Whitehousesolar - Podcast Details

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Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNorCal Solar 50 Years PartyCelebrating 50 Years with NorCal Solar: Insights, Innovations, and Impact In this special episode, join Sean White at the 50th NorCal Solar Anniversary Party in Oakland, California. Sean captures the essence of this vibrant gathering, filled with pioneers, innovators, and advocates for solar and energy storage. Each conversation shines a light on the diverse contributions to the solar industry and environmental sustainability. As we celebrate 50 years of NorCal Solar, join us in exploring the future of solar energy, the importance of community, and the advancements in technological and environmental advocacy. Topics covered and people I talked to...2024-05-2653 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastJohan Alfsen: Solar Rock StarJohan Alfsen is the Senior DIrector of Training at K2 Systems. He was also the Director of Training at Quick Mount PV for 12 years. Johan started the Solar Battle of the Bands, the Solar Comedy Slam and seems to me that he must be in charge of the Solar Games at Intersolar. All super fun competitions. Topics covered: Quick mount PV K2 and Everest www.k2-systems.com/en-us/ Solar battle of the bands Solar Comedy Slam competition at Intersolar Solar installer competition-Solar Games Warfield Theater Solar Siblings (Sister Jennifer A...2024-05-1953 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastRichard Lawrence of IREC on Apprenticeships and More!Richard Lawrence has a long history in the solar industry and is very knowledgeable in many areas (He was formerly the Executive Director of NABCEP among other things). Our main focus of this podcast was apprenticeship programs. This is a big deal, since to qualify for the Inflation Reduction Act 30% Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for projects over 1MW, fulfilling the apprenticeship and prevailing wage standards are required. Topics covered: Richard Lawrence career: IREC Program Director currently 5 years irecusa.org IBTS 2 years - Institute for Building Technology and Safety NABCEP Executive Director 3.5 yrs 2024-05-1246 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastCameron Fearey NABCEP PVIP talks about his NABCEP ExperienceCameron works and lives in New York where having a NABCEP PV Installation Professional (PVIP) helps you qualify for the NY State program that helps fund projects. Here are some of the topics we discuss: NYSERDA = New York State Research, Energy Research Development Association www.nyserda.ny.gov NY Sun Program NABCEP Certifications Indent Builders www.indentbuilders.com IBEW = International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers www.ibew.org 3 Pathways Dobbs Ferry Best Investment is Education Heatspring Courses Bundles NFPA 855 NFPA 70 = National Electrical Code (NEC) IBC = International Bui...2024-05-0553 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEicke Weber: Hermann Scheer's 80th BD 4/29/1944 (Scheer founded the solar revolution)Hermann Scheer (RIP) was a German politician who is responsible for making grid-connected solar profitable in about the year 2000 as he brought the German policy for reimbursing people for solar energy, so that they would make a profit. This brought about years where over half of the World’s installed PV was in Germany. This created the modern solar industry and kick-started modern PV manufacturing. If it were not for Hermann Scheer, we would probably be 10 years behind where we are now with PV prices and installed capacity. Eicke Weber was a friend of Hermann Scheer and Eicke was al...2024-04-2939 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Roots with Jeff SpiesWhere do we start, in this podcast we covered many things and Jeff Spies is very active and connected in the solar industry. Here is a short list of what Jeff does and has done: Owner of Planet Plansets www.planetplansets.com NABCEP Board of Directors www.nabcep.org/about-us/board-of-directors CALSSA Board of Directors www.calssa.org Solar Roots, the Pioneers of PV Documentary, Executive Producer www.solar-roots.com The Solar Panel Podcast www.linkedin.com/company/the-solar-panel-podcast Here are some of the many topics we covered: Sol...2024-04-281h 11

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastAmerican Battery Factory President John KemThis is my first interview with a real US Military General and I am honored that he took the time to meet with me. I am not worthy! John Kem is in the civilian sector now and is the President of American Battery Factory! In this podcast we discuss their huge Gigafactory, which they are building in Arizona and which will go online towards the end of 2025 making made in the USA lithium iron phosphate (LFP) lithium-ion batteries. They are working on prismatic battery cells, which are as big as 1kWh each! In the podcast we talk about t...2024-04-2145 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastJoe McCabe American Solar Energy Society (ASES) Fellow, historical figure and a lot more!Joe McCabe has been in the solar industry since before there was a solar industry. In this podcast we talk about many things. Here is a list of topics: ASES Fellow American Solar Energy Society www.ASES.org International Solar Energy Society www.ISES.org MREA = Midwest Renewable Energy Association SMUD = Sacramento Municipal Utility District PVUSA Davis California PV Policy SAM software PV Reliability Workshop Nerdfest Golden Colorado SANDIA Community Solar Gardens Bifacial Solar 2024-04-141h 07

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastBidirectional EVs with Alex Cattelan, COO Fermata Energy and UL 9741 EV Power Export Equipment In this podcast, we learn how UL issues first certification to UL 9741 (and UL 1741 SA) for an AI-Driven Vehicle-to-Grid Compliant EV Charger to Fermata Energy. https://www.ul.com/news/ul-solutions-issues-first-certification-ul-9741-and-ul-1741-sa-ai-driven-vehicle-grid Alex Cattelan has been working on EVs for 2 decades and has experience engineering many famous electric and hybrid vehicles, including the Chevy Volt for GM. She also has extensive experience working for Polaris, Johnson Controls and many others. At the end we decide to go to Burning Man together on a bidirectional electric bus and she is going to teach me how...2024-04-0750 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastGarret Little, NABCEP PVIP - Garret just passed his NABCEP exam!!! Celebrate!!! One week before recording this podcast, Garret Little passed his NABCEP PVIP exam, scoring impressively after nine years since his first attempt. In this episode, we discuss his exam experience, memory techniques, and the differences between the Ecotech and HeatSpring prep classes. Garret shares insights on what’s essential for passing exams and highlights the NABCEP courses available. Garret also brings his international experience, having installed PV systems in Nepal and Colombia. Topics Covered: Exam prep and strategies NABCEP certifications (PVIP, ESIP, PVA, and more) Online vs. in-person testing Memory techniques and learning methods In...2024-03-3154 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcastderek the solarboi, the TikTok and YouTube Sensation!!I came across a really cool YouTube video, rivaling Mr. Beast, but for solar, which was a purple bearded solarboi going off on Rapid Shutdown UL 3741 PV arrays, I immediately contacted him and a week later, here we are recording this podcast. This guy is entertaining and we are lucky to have him in the industry. This industry needs to be fun!! derek the solarboi has 3 NABCEP Certifications PVIP (PV Installation Professional) PVCMS (PV Commissioning and Maintenance Specialist) PVSI (PV System Inspector) Altogether that looks like: derek the solarboi, NABCEP PVI...2024-03-2455 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastTyler Hortin of Lion Energy-A Lithium-Ion Energy Storage CompanyGreat conversation with Tyler Hortin! His company does everything from Wh to GWh and focuses on prismatic cells that are almost 1kWh! This makes for less cells and less connections that can go wrong. The technology here is Lithium-Iron Phosphate (LFP) and we will talk about the supply chain and implications of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). They are affiliated with American Battery Factory, so we talk a little bit about manufacturing in the USA towards the end. Key Words: Lithium Iron Phosphate Prismatic Battery Cell Battery Manufacturing in the USA How he g...2024-03-1748 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastTor "Solar Fred" Valenza of Probably True Solar Stories PodcastTor "Solar Fred" Valenza is a regular in the solar industry. Tor has a podcast called Probably True Solar Stories, which takes his expertise as a former Hollywood writer and merges that with the solar industry. Some of his Hollywood work was on popular shows, such as Stargate SG-1, Dharma & Greg, and The Dead Zone. Tor's current day job is he is a chief solar public relations geek at UnThink Solar, a solar PR and communications firm. In this podcast we talk about how Tor Valenza became Solar Fred and how he made stories about solar. ...2024-03-101h 24

