Solar System - Fire Hazard During the Christmas and New Year break back in the village (Lilisiana) I was pleasantly surprised to see that a lot of the houses have Solar Panel lighting systems provided to them by the previous government via the parliament member for the area. I was told that other parts of the country have similar systems given to the villages. Closer investigation revealed that the charger/controller units supplied have since failed and the villagers are wiring the solar panels and LED lights directly to the batteries. To cut a long story short I became extremely concerned about the possibility of these units causing a fire. With little time left on my holidays I arranged to provide a safety awareness session for the villagers to attend the following Sunday. Solar installations are part of the work I do in Aussie. Despite bad weather(lighting and heavy rain) around 40 people attended. I am pleased to say that the local Provincial Council member attended. Please wantoks be very careful when trying to modify solar panel installation wiring. Seek help from a qualified person. I know this is not possible in the village but I URGE you to be VERY VERY CAREFUL with the wiring.
Posted on: Tue, 20 Jan 2015 08:09:05 +0000