Friends and colleagues:
I recently performed a service call at a grid-tied installation we did in 2003. The homeowner noticed the daily consumption had declined to about 1/3 of typical sometime in the last year. Sure enough 2 of the three strings (30 mods in total) of Siemens SP150s showed low voltage. When I tilted up two of the racks to expose one dead string of 10, I found that 6 of the 10 panels had 1/3 or 2/3 of the expected OC voltage. Testing of the individual strings indicated that 1 or 2 strings were dead on each affected panel. Close examination revealed pinpoint heat damage on inter-cell traces. The diodes tested good. See photo below. I am surprised to see such a high rate of failure. Has anyone else experienced this with these or other panels? Is anyone servicing warranty claims on these ancient panels? I doubt there is much value left in the warranty but I am curious. Thanks in advance. William Miller
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