Our Picks
Top content from across the community, hand-picked by us.
Savings
moolmanj posted a topic in Beat Load Shedding ,
Good day
I would like some advice from people who managed to install a system greater than what you are using with sufficient battery storage as well. Basically if you switch of eskom for a day you are still running.
Have you saved or reduced your Account and by how much taking into consideration clouds,rains etc.
thanks
I would like some advice from people who managed to install a system greater than what you are using with sufficient battery storage as well. Basically if you switch of eskom for a day you are still running.
Have you saved or reduced your Account and by how much taking into consideration clouds,rains etc.
thanks
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- 44 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
New to the forum
Toxxyc posted a topic in Starting In Solar? Feel free to introduce yourself,
Good morning, everyone. I'm new here, and I'm hoping to mine a bit of the knowledge on here.
My story is simple. I currently stay in a small town in a house with a small backup solar setup. I bought the house with 2 x 450W panels, a Mecer 2.4kW inverter and 2 x 12V100AH gel batteries installed. I hated the setup from the start as it's installed in the living room and the inverter isn't particularly quiet, but alas, I needed the backup in case of loadshedding (I work from home).
Eventually the gel batteries couldn't keep up with Stage 6 and so on load shedding, not getting enough time to charge to float between uses, and they gave up the ghost. I DIY-replaced the two gel batteries with a Sunmagic 25.6V 150AH LiFePO4 battery. The new lithium battery allowed the inverter to actually use it for what it was made for, and I set it to use the absolute minimum power from the battery, and charge via solar. It's been working well-ish.
Anyway, time passed and we viewed a smallholding outside of town, put in a bit of a lowball offer (based on the work the place needs) and it got accepted. So now we're moving. However, the transformer costs on the smallholding is simply outrageous, so I'm going to take the place off grid. It's not a big place and we don't use a lot of electricity (we work smart, using around 20kW a day, max 30kW a day when it's really cold and we run some heaters around the place. Stovetop is gas, everything is LED and energy efficient, but the geyser is still electric. We're not going to change that right now, it's a future thing.
So, what I want to do is simply not register the Eskom pole to my name when I buy the place, and they'll then cut the house off. I then want to install a solar system that'll run the house. The house has plenty of roof space (around 450 square meters), the DB is in the garage (so I can put everything in there, under roof, outside the house), and we're good to go.
However, the finances are a worry. I need to finance the whole shebang as all cash we have is going into security on the smallholding. So I searched around and found Solar.co.za and I'm wondering if they're legit, how it works, etc. They have a rent-to-own system that's essentially financing the whole thing on their side, but I can't find much about them online, except for mixed reviews on HelloPeter.
So, here I am. Can anyone recommend me a rent-to-own solar company that'll do what I need at around R3k per month? From the solar.co.za guys I can get 16 x 455W panels, 2 x 5kW LuxPower inverters, and 3 x HinaESS 5.14kW batteries for ~R2,900 per month. That's perfectly in my budget, and if I install a generator I have alongside that, I should be fine even on rainy days, right?
I hope to learn a lot, and expect a TON of questions from me!
My story is simple. I currently stay in a small town in a house with a small backup solar setup. I bought the house with 2 x 450W panels, a Mecer 2.4kW inverter and 2 x 12V100AH gel batteries installed. I hated the setup from the start as it's installed in the living room and the inverter isn't particularly quiet, but alas, I needed the backup in case of loadshedding (I work from home).
Eventually the gel batteries couldn't keep up with Stage 6 and so on load shedding, not getting enough time to charge to float between uses, and they gave up the ghost. I DIY-replaced the two gel batteries with a Sunmagic 25.6V 150AH LiFePO4 battery. The new lithium battery allowed the inverter to actually use it for what it was made for, and I set it to use the absolute minimum power from the battery, and charge via solar. It's been working well-ish.
Anyway, time passed and we viewed a smallholding outside of town, put in a bit of a lowball offer (based on the work the place needs) and it got accepted. So now we're moving. However, the transformer costs on the smallholding is simply outrageous, so I'm going to take the place off grid. It's not a big place and we don't use a lot of electricity (we work smart, using around 20kW a day, max 30kW a day when it's really cold and we run some heaters around the place. Stovetop is gas, everything is LED and energy efficient, but the geyser is still electric. We're not going to change that right now, it's a future thing.
So, what I want to do is simply not register the Eskom pole to my name when I buy the place, and they'll then cut the house off. I then want to install a solar system that'll run the house. The house has plenty of roof space (around 450 square meters), the DB is in the garage (so I can put everything in there, under roof, outside the house), and we're good to go.
However, the finances are a worry. I need to finance the whole shebang as all cash we have is going into security on the smallholding. So I searched around and found Solar.co.za and I'm wondering if they're legit, how it works, etc. They have a rent-to-own system that's essentially financing the whole thing on their side, but I can't find much about them online, except for mixed reviews on HelloPeter.
So, here I am. Can anyone recommend me a rent-to-own solar company that'll do what I need at around R3k per month? From the solar.co.za guys I can get 16 x 455W panels, 2 x 5kW LuxPower inverters, and 3 x HinaESS 5.14kW batteries for ~R2,900 per month. That's perfectly in my budget, and if I install a generator I have alongside that, I should be fine even on rainy days, right?
