Interconnected Electrical Power Production Sources, Supply-Side Source Connections,NEC 2020 [705.11] 

You are the Best Sir. I have been following u for 23 years, and still i learn new things every Nec Cicle. God bless you sir. Stop Riding Bike. Lol

Thanks team! This answered a topic I was researching.

Thanks again Mike Holt.

Mike and at el, In my opinion, change in definition of service is just to clarify PV System is a parallel source of energy, called service. Yours interpretation abiut ground wire requirement is correct, we don't need to bond conduit if it is not metallic. However, electrical safety point of view, shouldn't PV system be grounded? If so why we ground that with separately derived grounding grounding? If utility company permit to run ground wire through metering panel, we should bring ground wire all the way to service disconnect switch where we are bonding neutral and ground wire. This is just my opinion.

Y'all Sparkys sound more like lawyers than lawyers. This is hardcore word interpretation, especially difficult with new and changing technologies and products.

Line side taps right before the service disconnect are the more common way of connecting to the supply side. I recently worked with an inspector, and his position was that the inverter AC disconnect is in fact a service disconnecting means. Inverter equipment does draw power from the service conductors then it is in standby, and the PV AC disconnect interrupts that, so by the definitions I would also conclude that it is a service disconnect... What else could it be?

I just started working for a solar company and I have found in my area that every local codes want different connections.

This is kind of how my solar is connected except they used pins in my main panel right before the disconnect breaker. Which to me makes more sense compared to making that connection in the power companies box like in this picture.

How do we view the rest of this discussion? Thanks

Bout to do an off grid setup, you know, kind of like my RV has from the factory.... Signature solar out in Texas sells the majority of the major components. Would really like to get everyone's take on an off grid setup applying the current code and knowledge.

Where can I find full video !!

Must be a electronic detector to time top dead center of the ( the inverter can ensure proper synchronization of the output waveform to grid voltage, frequency, and phase. In most inverter designs, a PLL provides the mechanism at the heart of this synchronization process ) if out of sink probably auto disconnect

I agree on the double lug because any electrician in the future will see it, if it is hidden they may miss the challenge that they may have, ( ask fire marshals if there has been any accidents because someone missed it )

Funny, I was reading article 705 last night

The raceway from service disconnect (where supply side connection is made) to solar primary disconnect.. some inspectors here in CT do not want the neutral bonded in the solar disconnect if we use a metal raceway because they say it creates a parallel path for the neutral back to the service first means of disconnect… thoughts Mike ? Ian

It could be fusible?

we cant use double lugs unless provided by factory by code in my city

Not sure why they used double lugs on the meter base..You can pass right over to the service disconnect. And accomplish the same thing. Thus any utilities would not care. As you made no changes to the meter socket....

That was a cliffhanger

Line side connection 208 delta because primary solar is 480. Solar needs Neutral for reference only and we create with transformer.

Where are the PV system ground rods?

we dont allow you to pass your load side past out line side because of transduction

I don't like this diagram, what if the premises has two service disconnects and two PV disconnects. Bonding every neutral creates multi fault current paths thru the disconnecting means enclosures, and in the event of a fault, the enclosures and raceways could potentially become fault current paths. In this example in the video it's ok, because there's no EGC in the PV disconnect, so no multiple fault current paths, and also PVC was used for nipples between the switch enclosure and the meter base. On every system, it's better to stick with one and only one neutral bonding connection. One example is a large house I did with multiple PV disconnects, and two service rated generator transfer switches feeding two 200 amp panels as service disconnecting means. To avoid this problem, I ran EGC's to every switch, and the main GEC in this area is always attached to the neutral bar inside the meter base. The reason being this utility wants the EGC to be in the enclosure with the utility seal on the door, to prevent tampering of the GEC. Also, the main GEC is required to be in a conduit, and then to each grounding rod. Then a separate EGC is brought out for the telecommunications, CATV, satellite dishes etc. Because this utility doesn't want people attaching stuff to the main EGC. This way, the only place the neutral is connected to ground is only in the meter can, and all the service disconnects and everything else downstream of the meter base, the neutral is kept separate from ground. GEC is used to bond all the switches together. With the transfer switches this was easy, the manufacturer already had separate ground and neutral bars, so was easy to just remove the bonding jumper. In the 200amp PV disconnect switch, I just used the terminal block with the green bonding screw for the EGC, and the neutral just came from the meter base and directly to the inverter subpanel without any neutral connection to the disconnect switch itself. Some other jurisdictions like Florida I think also do it this way, seems to be more for areas that are prone to lightning strikes in which the GEC is ran into the meter can, and then every panel in the premises has to be treated like a subpanel, and no neutral to ground connections allowed anywhere on the premises except in the meter base, sealed by the utility. Makes for a safer system in my opinion.

That drawing is incorrect for the solar pv

You’re violating multiple codes by bonding the neutral conductor to ground in the PV disconnect enclosure. The PV system is not a separately derived system and is not service equipment.

The Question is: Do you bond your grounds and neutrals in the pv disconnect and purposely create a parallel path to ground? Or do you isolate them and use the EGC to get objectable current back to the neutral? (just like a sub panel) THE 0 point (neutral) is already established from the utility company and bonded why would we bond at the pv disconnect? this would create 2 paths to the main 1 on the ground 1 on the neutral... no? the grounds coldwater,steel,rods, everything (likely to become energized) and the neutral is already established and bonded. thanks.

That looks nasty. There should be one service disconnect and only that should connect to the meter. The PV system should connect to the service disconnect. Switch the service disconnect off and everything is disconnected from the meter. Yikes.

No one knows....they can't even agree themselves

This is shocking news...Get it

The utility should have been required to make all new smart metered with load side “secondary source “ metered lugs.

Four nerds one disconnect?