A global solar safety solution
By John Burfoot
Remote Solar Isolator™ is proud to welcome FireSafe Solar LLC as exclusive distributors in the United States of America.
Solar safety concerns are not unique to Australian residents and commercial owner/operators. Nations from both developed and semi-developed regions have adopted solar power as an affordable and accessible energy alternative. The risks, however, are beginning to emerge and in some parts of the world changes are being made and laws are being passed to address this.
Solar installation methods have changed little over the last 15 years since solar power first emerged on the commercial and residential scene. Over this time we have listened to the safety concerns of fire fighters and other emergency services personnel around the world, particularly with roof-mounted panels that account for the majority of solar installations. These solar arrays not only made it difficult to navigate around their flat, slippery surfaces, they also became an electrical hazard, as every array was in fact a lethal power generator that could never be turned off.
Remote Solar Isolator™ and its growing list of Accredited Installers have been promoting and lobbying for solar safety in Australia ever since Remote Solar Isolator won the 2012 Innovative Product of the Year award by the MEA and ECA1. This created a ground swell of awareness as home and commercial property owners began to take the issue of solar safety more seriously. But it wasn’t until September 2013 at the Dietz & Watson warehouse fire in Delanco, USA, where the world stopped to take a serious look at the real issues and the consequences of un-isolated PV solar installations.
The enormous scale of the warehouse fire and the impact that it had on solar safety headlines around the world, led to change at a political level earlier this year, with the passing of a bill in New Jersey that now requires an external shut-off mechanism as well as a method of identifying premises that have such devices. (For further information read http://cliffviewpilot.com/solar-panel-protections-bill-for-nj-firefighters-becomes-law/.)
The Remote Solar Isolator™ is designed to isolate portions of the solar array to a safe operating level known by the industry as Extra Low Voltage. Activation can be performed remotely at the fuse box, sub station or automatically by its internal thermal detection. Homes and businesses fitted with Remote Solar Isolator™ are also clearly labeled at the power source or fuse box. For more information go to www.remotesolarisolator.com.au
1 Masters Electricians Australia and Electrical Contractors Association