I hope to learn a lot, and expect a TON of questions from me!
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- 41 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Feeding back to grid- challenges
Alex Stewart posted a topic in Inverters,
Hi all, I have an 8kw Sunsynk inverter and started feeding back to the grid a week ago. Exciting times! However, the grid at times is being fed from my batteries which I don't want. Does anyone know how to adjust the inverter settings to prevent this? I would like the first priority of the pv generation to cover our load requirements, then charge batteries, then feed the grid but not from batteries even if they are fully charged. Any ideas?
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- 16 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Going To Begin My DIY Solar Build :)
SunDayFunDay posted a topic in Beat Load Shedding ,
Lets Start Here
Due to unreliability of Eskom and faults in my area I have decided to go the solar route.
This is not a solo effort I'm a noob this thread will serve its purpose and place as a tutorial for whoever would like to know how and what needs to be done under the careful watch of forum members into building a solar system from scratch as a noob please note your input is valuable and will be much appreciated, I will include cost and sizing and all small detail where I can provide it.
Hopefully you can learn and make your own small system
These are the main components below however there minute details such as capacity of Dc Breakers, SPDs, the correct AC Breakers from the main board to the AC Disconnect, Roof Mount and Accessories, wiring, placement of panels and testing and balancing of system, there is 10 critical components which depends on your budget
(Sizing and Full Specs will be done once I get an idea)
Equipment
Solar Inverter
Battery
Solar Panels
Materials:
DC Combiner Box (Breaker and SPDs/Fuses)
AC Disconnect Box (Breakers)
Battery Fuse
Earth Spike
Earth-Neutral Bond
Wiring
Roof Mount
Due to unreliability of Eskom and faults in my area I have decided to go the solar route.
This is not a solo effort I'm a noob this thread will serve its purpose and place as a tutorial for whoever would like to know how and what needs to be done under the careful watch of forum members into building a solar system from scratch as a noob please note your input is valuable and will be much appreciated, I will include cost and sizing and all small detail where I can provide it.
Hopefully you can learn and make your own small system
These are the main components below however there minute details such as capacity of Dc Breakers, SPDs, the correct AC Breakers from the main board to the AC Disconnect, Roof Mount and Accessories, wiring, placement of panels and testing and balancing of system, there is 10 critical components which depends on your budget
(Sizing and Full Specs will be done once I get an idea)
Equipment
Solar Inverter
Battery
Solar Panels
Materials:
DC Combiner Box (Breaker and SPDs/Fuses)
AC Disconnect Box (Breakers)
Battery Fuse
Earth Spike
Earth-Neutral Bond
Wiring
Roof Mount
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- 8 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
A much better way of connecting Home Assistant to your DEYE/Sunsynk inverter
Sc00bs posted a topic in Home Automation,
Hi Guys
Just wanted to share my latest video on installation and connecting your inverter to Home Assistant using the new RS485 shield and ESP32C board.
Makes life much easier to set the thing up, no soldering and you only need to connect the power up inside the inverter to a 12V power supply and the RS485 cables so dead easy.
You can get the board and an ESP32 from https://smarthomeintegrations.co.za/ for R400 and get delivery in a day or so.
Slipx06 (Paul) has also included some cool new YAML code to calculate Daily energy production and consumption in the ESP32 and send that info to HA as well.
Let me know what you guys think of the video please
Just wanted to share my latest video on installation and connecting your inverter to Home Assistant using the new RS485 shield and ESP32C board.
Makes life much easier to set the thing up, no soldering and you only need to connect the power up inside the inverter to a 12V power supply and the RS485 cables so dead easy.
You can get the board and an ESP32 from https://smarthomeintegrations.co.za/ for R400 and get delivery in a day or so.
Slipx06 (Paul) has also included some cool new YAML code to calculate Daily energy production and consumption in the ESP32 and send that info to HA as well.
Let me know what you guys think of the video please
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- 167 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,.jpg.9045be3722b44d2fd628fa6ae589df9a.jpg)
Solis South Africa Roadshow 2024
Natasha Tshabalala posted a topic in Solis,
Attention, Installers! Gear up for the electrifying Solis South Africa Roadshow 2024!
Whether you're a seasoned Solis supporter or a newcomer intrigued by our offerings, this roadshow promises an immersive experience like no other. Don’t miss this opportunity to elevate your installation game and stay ahead of the curve.
Venues:
4 June- Soli Deo Gloria, Northriding, Randburg
11 June – The Capital Hotel, Zimbali, KwaZulu Natal
13 June- Hotel Verde, Cape Town
25 June- The Boardwalk Hotel and Convention Centre, Port Elizabeth
RSVP now by clicking on the link to fill out the form, and we'll be in touch to confirm your participation. See you in a city near you!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0074EJdy3OyTAL6adQ8qRe9HBTekln0TQp7Kcy5mqxXHz_w/viewform
Whether you're a seasoned Solis supporter or a newcomer intrigued by our offerings, this roadshow promises an immersive experience like no other. Don’t miss this opportunity to elevate your installation game and stay ahead of the curve.
