I'm considering whether to go with monofacial or bifacial solar panels for my EG4 Flexboss setup. I know people often say it's fine to overpanel your inverter, as it only draws what it can handle, but I'm concerned about the max MPPT open circuit current, which is 31A for my inverter. If I go for bifacial panels, estimating their added efficiency is tricky; I'm not sure if a 5-10% gain is manageable, or if anything more than that could lead to problems with excess current and overheating. What do the experts recommend?
1 Answer
With excess current, the inverter just won't use it, so it ends up as heat instead. Think about an unplugged panel in the sunlight; it's just converting energy into heat. You don't wanna go above that max short circuit current (Isc), though. It's best to size your panels carefully to avoid that.
Exactly! I get that the inverter controls the current, but if I can't accurately size for the bifacial gain, I might end up downsizing my panels too much. Being cautious could lead to less energy from those bifacial panels compared to what I'd get with monofacial ones.