Where to Install the Solar Inverter at Our Home?

The solar inverter is the main crucial part of our solar photovoltaic system, so we have to take care about all details related to it, like mainly choosing the high quality brand when purchasing, and proper technical installation, etc. One of the important details is: Should we install it inside or outside the home? Where we should install it in our home? And what is the best place?

Although most of solar inverters can be installed outside the home, but we recommend to install them inside to avoid the exposure to the direct weather.

Usually, we have to mount the solar inverter near our home switchboard (the board which has the circuit breakers for all circuits in our home), so it can be readily accessible, and it will be close to the electricity energy meter and fuse board. But we have to note the operating noise emitted from the solar inverter, and whether it will be an issue for us or Not, so can indicate the best place for our convenience. Generally, the inverter noise differs from one inverter type/brand/quality to another, for example, the transformer based inverter will buzz and hum, while transformer-less inverter is quiet.

If the inverter operating noise represents an issue, then we have installed the inverter far away from our bed-rooms windows, so avoid noise disturbance, as you may need to sleep in the bed room during the day. One other important thing is to install the inverter in a shady spot, we mean to be away from direct sunlight, as the inverter lose some of its efficiency in a hot environment.  Generally, in modern homes, the switchboard and inverter are usually installed in the garage.

For business locations/projects, they almost have multiple sub switchboard feeding different locations in the site, so the solar designer will need to make some calculations related to the connected cables length/cross section areas between the main switchboard and sub switchboards, to indicate the best technical place for the solar inverter. Also, there are many other factors to consider with commercial project design, like the electric network protections, and control system, not only cables.