Xantrex Technology PROwatt 1000 - Manual (Page 34)

Installation
3–12
Marine Connect the CHASSIS GND screw to the boat’s DC grounding bus
or the engine’s negative bus using 6 AWG copper wire that is bare or has
insulation rated at 90º C.
Fixed Location (residential, for example) Connect the CHASSIS GND
screw to your system’s DC grounding point using 6 AWG wire. The
system’s grounding point is usually the AC service entrance grounding point
or a separate ground rod. For a solar PV (photovoltaic) installation, this is
usually the same rod used to ground the PV array.
Connecting DC Cables
To operate safely and effectively, the PROwatt 1000 needs proper cables,
wiring, and fuses. Because the PROwatt 1000 has low-voltage, high-current
input, low-resistance wiring between the battery and the inverter is essential
to deliver the maximum amount of usable energy to your load.
Cabling Guidelines
Follow these guidelines and refer to Table 3-1 to plan the DC cabling:
• Use 4 AWG copper (90º C insulation rating) as the smallest DC cable
size. This will minimize the voltage drop between the battery and the
inverter. If the cables cause an excessive voltage drop, the inverter may
shut down when drawing higher currents because the voltage at the
inverter input drops below 10 volts.
• Keep all cables as short as possible, and ensure that each cable between
the inverter and the battery is no longer than 4 feet (1.2 m).
• If you must use longer cables, choose a larger diameter cable such as
2 AWG, and use appropriate crimp connectors.
• Do not use aluminum. It has about 1/3 more resistance than copper cable
of the same size, and it is difficult to make good, low-resistance
connections to aluminum wire.
Table 3-1 Recommended Wire Sizes and Lengths
Wire Size
Wire Length
Battery to Inverter one way
4 AWG 2 feet (0.6 m)
2 AWG 6 feet (1.8 m)
2 AWG 8 feet (2.4 m)
Note: Never use a cable longer than 8 feet.
PROWatt100.book Page 12 Friday, January 5, 2001 3:03 PM