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Energy and Policy Entrepreneurship: a Discussion with Erica Goldman, Alice Wu, and Zoë Brouns of the Federation of American ScientistsIn this episode we are triple fortunate to have three of the smartest individuals in a discussion on science and policy from the Federation of American Scientists (fas.org), a nonpartisan think tank connecting scientific research with policy making to address today’s most urgent needs. Transition to renewable energy is urgent! We talk about how we can transition to solar fast, and how science and policy need to work together to get the job done, and how individuals can get involved. Guests: Erica Goldman, on systems thinking and solar Alice Wu, on tipping points Zoë...2024-03-0145 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Project Development Software with Matias Sigal, Founder REplaceIn this show we talk about the different stages of development of solar projects, which are projects that are from 1MW in size to GW sized projects. Matias Sigal is an entrepreneur and has worked with many startups and incubators in different countries. He started off by being born in Argentina, and is currently a resident of Israel (which we discuss at the end of the podcast). Matias has a company that developed software, which works sort of like Zillow for multimillion dollar solar projects. 80% of potential projects do not get developed, because they are missing som...2024-02-2047 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastJon Williams CEO ViridiIn this podcast we talk about safe portable Energy Storage Systems (ESSs). Jon and Viridi are located in Buffalo NY. Topics covered: Portable ESS Building and Fire Codes including the International Residential Code (IRC) and the International Fire Code (IFC). Occupied Spaces Habitable Spaces UL 9540 UL 9540A UL CSA Thermal Runaway How Viridi is safer Cathodes and Anodes NMC = Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide LFP = Lithium Iron Phosphate NCA = Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminum Oxide Specific Energy vs. Energy Density How Viridi Po...2024-02-1051 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage Systems (ESS) and the NEC with Bill Brooks and Sean White Part 4In this podcast we have Bill Brooks and Sean talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, with emphasis on interconnections, including supply-side and load side connections. Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com. Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Supply-side connections (source connections to a service), 705.13 Power Control Systems (Energy Management Systems), ampa...2024-02-0135 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2020 NEC radio 6902020 NEC radio 690 was originally published on Dec 30, 2019, but it did not post to other platforms, so we are reposting it. 2024-01-241h 27

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage Systems (ESS) and the NEC with Bill Brooks and Sean White Part 3In this podcast we have Bill Brooks talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, with emphasis on the National Electrical Code (NEC) and stand-alone/islanding systems. Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com. Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Flow batteries, fuel cells, Article 692 Fuel Cell Systems, electrolyte, zinc, fuel cell maintenance, Arti...2024-01-2032 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastCelebrating the Release of the HeatSpring 2023 NEC class with NEC Article 690 Part VI Source ConnectionsWe have just released the long awaited 2023 NEC class on HeatSpring. We spent more time making this class than any other class, so I am sure you will love it. We have Sean White and Bill Brooks going over many of the fun details and Code changes in this course. You can learn more here and some of the lessons are free samples. https://www.heatspring.com/courses/30-hour-2023-nec-pv-energy-storage-building-and-fire-codes/?aff_id=t3nlgw 690 Part VI is a shorter Part of Article 690 and the end of 690 was dramatically reduced and rearranged in the 2023 version of the NE...2024-01-1012 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastOhmConnect’s VPP model with Matt DusterbergOhmConnect is a virtual power plant (VPP) provider and helps balance the electricity grid. Will incentivize people to reduce usage at certain times. VPP definition of OhmConnect“Collection of 100s or thousands of devices that they are controlling all independently, but coordinating in a fashion that the grid can see it.” Topics covered: SunPower relationship Demand Response Thermostat control TV control Fridge control Looking at VPP as reducing demand rather than increasing supply Getting paid to take stuff offline Rewards Virtual currency Gift cards, prizes ...2024-01-0150 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastGet Grounded! and Bonded! A reading from PV and the NEC on 690 Chapter VI Bonding and Grounding, Based on the 2023 NECThis podcast is a reading from Chapter 6 of PV and the NEC 3rd Edition based on the 2023 NEC by Sean White and Bill Brooks. You can buy the book on Amazon at: https://a.co/d/amFqNko Bonding and Grounding is something that causes a lot of arguments and this book will get to the bottom of it. Topics: 690 Part V Bonding and Grounding 690.41 PV System DC Circuit Grounding and Protection Grounding Electrode Grounding Electrode Conductor (GEC)2023-12-201h 03

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSpeeding the Energy Transition: Sean White on the Clean Power Hour Podcast with Tim Montague and John WeaverSean White featured on the Clean Power Hour podcast with Tim Montague's co-host John Weaver on September 28, 2023. We are reposting this podcast, which you can also listen to on Tim Montague's awesome Clean Power Hour podcast, which you can find at www.cleanpowerhour.com Sean White was at the University of Colorado in Denver during this podcast. We had a great time chatting to one another and discussing: 1. The events at the just concluded 2023 RE+ Convection 2. White House launches clean energy youth workforce program amid labor shortage concerns 3. We talk about the Erthos technology a...2023-12-101h 02

