Solar Panel Diodes. I found the problem (for a moment)...

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Finally some results about the panels. I can measure a reverse current across some of the diodes. Does that mean they are faulty? Yeah, well, I managed to find 2 panels where the diodes measure OK. Let's put them in series and to the test! I'm excited. For a moment...
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4 окт 2024

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Комментарии : 363

@diyernh 3 года назад

There was a commercial solar array that uses a thermal camera. By feeding power into the panels at night, the shorted diodes actually heat the panels. They just look for the hotter panel and know the diodes are shot.

@ykchowaa 3 года назад

Good idea. Just apply the revise voltage at night. if the string has current then meaure or checked by thermal camera for that

@raytry69 2 года назад

Or just measure them at the Sunlight without load. If the diode is faulty, that will generate some amps and heat up the cells.

@Useitorloseit1 Год назад

Good morning Andy, I know this video is 2 years old. But it's today for me and your Joy is infectious. Your your Joy and perseverance is infectious, thank you

@HansKeesom 3 года назад

For the moment, test all the other panels one by one with the two panels so you can sort the stack of panels that you have into good and bad panels. Then install the good ones on the roof again and worry about the bad ones later. No need to open the good ones.

@sergioalves4204 3 года назад

Lessons learned: Always watch Andy's videos until the end! :-) just love it!!

@Gary-wh7ce Год назад

Good content as always. I found a faulty diode when a 100w panel should provide 21v voc and I was getting about 9-10v dc. One panel had a faulty diode and the second panel has a lifted solder joint. In both cases this saved me $$ each time and the fix was less than 50 cents.

@nigelcharles511 3 года назад

As the conductor areas are large inside the box and you know their layout you could just drill small holes in the cover in the correct places and push the cable probes through. Afterwards just seal up the holes if the panel is good. The other observation is that the panels themselves might allow reverse current. You would need to disconnect the diodes to check. Diodes don't often fail closed circuit.

@teardowndan5364 3 года назад

In my own experience repairing electronics, semiconductors almost always fail shorted unless the overload is large enough to blow them up.

@leonclose7823 3 года назад

I thought the same thing about drilling holes for testing. A dab of sealant afterwards.

@sinusgolf 3 года назад

Fantastic tip

@julianfine29 3 года назад

I am glad I am not the only one having problems with Solar, I have done a massive system at my home to take me off grid with 40 x 330 Watt panels, 2 x 250/100 victron M PPT, 1 x 15 Kw Victron Quatro, and originally 20 x 225 Amp AGM batteries. The batteries only lasted 1 year even though I only discharged to 50%. Replaced with 6 x 4.8Kw Lithium Phosphate packs. But I made one fatal mistake. The Lithium Packs came with Copper Lugs which I replaced with Tinned Lugs on 5 but forgot the 6th one. Struggled to get the 6th one to work until I found that the Copper connected to my 50mm x 50mm x 5mm Aluminium bus bars had corroded within 1 week and that battery was no longer in circuit, due to corrosion with dissimilar metals. Moral of the story DIY works but simple mistakes can be made. By the way I am in South Africa where we have rolling Massive blackouts almost every day. But I am now completely off grid :).

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

Thanks for sharing Julian. Great to hear your on lithium power too now. There are always these nasty little things in your project which can completely throw you off. And everything takes forever if you need to search for your own mistakes...

@williamfairley2502 3 года назад

Congratulations Andy love your videos

@ArthurDentZaphodBeeb 3 года назад

Always a great moment when you figure out such annoying, confounding problems.

@normtomlins3821 3 года назад

OMG, the ending... your killing me!

@tomsutherland3438 3 года назад

Unsolder them then check hehehe and yes i watched until the end too!!!!

@65bigfalconable 3 года назад

Nice work mate... panels that would of been taken to the bin .... now have a new life of making free energy....

@petercamusojr1545 3 года назад

If you suspect a bad solder joint. You can buy a can of "cool spray for electronics". Spay on the solder joint while using the diode check meter to check for a bad intermittent solder connection.

@garysmith2104 3 года назад

Great accomplishment. Well done.

@AveRage_Joe 3 года назад

Having a good Ole fashion Diode replacing Party!!!! Wait WHAAAA😮😏

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

Thanks for watching until the end! 😳

@AveRage_Joe 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia Always!!💥🤘

@karensar9304 3 года назад

I am very glad that I found the reason well done Ser

@OwnMyBit 3 года назад

I'm glad I watched to the end because through it I was thinking "I don't believe it is the diodes, 200mV one way and 1.4V the other doesn't indicate faulty diodes!"

