Do you want to install a solar panel on your farm or factory? Are you looking for the right wire and material to help you install the Solar panel? Nowadays, in many factories and industries, you will find they are installing solar panels in their building to save electrical costs.
However, most people don’t know about the cable size and the material used in solar panels. This article will tell you the size and material of the cable that is needed for the 200w solar panel. So let’s get to know about it in detail.
What are the benefits of installing Solar Panels in the industries?
We all heard in elementary school that solar panel is used to produce energy and run the machine with the help of sunlight. However, there are many benefits that you can get when you install solar panels in your industries like:
- It can help you save costs as the electricity cost becomes cheaper by 17% to 27%. This will help you save costs, and therefore you need to buy less electricity.
- Installing a solar panel is a lifetime investment as the electricity prices of a country change from time to time but with the help of a solar panel, you don’t have to worry about electricity prices. You can put that saving amount into some other projects with solar panels.
- People can get a better source of electricity as many people rely on alternative sources of electricity like petrol and diesel. With the help of solar panels, people can get electricity in every area.
Choosing the right wire size for the solar panels
After installing the solar panels, it is essential to know which type of wire is needed for the smooth functioning of the solar panel with safety and security. Some people think that wires and cables are the same things, but generally different.
Solar wires are being used to install solar panels, known as Conductors. Solar cables are the group of wires/ conductors that are assembled.
Here are some of the materials that you can use in the solar panels that are installed in the industries and factories:
- Copper
- Aluminum
- PV wire
- USE-2 wire
The copper wire is a better conductor of electricity as it helps pass the current at a better speed. Aluminum is also a better source, but it has some liabilities which make people go for copper.
What size of cable is needed for the 200w Solar Panel?
According to the research and analysis, we can say that the size of the cable depends on the voltage of the individual panels. If the voltage is high, you will require a thinner conductor and vice versa.
For the 200W solar panel, the size of wire you will require for the 200W solar panel is 5m cable, and 10AWG cable is sufficient for this kind of solar panel as it can hold up to a
maximum of 55Amps. If you can calculate the Amps and voltage of the solar panel, you can find out the wire for any voltage.
Different DC cables present in the market are 2.5mm, 4mm, and 6mm. The types of wires depend on the solar system and the electricity produced.
How to Size the Solar Cables?
It is essential to size the solar cables; if the size is correct, then the performance of the Solar panels will be according to the people’s expectations. If you buy a smaller cable than the solar manufacturer-recommended, you will notice that the voltage will drop eventually.
That’s why measuring the suitable solar cable is an essential task to get all the benefits of the solar panel for which you have installed the solar panels. Also, if the wire’s size is shorter, it can lead to problems like a surge in energy, which leads to fire in the industry.
How to Measure the Solar wires?
The PV cable is measured or sized with the help of American Wire Gauge, i.e., AWG, to get information about the gauge scale. Different PV cables have different prices and different gauge sizes.
Each gauge size has its own AMP rating that can produce the maximum amount of AMPs that can travel through the cable safely.
The Bottom Line
After gathering the information about the Solar panel wiring and its sizes, we can conclude that choosing the right wire will benefit you. However, for a 200W solar panel, copper wire with a 5mm cable is sufficient.
Eng. Matthew Joseph Nandirio is the Founder of walkingsolar.
After graduating from the University of Houston in 2002, matt started working as a Solar Electrical Engineer for several multi-national solar energy companies.
He has a wide range of experiences including solar system requirement analysis, planning, maintaining, debugging and even solar device development through research.
He now shares his 20 years of expertise through his articles on the walkingsolar website.
Further, he is also the author of two books on Solar Technology, “Solar Power for Villages” and “DIY Solar System for Dummies”.
