Newsletter - March 2009

In This Issue


Welcome

Welcome to the premier issue of the Enphase Newsletter. Please send us your suggestions for future issues. We'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support of Enphase and wish you all the best for 2009!

- Paul Nahi, CEO

Product Announcement

Enphase M190 Micro-inverterEnphase Energy is pleased to announce the newest addition to its Microinverter family – the M190 model – with support for 60- and 72-cell modules. This new model offers the following enhancements over the M175 and M200 generation of microinverters:

  • 95% CEC efficiency: Enphase reaches another milestone in its ongoing focus on efficiency.
  • Temperature range of -40C to +65C: An improvement from the previous range of -20C to +65C, Enphase Microinverters can now be installed in a wider range of locations.
  • MTBF of 331 years: The Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) rating of the M190 is 331 years. This more than triples the MTBF rating of the M175/200 models. This increased MTBF rating is a result of improvements in components, validated by over 10 million unit hours of operation of Enphase Microinverters in the field.
  • Improved Cable configuration: The new M190 also offers a new cable configuration. Instead of 3’ male and female AC cables on each side of the device, there is now one 6’ male AC cable on the utility side and a female connector on the upstream side. This makes installation more streamlined due to reduced cable management – there’s now only one cable to manage instead of two.
  • 30% decrease in unit size: The enclosure is now more compact and streamlined.
  • Redesigned Bracket: The racking bracket has been improved to include an offset slot. This prevents the unit from sliding prior to tightening the fasteners. In addition, the bracket is centered on the body, allowing it to be installed in either direction (face up or face down) and enabling easier cable routing.

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Photo Gallery

Solar Carport - Mississippi Solar We'll be adding a photo gallery on the Enphase website to highlight Enphase solar installations. If you have photos of an installation that you’d like us to include, please send them to: llee@enphaseenergy.com. If the files are large, you may want to use YouSendIt (www.yousendit.com). Please include the following information:

  • Site Location: City and State
  • Site Info: Number and type of modules and whether it’s residential or commercial.
  • Installer’s Name: Site owners, please give us your installer’s name so we can credit them as having installed the system.
  • Site Owner Contact: Installers, please give us your site owner’s contact info so we can get permission to show the photos.
  • Interesting Information: If there’s anything particularly interesting about this installation, please let us know!

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Did You Know?

  • ... that our website has a Downloads page? You can download datasheets, user manuals, application notes (on various topics such as PV watt calculations, PMRS, circuit calculations, multi-tenant installations), and design resources (such as racking compatibility, wiring diagrams). Visit the page directly or click on “Support” on the top menu above and then “Downloads” on the left menu to navigate there.
  • ... that Enphase hosts monthly Webinars and has other training events coming up? You can always see upcoming training opportunities on our Events page. Visit the page directly or click on “News & Events” on the top menu above and then “Events” on the left menu to navigate there.
  • ... we have a new Module compatibility list? Wondering if your preferred module is compatible with the Enphase Microinverter? Just check to see if it’s on the list. View the list (it’s in the Support > Downloads page of our website – bookmark it!)

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Featured Installation

When Karim Hammani – owner of the Aloha Board Shop in Honolulu – decided to install solar, he asked his installer for an Enphase system. Karim had done some research and liked what he’d read about how microinverters optimize energy harvest. He understood that the per-panel microinverter would help reduce the impact of dust, debris, or shade. What he didn’t expect was that it would also help him identify a malfunctioning panel.

After his solar array was installed and activated, Karim logged in to the Enlighten monitoring system. He noticed that one of the modules was producing substantially less power than the others in the array and suspected a malfunctioning panel. After several days with no change, Karim called his installer – Sean Costello at Adon Construction - http://www.adonconstruction.com/. Sean was able to log in to the site and confirm the diagnosis of a faulty panel. This was done without having to visit the array or do any troubleshooting to determine which module was malfunctioning. Sean replaced the module and Karim’s array was producing full power immediately.

“Without Enphase, I wouldn’t have been able to tell the difference with one less panel working. The loss wouldn’t have been dramatic enough to alert me to the problem,” said Karim. “I’m so impressed that I’ve basically “sold” fifteen Enphase systems since mine was installed.”

BEFORE

BEFORE - Array Enlighten shows the malfunctioning module

BEFORE - Graph The Graph function helps to confirm the diagnosis

AFTER

AFTER - Array The replaced panel now produces full power

AFTER - Graph The Graph function shows the expected DC numbers

For more photos of the installation, visit Karim's blog.

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Embedding Enlighten

It’s very easy to embed the Enlighten monitoring system into your own website. For installers, it's a great marketing tool. For system owners, it’s a great way to share how you’ve gone green, via your corporate or personal website. Here’s a screenshot of one company that has embedded their Enlighten page into their corporate website. All it takes is one HTML line embedded into the web page where you’d like to embed Enlighten. Download the Application Note to learn how.

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