Over the past few months, I can count at least two fires that were a direct result of faulty solar PV installations – one in Pennsylvania and another in New Jersey.
On the surface, two solar fires is not a whole lot – not when you consider how many diesel generators, power lines, and automobile gas tanks start blazes every day across the country. And neither of these fires was even in Florida, so why should we be concerned?
But in this post-Solyndra era when the entire solar industry is struggling to improve its image, we can’t afford to make mistakes – especially mistakes that could easily have been prevented with additional safety and electricity training.
Is Electricity Training Really the Problem?
I know what you’re thinking – does the PV industry really need more electrical certification? In Florida, we’ve already got NABCEP plus plenty of other solar PV installation and electricity safety exams.
The short answer is – yes, we do need more.
For starters, most electrical certification requirements aren’t even actual “requirements.” You don’t have to take any electricity training or safety courses to become a solar PV installer in Florida. Most other states are equally relaxed on their policies as well.
To become a hairdresser, you need to be licensed. To work with high voltage electrical equipment, you don’t need anything.
That’s the first problem.
The second problem is that so much of today’s “voluntary” electrical certification and installation training are largely insufficient.
Take the two fires for example. There’s a really good chance that many of the installers on these two roofs completed some type of solar training. Many of them probably also passed the entry level NABCEP exam. And a handful of them may have even had some very basic electricity training at the local level, either through a solar PV installation school or dedicated electrical certification program.
And yet, two easily preventable fires erupted nonetheless.
Every part of this equation needs to change. For the PV industry to continue flourishing, we need compulsory electrical certification and much stricter standards in the safety and electricity training that we provide – not just in Florida but also across the entire country.
Why We Support the UL Certified Solar Installer Examination
Underwriters Laboratories (UL) is the gold standard for safety – especially as it relates to electricity training. This is why back in 2010 we partnered with UL to provide specialized preparation for their Certified Solar Installer Examination.
This June, we’ll co-host a special 5-day electrical code seminar with UL’s Senior Engineering Instructor, Mark Ode. The electricity training will include topics ranging from safety start-up sequences to article 690 of the 2011 National Electric Code.
That Mr. Ode was a panelist for the National Electric Code Book for 25 years should explain why we place so much stock in his credentials.
To the best of my knowledge, no other solar PV training school in Florida or elsewhere offers this level of preparation. And while we’re honored to have Mr. Ode as a guest lecturer, it’s a shame that such honors are so rare. We should be fighting for this level of electrical certification in Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and anywhere else solar panels are being installed.
