Just got a lesson on tabbing cells

[tonyrader]

Well I have been here reading and all over the net reading on tabbing cells, and tieing them together. For some stupid reason I thought the tabbing wire was "tinned" After I got passed that. It went better.
I have to work today. I will pick up more soder after work and do some more. All and all 5 cells in two hours,,, 4 cells wrecked.. But after wrecking the first four the rest went well... I knew I would bust some but I was getting a little carried away.. more to follow.. Tony

[Mike90250]

Ah, the balance from too hot of soldering iron (dissolves the metal plating off the cell) and the high melting point of greenie "lead free solder" and the thermal expansion/contraction which could make a cell curl up like a potato chip, if it didn't break first.

If the tabbing wire is "silver color" it's pre tinned, otherwise, it's just bare copper which oxidizes quickly and has to be cleaned before soldering. And you need the right flux, and you MUST clean the flux off after soldering, or it will attract moisture over the months, and moisture ruins the cells. Even if you coat the cells, over the flux, moisture will permeate the encapsulate and collect in the flux voids, = dead cells. That's not covered in the $50 video, I don't think.


Required reading for all DIY panel builders !

http://photovoltaics.sandia.gov/docs/PDF/IEEE%20Quintana.pdf

and this http://fieldlines.com/board/index.ph...topic=145005.0