DAB interference from solar PV system?

grawinton

I had a solar PV system installed in my house last week.  This is working well, but it does seem to have given rise to interference to the DAB radio signal in the house.  The signal drops out for a second or so at almost exactly 1-minute intervals.  I can't pin this directly to the PV system, except that it started after it was installed.  The installers (who have otherwise been pretty good) say that they haven't heard of this issue before, and don't seem inclined to help much.  I haven't found anything definitive online, although there do seem to be some indications that the solar PV inverter (which is mounted in my loft) could be the source of interference.  The radios affected are both down on the ground floor, so not particularly near the inverter.

Very grateful for any advice as to (a) whether the PV is a likely cause of the issue and (b) if so, whether there is anything that can be done about it?

Chris Muriel

The inverter is the most likely culprit as an inverter is a switching device (has to "chop" a DC voltage from the panels to generate an AC waveform) . If you have a portable DAB radio, you may be able to pinpoint the source.

neilball

Or switch off the inverter (or test at night when the inverter is unpowered) to see if the interference goes away.

Rodders53

I agree with #3 - switch off the PV system and see if the interference stops...
If 'yes' then power it back back on.  Then if it restarts then it's conclusively proved to be the system causing it!

Some inverters have RF-monitoring remotes that may be the cause... if so switching to a wired monitor could be a solution.  That RF may be causing an overload of the 'front end' of the DAB tuner if it is strong enough (or the DAB tuner is not designed to be immune to an out of band signal).

Don't forget the installing technicians are just that - basically trained PV install technicians and NOT qualified Engineers who can think when a problem like this presents itself.  Likely the installing company will need to seek advice from the makers of the kit.