Venues:
4 June- Soli Deo Gloria, Northriding, Randburg
11 June – The Capital Hotel, Zimbali, KwaZulu Natal
13 June- Hotel Verde, Cape Town
25 June- The Boardwalk Hotel and Convention Centre, Port Elizabeth
RSVP now by clicking on the link to fill out the form, and we'll be in touch to confirm your participation. See you in a city near you!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0074EJdy3OyTAL6adQ8qRe9HBTekln0TQp7Kcy5mqxXHz_w/viewform
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- 5 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Large Aircon vs Multi Zone Aircon - Which is Better on Solar?
AlexanderR posted a topic in Product Opinions & Reviews,
Hi
We want to plan the aircons and the solar together. We live in a hot climate near Kruger. It's nearly 30 deg and sunny on most winter days, summer is hotter.
House Layout
So we have a house layout that looks like the attached image.
Small Squares 16m2
Large Left Squares 36m2
Main Rectangle: 65m2 (lots of glass as well)
Aircon Usage Times
Bedrooms we'd run at night. (smaller squares on right and larger squares on left)
Living Area - only run during the day (large rectangle in middle)
A Few Quick Questions
Would you recommend 1 aircon per room?
Or would you recommend a multi zone system? https://acdirect.co.za/product-category/air-conditioner-multi-split/three-zone/
What is the best setup for solar?
We want to plan the aircons and the solar together. We live in a hot climate near Kruger. It's nearly 30 deg and sunny on most winter days, summer is hotter.
House Layout
So we have a house layout that looks like the attached image.
Small Squares 16m2
Large Left Squares 36m2
Main Rectangle: 65m2 (lots of glass as well)
Aircon Usage Times
Bedrooms we'd run at night. (smaller squares on right and larger squares on left)
Living Area - only run during the day (large rectangle in middle)
A Few Quick Questions
Would you recommend 1 aircon per room?
Or would you recommend a multi zone system? https://acdirect.co.za/product-category/air-conditioner-multi-split/three-zone/
What is the best setup for solar?
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- 9 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Inverter Technical Questions
Slowbutsure posted a topic in Inverters,
Hi
I have moved to the Philippines and there are some inverter features that I do not recognise when I lived in the uk. Any help appreciated.
1. Limiter & Clamp. I understand that here (and some other countries) if you send power back to the grid they charge you for it. So inverters have this Limiter with a clamp that makes sure no power is backed to the grid. But.. Surely, if all power to the house comes through the inverter, grid and solar, and the inverter is set to not export, then you dont need any limiter clamp set up right? The inverter would only be taking power from the grid when there is not enough solar to meet the house demand. Am I wrong?
2. Smart Loads. Some inverters (Deye etc) have a smart loads function, where if grid power goes out the battery only supplies loads in the smart load circuit. This is to protect the battery and make it last longer. essential loads only. But it means moving loads from the main circuit breaker box to a new box, assuming you can isolate the required loads. Seems like a big faff (English for annoying waste of time). isnt this what system sizing, circuit breakers and battery settings are for?
Thanks in advance,
I have moved to the Philippines and there are some inverter features that I do not recognise when I lived in the uk. Any help appreciated.
1. Limiter & Clamp. I understand that here (and some other countries) if you send power back to the grid they charge you for it. So inverters have this Limiter with a clamp that makes sure no power is backed to the grid. But.. Surely, if all power to the house comes through the inverter, grid and solar, and the inverter is set to not export, then you dont need any limiter clamp set up right? The inverter would only be taking power from the grid when there is not enough solar to meet the house demand. Am I wrong?
2. Smart Loads. Some inverters (Deye etc) have a smart loads function, where if grid power goes out the battery only supplies loads in the smart load circuit. This is to protect the battery and make it last longer. essential loads only. But it means moving loads from the main circuit breaker box to a new box, assuming you can isolate the required loads. Seems like a big faff (English for annoying waste of time). isnt this what system sizing, circuit breakers and battery settings are for?
Thanks in advance,
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- 16 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
My Sunsynk 8kw silence hack
BrettB posted a topic in Member Installations Showcase,
Hi Everyone,
Thought I'd share this because I have noticed a few people concerned or frustrated with the fan noise from the 8kw Sunsynk inverter. I couldn't install my inverter in the garage because I do a lot of woodwork in there and I know the dust would cause issues in the fans and heatsinks. So its mounted at the end of our passage where it meets with the garage through the door. The noise at night was really an issue for me. During load shedding the fans would usually kick in. Specially when the aircons where running. This is obviously when the inverter was doing a lot of work and required cooling. Then also after load shedding when the batteries were charging the fans would come on intermittently. Bloody irritating when trying to sleep.
The following pics is what I came up with. 5 decent quality 92mm PC fans on the vent side to constantly pull air through. Now these fans don't have the CFM or static pressure rating of the built in fans. But they are dead quite and they keep a constant steady flow of air over the heatsinks. On average, they keep the inverter 10-15 degrees cooler according to solar assistant. I have only had them in for 5 days now and the temperature has never gone over 55 degrees which is the trigger point for the built in fans. I ran all 4 aircons plus the air fryer for 30 mins and the inverter got up to 49 degrees. But when idle, it sits at 35-40 degrees. I am still waiting for a full sun day with load shedding where the MPPT's and the inverter are under a decent constant load to see what happens. Today the MPPT's where hitting around 8kw peaks while charging, and about 4kw on the inverter and it never went over 41 degrees.
