Connecting Two Arrays Of Solar Panels

On the other hand if our two solar panels have both different wattage and different voltage then parallel connection is not possible since the panel with the lowest voltage would behave like a load and would begin to absorb current instead of producing it with the.

Connecting two arrays of solar panels.

Just like a typical battery you may be familiar with solar panels have positive and negative terminals. For example a 110ah battery should never be connected to a panel more than 11w without a solar controller and if you are using a solar controller you do not need a blocking diode. The rule of thumb when connecting solar panels directly to a battery is never connect more than c 10 watts where c is the capacity of your battery. Stringing solar panels in series involves connecting each panel to the next in a line as illustrated in the left side of the diagram above.

When solar panels are wired in series the voltage of the panels adds together but the amperage remains the same. If we have two solar panels with the same voltage but different wattage there is no problem. The main advantage of this configuration is reliability. They can be wired in parallel.

So if you connect two solar panels with a rated voltage of 40 volts and a rated amperage of 5 amps in series the voltage of the series would be 80 volts while the amperage would remain at 5 amps.