DIY Solar starting point

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Drakshaa

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Hello knowledgeable people of the forum. I have begun looking into getting solar on behalf of a friend and it seems like doing it yourself can be a lot cheaper than going through one of the solar solution companies. So much so that I want to check myself and ask for advice.

I've looked at this kit at R56k and it seems to have everything you'd need for a significant cost reduction system. Obviously there'd be labour costs for the specialised installation bits that I couldn't do myself (I'm not a sparky) and getting things certified. But that still seems lower than the R120k I find floating around for the same output.

Any advice would be appreciated, even just the right questions to be asking.
 
Drakshaa said:
Hello knowledgeable people of the forum. I have begun looking into getting solar on behalf of a friend and it seems like doing it yourself can be a lot cheaper than going through one of the solar solution companies. So much so that I want to check myself and ask for advice.

I've looked at this kit at R56k and it seems to have everything you'd need for a significant cost reduction system. Obviously there'd be labour costs for the specialised installation bits that I couldn't do myself (I'm not a sparky) and getting things certified. But that still seems lower than the R120k I find floating around for the same output.

Any advice would be appreciated, even just the right questions to be asking.
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I wouldn’t buy a kit, cheaper to source components imho.
 
Speedster

Thread 'Speedster's solar journey'

I've been prepping a solar system for my home for quite a while, and have certainly learnt a ton along the way. Over the past 18 months or so I've asked perhaps too many questions (to the great annoyance of some forumites), but I've gleaned enough info to have been confident enough to finally get to work on the install a short while back. I realise there are (at least) two approaches one can take with a project like this - (1) pay someone a good sum of money to take care of it all and (2) take time to learn and do what you can yourself. Neither is right or wrong, there are certainly...
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wingnut771 said:
I wouldn’t buy a kit, cheaper to source components imho.
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From personal experience, I would say get a kit unless you have done an install before.

You forget a lot of the small stuff and winds up costing more when you have to buy the things again coz you bought the wrong thing etc.

My solar install was almost 80k with the geyser conversion. But I could have done it for just under 70k if I did it again. Maybe 60k even. The only advantage I got doing it myself was I now know what to do and understand every bit of my system. No no need to call anyone when things break which saves me money in the long run.
 
denmendez65 said:
From personal experience, I would say get a kit unless you have done an install before.

You forget a lot of the small stuff and winds up costing more when you have to buy the things again coz you bought the wrong thing etc.

My solar install was almost 80k with the geyser conversion. But I could have done it for just under 70k if I did it again. Maybe 60k even. The only advantage I got doing it myself was I now know what to do and understand every bit of my system. No no need to call anyone when things break which saves me money in the long run.
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I meant use the kit as as a reference to the items to get, im sure they put a markup on a kit but I hear you, definitely less faf just going with a kit.
 
Drakshaa said:
Hello knowledgeable people of the forum. I have begun looking into getting solar on behalf of a friend and it seems like doing it yourself can be a lot cheaper than going through one of the solar solution companies. So much so that I want to check myself and ask for advice.

I've looked at this kit at R56k and it seems to have everything you'd need for a significant cost reduction system. Obviously there'd be labour costs for the specialised installation bits that I couldn't do myself (I'm not a sparky) and getting things certified. But that still seems lower than the R120k I find floating around for the same output.

Any advice would be appreciated, even just the right questions to be asking.
Click to expand...
Is the 5kw going to be enough? for R10k more you can get a 12-14kw inverter, then later you can add more panels and more battery if needed. Just makes life easier to wire it once and get done with it

Also depending on the roof size rather just go with 600W panel rather then 10x460
 
DTBA said:
Is the 5kw going to be enough? for R10k more you can get a 12-14kw inverter, then later you can add more panels and more battery if needed. Just makes life easier to wire it once and get done with it

Also depending on the roof size rather just go with 600W panel rather then 10x460
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460W panels are huge. I can only imagine how much bigger 600W panels are and trying to diy those onto the roof.
 
Phone a company and get them to come and give you a quote, choose 2-3 companies to compare. The quote will be broken down so you can see what they are charging you for the components.
 
DTBA said:
Is the 5kw going to be enough? for R10k more you can get a 12-14kw inverter, then later you can add more panels and more battery if needed. Just makes life easier to wire it once and get done with it

Also depending on the roof size rather just go with 600W panel rather then 10x460
Click to expand...
Not that much bigger actually.
 
DIY is going very deep down a very dark rabbit hole. I'm on 7.9 MWh for solar power and 9.1 MWh total power produced in 4 years.

You need to find out what your needs are. biggest problem is the sun shines when I am not at home.
 
Magnum said:
DIY is going very deep down a very dark rabbit hole. I'm on 7.9 MWh for solar power and 9.1 MWh total power produced in 4 years.

You need to find out what your needs are. biggest problem is the sun shines when I am not at home.
Click to expand...
Sounds like you need more battery and a few geysers in series.
 
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