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastHydrogen RC race cars at RE+ with Max AccordinoIf you were walking around RE+ in Vegas, you may have noticed a track and all of these remote control race cars and wondered what that was about. That was the Horizon Hydrogen Grand Prix Pro (H2GP Pro)! Here is what we talked about: Horizon Hydrogen Grand Prix Pro = H2GP Pro STEM kits STEAM Science Technology Engineering Art Math RE+ Las Vegas Remote Control Race Cars Hydrogen Element Hydrogen Fires Lead Acid Batteries making Hydrogen Fuel Cells vs. Internal Combustion Engines with Hydrogen Toyota Hydrogen Combustion En...2023-12-0143 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastVehicle to Grid (V2G & V2X) David Slutzky Fermata Energy Founder and Chairman of the BoardLearn about bidirectional EV charging/discharging with former White House and EPA policy advisor Clinton Administration, former County Supervisor in Virginia, Faculty at University of Virginia 23 years, Commerce, Architecture, Engineering who has a Philosophy degree and is an entrepreneur who started multiple companies. David Slutzky started Fermata Energy in 2010. Here are some of the topics we covered: V2G Vehicle to Grid V1G smart charging V2X Vehicle to Everything V2B Vehicle to Building V2L Vehicle to Load Behind the meter Load management 2023-11-2056 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastTerence Parker gets surprised by Johnny Weiss, Solar PV History! This podcast is full of solar history, so we give a shout out to the solar historians 100 and 1000 years from now!! Hey people who have not been born yet! Check us out!! Terence and Johnny have been doing solar PV since the 1980s and have known each other since the early days. Terence tells the story how he was on a small airplane in the South Pacific in the 80s wearing a solar shirt and Ward Bower, the inventor of the grid-tied inverter, tapped him on the shoulder, which started his solar career full steam. Before t...2023-11-081h 12

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastLithium-Ion Battery Silicon Anodes with Matt Kappers CEO The Coretec GroupMatthew Kappers is the CEO of The Coretec Group. The Coretec Group is known for their expertise in silicon nanoparticles to push the boundaries of silicon engineering and battery development. They are using their main expertise to develop an anode with a high concentration of silicon that will significantly boost the performance of lithium-ion batteries. In this podcast we are going to talk about anodes and how these anodes could potentially be used with other types of batteries and other types of electrolytes. Let us hear from Matthew Kappers on how he and his team work with anodes, wh...2023-10-2534 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastMartin Pochtaruk CEO of Heliene Solar Manufacturer in US and CanadaLearn how solar is manufactured right here in the USA with a long time CEO of a US (Minnesota) and Canada (Ontario) solar manufacturer. Heliene Solar started up in 2010 and is still growing, especially with the Inflation Reduction Act climate. In this podcast Martin Pochtaruk takes us down an assembly line so you can learn from start to finish how a modern solar module is made. Here are some of the terms we cover: Encapsulant An encapsulated mosquito in a solar cell (a Jurassic Park event) Electroluminescent Microcracks Busbars Lamination Half...2023-10-1136 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage Systems (ESS) and the NEC with Bill Brooks and Sean White Part 2In this podcast we have Bill Brooks talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, with emphasis on the National Electrical Code (NEC). Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com. Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Keywords NEC Article 706 for Energy Storage Systems, UL 9540, Article 480, nominal voltage, cycling batteries, UL 1973, residential code...2023-09-2744 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastDavid Bliss, CEO of Faraday MicrogridsDavid Bliss is the CEO/Founder of Faraday Microgrids. Besides being a renewable energy CEO, David Bliss also has a medical degree and is a qualified General Surgeon and Licensed California Pediatric Surgeon. There are many people in the renewable industry with a wide variety of skills! Faraday Microgrids is a licensed general contracting company. Some of their accomplishments pertain to pioneering systems for hospitals and healthcare institutions. Faraday Microgrids constructed the first renewable energy microgrid to interconnect to a vitally important power branch of a California hospital at the Kaiser Permanente site in Richmond. Faraday Microgrids is wi...2023-09-1339 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPodcast Episode 100! What Brings Us TogetherThere are so many reasons to go solar and so many people with different opinions of why. Rather than arguing about why everyone needs to go solar, let's get together, as humans and install more solar and storage! Forgetting about our differences and working together on this project, is what will have the greatest effect. Instead of letting politics divide us, let's come together and Here are some of the reasons that people go solar: Saving money Climate change Green jobs Oil wars Giving our money to dictators Energy independence Ne...2023-09-1118 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastASES Conference: Sean White on Clean Power Hour Podcast with Tim Montegue and John Weaver at the American Solar Energy Society Conference in Boulder ColoradoSean White was the guest on the Clean Power Hour podcast at the American Solar Energy Society in Boulder Colorado on August 10, 2023. We are reposting this podcasst, which you can also listen to on Tim Montegue's awesome Clean Power Hour podcast, which you can find at www.cleanpowerhour.com The main topic we discussed was, "Can renewables replace fossil fuels". Tim Montegue's co-host is: John Fitzgerald Weaver Known online as “The Commercial Solar Guy,” Solar professional and project developer. John Fitzgerald Weaver works as the General Manager of CSG Developers LLC and a technica...2023-08-3052 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastVirtual Power Plants (VPP) and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Geoff Ferrell, Senior Vice President of Sonnen IncGeoff Ferrell is the Senior Vice President of VPP and C&I Projects Business at Sonnen Inc. He also worked as a Chief Technology Officer in Mandalay Homes at Arizona. As the former Chief Technology Officer of Mandalay Homes, Geoff Ferrell was a leader in the development of technology in the construction industry and a specialist in building science. In 2017, Sonnen started working with Soleil Lofts, a multi-family community in Herriman, Utah, south of Salt Lake City, that has 600 units and is totally powered by electricity. It is a part of a project of Rocky Mountain Po...2023-08-1649 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage Systems (ESS) and the NEC with Bill Brooks and Sean White Part 1In this podcast we have Bill Brooks talking energy storage system (ESS) Codes, including the NEC, IFC, IBC, IRC, IEC, but mostly the NEC. Be sure to get Sean and Bill’s latest book, which is the 3rd edition of PV and the NEC, based on the 2023 NEC. To find where to get different versions of the NEC including the 2023 NEC for free check out the NEC tab at solarSEAN.com. Disclaimer: This podcast was recorded in 2021. Keywords/topics covered: Self-consumption EVs Frequency regulation Voltage regulation Ener...2023-08-0237 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNEC Article 690 Part IV Wiring Methods & Materials from PV and the NEC 3rd Edition book by Sean White and Bill BrooksBuy this book here: https://www.amazon.com/PV-NEC-Sean-White/dp/100318099X This long podcast is a reading of chapter 5 of the book, which covers NEC Article 690 Part IV of the 2023 NEC. Every 3 years when the NEC comes out, it is a tradition for me to read and post a poetry reading of Article 690 Photovoltaic Systems. I have already posted parts I through III on this podcast, which you can go back and listen to. Sean White and Bill Brooks will be presenting this material at RE+ in Vegas in September and at Intersolar in S...2023-07-191h 16