I have mounted the fans about 10mm of the exit vent so none of the holes get blocked. The idea is that when the internal fans kick in, that air can just blow through my external fans. For now, I have just hot glued the fans to the wall and hot glued a piece of trunking cover to side(proper life hack style =D). I am busy designing a decent 3D printed bracket to hold all 5 fans and clips onto the vent hole at 4 points. No alterations have been done to the inverter at all so no future warranty issues. The fans run off an external 12v supply. I have wired it through a sonoff switch with the idea to control them through home assistant based on inverter load and temps.
Thought I'd share this because I have noticed a few people concerned or frustrated with the fan noise from the 8kw Sunsynk inverter. I couldn't install my inverter in the garage because I do a lot of woodwork in there and I know the dust would cause issues in the fans and heatsinks. So its mounted at the end of our passage where it meets with the garage through the door. The noise at night was really an issue for me. During load shedding the fans would usually kick in. Specially when the aircons where running. This is obviously when the inverter was doing a lot of work and required cooling. Then also after load shedding when the batteries were charging the fans would come on intermittently. Bloody irritating when trying to sleep.
The following pics is what I came up with. 5 decent quality 92mm PC fans on the vent side to constantly pull air through. Now these fans don't have the CFM or static pressure rating of the built in fans. But they are dead quite and they keep a constant steady flow of air over the heatsinks. On average, they keep the inverter 10-15 degrees cooler according to solar assistant. I have only had them in for 5 days now and the temperature has never gone over 55 degrees which is the trigger point for the built in fans. I ran all 4 aircons plus the air fryer for 30 mins and the inverter got up to 49 degrees. But when idle, it sits at 35-40 degrees. I am still waiting for a full sun day with load shedding where the MPPT's and the inverter are under a decent constant load to see what happens. Today the MPPT's where hitting around 8kw peaks while charging, and about 4kw on the inverter and it never went over 41 degrees.
I have mounted the fans about 10mm of the exit vent so none of the holes get blocked. The idea is that when the internal fans kick in, that air can just blow through my external fans. For now, I have just hot glued the fans to the wall and hot glued a piece of trunking cover to side(proper life hack style =D). I am busy designing a decent 3D printed bracket to hold all 5 fans and clips onto the vent hole at 4 points. No alterations have been done to the inverter at all so no future warranty issues. The fans run off an external 12v supply. I have wired it through a sonoff switch with the idea to control them through home assistant based on inverter load and temps.
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- 104 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Validate my plan (or tear it apart)
display_Name posted a topic in Solar Power,
I'm ready to press go on my install (very excited). Would love some thoughts on the chosen setup, and if you have any recommendations for installers in Cape Town Northern suburbs, please DM me.
Here's what I'm looking to set up:
2 x Solis 6kW Inverters (S6-EH1P6K-L-PRO)
32 x Jinko Tiger 560W (JKM560M-72HL4)
Axe Struct Mounting system (Railed Roof Top)
SolarMD SS 4143 14,3kWh
Mock up of the roof attached. Mostly East / West, I've added summer / winter sunrise, midday, sunset lines to show morning and afternoon sun. I can't mount on the north facing roof (geometry won't allow).
My thinking is to have 4 strings of 8 panels per string, with the strings of each MPPT split East and West. So MPPT1 String 1 East and MPPT 1 String 2 West.
Was looking at 5kW Sunsynk inverters initially because the software is apparently pretty good, but the panels I'm looking at are 13.6A (over the Sunsynk rating of 13A), and the Solis 6kW at the same price looks like it makes sense with the additional headroom. Unless I'm missing something.
The equipment above comes to R185K excluding shipping. I'd still need fuses, wire, connectors, DB board, breakers, conduit etc etc... and of course the installation.
Does this look about right for a setup?
Here's what I'm looking to set up:
2 x Solis 6kW Inverters (S6-EH1P6K-L-PRO)
32 x Jinko Tiger 560W (JKM560M-72HL4)
Axe Struct Mounting system (Railed Roof Top)
SolarMD SS 4143 14,3kWh
Mock up of the roof attached. Mostly East / West, I've added summer / winter sunrise, midday, sunset lines to show morning and afternoon sun. I can't mount on the north facing roof (geometry won't allow).
My thinking is to have 4 strings of 8 panels per string, with the strings of each MPPT split East and West. So MPPT1 String 1 East and MPPT 1 String 2 West.
Was looking at 5kW Sunsynk inverters initially because the software is apparently pretty good, but the panels I'm looking at are 13.6A (over the Sunsynk rating of 13A), and the Solis 6kW at the same price looks like it makes sense with the additional headroom. Unless I'm missing something.
The equipment above comes to R185K excluding shipping. I'd still need fuses, wire, connectors, DB board, breakers, conduit etc etc... and of course the installation.
Does this look about right for a setup?
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- 69 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Whats the best small scale load shedding solution that can be wired to a DB
craig006 posted a topic in Product Opinions & Reviews,
I have a holiday cottage where I'd like to add some load shedding backup power. I want to wire it directly to some circuits on the DB, and only need it to power some lights, a router and a TV for about 4 hours (maybe boil a kettle if possible).
