[Solar Hot Water] [Backup Power]

This page lists the products that LBA has selected as the most appropriate to use in systems that we design and install. There is a short reason why the product was selected and also a link to the manufacturer's data sheet in case you want to see the detailed technical specifications.

Solar PV Electric Components

PV Modules

• ASE 300 - These 300 watt panels are the largest wattage panels available hence minimizing the number of panels required and simplifying the electrical connections. These panels are slightly more expensive and may have longer delivery times than the smaller Isofoton or Sharp panels.
• Isofoton 150 Watt: Isofoton has become the leading provider of photovoltaic solar solutions in Europe and the eighth largest PV manufacturer in the world. The 150 watt is their largest.
• Sharp 70 triangular and Sharp 140 rectangular panels are combined to form triangular arrays for peaked roofs. Check out this picture of a triangular installation.
• Sharp 175 Watt panels are the most efficient panels and are the choice when available.
• For making the PV panels a structural part of the roof, that is, BIPV (building integrated PV), we use Unisolar SSR-128 for installation on standing seam metal roofing.

• Fronius 3000 and SMA Sunny Boy 2500 inverters are used for grid-tied applications without batteries and both may be installed in parallel to form multi-inverter systems up to 100 KW.
• The Sharp 3500 inverter is used in situations where up to 3 strings of un-balanced solar panels are called for, for example, if you have two roofs of different sizes with panels on each.
• Outback Power VFX-3600 inverters are used for applications where batteries are required for backup operation. Up to four may be installed together for a 14.4 KW system.

• Unirac and Direct Power and Water products are selcted as roof, ground, or pole mounts depending on installation considerations.

Charge Controllers

• Morningstar Prostar charge controller uses the most effective technology to regulate the charging of the batteries, namely Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and are used in all remote power applications such as sign and street lights, telecommunications, telemetry, cellular, security lighting, or traffic applications.

Solar Hot Water Components

Solar Hot Water Collectors

• Sunda Evacuated Tube Collectors are the most efficient collectors for heating hot water. The evacuated tubes minimize heat loss to the atmosphere and the tubes maximize collection in the low light of morning and later afternoon and on cloudy days.

Backup Power System Components

Backup Power Systems

• A backup system is simply an integration of an inverter plus batteries, such as Outback VFX-3600 Inverter plus MK Battery AGM or Gel batteries. The MK Battery batteries are sealed AGM or Gel with no maintenance required.

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Version 1.0, May 18, 2005