Solar Panel Voltage Calculator

Why a Solar Panel Voltage Calculator?

A solar panel voltage calculator is an important tool to ensure a solar power system will function correctly at any temperature it may encounter. This is really important because the voltage from solar panels changes with different temperatures, and it’s very important that an inverter or charge controller the solar panels are connected to can handle the voltage at any temperature the system may experience. If the voltage is too high it could destroy your expensive electronics, too low and it just won’t work. Knowing the range of voltages you can expect the solar panels to produce allows you to avoid some potentially costly mistakes!

For more information about the maximum voltages solar panels can produce check out our solar panel maximum voltage calculator page here.

For more information about the minimum voltages solar panels can produce check out our solar panel minimum voltage calculator page here.

Solar Panel Voltage Calculator – The Information You Need

REC 295W solar panel information for solar panel voltage calculator

REC TwinPeak 2 data sheet with highlighted information that’s required for voltage calculations. Click on the image to enlarge.

To use the solar panel voltage calculator we need some information about the panels you’re intending to use. This information can be found on the solar panel data sheet and includes the following:

Solar panel open circuit voltage (Voc)
Solar panel maximum power point voltage (Vmpp)
Solar panel temperature coefficient of Pmpp
Solar panel temperature coefficient of Voc

On the REC TwinPeak 2 datasheet to the right we’ve highlighted the applicable information for the REC TwinPeak 2 295W solar panel. The information from this panel is entered into the calculator below as an example.
We’ll also need some site-specific temperature information, particularly the following:

Annual site minimum ambient temperature
Annual site maximum ambient temperature

Add to this the number of solar panels you intend to connect together in a series string and we have all the information we need! Just enter the information in the calculator below and it’ll spit out the maximum and minimum voltages you can expect from your solar power system.

Please use this solar panel voltage calculator as a guide only, if the inverter or charge controller manufacturer have their own calculator or design tool please check the suitability of the proposed array with that.