It would be a huge bonus if the system was quiet as the DB is in one of the small bedrooms. Having fans whirring away while guests are trying to sleep isn't going to be cool 🤣
What's the most affordable, long term solution here? Any specific products come to mind?
It would be a huge bonus if the system was quiet as the DB is in one of the small bedrooms. Having fans whirring away while guests are trying to sleep isn't going to be cool 🤣
What's the most affordable, long term solution here? Any specific products come to mind?
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- 13 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Power Forum Store Review Giveaway Loading!
Powerforum Store posted a topic in The Powerforum Store,
Hey All
We have another Awesome Powerforum Store Review and Lucky Draw Giveaway of a very nice Lithium Battery and some other soon to be disclosed goodies on its way....
Thank you to the Team at Magneto Energy for providing us with equipment to test and review and the best part to let us give it away to one of the lucky members on our forum.
Terms for you to be eligible
Must be a Power Forum Member. Yes even NEWB's Can win the product in the lucky draw.
Must be willing to give feedback on a thread you create on your experience with the product.
Allow the Manufacturer to communicate with you to get realworld information on how their product performs and some technical feedback for future improvements.
If you win the product it must be installed by a qualified technician NO DIY Installs Please we need to support the professionals in the market.
Provide us with nice photos of your Installation on the thread you created.
Cost of delivery or collection of the prize is for the winner.
We will Post more details on the giveaway in the next couple of days.
Thanks for your Continued Support.
Powerforum Store
We have another Awesome Powerforum Store Review and Lucky Draw Giveaway of a very nice Lithium Battery and some other soon to be disclosed goodies on its way....
Thank you to the Team at Magneto Energy for providing us with equipment to test and review and the best part to let us give it away to one of the lucky members on our forum.
Terms for you to be eligible
Must be a Power Forum Member. Yes even NEWB's Can win the product in the lucky draw.
Must be willing to give feedback on a thread you create on your experience with the product.
Allow the Manufacturer to communicate with you to get realworld information on how their product performs and some technical feedback for future improvements.
If you win the product it must be installed by a qualified technician NO DIY Installs Please we need to support the professionals in the market.
Provide us with nice photos of your Installation on the thread you created.
Cost of delivery or collection of the prize is for the winner.
We will Post more details on the giveaway in the next couple of days.
Thanks for your Continued Support.
Powerforum Store
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- 66 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Large 'Retro' Power System Display
HedgeSlammer posted a topic in Inventions,
Vital to being able to keep within the inverter output limits (and avoid importing expensive grid power unnecessarily) is having the means to display the relevant information in an immediate and accessible way.
That's what I told my wife, anyway. Really, I'd just scored a bunch of old RC servos on ebay for £5 and I wanted to play with them. 😉
In context:
It uses 6 servos, a Wemos d1 mini clone and a tri-colour LED. Dial faces are 3D printed, with a filament change from white to black (which turned out much better than I imagined, TBH).
The servos only had around 90° of sweep angle, so I 3D printed some little holder/gearbox things to get over 180° and provide a shaft for the needle to go on, plus some 'steampunk' needles.
All run buy the obligatory D1 mini and held together using the very latest in 'twist and tape' technology.
Yee-haw! 🤠
It gets fed the data from 'node-red' running on a Victron CerboGX via UDP packets over WiFi, updating as often as the data changes (approx 3 second intervals). The LED changes colour according to state, so 'All OK' is green, 'You're getting very close to/exceeding the inverter output limit, so if you don't want to pay for grid, don't turn anything else on' is red, then blue for 'dumping power into the hot water tank'.
It's by no means silent in operation. I originally made a single-servo version for just PV generation and coded it so that the meter movements were gradual (a kind of PID to get from one value to the next), but apparently it 'sounded like we have cockroaches' when it made it's ticky-scratchy transitions between values, so the big version just jumps between values with a 'zzziiiiiup!' sound.
It's actually quite reassuring to have an audible indication when the sun comes out for 5 seconds, or it starts charging at night.
I'd also put a little radar sensor in there, with the aim of having it detect when there was nobody around, so it could stop displaying to save power/noise. Unfortunately, that meant that every time you entered the room, all 6 needles would suddenly move at the same time, making you jump out of your skin and spill your horlicks, so we just leave it 'on' all the time now.
There's also a basic web UI, so you can see the same data on your phone or whatever, plus it's useful for troubleshooting:
I had fun and learned loads making it - and now it's become a family game to try to cook dinner without making the red light come on. 🙂
Libraries used are 'ESPUI' and 'servo', plus 'arduinoOTA'. Code, FreeCad file for the gearbox & stl file for the arrow-head needle are all in the attached zip.
Power_meters_v2..zip
That's what I told my wife, anyway. Really, I'd just scored a bunch of old RC servos on ebay for £5 and I wanted to play with them. 😉
In context:
It uses 6 servos, a Wemos d1 mini clone and a tri-colour LED. Dial faces are 3D printed, with a filament change from white to black (which turned out much better than I imagined, TBH).
The servos only had around 90° of sweep angle, so I 3D printed some little holder/gearbox things to get over 180° and provide a shaft for the needle to go on, plus some 'steampunk' needles.
