PHOTON International The Photovoltaic Magazine

SMA's inverters for indoor use

In May, SMA Regelsysteme GmbH begins selling its Sunny Boy 2800i inverter, which was recently introduced at the PV symposium in Staffelstein, Germany.

	© SMA Regelsysteme GmbH
Not watertight: The new Sunny Boy 2800i has ventilation holes, which make it suitable for indoor use only.

The device has a nominal power of 2.5 kW and is housed in a protection type IP 21 housing suitable for indoor use, which SMA had previously used only for its large central inverters. All older models in the Sunny Boy series adhered to protection type IP 65. Hence the Sunny Boy 2800i is the first of the Sunny Boy inverters that is optimized for indoor installation and use only.

The technical specifications for the new inverter are similar to those of the Sunny Boy 3000, yet there are several differences between the two devices. The 2800i's rated power is 100 W less than the earlier model's, and the MPP range has been expanded by 44 V. Whereas the Sunny Boy models for outdoor mounting require the total heat to be transported over the housing surface, the new device has ventilators that switch on under conditions of heavy use. Holes atop the housing provide additional cooling, so the power electronics can endure higher loads. In other words, using the same power electronics for an outdoor device would result in a significantly lower power design. Still, this has done little to lower the end-consumer price: The Sunny Boy 2800i costs around €1,680 ($1,460) without taxes and thus costs just 2 percent less than the Sunny Boy 3000.

The new inverter is available in four different colors and can be delivered from stock within a week. Krefeld, Germany-based Rosendahl Industrievertretungen GmbH is responsible for distribution of the 2800i, which will be sold all over Europe.