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

You're probably one of the three people watching until the end so far 😉. Yes, that is very suspicious to start with, right.

@zarbonida 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia it's a PID problem

@adamelkoumy5141 3 года назад

Thank you very much for sharing the knowledge.

@DavidBTB 3 года назад

Oh no, I gave a celebratory thumbs up before , "it's not the diodes". What a rollercoaster of emotions. :)

@andrewsweet43 3 года назад

Yeah, to have a definitine answer about the diode problem, one must unsolder one of the problematic diodes and check it off circuit... Judging from my previous experience with diodes, 99% of the time they fail shorted. What you are measuring there probbably comes from faulty cells which is a bad thing unfortunately... You probbably realised that ath the end of the video :) Either way, kudos for the effort! Oh and an I-V curve tracer instrument would be great to test individual panels for problems like that! You would see the problem immediately on the characteristic curve. I am building such an instrument right now as my Master's degree thesis!

@etubbin 3 года назад

This channel is like the tv show Survivor but for geeks. I love it. Keep it up Andy.

@robertolira8331 2 года назад

You are an electronic wizard! Your DAKINE!

@georgev. 3 года назад

Great Diode discovery Andy and April's fools, jajaja or not maybe cell damaged if your measuring voltage. Apply the Diode reverse voltage and see if it blocks the current.

@popcoingaming5086 3 года назад

This is the biggest cliffhanger video you have put out. I can't stop thinking "if it's not the diode, what else could it be?" Eagerly awaiting the next video Andy.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

Hahaha, sorry for that 😉 But thanks for watching until the end. Most here haven't...

@zarbonida 3 года назад

PID Potential Induced Degradation

@electrojessy4270 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia is the next video here tomorrow? I cant wait lol

@danielglang6312 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia I usually watch til the end but not always. I do however watch individual videos multiple times just to check the comments and reply if I might be helpful. I suspect that just clicking on the post will bump up RU-vid's watch count and help boost income from them.

@RJ-cc1fz 3 года назад

Awesome! Finally fixed! Good job. I’d absolutely help you fix the rest of them if you didn’t live across the ocean

@panospapadimitriou3498 Год назад

wish i could go back in time and open more electrician books than plumber and car mechanics... !!!! i think i lke it!!!! with my character i could be completely bald due to stress but i love it some how!!!

@friendlyguy2542 3 года назад

Please keep us posted on replacement diode source and cost. Great videos and quite entertaining. I hope you work out a maintenance plan to keep an eye on panels and find problems shortly after the occur.

@RemScanProducts 3 года назад

Great News !! Love watching and learning from your experiences. Thx

@peterevenhuis2663 3 года назад

I am happy that finally you opened the connection box on the panels. So soon you will be back with full panel power.

@russkubes 3 года назад

I'm interested to see the next video for what you find next. I'm wondering if you took some diodes off and tested directly and found they are actually working, but maybe the reverse voltage you measured is making its way through the solar cells somehow. Is that possible? Really thought you had something there, but you'll get it.

@NaughtyGoatFarm 3 года назад

Hi Andy. It would be great if there was some way to test the diodes without opening the connection box. Surely there is a way. What about a few strategically placed holes drilled in the box that can then be sealed after with silicon or tape.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

There is actually a diode tester out there for solar panels. Well, diodes is only one thing it measures, also does isolation and performance I think. Costs around $1600 though.

@NaughtyGoatFarm 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia wow that's lot.

@teardowndan5364 3 года назад

A simple way to test diodes is to use a bench power supply: set the current limit to 3A, set the voltage limit to panel open-circuit rating or whatever your power supply can output if it does not go that high, then connect panels in the bypass direction while fully dark. If the diodes are good, the diodes' forward voltage should be around 2V (3 x 0.5-0.7V + wiring losses). If the voltage is much higher, one of the diodes is open-circuit and current is leaking through the array. If the voltage is much lower, at least one of the diodes is shorted.

@andrewkingsley7221 3 года назад

Thank you for the series on the panels . You have answered my question for the panels here in my area as well. Now for the work to check and replace DIODES.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

You should watch until the very end!

