Reading Solar And Controller Results
The Solar and Solar Controller tabs show what the scenario is asking from the array and what that same result implies for the controller side. Read them together. One explains the size of the solar job. The other explains what the controller must handle for that job to make sense.
Start with the Solar tab
The Solar tab begins with the assumptions that shape the result. The first cards include Panel Size, Panel Voc, Panel Vmp, Effective sun hours, Installation efficiency, and Cloud factor.
These are worth checking before you focus on panel count. If the result looks too heavy or too light, the cause is often here rather than at the end of the tab.
Follow the solar energy build-up
The next group of cards shows how the solar requirement is being built. That usually includes Day load Wh, Solar energy for day loads, Battery recharge Wh, Solar energy for battery recharge, Total solar energy required, and Required solar W.
This part matters because the solar result is often being driven by two separate jobs at once. The array may need to support daytime loads and also restore battery energy used elsewhere in the scenario. If the panel count looks large, this split usually explains why.
Then read the panel count and arrangement cards
Once the energy burden is clear, the tab turns that into a practical array answer. The main cards here are Raw minimum panel count, Installed panel count, Panels per string, String count, Estimated string Vmp, Estimated string Voc, PV voltage limit, Day-only panel count, Battery-recharge panel count, and Actual installed solar.
Read these together rather than treating installed panel count as a standalone answer. The app is not just counting panels. It is also cleaning the answer up into something more physically plausible.
Use the solar graph and the extra sections properly
The solar graph gives a quick view of Solar surplus / shortfall by comparing installed solar against stored solar requirement. It is a fast way to feel whether the result looks comfortable, but it still needs the cards above it for full context.
Under the graph, the page also shows Indicative string guidance and Cloud sensitivity panel counts. The guidance notes help explain why the practical array may not match the raw minimum exactly. The cloud sensitivity list shows how much panel count moves when the weather assumption changes.
If cloud sensitivity swings sharply, that is a sign that the solar answer depends heavily on the weather assumptions used in the scenario.
Now read the Solar Controller tab
The Solar Controller tab is much shorter, but it is important. It separates the controller question from the wider panel-count question. The cards here are Minimum MPPT PV input, Recommended MPPT PV input, Minimum MPPT charge current, and Recommended MPPT charge current.
These tell you what the controller side needs to cope with if the solar result is taken seriously. A panel count can look reasonable while the controller side still feels demanding, which is why this tab exists separately.
What to look for when the result feels uncomfortable
Review the solar result again when panel count seems unexpectedly high, when the graph suggests a weak surplus or a shortfall, when cloud sensitivity moves too much, or when the controller recommendations feel aggressive compared with the rest of the system.
In those cases, check the day-load versus battery-recharge split first, then look at sun hours, installation efficiency, cloud factor, and the controller cards. That usually tells you whether the pressure is coming from assumptions, array size, or controller demand.