Inverters are one of the most important catalogue records in Powerlily. Their electrical specifications control design-tool availability, string sizing, optimiser behaviour, battery validation, and how the single-line d
This guide covers the inverter catalogue record. To decide how an inverter and battery should be arranged in a storage design, see Understanding Hybrid Inverters and AC/DC Coupled Storage.
The three inverter types
- String: accepts one or more PV strings and converts their DC output to AC.
- Microinverter: serves one or more modules at the array and does not use the string-sizing fields.
- Hybrid: combines string-inverter functions with a battery interface. A hybrid may also include battery storage or its own grid-isolation relay, but neither should be assumed from the word “hybrid.”
Adding an inverter
You can copy a ready-made model from the Powerlily library, extract specifications from a manufacturer document with Pericles, or create the record manually. Library and extracted records should still be checked against the exact model and voltage variant you sell.
Inverter forms autosave individual fields. Review any low-confidence or missing values before making the product available to your team.
Core product details
- Name, brand, and model identify the exact product.
- Rated AC power is the inverter’s nameplate output in watts.
- AC output records voltage and phase together. Powerlily distinguishes 208 V single-phase from 208 V three-phase, and 240 V split-phase from 240 V three-phase. It also supports 277/480 V and 347/600 V equipment.
- Efficiency, warranty, value, dimensions, and weight support quoting, documentation, and catalogue presentation.
Microinverters
Set Panels Serviced to the number of modules handled by each unit. Powerlily uses this value to determine the microinverter quantity for an array. String and MPPT fields do not apply to microinverters.
String and hybrid electrical specifications
For string and hybrid models, record the published limits for the exact inverter variant:
- Number of MPPTs and strings per MPPT
- Maximum total DC power and maximum DC power per MPPT
- Maximum open-circuit input voltage
- Minimum input voltage
- Minimum and maximum MPPT voltage
- Maximum input current and maximum short-circuit current
These values drive electrical validation and automatic string sizing. Do not substitute a PV input value from another voltage or regional variant.
DC optimiser policy
Choose whether DC optimisers are not supported, optional, or required.
- For ordinary string inverters, enter the published MPPT range.
- For an inverter that requires optimisers and operates on a regulated DC bus, the minimum and maximum MPPT voltage must both be the documented nominal bus voltage.
- Optimiser electrical limits belong on a separate DC Optimiser catalogue record. Powerlily uses the inverter policy and selected optimiser together when validating a design.
Hybrid battery fields
Hybrid inverters add battery-side specifications:
- Maximum battery charge and maximum battery discharge describe battery-side power limits.
- Maximum AC charging current is the continuous grid input used specifically to charge storage. It is not the inverter’s AC output current, service passthrough rating, or battery-side DC current.
- Battery minimum and maximum voltage define the accepted DC battery-port window. Use the battery-input section of the datasheet, not the PV MPPT window.
The maximum battery discharge rating is required for a hybrid to be design-tool ready. Missing charge or battery-voltage values may produce advisories because they limit what Powerlily can verify.
Integrated battery storage
Use the integrated-storage fields only when battery modules are part of the inverter product or enclosure, such as an integrated energy-storage system. Record total capacity, usable energy, and depth of discharge when published.
Leave these fields blank when the battery is a separate product. In that case, create the battery independently and pair it with the hybrid inverter in the design.
Integrated grid isolation (MID)
Some hybrid inverters contain their own transfer relay and can perform the grid-isolation role that would otherwise require a separate microgrid interconnection device. Turn on Integrated grid isolation (MID) only when the documentation establishes separate GRID and backed-up LOAD terminals with an internal isolation contactor.
When enabled, record the relay’s passthrough ratings, poles, neutral switching, supported backup configuration, generator capability, certification, and electrical ports. The SLD then treats the inverter itself as the MID and does not require a separate MID product.
Do not mark an inverter as having an integrated MID merely because it is described as hybrid, has a generator terminal, or offers a battery output. If grid isolation is provided by a gateway, controller, meter collar, GridBOSS, or other separate enclosure, create or select that device as a separate MID instead.
Catalogue and design-tool readiness
An inverter can exist in your private catalogue while still missing specifications required by the design tool. Powerlily checks readiness by inverter type:
- All types: rated AC power, AC voltage, and phase count.
- Microinverters: panels serviced.
- String inverters: the complete MPPT, voltage, current, power, and string-input set.
- Hybrids: the string-inverter set plus maximum battery discharge.
- Required-optimiser systems: a documented regulated DC bus voltage.
Use the catalogue’s Technical specs filter to find models that are ready for design or still incomplete. A visible product is not necessarily electrically ready.
Before using an inverter in a design
- Confirm the exact model, AC voltage, and phase variant.
- Check that the readiness indicator shows no missing design fields.
- Verify optimiser policy and compatibility.
- For hybrids, confirm battery voltage and power limits.
- Confirm whether grid isolation is integrated or supplied by a separate MID.
- Review all AI-extracted values against the source document.
Related articles
- Building Your Panel Catalogue. Enter the module specifications used for string sizing.
- Adding Batteries to Your Catalogue. Set up the energy, power, and electrical data for storage products.
- Designing Your First System in 2D and 3D. Place and size catalogue products in a project design.
- Generating Single-Line Diagrams and Plan Sets. See how catalogue data feeds electrical drawings.
