SMA Sunny Boy vs Solar Island

[music]

Guys,
I don't follow the difference between the SMA SunnyBoy inverters, and the Solar Island.

Can they both work together in a system?
And can the Solar Island take solar panel DC input and charge a battery bank?

I am a little bit lost.
Thank you!

[inetdog]

Do you really mean SMA Sunny Island? If so, they work very compatibly with the grid tie Sunny Boy inverters to make an AC coupled hybrid system. But you need to do the design work!
I have not seen any PV product called Solar Island.

[music]

Do you really mean SMA Sunny Island? If so, they work very compatibly with the grid tie Sunny Boy inverters to make an AC coupled hybrid system. But you need to do the design work!
I have not seen any PV product called Solar Island.

You are 100% right... Sunny Island.
I was wrong calling them "Solar Island".


Thank you for the reply!
And question: Can the Sunny Island take the solar panel's DC power output, and charge the battery bank?
Like doing MPPT?

Thank you!

[solar pete]

You are 100% right... Sunny Island.
I was wrong calling them "Solar Island".


Thank you for the reply!
And question: Can the Sunny Island take the solar panel's DC power output, and charge the battery bank?
Like doing MPPT?

Thank you!

Howdy, yep the SI takes dc current and uses it to charge your batteries

[solarix]

Just installed this type of system recently. The special characteristic of the Sunny Island architecture is that it is AC coupled. The SunnyBoy takes the array's DC power and converts it to AC which the Sunny Island uses to either power your house, charge the battery bank, or export to the grid - in that order of priority. The Sunny Island(s) has to be big enough(in kW) in order to handle the max power of the Sunny Island(s). The Sunny Island can control the SunnyBoy to shut it down when the power is not needed. (if you set up the comm cable between them, it can throttle it more fully instead of just on/off). The Sunny Island can also work with other brands of inverters by shifting the AC frequency, but definitely works best with the SunnyBoys.
All in all, very cool technology, but expensive. Has the advantage of just one box controlling the battery. And - btw, the Sunny Island is just 120Vac so you either need two of them or the special Smartformer to work with the 240V SunnyBoy or a 240V grid.

[music]

Just installed this type of system recently. The special characteristic of the Sunny Island architecture is that it is AC coupled. The SunnyBoy takes the array's DC power and converts it to AC which the Sunny Island uses to either power your house, charge the battery bank, or export to the grid - in that order of priority. The Sunny Island(s) has to be big enough(in kW) in order to handle the max power of the Sunny Island(s). The Sunny Island can control the SunnyBoy to shut it down when the power is not needed. (if you set up the comm cable between them, it can throttle it more fully instead of just on/off). The Sunny Island can also work with other brands of inverters by shifting the AC frequency, but definitely works best with the SunnyBoys.
All in all, very cool technology, but expensive. Has the advantage of just one box controlling the battery. And - btw, the Sunny Island is just 120Vac so you either need two of them or the special Smartformer to work with the 240V SunnyBoy or a 240V grid.

This explanation helps a ton!

I am reading both spec sheets, and googling different installations... yet your posts gives me 10x the insight.
Thank you!

One thing, just to make sure we are on the same page.
The following sentence:

The Sunny Island(s) has to be big enough(in kW) in order to handle the max power of the Sunny Island(s).

You mean the Sunny Island(s) has to be big enough (in kW) in order to handle the max power of the Sunny Boy(s).
???

Or am I still messing up?
Thank you everyone!

[solarix]

Yes, if your sunnyboy is 6kw, then the sunny island has to be at least 6kw.

[inetdog]

Yes, if your sunnyboy is 6kw, then the sunny island has to be at least 6kw.

I do not see any obvious reason for that limitation, since the SI is capable of telling the SBs to throttle back their output.

[solarix]

Only the Sunny Island is connected to the external grid. In order to export all the potential array power coming through the SunnyBoy, the Sunny Island has to be at least as big. However, they can work in parallel when driving the local load (your house).

[music]

I just realized that nothing in my house is 220v (240?).
Everything is single-phase, 110v.

[inetdog]

I just realized that nothing in my house is 220v (240?).
Everything is single-phase, 110v.

That does not stop you from using a 220V line-to-line inverter for GT configuration, but it might be a problem when off grid. It depends on whether the SB actually delivers pure 220 (240) or 120/240 single phase, with the ability to source different current to the two line leads. If the SI can do that, it can make up for the limitations (if any) of the SB.

As far as size goes, the SI's transfer switch will have to be able to handle the maximum current of your house load, or at least the circuits on that part of the system, but that does not mean that the SI itself has to be able to deliver that much power.

And the ultimate solution to any 120V to 240V conversion is to use an autotransformer. Several solar companies sell them, and the one from Outback seems to be popular.