Kirk, We had a very similar experience at one site. Amazing how they chew every single wire. Maybe they chew until they get a zap. Our best idea is for a perimeter guard made from marine trap welded mesh. This stuff is really durable and stiff. Google Riverdale Mills. If you're travelling to Cape Cod I have a ton of it around.
Conrad Cotuit Solar _____ From: re-wrenches-boun...@lists.re-wrenches.org [mailto:re-wrenches-boun...@lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Kirk Herander, VSE Sent: Friday, May 15, 2009 1:20 PM To: 'RE-wrenches' Subject: [RE-wrenches] squirrel problems I just had to rewire an array because of squirrel damage. They chewed the insulation off of the use-2 on almost every panel within 2 inches of the j-box. This was discovered because the inverter GFI kept intermittently tripping, so one of the uninsulated positive leads must have shorted to the grounded array frame, verified by measurements and arcing. At least the GFI did its job.... We found a massive nest underneath the array. And I just got another call from a customer with the same issue, although we don't know yet if damage has happened. Both these arrays are mounted on Unirac Solarmount, parallel to and stood off from the roof about 6 inches. I'm thinking of skirting the perimeter of the array with a metal mesh of some sort. Any other ideas? Thanks. Most likely they will come back if I do nothing. Kirk Herander Vermont Solar Engineering 802.863.1202 NABCEP(tm) Certified Solar Installer NYSERDA-eligible Installer VT Solar Incentive Program Partner
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