All run buy the obligatory D1 mini and held together using the very latest in 'twist and tape' technology.
Yee-haw! 🤠
It gets fed the data from 'node-red' running on a Victron CerboGX via UDP packets over WiFi, updating as often as the data changes (approx 3 second intervals). The LED changes colour according to state, so 'All OK' is green, 'You're getting very close to/exceeding the inverter output limit, so if you don't want to pay for grid, don't turn anything else on' is red, then blue for 'dumping power into the hot water tank'.
It's by no means silent in operation. I originally made a single-servo version for just PV generation and coded it so that the meter movements were gradual (a kind of PID to get from one value to the next), but apparently it 'sounded like we have cockroaches' when it made it's ticky-scratchy transitions between values, so the big version just jumps between values with a 'zzziiiiiup!' sound.
It's actually quite reassuring to have an audible indication when the sun comes out for 5 seconds, or it starts charging at night.
I'd also put a little radar sensor in there, with the aim of having it detect when there was nobody around, so it could stop displaying to save power/noise. Unfortunately, that meant that every time you entered the room, all 6 needles would suddenly move at the same time, making you jump out of your skin and spill your horlicks, so we just leave it 'on' all the time now.
There's also a basic web UI, so you can see the same data on your phone or whatever, plus it's useful for troubleshooting:
I had fun and learned loads making it - and now it's become a family game to try to cook dinner without making the red light come on. 🙂
Libraries used are 'ESPUI' and 'servo', plus 'arduinoOTA'. Code, FreeCad file for the gearbox & stl file for the arrow-head needle are all in the attached zip.
Power_meters_v2..zip
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Picked By
Energy-Jason,Off-grid in Spain
Onze Finca posted a topic in Starting In Solar? Feel free to introduce yourself,
Hi,
I'd like to introduce myself, and my small setup.
I'm Bianco, a Dutch male, and my wife and I moved to Spain 2 years ago, where we live on a small piece of rural land, in Aragon. We are completely off-grid.
Therefore I Hired a friend two years ago to install a solar system. he and a friend installed a Voltronic Expert 24V 3Kw, with 6 320 Wp Solarpanels, and 2 Ultracell 316 Ah Gel Batteries, and I paid good money for it. After 1 year and a bit, every thing shut down at 2 in the morning, whilst the day before was a clear and sunny day. In the months after that, it started happening more and more. Well long story short, The Batteries were fried. After contacting the "friend" He basically told me he could do nothing: A bit like: Shit happens.
After studying I chose to do it myself. The panels were fine, so they are still there. I bought a new Inverter, another Voltronic Axpert, 5Kw, on 48 Volts And two Pylontechs US3000C
All connected, everything works fine. in the (hopefully near) future we'd like to add another Pylontech to the bank. Its enough for us. We have a TV, and we mostly watch during the day (if we do), and no dishwasher, washing machine or other heavy stuff, besides a Nespresso, but that is also only used during the day. The only thing that is a big consumer is the waterpump, but on a timer, controlled by Domoticz. During non-solar hours, it is off.
So I have a raspberry in the bedroom, wich is equipped with Domoticz, wich controls most of the lights, and a few other stuff. In the Batteryroom, there is another raspberry, wing contains Solarassistant, and monitors the Pylontechs via the Inverter.
I'm still looking for a way to connect the Pylontechs Directly to the raspberry, I read something about the console port, but can seem to find if you can connect it at the same time as the port to the Inverter.
So, Newbie in Solar, but I like learning about it, and helping.
If anybody knows something about connecting it to a raspberry, (or maybe my way of thinking is wrong) much obliged.
Greetings from a cold (+2), but Sunny Spain.
I'd like to introduce myself, and my small setup.
I'm Bianco, a Dutch male, and my wife and I moved to Spain 2 years ago, where we live on a small piece of rural land, in Aragon. We are completely off-grid.
Therefore I Hired a friend two years ago to install a solar system. he and a friend installed a Voltronic Expert 24V 3Kw, with 6 320 Wp Solarpanels, and 2 Ultracell 316 Ah Gel Batteries, and I paid good money for it. After 1 year and a bit, every thing shut down at 2 in the morning, whilst the day before was a clear and sunny day. In the months after that, it started happening more and more. Well long story short, The Batteries were fried. After contacting the "friend" He basically told me he could do nothing: A bit like: Shit happens.
After studying I chose to do it myself. The panels were fine, so they are still there. I bought a new Inverter, another Voltronic Axpert, 5Kw, on 48 Volts And two Pylontechs US3000C
All connected, everything works fine. in the (hopefully near) future we'd like to add another Pylontech to the bank. Its enough for us. We have a TV, and we mostly watch during the day (if we do), and no dishwasher, washing machine or other heavy stuff, besides a Nespresso, but that is also only used during the day. The only thing that is a big consumer is the waterpump, but on a timer, controlled by Domoticz. During non-solar hours, it is off.
So I have a raspberry in the bedroom, wich is equipped with Domoticz, wich controls most of the lights, and a few other stuff. In the Batteryroom, there is another raspberry, wing contains Solarassistant, and monitors the Pylontechs via the Inverter.