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastRod Matthews of Brevian Energy on Microgrids Rod Matthews specializes in commercial and industrial (C&I) scale micro-grids and we get into the details of what a microgrid is and how they can benefit customers. Some of the topics we cover include: Microgrid definitions (NREL and NEC, which are different). Minigrid definition (never connected to the grid) Time-of-Use (TOU) Rates up to $0.74/kWh (or 1 Euro per kWh in Germany) NABCEP PV Technical Sales (PVTS) Lithium Ferrous Phosphate, aka LFP, Lithium Iron Phosphate Dendrites with lithium-metal batteries Silicon anodes Virtual Power Plant (VPP) design Distributed Power Energy Resource Management System Service Artificial Intelligence and M...2023-06-2126 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastWorld’s Largest Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)There are many ways to define the largest BESS and since the industry is growing so excitingly fast, it is difficult to explain exactly which is the largest. We are going to talk about 7 big ones here: 1. Vistra: Moss Landing California US 2021 400MW/1600MWh 2. Crimson Storage: Blythe California US 2022 350MW/1400MWh 3. Manatee: Florida US 2021 (largest with PV) 409MW/900MWh 4. Victorian Big Battery: NSW Australia 2021 300MW/450MWh 5. McCoy Solar / BESS: Blythe California US 2021 230MW/920MWh 6. Elkhorn Battery: Moss Landing California US 2022 182.5MW/730MWh Number 7 on this list is not the 7th larges...2023-06-0711 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastLithium-Ion Battery ChemistriesSean is recording this podcast from Australia where he is about to teach a utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) course for CPD International. This is some of the material that will be included in the course. In this podcast, we will go over different battery chemistries, focusing on the three main types of lithium-ion batteries used these days, which include: 1. Lithium Iron Phosphate (aka LFP or LiFePo or LiFePo4) 2. Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (aka NMC or NCM) 3. Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminum Oxide (aka NCA) We will talk about the availability of the...2023-05-2426 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastJeffrey Max, CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc., Serial tech entrepreneur and investorJeffrey Max is the CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. otherwise known on the stock market ticker as ASTI. Jeff is a turnaround CEO and we're going to find out what that means, Serial tech entrepreneur and investor. In over 30 years he has founded, built and incubated different global companies with multiple exits in financial services, payments, mobile commerce, adtech and aerospace. Jeff is driving the company's global positioning as a leader in flexible thin-film solar technologies. In addition to several Board positions, Jeff advises and mentors a select group of portfolio companies and founding executives in aerospace, biomed...2023-05-0142 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastMicrogrids"Microgrid" is a term that is thrown around a lot and a lot of people using this term are not using it as it is defined in the NEC. The 2023 NEC has a few new microgrid terms. Additionally the 2023 NEC has renamed AC Coupling and DC Coupling to be AC Interconnected and DC Interconnected. Have fun and listen and by the way, go to www.solarSEAN.com and become certifiably NABCEPed!2023-04-1915 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastHerve Billiet, Co-founder and CEO, Ipsun Solar and Ipsun SunvoyHerve Billiet is an electro-mechanical engineer who co-designed the first Belgian solar car way back when he was 21 years old. Soon after, he was invited by MIT in Boston to advance its sustainable transportation initiatives. He went on to design his first residential solar PV system in 2009 using the 2008 National Electrical Code. Herve is from Europe but he knows the National Electrical Code he's not an expert over there designing solar systems in Europe. And another thing is he worked for a few consulting firms, Accenture among them, and the US Department of Energy as a St...2023-04-0542 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastClimate Change Activism Coupling (CCA-coupling)At the COP 27 conference there was a lot of talk about other issues besides climate change, which I thought was interesting. Here were my notes: I find it interesting at COP27 that there are a lot of other issues that are not directly about solving the CO2 crisis. Human rights, sexual rights, indigenous rights and economic injustice are all very important and all can be indirectly linked to climate change problems, but we need to get the jerks that are against justice on the side of reducing CO2 growth fast in order to move forward fast. Th...2023-03-2204 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastBill Brooks Talks PV IV CurvesIn this podcast Bill gets down to the basics talking about PV IV curves, Short Circuit Current (Isc), Maximum Power Current (Imp), Open Circuit Voltage (Voc), Maximum Power Voltage (Vmp), Maximum Power Point (MPP), Light Emitting Diodes (LED) in reverse is a solar cell or aka photo diode and if you put power into a solar cell it makes invisible light (infrared). To learn more go to www.solarSEAN.com and get NABCEP certified while you are at it!2023-03-0814 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2023 NEC Article 690 PV Systems Part 3 Disconnecting Means can be fun!We take something that can be boring and run it through the Sean White "boring-to-exciting converter" and out comes something sounding fun! In this podcast we go over different ways of disconnecting solar circuits. To learn more, go to www.solarSEAN.com or www.HeatSpring.com/sean Sean White teaches in-person and on-demand online solar and storage courses everywhere. He is currently writing a book on the 2023 NEC with Bill Brooks. 2023-01-1813 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEgypt COP27This podcast was recorded at the COP27 climate conference in Sharm El Sheikh Egypt on November 16 2022. COP stands for something boring, Conference of the Parties, which means that countries and other organizations are the parties. Sometimes I look at what our countries are doing and it is like we are having a big fossil fuel party! It is literally powering parties like Burning Man with flames of fuel! Anyway, this is the 27th year of COP, so it is called COP 27 and the more famous one was in Paris, when they made the Paris Accord or Paris Agreement, ba...2022-11-2310 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2021 International Residential Code (IRC) and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Bill Brooks (BB)2021 IRC requirements for ESS units to be less than 20kWh, 3-foot separation between ESS units, exceptions due to large-scale fire testing (UL 9540A), distance of ESS from garage window vs. window of living space, SolSmart.org PV, Future SolSmart ESS material Bill is developing, 2024 IRC Proposals, lithium-ion not good on the outside of a house in cold places and NFPA 855 Standard for ESS. 2022-11-0227 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2018 International Fire Code (IFC) for Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Bill Brooks and related topicsThis video is based on the 2018 IFC and there are many places that are using the 2018 IFC, in fact I just taught an ESS class to inspectors based on the 2015 IFC. You will have to check your own state to see which version is adopted. At the time I am writing this, the 2018 IFC is the most widely used version, although the 2021 IFC has already been released. Additionally, most of the language between different versions is the same, so understanding one version means you mostly understand the other. Don’t be one of those people that overly worries about stu...2022-10-1934 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2023 NEC Poetry Reading Article 690 Part 2 Circuit RequirementsThe 2023 NEC has been released and it is time to see how voltage, current and rapid shutdown look in the future! 2023 690 Part 2 includes: 690.7 Voltage 690.8 Current 690.9 OCPD 690.11 DC Arc Fault Protection 690.12 Rapid Shutdown Reading the NEC can be heavy stuff, so if you do not get it the first time around, try listening to it backwards synced with Dark Side of the Moon. Then you will get the secret meaning. Learn more and take happy classes on deciphering the Code at www.solarSEAN.com or www.HeatSpring.com/sean 2022-10-0537 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastUL 3741 Rapid Shutdown solution where the PV array can stay up to 1000V using SMA inverters with Sollega or Ironridge racks!Rapid Shutdown has traditionally meant putting module level power electronics in the array for PV systems on buildings. There has always been this part of the NEC 690.12(B)(2)(1) that gave you an option to comply with rapid shutdown inside the array with a listed hazard control system. Surprisingly, we can now go back to having something to what rapid shutdown used to be in the 2014 NEC, which we called array level rapid shutdown. Let’s see if someone gets something like this listed for a residential roof. Links: https://www.sma-america.com/newsroom/curr...2022-09-2113 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastRadio 690! 