storage  
based  on  requirements.  The  System  Sizing  phase  completes  with  a  detailed  mechanical  and  electrical  drawing  of  the  solar  PV  design.  

The  solar  PV  design  drawings  are  submitted  for  Design  Approval  to  obtain  local  permits  and  client  approval.  Designers  make  minor  
design  adjustments  based  on  feedback  and  turns  over  the  design  to  installers.    

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Panel  Layout  Considerations  

Solar  PV  panels  can  be  placed  either  in  landscape  or  portrait  (mainly    
decided   by   roof   layout   and   joist   positioning).   The   figure   on   the   right  
o nd
shows  how  sunlight  (15  angle  at  12pm  on  Dec  22 )  determines  the  
distance   for   optimum   sunlight   gain   between   arrays.   Landscape  
orientation   allows   for   smaller   gap   between   array   positioning.   The  
angle  of  PV  panel  pitch  also  affects  the  distance  that  should  be  left.    

Designers   use   modeling   tools   to   model   various   sun   angles   and   tilt  
settings   for   the   panels.   In   a   rooftop   installation,   the   standard   roof  
tilt  is  adequate  for  most  of  the  installation  reducing  the  installation  
cost  significantly  in  lieu  of  complicated  tilt  angle  install.      

Panel  Orientation  Considerations      

Solar   PV   manufacturers   offer   guidance   on   the   tilt   and   direction   of    

the  panel  layouts.  Based  on  geo  coordinates  and  sun  angle  collected  
during  the  Site  Survey  step,  designers  use  tables  shown  in  the  figure  
on   the   right   to   calculate   the   tilt   for   ground-­‐mount   systems.   For  
tilted   rooftop   installations,   they   rely   on   the   roof   tilt   during   the  
design  to  optimize  direct  sunlight  exposure  and  maximum  yield  for  
power  generation  

Inverter  and  String  Sizing  Considerations      

The   most   important   factors   in   determining   what   size   of  

inverter   to   choose   are   (i)   number   of   strings   in   the   system,  
(ii)   voltage   on   the   string,   (iii)   maximum   input   current,   (iv)  
maximum  ambient  temperature  of  the  location,  and  (v)  the  
minimum  ambient  temperature  during  day  time.    

Designers   use   various   string   sizing   tools   available   from  

inverter   manufacturers.   NEC   690.6,   690.7   and   690.8  
provides  guidelines  for  maximum  input  and  output  voltage  
and   current   requirements   of   the   strings.   As   a   good   rule   of  
thumb  it  is  wise  to  size  the  inverter  based  on  the  rated  AC  
continuous   output   to   be   80%   smaller   then   the   rated   STC  
output  of  the  string  array,  factoring  for  inefficiency  from  the  
 array  to  the  inverter.      

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Design  Approval  
Once   the   drawings   are   ready,   they   are   submitted   for   approval   at   the   local   city   or   county   office   and   local   utility.   The   installation  
partner  typically  coordinates  this  activity.    The  drawings  include  layout  design  as  well  as  electrical  wiring  diagrams  as  shown  below.    

                       Site  Layout  Drawing  Sample  

- Roof Mounted SEEPV3 DETAILS Tile Hook

PITCH: 23 ARRAY PITCH: 23
MP1
AZIMUTH: 90 ARRAY AZIMUTH: 90
MATERIAL: Spanish Tile Roof STORY: One Story
- Roof Mounted SEEPV3 DETAILS
PITCH: 23 ARRAY PITCH: 23
MP2
AZIMUTH: 180 ARRAY AZIMUTH: 180
MATERIAL: Spanish Tile Roof STORY: One Story
Un-Locked Gated Fence

B
6' to PL PV3
M
AC
Inv LEGEND
M (E) UTILITY METER & WARNING LABEL
DWIGHT WAY

INVERTER W / INTEGRATED DC DISCO

A Inv
PV3 & WARNING LABELS
DRIVWAY 25' to PL
DC
DC DISCONNECT & WARNING LABELS
MP1 AC
AC DISCONNECT & WARNING LABELS

J JUNCTION BOX

C DC COMBINER BOX & WARNING

D DISTRIBUTION PANEL & WARNING

LC LOAD CENTER & WARNING LABELS

30' to PL

M DEDICATED PV SYSTEM METER

Front Of House CONDUIT RUN ON EXTERIOR

CONDUIT RUN ON INTERIOR

GATE / FENCE

INTERIOR EQUIPMENT
Un-Locked Gated Fence

5' to PL

SITE PLAN N

Scale: 3/32" = 1'

W E
0 1' 10' 21'
S

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Electrical  Wiring  Drawing  Sample  

 
GROUND SPECS MAIN PANEL SPECS GENERAL NOTES INVERTER SPECS MODULE SPECS LICENSE
  INV 1

INV 2
INV 3
 

  Inverter 1

  A

 
POI A AC PV DC
 

  2 1

Conclusion  
Gridscape   designers   have   developed   several   highly   efficient   and   cost-­‐effective   Solar   PV   designs   helping   our   worldwide   customers  
such   as   Solar   PV   installers,   Solar   Energy   companies   deploy   highly   optimized   solar   PV   solutions.   Based   on   our   expertise   on   local  
electrical  code  regulations  such  as  NEC,  we  continue  to  strive  for  design  excellence.  

Please  call  us  at  408-­‐889-­‐3209  or  email  us  at  sales@grid-­‐scape.com  to  discuss  your  design  requirements.    

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