I'm still looking for a way to connect the Pylontechs Directly to the raspberry, I read something about the console port, but can seem to find if you can connect it at the same time as the port to the Inverter.
So, Newbie in Solar, but I like learning about it, and helping.
If anybody knows something about connecting it to a raspberry, (or maybe my way of thinking is wrong) much obliged.
Greetings from a cold (+2), but Sunny Spain.
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Picked By
Energy-Jason,Newbie Question - Does hybrid mean you will never overload the inverter(if the grid is available)
Keill posted a topic in Inverters,
When I google this or ask installers, I'm getting mixed answers.
Some suggest that a hybrid inverter will get any extra load it needs, from the grid, if its overloaded.
Some suggest that even a hybrid inverter will fault/cut off if overloaded.
When I say overloaded, meaning if its a 5kw inverter and my load exceeds that.
Or is the truth somewhere in-between, certain makes/,models of inverters can and some can't?
Thanks for your time.
Some suggest that a hybrid inverter will get any extra load it needs, from the grid, if its overloaded.
Some suggest that even a hybrid inverter will fault/cut off if overloaded.
When I say overloaded, meaning if its a 5kw inverter and my load exceeds that.
Or is the truth somewhere in-between, certain makes/,models of inverters can and some can't?
Thanks for your time.
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- 31 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Nissan Leaf for sale - R165 000 -SOLD
Carl posted a topic in Classifieds,
2013 Nissan Leaf for sale.
Excellent condition.
New tires.
Odometer: 55 171 KM
Range: 60 KM
Charger: 3 Kwatt
Location: Cape Town
Efficiency: 7.5 KM / Kwh
Excellent condition.
New tires.
Odometer: 55 171 KM
Range: 60 KM
Charger: 3 Kwatt
Location: Cape Town
Efficiency: 7.5 KM / Kwh
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- 13 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
How much Weight is needed to hold your Panels in Place on a concrete Roof
Marcodp posted a topic in Solar Power,
Hi,
I have good friend who has a solid concrete roof on which he wants to install 4 x rows of 6 x 550w solar panels using A-Frames.
The main point here is that he does not want to drill into the roof and would prefer to use Concrete ballasts to hold the A-frames down.
Can anybody advise how much ballast (weight) he would need to use per A-Frame to hold the panels in place (not to blow away in the wind).
He stays in Cape Town where the wind is gusty and can be relatively stong, especially when the South Easter blows.
Below is a picture of the A-Frames he wants to use (note: this is not a picture of his installation....just a picture of the A-Frames)
The A-Frames will be placed 1.2m apart - can anyone advise how much weight is recommended per A-Frame?
I have good friend who has a solid concrete roof on which he wants to install 4 x rows of 6 x 550w solar panels using A-Frames.
The main point here is that he does not want to drill into the roof and would prefer to use Concrete ballasts to hold the A-frames down.
Can anybody advise how much ballast (weight) he would need to use per A-Frame to hold the panels in place (not to blow away in the wind).
He stays in Cape Town where the wind is gusty and can be relatively stong, especially when the South Easter blows.
Below is a picture of the A-Frames he wants to use (note: this is not a picture of his installation....just a picture of the A-Frames)
The A-Frames will be placed 1.2m apart - can anyone advise how much weight is recommended per A-Frame?
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- 15 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
EVE Lf304 build
Pho3niX90 posted a topic in DIY Lithium Battery,
So I will be picking up my cells on Wednesday, I also purchased their Apex BMS, which is just a rebranded seplos.
I was initially going to buy a steel case and modify it from there, but has since decided to get a 3D printer, draw up some modular designs, and this will now be my project. From the mockups it is going to look good.
Will post my build log here.
I was initially going to buy a steel case and modify it from there, but has since decided to get a 3D printer, draw up some modular designs, and this will now be my project. From the mockups it is going to look good.
Will post my build log here.
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Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Saving on electricity after solar installation
raatkirani posted a topic in Beat Load Shedding ,
Hi All
Hope you are well. I had a question. How do you know if we are saving once solar is installed. I am not seeing changes on my electricity bill. My geyser is still on eskon but I have installed a timer to control when my geyser is switched on and switched off.
I have a 5kva inverter and 4.8kva battery. I run the house on solar during the day (switching back to eskom when using high wattage appliances like an iron or running multiple appliances at once when need to).
Kind regards
Deepa
Hope you are well. I had a question. How do you know if we are saving once solar is installed. I am not seeing changes on my electricity bill. My geyser is still on eskon but I have installed a timer to control when my geyser is switched on and switched off.
I have a 5kva inverter and 4.8kva battery. I run the house on solar during the day (switching back to eskom when using high wattage appliances like an iron or running multiple appliances at once when need to).
Kind regards
Deepa
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- 68 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Post in More Giveaways Loading...
Powerforum Store posted a post in a topic,
Hey Guys so its that time of the year again and we have a whole Host of Giveaways lined up some to watch out for would be the New Solis S6 6KW Advanced Hybrid (Beast) we are busy with a long term review in real world conditions with the Solis S6 the Unit we are giving away has already gone through a preliminary review but we may give more of this brand away in the future.
Magneto has given us some wonderful product to review and give away MAGNETO Lithium-LiFePo4 Rack Mount 48V 5.1 KWh also note the great prices on those units and a Magneto Thermo Tank also promise of more nice items to give away in the future.