2023 NEC 690 PV Systems Part 1Every time the NEC comes out, I do a reading of my favorite NEC articles. I like to think of it as sort of a poetry reading, since I will try to make it as least dry (wet) as possible. This time I am going to give some commentary, so it is up to you to figure out what is Code and what is me interpreting and making Code fun by understanding the tone of my voice. Here is where you can get free access to the 2023 NEC from the NFPA website: https://www.nfpa.org/codes-and-standards/al...2022-09-0822 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSean Gets interviewed on the Clean Power Hour PodcastThis is a re-posting of a podcast where Sean White is interviewed by Tim Montegue on the Clean Power Hour Podcast. If you have not already, be sure to save the Clean Power Hour podcast to your favorites. Tim is very active and has all kinds of experts on his podcast, including Jigar Shaw of the Department of Energy (Episode 83). I was honored to be interviewed on the Clean Power Hour and listen to the Clean Power Hour religiously. Tim took my NABCEP PV Technical Sales Course at HeatSpring, so if it is good enough for Tim, it...2022-07-2046 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2023 NEC preview with Bill Brooks at Intersolar 2022 Part 3Some of the areas of the NEC that we cover in this podcast are: NEC Article 702 Optional Standby Systems, Load Control, Disconnecting Means, UL 1741 for Power Control Systems, 706.15 Location Control for 1 and 2-family Dwellings Quotes: Bill Brooks (soon to be famous quotes). “Tesla, Enphase, SolarEdge, are all getting listed as energy management systems.” “You will damage most generators if you run out of fuel under load.” “Hey Siri, turn off my ESS.” “Here’s what happened in the 2023 Code.” “706.15 Location Control for 1- and 2-Family Dwellings, an ESS sh...2022-06-1510 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2023 NEC preview with Bill Brooks at Intersolar 2022 Part 2Some of the areas of the NEC that we cover in this podcast are: Ground Fault Protection, Ground Fault Detection and interruption (GFDI) term clarified (not to be confused with GFCI), 690.45 Equipment Grounding Conductors (EGC) includes DC and AC not having to increase size of EGC when upsizing current carrying conductor for voltage drop (now also applies to AC PV and modifies NEC 250.122), 250.122 EGC sized based on OCPD, Microgrid Interconnect Device (MID), Interactive Mode vs. Voltage Mode, putting multiple inverters prior to the first OCPD, 705.13 Power Control Systems (PCS) was changed to Energy Management Systems (EMS), EMS...2022-06-0116 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2023 NEC preview with Bill Brooks at Intersolar 2022 Part 1Bill Brooks is instrumental in the process of coming up with material for the NEC for renewable energy systems, especially for solar, energy storage and interconnections. Although the 2023 NEC has not been finalized or published, this is as good of a preview as you can get for knowing what the future will bring. Many manufacturers, engineers, CEOs and other decisionmakers can make better informed decisions about the future, knowing what will be in the National Electrical Code. Bill Brooks is on NEC Code Making Panel 4 (the alternative energy panel) and has been perhaps the most active member...2022-05-1726 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastKeith Cronin: Solar MBA instructor on HeatSpring!Keith Cronin: Solar MBA instructor on HeatSpring! Keith sold his Hawaii solar company Island Energy Solutions to Jigar Shaw of SunEdison in 2007 after knowing Jigar since 2002. Keith has been teaching his Solar MBA class for just over a decade with co-instructor and attorney Chris Lord. They have taught many students, including oil and gas refugees. Keith Cronin does consulting via his company Sun Hedge with clients all over the world, including the Department of Defense. He has lived in many different countries throughout his solar career. Listening to this podcast will give you insight into the pr...2022-03-081h 03

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPre-Celebrating 1TW of PV installed in 2022Welcome to 2022, the year of the Terawatt! That's right, this year will cross the trillion watt mark! 2022 will be remembered as the year that humanity reached the magic number of 1 trillion watts, aka 1 terawatt or 1TW of solar installed since the beginning of time. We do not have to take into consideration the amount of solar taken out of service, since that is so low, it probably will be replaced in less than a month, so that means we will hit the milestone of installed 1TW since 1 million BC and we will also have 1TW that is installed an...2022-01-1913 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNet-metering, bypass diodes, solar & storage and NEC Article 480 vs. Article 706 Q&AsIn this question we have the following questions and answers: 1. Net metering: Why it is different in different places whether or not you can and should feed energy back to the grid when you have an excess. 2. How bypass diodes work and also with half-cell PV modules. 3. Why solar goes so well with energy storage systems (ESS). 4. National Electrical Code (NEC) articles 480 Storage Batteries vs. 706 Energy Storage Systems and why you should use 706 For more info, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2021-12-1519 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastDeep dive on Energy Storage and Renewables: Sean White Interview on Cory Vanderpool’s “Solar Broadcast” podcast.Sean White (solarSEAN.com) is interviewed on his former student Cory Vanderpool's podcast. The talk about various subjects including: Solar and wind are finally cheapest forms of electricity EVs bringing down the cost of lithium-ion Energy Storage Systems (ESS) Battery benefits including being a load, besides being a source of power Wind power’s cubed relationship to wind speed Frequency regulation is the biggest use for energy storage right now Negative energy pricing in Germany Ramp rates of energy storage beating all other forms of energy by a...2021-12-0144 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastGrounding, Microhydro Hybrid Systems, Batteries & Mono vs. Polycrystalline Silicon Solar CellsIn this podcast we answer 2 questions: 1) Grounding is important and can be confusing with many different theories of how and why it should be done. Here we are going to talk about the basics, including the neutral (grounded conductor), the equipment grounding conductor (EGC) and the grounding electrode conductor (GEC). We will even make a mention of SWER (single wire earth return), which means using 1 wire for transmission and using the Earth as a conductor! Here is a link about that last part, so you don’t think I am making it up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wi...2021-11-1729 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEV to home, Recycling Lithium Batteries & 30% Efficient PV questions answeredThis podcast answers 3 questions on solar and storage. 1) EV to home can mean EV to grid and EV to backup. Ford has announced that their F-150 Lightning Electric Pickup will be released next year and will have the ability to backup a house. What does that mean? Will it be able to work with a PV system and keep the battery charged or will it only work as long as the battery is charged? Will it be able to send electricity to the grid? 2) Now that there are a tremendous amount of lithium-ion batteries being ma...2021-11-0519 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage, PV & NEC Workshop at the ASES Conference August 2021This is an audio version of the workshop that Sean White taught at the ASES conference at the University of Colorado Boulder on August 6, 2021. To see a video version, go to www.solarSEAN.com for a link to Sean's YouTube channel or find some of this material in Sean's classes at www.HeatSpring.com/sean You can also find most of the material form Sean's Intensive PV workshop at the ASES conference, which was covered in the last podcast listed on HeatSpring for 2 hours of free NABCEP CE credit at https://www.heatspring.com/courses/introduc...2021-10-201h 36