@zarbonida 3 года назад

It's not the diodes

@farqend 3 года назад

I'm cracking one with you!

@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity 3 года назад

Another in Kentucky with you guys. Mine is bourbon.

@vickipps6821 3 года назад

Well done

@moinmoin3678 3 года назад

Best cliffhanger ever !!!!!!!!

@MrMalzbie 3 года назад

Eine Achterbahn der Gefühle! Also ich würde ja Löcher in die Deckel bohren um die Dioden zu testen. Man weiß ja jetzt wo man messen kann. Aber jetzt bin ich erstmal gespannt was nun wieder is.... Mann! Du machst es spannend!

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

Huch, wo ist denn dein Englisch hin? ☺️ Es ist alles Mist und geht nicht voran. Was einfach aussieht dauert alles ewig weil man ständig neue Probleme findet oder selber macht. Ich hatte einfach neue Panels kaufen sollen...

@MrMalzbie 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia Och, es war einfach noch zu früh for english. Ja, diese Probleme sind schon blöd. Aber es ist auch super für deinen Kanal! Das hilft garantiert vielen Leuten. Ich schaus mir jedenfalls gerne an! :)

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

@@MrMalzbie Du bist der Beste!

@MindMeetMaker 3 года назад

Maybe try using a hot air gun on the back boxes to soften the glue before trying to open them it may help?🤔

@TBL_stevennelson 3 года назад

I think that sounds like a good idea

@RikHaanen 3 года назад

Congratulations Andy, great to learn all of this from you! Thanks

@RikHaanen 3 года назад

But wait a minute... its not???

@cristof48 3 года назад

Bonjour, if it's not the diode, may be a corrosive contact between line or busbar. in this case, the diode is working well on direct direction, but the résistance is bad on reverse direction.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

It's something like this. My bet is on micro cracks in cells across these panels.

@polvincompoundsadmin5402 Год назад

Best way to test your diodes is under load, use a 12v battery and a car headlight bulb (50W) gives a better result.

@thomasmoore4576 3 года назад

I'm so happy for you you fixed your panels I bet you that's what's wrong with mine

@rohbags 3 года назад

If it's not the diodes, then it must be a faulty/shorted cell in the same string the apparent faulty diode is across. Did you de-solder a diode to test it at the component level, outside of the circuit? Can parallel a few common 1n1004's as a temporary diode substitute to test the difference on a single panel to rule it out.

@Tony-Elliott 3 года назад

Brilliant video again Andy looking forward to the next video to see what else you've found

@karoneykemboi5480 3 года назад

Andy: We've got him! We've got him! Uh-oh, false alarm. What a bummer

@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity 3 года назад

Good job. You’ve taught us a bunch! Thank you.

@nurofenusa1 3 года назад

Thank you Andy, I now have something to test :)

@allandeans3904 3 года назад

Andy, 5 seconds into your video there is a clip of your panels on the roof. The left hand one shows some diagonal cracking in the cell at the bottom. I have experienced this myself and it generally leads to lower output depending on how many of the cells are cracked. Just thought I would mention it as it was just like the cracking I saw on one of ours (also in Brisbane area). Not suggesting this is your current problem but I think it will get worse and as you have spare panels maybe this one should be pensioned out. Cheers Allan

@mikeman230 2 года назад

Now you know the layout of the box make a drill template. Then check through small drill holes. Then seal with silicone

@jaminthevanuk296 3 года назад

Great work son

@frankammerman3296 3 года назад

Life is good!

@phillipchen7749 3 года назад

That is so great that you found the problem but better yet I have also learnt something thanks!

@kipdennis3796 3 года назад

Good work Andy,Solar is addictive, they always think am not well upstairs always thinking and doing solar system every now and then

@brunovg 3 года назад

Just finished to watch all your videos 🤪 What a journey Andy 😅 Keep the good working and solar info. Greetings from Portugal 👍🏻

@thomasmoore4576 3 года назад

Thank you so much for doing the video ☺️

@davegeorge7094 3 года назад

I would unsolder one leg on the diodes and re-measure. It could be a cell string short circuit and not the diodes but unlikely. This is new territory for me and been off grid for years.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

You're spot on Dave!

@tomsutherland3438 3 года назад

✓^^^^

@jasondevine6014 3 года назад

Well done. I should check my panels more thoroughly after this.

