Solar panels are widely used in life. Some people may know something about solar panels, but they know very little about the solar panel connectors and cables used in the whole solar panel system. Let’s learn more about solar panel connectors and cables.
1. What are solar panel connectors and cables?
1.1 Solar panel connector: solar panel connector is a kind of safe and reliable electrical equipment that can play a role in connecting solar panels. In addition, the solar panel connector can also play a role in the entire solar panel system to connect the solar panel and other photovoltaic components, such as solar inverters, solar battery and so on.
1.2 Cables: Cables can be used to transport electricity generated by solar panels to other photovoltaic devices, for example, cables can be used to transport electricity to the inverter, which will be converted into alternating current (AC) for home use.
In short, good solar panel connectors and cables can guarantee the normal operation of the whole solar panel system.
2. Connectors for solar panels
2.1 MC4 connector: MC4 connectors are commonly used in the market, MC4 connectors are usually divided into two types of male and female connectors, the two connectors can be stuck together. The two connectors can be stuck together and will be locked automatically after being stuck together, not easy to fall off. And the IP index is high, dustproof and waterproof ability is strong, but also can prevent radiation and so on. That is, usually can be applied in a more severe environment.
2.2 MC3 connector: take the snap-in locking mechanism, but the locking system is not as safe as MC4. Although there are still some people are using this type of connector, but in fact, this type of connector durability is poor, but also easy to be corroded and so on.
2.3 T4 connectors: T4 connectors have a threadless design, which makes it simple to disconnect or connect, and are more durable due to the use of high quality materials. It is also more resistant to dust, moisture, UV rays, etc. But overall it is not as strong as MC4 connector. But overall it is not as widely used as the MC4 connector.
2.4 Radox connectors: Radox connectors usually have the advantages of high temperature resistance, radiation resistance, strong performance, high temperature resistance, which also makes it possible to work under some extreme conditions. And, Radox connectors are also often compatible with Radox cables.
3. Solar cable models and specifications
The general specification of PV cable is 1.5~35mm², but the specification we use for daily solar panel is usually 2.5mm², 4mm², 6mm² and 10mm².
2.5mm² copper core wire has a long term load current of 16~25A and a maximum power of 5.5kw.
4mm² copper core wire has a long-term load current of 25~32A and a maximum power of 7kw.
6mm² long-term load current in 32~40A, the maximum power is 8.8kw.
10mm² load current in 40~65A, the maximum power is 14.3kw.
4. How to use solar panel connector and PV cable
4.1 Solar panel connector: choose the market is commonly used MC4 connector, series connection, usually the male connector and the negative lead connection, the female connector and the positive lead connection, and then finally the male and female connectors can be connected. But sometimes there may be some exceptions, at this time, we can use a digital voltmeter to test, if the voltmeter shows a negative value, the electrode may be connected incorrectly.
When we connect two solar panels in parallel, we can connect the positive lead together and then connect the negative lead together. But when we connect more than two modules in parallel, we may use the MC4 multi-branch connector.
4.2 PV Cables: When using PV cables to connect connectors, one end connects to the male connector, one section connects to the female connector, and the PV cables are usually between 8 to 100 feet long. As in the series-parallel example above, after the connectors are connected, the current needs to be transported through the cable to the electrical device.