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastASES Solar 2021: Solar PV Intensive Workshop with Sean White This podcast is a recording of a workshop Sean taught at the ASES Solar 2021 Conference at the University of Colorado Boulder on August 6, 2021. This Solar PV Intensive Workshop was fast paced and covered a lot of information. This workshop was in a way covering the same material Sean covers in his Solar PV Boot Camps, which are often 40 hours long in a quick 1.5 hours. There are slides and if you want to see the video version, you will be able to see it at Sean's Youtube channel. Here is the Youtube link for this video. Topics co...2021-10-061h 08

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastBackfeeding the grid Hawaiian Style with Customer Grid-Supply Plus, which is the futureHawaii has more solar PV per capita than any other state. Since PV is the least expensive energy in the world now, this concentration of PV will soon hit other states and Hawaii is paving the way with new policies that will be able to deal with this abundance of noontime energy. California, which has a lot more people and by for more solar than any other state is also dealing with this abundance. In this podcast, we will discuss one of Hawaii’s policies put in place to deal with the possibility of producing more energy tha...2021-09-2211 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastLatitude’s Effect on Solar Resource, Cheap Electricity and PV, Battery Equalization and then Bill Brooks talks about the NFPA 855 Energy Storage StandardIn this podcast, Sean answers 3 questions and then we finish it off with some wise words from Bill Brooks where Bill and Sean discus the purpose of NFPA 855 Standard For The Installation Of Stationary Energy Storage Systems. To find out more about solar and energy storage or classes with Sean White and Bill Brooks, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2021-09-0723 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNet-Metering Sustainability, PV Wire Sizing and East vs. West Facing PVIn this podcast, Sean answers questions about net-metering sustainability, with examples from the most mature PV markets in the US, Hawaii and California and how energy storage solves problems when intermittent renewables are on the grid. There were some changes in the 2017 NEC, where the requirement to have a temperature adder with conduit in sunlight over a roof were removed, making wire sizing simpler, although wire sizing is arguably the most difficult part of designing a PV system. Our last topic here has to do with the optimal way to face your PV, given the restrictions of...2021-08-0418 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastGrounded vs. Ungrounded Inverters, Battery Combiner Boxes and Community SolarIn this podcast we once again cover questions from you and those like you by popular demand. We will get into the different terminology and how it changed in different versions of the NEC, when we talk about ungrounded, grounded and functionally grounded inverters. We talk about the correct terminology for combining batteries in parallel and differentiate between community solar and community choice aggregation among other things. To find out more about renewable energy, go to solarSEAN.com 2021-07-2721 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar PV Seasonal Tilt, 60 & 72-cell PV Modules, Net-Metering with Energy Storage Q&A PodcastIn this episode, we cover tilting PV modules, and seasonal tilting, why most PV modules at 60 cell and 72 cell modules, net-metering and energy storage. To find out more about solar and energy storage or to ace any NABCEP exam, go to solarSEAN.com 2021-07-2023 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastQ&A: NABCEP NEC adoption, Higher Power PV modules & Solar Manufacturers Going out of BusinessIn this podcast, we are going answer questions related to solar and energy storage. The first question is about NABCEP and how they are going about adopting the latest version of the NEC. The next question is about higher power PV modules and are they bigger and more dangerous to install. The last question is about how to deal with and what to do about the possibility of manufacturers going out of business. To find out more about Solar and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) go to solarSEAN.com 2021-07-1211 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNew UL PV Listing 61730 replacing UL 1703 for making the test work around the world and UL 3741 listing for Rapid Shutdown (Hazard Control Systems) with Bill Brooks PEIn this podcast we talk about the new UL standard for PV, which replaces UL 1703 for PV with UL 61730, which took place in December of 2020. You can still use UL 1703, just if you come out with a new module design, it needs to comply with UL 61730, which makes things easier, since it is the same test around the world, instead of having a different test for the US and Europe for instance. We also talk about the new UL 3741 PV Hazard Control Standard, aka the Rapid Shutdown standard, which is another way of complying with 690.12 in the 2020 NEC, s...2021-06-2314 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastInternational Fire Code (IFC) and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Bill BrooksIn this podcast we cover the requirements of the International Fire Code and Energy Storage Systems and sizes of these Energy Storage Systems in the International Fire Code. There are special size requirements as we will learn soon. We were primarily covering the 2018 IFC, the 2021 IFC does not come out yet as of this podcast and even when it does come out it doesn't mean that it’s get adopted right away in your state and so the different sizes of the Energy Storage Systems that we're going to talk about cover from larger than one- and two-family dwellings up...2021-06-1708 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2021 International Residential Code (IRC) and more with Bill BrooksIn this podcast we cover the 2021 IRC has not been published yet and which Bill is helping write. We also discuss the relationship with the International Fire Code (IFC) and the International Building Code (IBC). The IRC, IBC and IFC are published by the International Code Council (ICC). Some of the subjects we cover are vehicle impact protection for Energy Storage Systems (ESS), parking bollards, parking curbs, installation locations, not installed in habitable rooms, habitable room definitions, sheet rock (5/8" gypsum requirements) in relation to ESS which are non-combustible wall requirements, ESS in relationship to garage windows vs. bedroom win...2021-06-0918 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastInternational Residential Code (IRC) and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) with Bill Brooks In this podcast Bill Brooks covers the International Residential Code from the International Code Council (ICC), which are rules in addition to the NEC for installing ESSs in 1- and 2-family dwellings. Bill Brooks is instrumental in writing the material that we cover and sits on many different panels, such as the UL 9540 standards technical panel, and comes up with the rules. Stay tuned for another podcast where we will cover the International Building Code (IBC) and the International Fire Code (IFC), which are used for other than 1- and 2-family dwellings. We cover here: UL 9540 (umbrella standard), U...2021-06-0230 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastBIPV and Tesla Solar Glass with Bill BrooksBuilding Integrated PV (BIPV) has been around forever as far as the solar industry is concerned (4 or 5 decades). It has never taken off like people think. There has always been a lot of hype around BIPV, especially amongst laypeople. Will Tesla change BIPV forever? I would think not, except I will never underestimate a guy