Is A Solar Panel Emp Proof

However the larger the solar array is the more likely that there will be damage to the supporting equipment including the wiring charge controller and inverter.

Is a solar panel emp proof.

Depending on the strength of the electromagnetic pulse emp most solar panels would likely not be affected. Sol ark solar inverters are emp hardened meaning they re specifically designed to withstand all the disruptions of an emp whether it comes from a nuclear weapon or the sun. The solar panels themselves should be fine. A solar panel itself may be inherently resistant to emp to some extent.

They even make it easy to plug batteries in to get you through the day after the grid goes down. How do i protect my electronics. Their output might be decreased slightly but usually they ll still work. Yes whether your solar panels are mounted on the exterior of your vehicle or carried inside they would be vulnerable to emp unless you take steps to protect them.

Part ii of this article which will be released tomorrow will talk about what is involved in protecting larger volumes and installed panels. But you ll need to protect the batteries and voltage inverter which are still at risk of being destroyed by the emp so you should keep spares in a faraday bag. Because of a multitude of factors that would affect solar panels during an emp such as the magnitude of the emp event it s difficult to say for sure what kind of protection is needed to completely protect electronics from the its effects. But now we have a final problem and that is that solar panels are not emp proof either.

They might have a slight reduction in output after being subject to an emp maybe about 5. Solar panels solar panels will actually do a surprisingly good job of resisting an emp. But if damage occurs it is likely due to the wires between the solar panel and most often the solar charge controller. Since solar power systems are typically designed to provide more power than needed to account for cloudy days those who have solar panels on their homes will still have some electrical power for a while even though it will be somewhat lower.

If lightning strikes within about 500 feet your panels will be fine although the wiring and circuitry connected to them will often be destroyed. Another way of looking at it is to pretend that the system you are trying to protect is a complex network of components that might in simplest form. Surprisingly solar panels are pretty good at surviving an emp attack. So they will be destroyed by an emp if not protected and they don t make a faraday bag big enough to fit a decently sized solar panel.

What we do know is that emps are caused by both nuclear explosions and by the sun i e. You can expect a similar situation after a nuclear emp. They do suffer some damage reducing their output by about five percent but they will still work. Surprisingly enough solar panels can weather an emp fairly well.