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MicroInverter vs String Inverter
Micro-Inverter Enphase IQ7+(25 Year Warranty)
Pros:
- Independent panel production.
- If one inverter fails only the solar panel connected to it will stop working and the rest of the solar panels will continue to operate.
- Great in shading conditions or multiple roof orientations.
- Lower start-up voltage.
- Easy to add more solar panels to system.
Cons:
- Not very effective with high wattage panels as they have a limit typically of 295w-300w.
- Not easily converted to DC Battery System without major losses.
- More pieces of equipment that can fail with multiple inverters.
- Difficult to replace as you have to go on your roof and remove solar panels to access Micro Inverters under solar panels.
- If a failure occurs 5+ years down the road it is tough to find a compatible replacement to the current system.
String Inverter w/Optimizers (25 Year Warranty)
Pros:
- Independent panel production w/optimizers.
- Panel by panel monitoring w/optimizers.
- Easily converted to DC Battery System with minimal losses.
- DC Power is more compatible with Electric Vehicles.
- One inverter to handle entire system gives less chance for failure.
- Easy to replace if a problem occurs as it is mounted to a wall with easy access.
- Can use smaller sized inverter if solar panels are mounted on multiple orientated roof surfaces such as East, South, West because all power isn’t being used at once.
- Easy to add to more solar panels to the system if inverter is sized appropriately.
Cons:
- A string of panels only performs as good as the weakest panel without optimizers.
- String only monitoring without/optimizers.
- If an inverter fails the entire system is down.
- Need space to mount the inverter.