that turned a small EV company into the world's most valuable automaker, lands reusable rockets routinely, and can make non-human primates play video games with their thoughts, all things which were considered impossible. For more information and education on solar and storage, go to www.solar...2021-04-2106 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2020 NEC Article 706 Energy Storage SystemsIn this podcast we are going to go over NEC 706 with Bill Brooks, thy guy who wrote a lot of this material and was there every step of the way. Sometimes Bill does not agree with what ends up in the NEC and he will let you know it here first on this podcast. To have fun and learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-04-1434 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastCalculating Short Circuit Current Rating of Equipment PodcastWe are going to cover short circuit current rating of equipment with Bill Brooks. Bill Brooks has been in the solar industry for many decades and knows everything about solar and energy storage. He writes the codes, he does consulting, he's a busy guy and here he is on this podcast. To have fun and learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-03-2416 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastUtility Scale Solar and Energy Storage System Grounding Electrode Conductor Configurations and MoreIn this episode, we are going to present a particular rumoured certification exam question and then get into the details of how you may install large central inverters with grounding electrode conductors. This is an advanced topic, but if you are a beginner, you can still be amazed at how these huge multi-million dollar PV systems are put together. To have fun and to learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-03-1721 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Energy Fundamentals Part 4: ShadingSolar PV shading can be worse than you think, since solar cells are connected in series. We will cover the Solmetric Suneye shading device, (note that Vivant Solar was bought by Sunrun since the recording of this podcast), we will cover some software that can digest shading information, such as Aurora Solar, Helioscope, Energy Toolbase, PVsyst, Albedo, Sketchup, Skelion, PVCAD, AutoCAD, and more. Then we talk about single-axis trackers, concentrated PV, seasonal tilting, concentrating PV, seasonal tilt and many more angles. 2021-03-0316 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Energy Fundamentals Part 3In this episode, we are going to cover, air mass, global solar radiation, direct solar radiation, albedo solar radiation, diffuse solar radiation, bifacial solar, pyranometers, pyrheliometers and the solar constant. To have fun and to learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-02-2419 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Energy Fundamentals Part 2This podcast covers the effects of temperature and irradiance on PV voltage and current and all different kinds of azimuth, which is what a compass reads. Did you know that the magnetic North Pole is moving from Canada to Russia? To have fun and to learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-02-1705 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastSolar Energy Fundamentals Part 1When light comes from the closest star (the sun), it will give us solar power and solar energy. We are going to talk about the difference and how to quantify irradiance and irradiation. We also get into solar insolation, tilt angles, peak sun hours in different locations including Germany, the home of Hermann Scheer who kicked off the solar revolution! To have fun and to learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-02-1009 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastElectricity Basics Part 2Energy comes in many forms. From kWhs, to Joules, to cheeseburgers, to a gallon of gas, see how you can convert these different energy containing forms. We also will get into the speed of electricity, Ohm’s law, Horsepower, the NABCEP PVA exam and PV module level rapid shutdown for PV systems on buildings. To have fun and to learn more about solar and storage, go to SolarSEAN.com 2021-02-0313 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastElectricity Basics Part 1Many people in the solar and storage industry do not know much about electricity and now is the time to have fun and learn. In this episode, we will introduce you to people with names like Volta, Ampere and Ohm, get ready to power your brain cells with all of that stored energy from last nights tacos. This podcast includes both basic and advanced material and this episode is on the basic side. If you are advanced, you still can learn something, such as how to explain things to normal people. To have fu...2021-01-2721 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastCode Compliant Conductor Sizing: a 2021 take on a 2011 SolarPro ArticleOne of the most difficult things to do with the NEC, is to understand how to use it to properly size wires. You can get 10 of the top experts in the world in a room and if you talk about how to properly size a wire, you can be sure there will be exciting conversations (disagreements). The best article I ever read on the subject was in the now retired SolarPro Magazine, where you can still access old articles at www.solarprofessional.com. May SolarPro someday be resurrected! Wire sizing is very uniform throughout the NEC, so if yo...2021-01-1336 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPV Safety Basics Part 2 The most misunderstood PV label (“terminals on line and load side may be energized in the open position”), DC and AC disconnects, Capacitors, PV is on when the Sun is up, Pocket Voltage Indicator, Hot Stick Voltage Detectors (only work with alternating current), Lockout Tagout (LOTO), Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), 6-feet = Fall Protection, Guardrail Fall Protection, Safety Net Fall Protection, Personal Fall Arrest Systems (PFAS), Anchor, Harness, Lifeline, Shock Absorbing Lanyard, Ladders Safety, Fiberglass vs. Aluminum Ladders, Working Around Power Lines, 3 points of contact, Tool Backpack, Yoyo (self-retracting lifeline) and Sun Exposure! 2020-12-3018 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPV Safety Basics Part 1NEC, too much current on a wire, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) for employees, NFPA, Battery Bank Locations, AHJ (Authority Having Jurisdiction), NABCEP, Hydrogen and Ventilation with Lead-Acid Batteries, Guarding Live Parts, Working Spaces NEC 110.26, Panelboards, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Fall Protection, Arc-Flash Protection, Skylights, Ergonomics, Staging, Preventing Lumbar Disc Injuries, Volt Meter Testing, First Aid Kits and Eye Wash Stations. 2020-12-2313 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPV Markets and Applications Part 3AC-Modules, Direct PV Systems, Water Pumping with PV, Self-Regulating PV, Hybrid PV Systems vs. Hybrid Inverters, Solar Living Institute (RIP), Pumped Hydro Storage, Utility Scale Solar Farms, Large Scale PV Electric Supply Stations (NEC 691), PV Feed-in-Tariff’s, NexTracker Single Axis Trackers, Distributed Generation (DG), NABCEP, Community Solar, Community Choice Aggregation (CCAs), SEIA Houses per MW, 6kW per house average, Energy Efficiency, Resistance Heater 100% efficiency vs. Heat Pumps that are 3x better than 100%, Spectrolab Space Solar. 