Monitoring your solar

The benefit of monitoring gives the customer information about the performance of their solar system. Basic information such as power generated on a daily, weekly, monthly or yearly basis can be gathered by a solar monitor.

In a commercial and industrial setting system monitors behave with more complexity. These monitors determine a number of external and internal factors for accurate measurement of generation performance. Most companies use a data logger with a web interface. The software works by communicating with sensors placed outside and around the solar modules. These sensors extract important data such as radiance, temperature and wind. All these factors contribute to the efficiency and total generation of the solar plant.

The information is then organized and refined into information that highlights the solar plant efficiency based on electrical and ambient conditions. This IT approach gives large businesses a structured indication of the solar system’s performance.

The sensor data is refined and organized into performance data. This is communicated through a network connection to the public via a user friendly interface. Alternatively, residential systems have a portable monitor that can be checked via a simple LCD display directly from the inverter. The image below is an example of a power monitor from an ABB inverter.

Access is possible online. This allows anybody to see how their solar panels are performing anywhere with internet access. However, software and online applications for monitoring varies between inverter manufacturers. Monitoring is not always readily available due to product standards of each inverter.