Then we Have the Revo Inverter and battery Combo (not listed on our online store yet but soon) there will be some terms and conditions on this giveaway however an exciting product squarely aimed at Sunsynk and Deye.
We are also receiving a very nice Battery from Halo Energy to give away the 113AH HALO Eclipse WM-5 48V 1C however this will only be in about 5 Weeks time but still a very nice compact battery.
VTC is giving us one of their VTC Vxl5100W 5.1kWh LifePo4 battery 51V/100Ah Wall Mount (not listed on our online store yet but soon) to review and test this is also a very nice wall mount battery with Bluetooth and WIFI features decent cycle count compatibility and scalability and we will give this away to a lucky forum member.
Magneto has given us some wonderful product to review and give away MAGNETO Lithium-LiFePo4 Rack Mount 48V 5.1 KWh also note the great prices on those units and a Magneto Thermo Tank also promise of more nice items to give away in the future.
Then we Have the Revo Inverter and battery Combo (not listed on our online store yet but soon) there will be some terms and conditions on this giveaway however an exciting product squarely aimed at Sunsynk and Deye.
We are also receiving a very nice Battery from Halo Energy to give away the 113AH HALO Eclipse WM-5 48V 1C however this will only be in about 5 Weeks time but still a very nice compact battery.
VTC is giving us one of their VTC Vxl5100W 5.1kWh LifePo4 battery 51V/100Ah Wall Mount (not listed on our online store yet but soon) to review and test this is also a very nice wall mount battery with Bluetooth and WIFI features decent cycle count compatibility and scalability and we will give this away to a lucky forum member.
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Inverter Neutral Earth bonding
zs1ssm posted a topic in Inverters,
Some say yes some say no ???? My setup are the following as per drawing.
Now if I bond the neutral and the earth from the inverter and work hat to be done on the electrical box outside (eskom) then the earth back to the box will have a earth that can carry current due to the bonding---My inverter do not do the bonding as I tested the system---On eskom power the e/n there is no voltage but on inverter there is 84volt between e/n.
Anyone please explain if I can bond earth/neutral at the inverter out and also the feedback from the bond to the electrical box outside
Now if I bond the neutral and the earth from the inverter and work hat to be done on the electrical box outside (eskom) then the earth back to the box will have a earth that can carry current due to the bonding---My inverter do not do the bonding as I tested the system---On eskom power the e/n there is no voltage but on inverter there is 84volt between e/n.
Anyone please explain if I can bond earth/neutral at the inverter out and also the feedback from the bond to the electrical box outside
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- 200 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Interested in renewable energy? Please support my masters thesis! [survey]
Freya_North posted a topic in General Discussion,
Hello everyone! <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
I am looking for participants for my Masters dissertation survey and ALL of you who are in this forum are exactly the right people! It's about people who are interested in renewable energies. I am interested in anyone who uses the available technologies - or maybe has even had an idea how to improve the set-up or played around a bit with it. As long as you care just a tiny bit about renewable energies, you are perfect for my survey! <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
If you have already read this far, please take part
https://forms.office.com/e/9Q0z7r21W8
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
The survey is of course anonymous and the results will only be used in the context of my master thesis. You only need 5-10 minutes of your time. You get loads of good karma for taking part and the additional good feeling of knowing that you helped out a student. <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
Sunny greetings<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
Freya <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
PS: this post is authorised and I am extremely grateful for being allowed to post my survey here and I hope lots of you will take the chance and take part!
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
I am looking for participants for my Masters dissertation survey and ALL of you who are in this forum are exactly the right people! It's about people who are interested in renewable energies. I am interested in anyone who uses the available technologies - or maybe has even had an idea how to improve the set-up or played around a bit with it. As long as you care just a tiny bit about renewable energies, you are perfect for my survey! <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
If you have already read this far, please take part
https://forms.office.com/e/9Q0z7r21W8
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
The survey is of course anonymous and the results will only be used in the context of my master thesis. You only need 5-10 minutes of your time. You get loads of good karma for taking part and the additional good feeling of knowing that you helped out a student. <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
Sunny greetings<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
Freya <br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
<br style="color:#141414;font-size:15px;">
PS: this post is authorised and I am extremely grateful for being allowed to post my survey here and I hope lots of you will take the chance and take part!
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- 61 replies
Picked By
Energy-Jason,Post in My Sunsynk 8Kw & data collection setup
Sc00bs posted a post in a topic,
I made a video for you 🙂
Picked By
Energy-Jason,
Hi to all like minded individuals
GOODOLDGAZ posted a topic in Starting In Solar? Feel free to introduce yourself,
Hello Everyone!
Goodoldgaz here.
Im not exactly new to inverters and solar and renewables
I am electrician by trade and just dig the idea of sustainability and more specfically
"self sustainability" .
i am however new to forums and finding it kinda challanging navigating around
not even sure that this is where introductions are made but Hello
Goodoldgaz here.
Im not exactly new to inverters and solar and renewables
I am electrician by trade and just dig the idea of sustainability and more specfically
"self sustainability" .
i am however new to forums and finding it kinda challanging navigating around
not even sure that this is where introductions are made but Hello
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- 6 replies