2020-12-1613 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPV Markets and Applications Part 2Utility Interactive PV Systems, Direct Current, Alternating Current, 5-minute UL 1741 anti-islanding requirements, PV the anti-load, net-metering, residential and commercial voltages, 120/240V, 120/208V, 277/480V, Delta, Stinger, Medium Voltage, High Voltage and Ultra High Voltage Connections, Nikola Tesla, Utility Scale PV, NEC Article 691, Charge Controllers, Stand-alone (off-grid), Rectifier (ac-to-dc), Tesla Powerwall, AC-Coupled PV, DC-Coupled PV and SolarEdge. Stay tuned for Part 3 of PV Markets and Applications Next Week! 2020-12-0909 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastPV Markets and Applications Part 1PV Markets and Applications, Grid-Tied PV with and without Batteries, Voltage Sags and Peaks, California Rule 21, Energy Storage, Smart Electronics, Bidirectional EVs, UL 1741, UL 1703, CE, NEC, Anti-islanding, Stand-alone, Multimode Inverters, Microgrid Interconnect Device (MID), Interactive Inverter, Solar in Space, Space Based Solar Power (SBSP), Portable Solar Power, Hybrid, Utility Scale PV, Distributed Generation (DG), Concentrated PV, Concentrated Solar Thermal, Solar Thermal vs. Solar PV. Stay tuned for Markets and Applications Part 2 of 3 next week! 2020-12-0215 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastHistory, Present and Future of Solar PVPV Markets and Applications, NABCEP Exam, Edmund Becquerel, Photovoltaic Effect, Einstein’s Photoelectric Effect, PV Flash Testing, Bell Labs, Vanguard 1 Satellite, World Installed Capacity of PV, 1 TW of PV Installed, Hockey Stick PV Growth, Space Based Solar Power (SBSP), Dyson Sphere, Swanson’s Law, PV $77/watt in 1977, Solar PV and Eclipses, Guerrilla Solar and Perpetual Solar Flight with the Solar Impulse. 2020-11-2510 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastComparing Battery TechnologiesWhat makes different battery technologies better for different applications, primary and secondary batteries, state of charge (SOC) vs. depth of discharge (DOD), voltage vs. charge, battery open circuit voltage, battery internal resistance, lithium vs. lead acid, battery nominal voltage, 3.6V, 3.2V and 2V, cycle life factors, energy per weight, energy per volume, power per weight vs. energy, arbitrage, self consumption, max discharge current vs. continuous current, charge voltage vs. nominal voltage vs. float voltage, BMS, algorithms, NiMH, NiCad, recycling batteries. To find out more about everything solar and storage, go to solarSEAN.com 2020-11-1829 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage Podcast2020 NEC Article 705 Interconnected Power Production Systems from an Energy Storage System (ESS) perspectiveArticle 705 applies to PV and ESS. Everything we say here is going to apply to anything backfeeding the grid or a microgrid, however we will use ESS examples. We cover anti-islanding, Microgrid Interconnect Devices (MID), IEEE, Microgrid System definition, 705.11 Supply-Side Connections, 705.12 Load-Side Connections, 705.13 Power Control Systems (PCS), Article 705 Part 2 AC Microgrids. To find out more about everything solar and storage, go to solarSEAN.com 2020-11-1126 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage relevant material in the 2020 NEC, Chapter 6 Special Equipment, Chapter 7 Special Conditions, Chapter 8 Communication Systems, Chapter 9 TablesIn this podcast we cover material in Chapters 6 & 7 in the NEC (not including 706 ESS in detail, which we covered in a previous podcast) from an ESS point of view, including 625 EV Power Transfer Systems, EVSE=EV supply equipment, 692 Fuel Cells, 702 Standby Systems, ATS (automatic transfer switch), MID (microgrid interconnect device), 705 Interconnected Power Production Sources, 706 Energy Storage Systems (ESS), 710 Stand-Alone Systems, 712 DC Microgrids, 750 Energy Management Systems, Power Control Systems, Chapter 8 Communication Systems, Chapter 9 Tables, Conduit Fill Tables, Voltage Drop Tables. To find out more about everything solar and storage, go to solarSEAN.com 2020-11-0419 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage System Code in the NEC besides Article 706 ESSArticle 90 Introduction, Art. 100 Definitions, Art. 110 Requirements for Electrical Installations, Art. 200 Use and Identification of Grounded Conductors, Art. 240 Overcurrent Protection, Article 250 Grounding and Bonding (& Soares book), Art. 310 Conductors for General Wiring, Art. 358 EMT, Art. 480 Storage Batteries and Chapter 5 Special Occupancies, including aircraft hangers! To learn more about energy storage, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2020-10-2831 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNEC Article 706 Energy Storage Systems part III to endIn this podcast we will go over and explain NEC Article 706 Energy Storage Systems Part III “Installation Requirements”, Part IV “Circuit Requirements”, Part V “Flow Battery Energy Storage Systems” and Part VI “Other Energy Storage Technologies”. To learn more about energy storage, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2020-10-2130 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastNEC and Energy Storage Systems (ESS) including Article 706 Parts I and IIIn this podcast we go over: ESS and the NEC 2020, 2017 and 2014 NEC 706 ESS 710 Stand-Alone Systems 712 DC Microgrids 690 PV NABCEP 1897 NEC 1984 NEC Statistics NEC Chapters 1-4, 5, 6, 7 Article 705 Interconnected Power Production Sources Chapter 8 Communications Chapter 9 Tables NFPA 855 Standard for the Installation of Energy Storage Systems 2020 NEC pdf Article 480 Storage Batteries NECA, UL 1973, UL 1989, UL 9540, UL 2436 Flywheels Inverters Converters Gravity ESS UPS Flow Battery AHJ Qualified Person Details of Sections 706.2 through 706.16 (Parts I and II of 706). Part...2020-10-1440 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage Tech Comparisons including Solid Oxide Fuel Cells, Lithium-Ion vs. Lead-Acid, Sodium Sulfur, UL 9540 and UL 1973In this podcast, we will cover: Solid Oxide Fuel Cells Bloom Energy Bloom Box Hydrogen from Natural Gas Server Module Ethanol Lithium vs. Lead-Acid Solar Family Reunion Nameplate Capacity vs. Usable Capacity Round Trip Efficiency Cobalt Graphite Anode NMC LFP LifePo NCA Reactive Power (Q) Black Start VRLA AGM NiMH Silicon Graphite Anode Tesla batteries Sodium Sulfur UL 9540 UL 1973 LG and more To learn more about energy storage, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2020-10-0727 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastEnergy Storage System Markets PodcastIn this podcast, we will cover: Energy Storage Systems (ESS) growth rates Lithium and other markets Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) Molten Salt Storage Fly Wheel Storage Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) Ternary Batteries (NMC or NCA vs. LFP) Energy Density vs. Specific Energy Battery Memory Myths Protection Circuits Lead-Acid Deep Cycle Batteries Maintenance Equalization NiMH NiCad Lithium vs. Lithium-Ion Batteries Lithium Air Battery Lithium Polymer Microporous Electrolyte vs. Porous Separator Tesla battery cost advantage rumors Vanadium Redox Flow Battery Anolyte Catholyte Oxidation Zinc Bromine Flow Batteries NEC and more! To learn more about energy storage, go to www...2020-10-0119 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastCommon Energy Storage System (ESS) Components for Large-Sized ProjectsIn this podcast, we will focus on the following manufacturers: Samsung, LG, Mitsubishi and Sungrow. (In another podcast we will cover other manufacturers) Some of the topics included here are: Diversified manufacturers and bankruptcy risks Warranty insurance Distributed energy storage UPS Residential and telecom smaller scale comparisons Virtual Power Plants (VPP) Cells Racks Containers Peak Shifting Smoothing Power vs. Energy Applications Frequency regulation Pouch Prismatic and cylinder cells Capacity Specific energy Energy density Software PLC 2020-09-0422 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastBattery Charging and Discharging PodcastIn this podcast, we will cover: battery charging and discharging voltage levels coulomb counting data temperatures loads warranties battery management systems (BMS) smart batteries dumb batteries self discharge rubber band effect button battery dangers FAA battery rules. To learn more about batteries go to www.solarSEAN.com 2020-08-2805 min

Sean White‘s Solar and Energy Storage PodcastLithium Battery TopicsTopics covered: Transportation of batteries Lithium metal dendrites Lithium ion International Air Transportation Association (IATA) Surprise Thermal Events Recycling lithium batteries Battery aging Rock content Cutoff Voltage Battery sweet zone Stratification Faded 2nd hand EV batteries used for stationary ESS and data science. For more excitement and to grow your brain and to increase your value as a human being, go to www.solarSEAN.com 2020-08-2214 min