Generator or Inverter for residential use?

[Speedster]

How do you clean the panels?
I don’t have a pressure hose.

Takealot

www.takealot.com

 

[AchmatK]

How do you clean the panels?
I don’t have a pressure hose.

Regular hosepipe and long handled mop.

 

[wingnut771]

I’ve seen mine pulling 12 kw.
Both geysers running and pool heat pump at the same time.

Here’s a pic of it running at 10kw

What is the 945W to UPS?

 

[Tariqe]

As I see it, the max the 8kW inverter can push thru ( on the grid side) is the 8 kW ( 7999 watts ), the 3.6 kW I had , pushed a max of 3600 watts

 

[AchmatK]

What is the 945W to UPS?

The ups loads are loads connected directly to the inverter. If the grid goes down, only those loads will get electrify from panels or batteries.

This is mine but I have my everything connected to the inverter with nothing on the grid side.

 

[AchmatK]

Five months in and battery SOH dropped its first percent after cycling through 1.3MW.

If it loses 2% per year I should be at 80% capacity after 10 years.

 

[naeem.ally]

What is the 945W to UPS?

It’s my essential load.
All my plugs and lights are connected to this except the pool circuit, geysers, oven and washing machine.

 

[AchmatK]

Took the pressure washer and cleaned the panels. The pool brush with its long handle also came in handy for the further to reach areas.

I think it's more the heat that's starting to reduce the pv output than the dust on the panels. I reckon I'm losing about 4kwh per day due to panel heat.

Spike in generation when I started to clean the panels.

 

[AchmatK]

Reported another display bug on the inverter.

Total solar production seems to not go higher than 5MWh. Similar to the daily graph that had a max display of 50kWh which was eventually fixed.

Total is already over 5.4MWh.

I tried their official new WhatsApp support number for the first time. Message was read but no reply yet.

 

[Academic]

Soft competition: got 19 kwh today off 2.7 kW of panels in Somerset West. My factor is 19/2.7=7.04.

 

[AchmatK]

Soft competition: got 19 kwh today off 2.7 kW of panels in Somerset West. My factor is 19/2.7=7.04.

Not bad. The day is not done yet here in Somerset West. Currently sitting on a factor of 6.25. Highest I think was 7.02 with 60kwh on 29 November.

Where in Somerset West?

 

[Academic]

Not bad. The day is not done yet here in Somerset West. Currently sitting on a factor of 6.25. Highest I think was 7.02 with 60kwh on 29 November.

Where in Somerset West?

Croydon

 

[Tariqe]

I underutilise my solar array, the issue is that I have three phase supply limited to 35 amps per phase, so cannot connect everything on the same phase as the inverter.

 

[TheChamp]

I underutilise my solar array, the issue is that I have three phase supply limited to 35 amps per phase, so cannot connect everything on the same phase as the inverter.

35 amps AC is still pretty massive on the DC side, how big a solar array do you have?

 

[AchmatK]

Croydon

What's your setup? Inverter, batteries, panels, orientation?

 

[Academic]

What's your setup? Inverter, batteries, panels, orientation?

Thanks for the interest. My setup started with a backup solution consisting of Victron Multiplus 2 48V 3000W combined with a 5 kwh Freedom Won battery and two backed up circuits. Added 6x450W JA Solar mono panels orientated mostly north. Cost around 125k.

Happy, but can do with more storage as potential during the day not fully utilised. Some more generation in the late afternoon would also be nice and thus thinking of adding some panels facing not-north.

What have you got? 60 kwh must be a large setup.

 

[AchmatK]

Thanks for the interest. My setup started with a backup solution consisting of Victron Multiplus 2 48V 3000W combined with a 5 kwh Freedom Won battery and two backed up circuits. Added 6x450W JA Solar mono panels orientated mostly north. Cost around 125k.

Happy, but can do with more storage as potential during the day not fully utilised. Some more generation in the late afternoon would also be nice and thus thinking of adding some panels facing not-north.

What have you got? 60 kwh must be a large setup.

Also need to increase my current batteries as I would ideally like to cut the grid dependency to less than 10%.

I've been investigating going solar for a good few years and just decided it was time to pull the trigger. Covid put my emigration plans on hold so used that funds for my setup.

8kw sunsynk hybrid inverter
28 x 305w Canadian solar panels (8.54kw)
3 x 3.5kw pylontech batteries (plan is to have 6 batteries)
Total cost 5 months ago was R200k

Will probably add the first extra battery in the first half if 2021.

 

[spiff]

Is there any regs regarding the mounting heights for invertor and batteries?

 

[AchmatK]

Definitely more the panel heat that's affecting pv production than the dust.

Sprayed it down twice today for about 10 minutes at a time to check. Pretty hot in Somerset West today.

Production goes down just as quickly as it increases after spraying it down.

 

[Tariqe]

@thechamp, I have 4.3 kWp array facing NE and NW respectively, I have a 2kw geyser, a 1.1 kw pool pump and a 9000 btu aircon, micro and kettle on the non essential side and the standard fridge/freezer,lights, plugs on essential side, I have the two more 9000 btu air cons on phase two and two gas stoves/electric oven on phase three.
Have 5 kw sunsynk inverter with two Pylontech 2000 batteries, hopefully wifey will allow one more battery, if I prostrate my self on the ground