Best Solar Panel Optimisers - Tigo or SolarEdge?

Back Nikola Nedoklanov 4 min read November 7, 2023 731 words
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open new opportunities for mixing panels at different angles, installing panels in places prone to shading, or mitigating heat inefficiencies.

What is the Best Solar Power Optimiser?

Two big brands supply solar power optimisers. They both perform a similar job but some variables may tip the choice in one direction or another based on what you are looking for.

Tigo power optimisers

Easy to install and small enough to tuck away at the back of a panel. Comes with clips for secure mounting too.

Positives

In a white paper Photon test Results published by Tigo they claim that:

ConditionImprovementValue
No shading at allIncreased the energy yield1.5% - 1.7%
Horizontal shadeEnergy gain improvement20.8%
Shade from poleEnergy gain improvement9.7%
Shading from a treeDid not provide values

Independent of Inverter Vendor Each inverter operates independently and can work on any string with any inverter. Therefore you can install Tigo solar panel optimisers in strings

Negatives

Expensive Monitoring Equipment - Monitoring the optimisers requires an additional hub to be purchased. This is not necessary for the operation of the optimisers. However, if you want to know what every panel is doing you will have to pay roughly as much as the equivalent of 4-5 optimisers to buy the hub.

SolarEdge power optimisers

Small enough to fit at the back of a solar panel, this optimiser comes with pre-wired making it easy to install. Comes with clips for secure mounting too.

Positives

In a white paper PV Performance Separating Fact from Fiction published by SolarEdge they claim that:

ConditionImprovementValue
No shading at allIncreased the energy yield1.5% - 1.7%
Horizontal shadeEnergy gain improvement34.6%
PoleEnergy gain improvement9.7%
Shading from a treeNegative effect reduction from 24%to 9%

They also claim that at light, moderate and heavy shading a system with SolarEdge optimisers improves the energy harvest by 1.9%, 5.0%, and 8.4% respectively, compared to a string inverter system without optimisers.

Monitoring Directly From The SolarEdge Hub - The solar panel optimisers can be paired with the SolarEdge monitoring hub

Negatives

Only Works With SolarEdge Inverters - SolarEdge power optimisers operate in a closed system, which means they only work on strings connected to a SolarEdge inverter.

Independent Verification

This study performed by the University of Southern Denmark names SolarEdge and Tigo optimisers in their experiments on power optimisation. Their finding are in line with the finding quoted in the white papers by Tigo and SolarEdge when it comes to shading effect reduction. This study however tests the optimisers in both uniform sunny condition and cloudy condition, and finds solar panel optimisers pose negative effects in such conditions.

On the other hand a paper published in 2019 by School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (FEEC) University of Campinas (Unicamp) Campinas, Brasil suggests a general positive effect from using optimisers in all conditions. Their premise is that panels are affected differently from thermal inefficiency or internal components underperformance and in a large string all panels operate at the current of the worst performing panel.

My Take

I used Tigo power optimisers on a north-west facing string with intermittent shading.

Photograph of a Tigo power optimiser clipped to that back of a solar panel. The panel is not yet installed.

I find these to perform line with the stated benefits. I cannot speak to the longevity of these as I have had them since May 2023 and so far they are working well.

Summary

We looked at the offering from SolarEdge and Tigo as the two most popular and easy to buy on the market. The advantages of seamless integration of the SolarEdge solution are appealing to SolarEdge inverter owners. On the other hand Tigo’s versatility renders them the only choice for retrofitting or expansion of an existing system.

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