@lahirugunawardena4015 2 года назад

You look so good.. nice person...

@philiphales9993 3 года назад

excellent video 🌞

@bobonestone1807 2 года назад

Heat and overvoltage would be my guess I would actually go with a little bit higher voltage on the replacement

@blindliquor1 3 года назад

Great Job... love the humor..lol

@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity 3 года назад

You remind me of the back to the future movie.

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

How comes?

@pmacgowan 3 года назад

Its like you just won the lottery ... good job

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

... until you watch the video until the end!

@pmacgowan 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia Yes I know ... commented during the video

@sarathai2876 3 года назад

Way to go! I feel your happiness.

@apz9022 3 года назад

Congrats!!

@howardadams4072 3 года назад

Andy, drill 4 little holes in the cover to put the test probes in for testing. Then if OK, you can just silicon the holes.

@MarcusPocus 3 года назад

so happy for you and i have learned something new!!! :)

@henvan8737 3 года назад

As you will change a lot of diodes try to get some with higher current and voltage rating, otherwise the same thing will happen again.

@mikenewman4078 3 года назад

Could have been lightning in its past life.

@philipwinkelhorst934 3 года назад

Very good found this is big for the secondhand solar community. ! Love your vids! Plant some new trees and get ths big one a bit down. then your shed is not any more in the shadows. Congrats man!

@diydan6045 3 года назад

Awesome good job 👍

@1981dasimpson 3 года назад

you dont have to crack them open but drill a small hole so you could get some longer probs in this way they could be sealed again if all is good

@bobtobb9292 3 года назад

Four small holes drilled in the cover would allow testing and save cover repair if diodes are good.

@QUADBOYification 2 года назад

I actually removed the 10A rated diodes from my two 50 Watt panels (in series). That alone got me from 55 Volts to 72 Volts (2 x 36v). The shading is only relevant at certain hours of the day and is already low efficiency. Mine are stacked on top of each other in portret mode and I discovered that panning them on the Y-axis (horizontal angle to the sun like a door) produces a lot more also. It seems that some panels have difficulty absorbing direct sunlight shining exactly straight on them making them hotter reducing voltage, that is what I discovered.

@ranig2848 3 года назад

Easy to diagnose - get one good panel, connect another panel which is under test and connect to solar charger. If it works well, panel under test is fine. If not... that other panel has an issue.

@rudikaatz317 3 года назад

Gratulation aus Brandenburg! (es lag doch nicht an zu wenig gekühlten Bier :) Congratulations from Brandenburg! (It was not because the beer was not cooled enough :)

@jmaus2k 3 года назад

Amazing job. Totally impressed. You should be able to test without disassembling junction boxes by shading each section covered by a diode while a load is applied. Voltage should change drastically depending on if a diode has failed or not. I bet you could also put a reverse voltage on the panel(or even use meter diode checker) and get a consistent 1.4V per section that diodes work.

@andrewradford3953 3 года назад

Meatless BBQ sounds good, same beer that I drink - great, nice small panels - count me in! Would be a fun trip in the Leaf from the North side. Difficulty is organising farm sitters for us. Can't wait to see you solve this mystery.

@jaminthevanuk296 3 года назад

Put diods outside under panel for easy maintainance make your own boxes

@DutchAussieProductions 3 года назад

You made my day again Andy. I haven't seen anyone this happy for a long time. Have a great day. "Its not the diodes" ?

@gladegordon3624 3 года назад

Great to see you got to the bottom of it! Your sharing and documenting this adventure should help in testing the 22kw used solar panels I've accumulated;)

@ltcmdrdata4611 3 года назад

Well done Andy but, with all this (well working) panels on the roof you´ll need a bigger or 2nd battery

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

incoming...

@walterweese2527 3 года назад

@@OffGridGarageAustralia of course you must have enough wage , to pay the bill and tax ;o) greetings to silke ;o)

@sinusgolf 3 года назад

Süper😁,semi conductors don't like heat,I think Australian climate is to hot,and it is bad if the panels are too close to the roof

@kevinroberts781 3 года назад

I knew you would figure it out. I can't help but think, if you weren't on the metric system you would have found it sooner!😘 We were wrong. Nice

@Luke-san 3 года назад

Now the question is ... why did they fail? Could it be a production fault or maybe static electricity due to lightning. New sub and started watching your progress. Edit... yes I watched till the end of the end now. You can't measure a diode in a circuit One side has to be disconnected. However they should all act the same on the panels since the panels are all the same type and manufacturer. My to go test would be to disconnect the diodes and solder 2 new test cables and connectors. ... One panel by one panel.

