Retrofitting IQ System Controller 2 + Critical Load Subpanel how did you lay yours out?
Hey r/solardiy ,
I had my 31-panel Enphase IQ8+ IQ Combiner installed in 2023 but held off on the battery/backup side at the time. Now I'm going back and adding:
Enphase IQ System Controller 2
Critical Load subpanel
Since this is a retrofit rather than a fresh all at once install, my existing combiner is already set up outside so I'm working around what's already there and trying to figure out the best physical layout before I commit to anything.
Specifically looking for:
Photos of your SC2 + critical load panel placement relative to your service panel, same wall? adjacent wall? how much clearance between them? How you ran conduit between the SC2 line side MSP and SC2 load side critical load panel, especially in a retrofit where you couldn't plan the rough-in from the start. Nice big gutter?
Did you mount the SC2 and critical load panel directly adjacent, or is there separation? The SC2 is a big box (roughly 19"×36"×9") and I want to make sure I'm not painting myself into a corner What loads did you put on the critical load panel and how did you organize the breakers within the 4×40A/2P (or 8×20A/1P) backup capacity limit?
Any retrofit-specific gotchas things that would have been easy in a new install but were a pain going back in?
My service panel is on the interior SE corner of the house, overhead feed, 200A service. The combiner is already mounted nearby. Happy to share my as-built line diagram.
Drop your pics clean installs, ugly installs, doesn't matter. Real-world is what I need!
Sunlight backup is my day one, I'm gonna think about battery later. I used a Growatt inverter with EG4 battery initally with my string but now going to install the System Controller/
I was going to keep combiner, safety shutdown, production PV outside and system controller and critical load center inside so the critical loads runs are shorter, but want insight into what others like.