The Battery Thread (Solar / Inverter)

[maxxis]

You fall back on battery during the night right? Im planning the same in order to stop storing in the grid during the day. Technically illegal.

 

[wingnut771]

This is exactly where my mind is right now.

1 battery and 8kw and add second battery later

Or second battery now with 5kw and manage it. We are only two people in the house.

I can tell you go with the 8kw and 1 battery now. Then save for the second battery.

My wife doesnt think twice and we have no split load everything is on it.

We had a braai on Sunday and the kettle, oven and induction stove was on no issue.

8Kw provides a bit of future proofing and remember your battery can only charge as fast as you can put power though it - so the 8kw will charge your battery quicker to full capacity

The only issue with that config is you would still be limited to 5.5kW because of the battery so you would have to limit the peak load regardless of if you went 8kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2 or 5kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2, until you got a second battery for the 8kW, then you wouldn't have a problem.

Or go 2 x 5kW and 2 x Am-2 and have redundancy in case one fails? Apparently the 5kW are fanless?

 

[maxxis]

The only issue with that config is you would still be limited to 5.5kW because of the battery so you would have to limit the peak load regardless of if you went 8kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2 or 5kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2, until you got a second battery for the 8kW, then you wouldn't have a problem.

Or go 2 x 5kW and 2 x Am-2 and have redundancy in case one fails? Apparently the 5kW are fanless?

My budget of R70k for the upgrade is already proper blown. The 2x5kw with 2xAM2 wont work

 

[semaphore]

My production for the day, weather was not the best lots of cloud cover so bit of battery usage.



Wednesday production



@Snyper564 Are you using the workload configurations? I want to get my batteries to get consumed at night then change to the grid when it's depleted.

 

[wingnut771]

My budget of R70k for the upgrade is already proper blown. The 2x5kw with 2xAM2 wont work

Then to ease your mind, the 5kW can do more than 5kW by blending grid with PV and/or battery, it's just during rolling blackouts that you would be limited to 5kW. I think it has 35A passthrough if memory serves me right.

 

[Snyper564]

My production for the day, weather was not the best lots of cloud cover so bit of battery usage.

View attachment 1196994

Wednesday production

View attachment 1196998

@Snyper564 Are you using the workload configurations? I want to get my batteries to get consumed at night then change to the grid when it's depleted.

My grid has been switched off for almost 3 weeks now...just on that odd day or two that I popped it on.

I physically went to the eskom switch and turned it off.

 

[semaphore]

My grid has been switched off for almost 3 weeks now...just on that odd day or two

Yeah, I am not so fortunate lol.

 

[RonSwanson]

Then to ease your mind, the 5kW can do more than 5kW by blending grid with PV and/or battery, it's just during rolling blackouts that you would be limited to 5kW. I think it has 35A passthrough if memory serves me right.

Spot on. The 5.5K Sunsynk is a pleasure to own, all my loads are on it as essential loads, and I can expand by using loads before it if I want to, or convert the Gen port for use as a Smart load, or even more panels. Mine does have a fan which sings every morning. Great little machine, punches above its weight.

 

[RonSwanson]

Yeah, I am not so fortunate lol.

The first year comes with learning, it will get better and better as you learn to maximise its potential.

 

[Snyper564]

The first year comes with learning, it will get better and better as you learn to maximise its potential.

Im speaking from 3 weeks of experience - wait for your first winter before deciding what to upgrade

 

[wingnut771]

Spot on. The 5.5K Sunsynk is a pleasure to own, all my loads are on it as essential loads, and I can expand by using loads before it if I want to, or convert the Gen port for use as a Smart load, or even more panels. Mine does have a fan which sings every morning. Great little machine, punches above its weight.

Is it the new spec that is fanless?

 

[semaphore]

The first year comes with learning, it will get better and better as you learn to maximise its potential.

Yeah, but the loads I have in the evening are consistent and won't be changing. So right now trying to figure out how to tell the inverter to use grid until say 1am and then use battery until 6am-7am as the draw is only around 500 watts +-

 

[thehuman]

The only issue with that config is you would still be limited to 5.5kW because of the battery so you would have to limit the peak load regardless of if you went 8kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2 or 5kW Sunsynk and 1 x Am-2, until you got a second battery for the 8kW, then you wouldn't have a problem.

Or go 2 x 5kW and 2 x Am-2 and have redundancy in case one fails? Apparently the 5kW are fanless?

Won't sunsync limit battery use on that 8kw , pull greater than 5kw from mains or solar ?

 

[RonSwanson]

Is it the new spec that is fanless?

I know that the 3.6K is fanless, haven't seen a fanless 5.5K yet.
The singing fan is music to my ears in the morning, it means that Mrs Sunsynk is happy to be hard at work filling my batteries for tonight. There are gripers and grumblers who will moan about this, I don't. Different perspectives.
Some people don't like rain, but I do, even if it affects my production. I love my Sunsynk

 

[RonSwanson]

Yeah, but the loads I have in the evening are consistent and won't be changing. So right now trying to figure out how to tell the inverter to use grid until say 1am and then use battery until 6am-7am as the draw is only around 500 watts +-

Easy peasy, use the System Mode screen to define battery @ 100% from say 17H00 until 01H00, and from 01H00 to say 08H00 30%.

 

[wingnut771]

I know that the 3.6K is fanless, haven't seen a fanless 5.5K yet.
The singing fan is music to my ears in the morning, it means that Mrs Sunsynk is happy to be hard at work filling my batteries for tonight. There are gripers and grumblers who will moan about this, I don't. Different perspectives.
Some people don't like rain, but I do, even if it affects my production. I love my Sunsynk

Lol, oh ok, I just remember someone saying it has a big ass heat sink but maybe they were wrong, maybe it was the 3.6kW version.

 

[AchmatK]

Lol, oh ok, I just remember someone saying it has a big ass heat sink but maybe they were wrong, maybe it was the 3.6kW version.

The newer 5kw has no fan from what I recall.

 

[wingnut771]

The newer 5kw has no fan from what I recall.

Thank You.

 

[SHL]

Would switching-off both battery and inverter during non-loadshedding periods be fine in terms of maintenance/care or should the entire system be left alone and switched-on 24/7?

 

[wingnut771]

Would switching-off both battery and inverter during non-loadshedding periods be fine in terms of maintenance/care or should the entire system be left alone and switched-on 24/7?

The latter, leave it on. Simulate a power failure once a month to exercise the battery.