@guywhoknows 2 года назад

Without looking at the diode datasheet. I would assume they over heated. With the solar panels heating up and roof heating, it can get mighty hot in a little black box. I would assume the temp max I about 75oC. I'd go for different diode. Over the twin ones as they always get hot. I'd expect if you have an array of them they can't handle the voltage and amps within the string, as well as the heat. Least you know now.

@alanhollister9122 3 года назад

Well he didn’t show in this video but I heard him between 11.05 and 11:40 !!! Keep up the good work! Fried diodes.

@DanBurgaud 2 года назад

Hmm... come to think of it, I believe I have diode problems too... I got 16 panels x 300W+ but I am getting only 2KW max

@michaelgunzelmann1193 3 года назад

Makes p erfect sense but would have not have bet on it!

@Jim-Bob. 3 года назад

Lov a good ending !! Can you show what a diode looks like as I fear I have a similar problem !! Yeah !!

@Nobody_Famous 3 года назад

7:11 shows the diodes

@mjp0815 3 года назад

Can be the diodes or could be the cells. To tell for sure you need to de-solder the "faulty" diodes and test them in isolation.

@jakstak 3 года назад

Average Joe brought me here, I always watch till the very end, Great content and fault finding, Keep up the good work Andy :)

@MaxTunage 3 года назад

Hey bud, if you use an analog meter that takes a 9 volt battery, you should be able to check the ohms in each direction of the panel without having to take the cover off the integrated junction box. Place the Analog Ohm Meter in the high ohms position, you should see the full 9 volts across the Analog Meter terminals using a DMM. This will make it much easier to check your panels while they are mounted, however, you'd have to cover them fully to prevent sunlight, or perhaps rename yourself, Midnight Solar. LoL! I hope you find this to be helpful. Cheers 'n' beerz!

@lasangap 3 года назад

Wow Never Give Up... Great...

@1981dasimpson 3 года назад

after good results i would put a bad panel inline to replicate the problem see if it acts like it was

@peterwalker7869 3 года назад

I am thinking you could test the panels with a restive load rather than cracking open all the junction boxes. Some light globes connected in series/parallel for the required load. If the panel fails that test then crack open the box. As for ordering and replacing the diodes, do you really need them? I can see why they are there, but if they create more problems than the solve, just chuck em in the can. But if you do replace them I would look for an equivalent, but not the same part.

@houseofancients 3 года назад

glad you found it, valuable lesson :)

@houseofancients 3 года назад

oh dear, should have watched till the end, which is, as they say "less than ideal", now you've got in my head wondering what it actually is

@OffGridGarageAustralia 3 года назад

Thanks for watching until the end 😂

@nigeldunn4467 3 года назад

Well done Andy! Every panel in your west array must have most diodes faulty! So there is a fair chance they may have hotspots as well? So you still need to test each panel before you put it up on the roof even after repairing the diodes. If the panels are also faulty you would need to de-solder the suspect diodes and check them separately and then check the current through each string of cells on the panel in both directions. You probably should do this test after removing the diodes for replacement and repair.

@thorsten_b 3 года назад

People not watching the video til the end: yay let's crack a beer. All the others: oh no, what a cliff hanger... greetings from Germany.

@walterweese2527 3 года назад

Now check the batterie in your "Diode-checker" 9V Block i guess :D and order the Diodes ! (Dont make shorts with your + and - cables ) Dont try to de-solder the diodes with your Weller (to less Power) !!! look for a soldering Gun ! Dont forget to order the silicone for the boxes if you want to close them again (if you let them open there would be a better thermal transfer) Gruß aus D Walter PS: Enjoy the beer Prost!

@LarryL619 3 года назад

Hahahaa this is the longest click bait ever!! I’m anxious to see your next video. I hope you find what’s causing the problem. Great video nonetheless!

@muddy11111 3 года назад

Good that it works with two panels, but connecting the three panel strings was always the problem. You're running test software on the charge controller because the original 150/35 was locking up at 132v every few days. A 3 string can exceed this, 2 will not. I would be looking at the controller and be asking how Victron resolved the lock up issue.