Solar Wizard creates and uses several data files to store calculations, settings, and location information. Understanding these files helps you manage your solar projects and troubleshoot any issues.
🧾 Solar Wizard Data Files
File Name | Purpose | Description |
InsolationTable.csv | Solar radiation report | Created by the software to report the amount of solar radiation that falls on a surface or surfaces in Solar Wizard. The file is re-written each time you run calculations. The Solar Wizard manual describes how this file must be renamed if the information is to be used elsewhere for engineering computations. |
Insolation.dat | Location settings storage | Used by Solar Wizard to store the settings for the last used location. This saves you from having to select location settings each time you use the software. |
Locations.csv | Global location database | Contains location data for cities around the world including time differences from UTC (Universal Time Coordinated) or GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). Can be edited in Excel to add your own locations. |
Define the latitude and longitude for that location and the difference from UTC – Coordinated Universal Time is closely related to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Note that daylight saving adjustments are not automatically made.
🛠 Understanding Locations.csv Structure
The Locations.csv file contains important data used for solar calculations:
Column F contains references to text files with datasets for measured weather data at each location. These datasets include:
Average ambient temperature
Historical monthly solar radiation measurements
Solar Wizard uses this weather data to calculate the average annual radiation on surfaces for your solar installations.
💡 Working with Solar Wizard Files
InsolationTable.csv: This file is automatically overwritten each time you run solar calculations. If you need to preserve specific calculation results for engineering computations, rename the file before running new calculations.
Location Settings: The Insolation.dat and MultiShadows.dat files automatically save your last used location settings, making it faster to start new projects in the same area.
Custom Locations: You can add your own locations to the Locations.csv file by editing it in Excel. Make sure to include the correct time zone offset and reference to appropriate weather data files.