My sisters friend has a large solar array and checked his output in current hot weather to be surprised that it was not working.

Called in an expert who found that the invertor had blown up and would cost around £1,000 to replace.

Not sure if it was damaged by lightning or if the household insurance will pay up? 

My sisters friend has a large solar array and checked his output in current hot weather to be surprised that it was not working.

Called in an expert who found that the invertor had blown up and would cost around £1,000 to replace.

Not sure if it was damaged by lightning or if the household insurance will pay up? 

Also he needs to check the warranty - two reasons, first the inverter may be covered by it, that would be good, but 2nd even if it is not, any remaining guarantee on the panels  (could be 20 years..) may be invalidated if the inverter is changed by anyone other than the first installer, or for a non-equivalent type.

Or it may just  be part of the ongoing costs of of generating...  Note that inverters like any other electronics do very badly stuffed into poorly ventilated loft spaces and allowed to cook..
Mike

It may have died of its own accord.  The early ones were rubbish.

My first one came with a 5½ year warranty.  That seemed a rather strange warranty period, until it died after 6 years with a "relay fault".  The manufacturers had obviously found out how long they really lasted.

Modern ones should last a lot longer.  If it's not very old, check the warranty.