Bigawatt

No doubt that wouldn't go down well with the neighbours 😝 Thankfully I haven't noticed the house feeling any warmer from the previous lighter roof colour we had

Clean install @mzezman – nothing quite like spending your hard earned money on something that starts giving it back from the first day it comes online 😎 nevermind seeing the system perform on sunny days like we've had of late!

It is indeed, thanks @mzezman

Super helpful @system32 thx!! I'm not feeding excess power back to the grid, understand the point you made about generation being limited to charging/demand–hence my search for options to move loads over to solar to increase utliisation (lower wattage geyser elements, induction stove etc) Thanks for the tip! Including the 3 panels as part of the main array would be ideal as this would make it visible in Victron Remote Management. The Elon system was installed after the solar was done, so I'll get in touch with my installer to make this change. I already have my 200L geyser set to use only PV for heating between 3am and 5pm, so as long as we take our showers in the morning and conditions aren't too crappy, it'll use solar to heat up the geyser. Yeah I see how my diagram was oversimplified. So I have my pool pump and one 12,000BTU aircon on non-essential with everything else (other than the excluded loads I mentioned) on critical loads. I'll have a look at my inverter to investigate how the non-essential/excluded loads are connected. My sense is that my non-essentials are likely connected to the "ACout2" as they are powered by PV/battery provided the grid is up but will make sure. I imagine, as you say, that my excluded loads are connected on the "ACin1" side. I was considering a "both" solution where I've reduced the elements' kW draw by replacing them and including them into non-essential loads AND utilising a timer to control when the geysers are on/off. Again, the main motivation is to bring as many viable loads as possible over to utilise a higher % of the latent capacity. Have seen the "Kill-a-watt" mentioned here and there. I had hoped to have had the EM24 installed as that would've given me a better sense of what my "excluded loads" are doing from a power consumption POV, similar to what I expect the kill-a-watt would. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts/tips–lots to consider and digest and a few immediately actionable tips in there too. Cheers!

Never got the chance to upload the handful of pics I managed to snap during my system install. Given how much I've enjoyed browsing through the setups shared in the showcase, it only felt fair that I share Scrambling to paint my roof a couple of days before the installers were due to arrive Managed to get it done just in time 😅 (well... at least the part of the roof that mattered) Panels installed. 15 Canadian Solar panels (405W) connected in a 4S3P configuration Trunking and main components mounted to the wall Wiring underway Batteries, Cerbo GX and GX Touch connected – system online (left space for extra MPPT to connect to a secondary PV array and LiFePo4 storage) 2x Wall-mounted Pylontech UP5000 modules

Ah ok understood! Thanks!

Interesting... If I'm following this graph, it's showing how much of your PV yield is being used (e.g you used approx. 80% of your total yield in Nov). Can you share what your array capacity and typical total monthly consumption for context?

Thanks @FixAMess – my takeaway from your comment is that I'd be better off focusing on optimising the various appliances, including geysers etc.. I'm already using PV to heat my largest geyser and cycle my batteries to a minimum 20% DOD (although by the time the PV kicks in the next day, I'm usually sitting at 45-50% SOC). Would agree that trying to align loads to solar production is not an option, the incremental gains aren't worth the admin and effort IMO.

I think it's safe to say that the only thing worse than not having a solar system, is having under-utilised capacity 😮‍💨 Ok first, some background and system context. This 6kWp PV is split into two arrays (Figure 1). My main array (feeds AC loads and charges batteries) is a 4.8kWp array (12x 405W panels in a 4S3P configuration). The remaining 3 panels heat our 200L geyser via an PowerOptimal Elon 100 system. Based on the NREL PV Watts Calculator, my 4.8kW array has an average generation capacity of 24kW per day. I graphed my daily consumption averages (based on the last three years' utility bills). This brings our average daily consumption (across all months) to 48kW (Figure 2). Here's the part that irks me... My installer has done a good job of bringing as many loads as possible to run off solar/battery. The only excluded loads are my electric stove/oven, one central A/C unit and two 150L geysers. You'll notice that while the delta between my generation capacity (based on NREL figures) and consumption is significant (Figure 3), I'm expecting a trend closer to the one shown for December as we've only had our solar system installed since mid'ish November. All that said, my ratio of grid vs solar consumption figures is what's grinding my 🥕 given that my generation capacity and average usage should bring me closer to 80%+ solar consumption... November: Grid: 59.9% // Solar: 40.1% December (so far): Grid: 43.4% // Solar: 56.6% I know I'm not using anywhere near the capacity I have in my system (average daily PV generation for Nov and Dec respectively is 12.43kW and 14.42kW) which means I'm paying City of Tshwane/Eskom more than I need to. Now onto my request for advice.. I was hoping to have an EM24 three-phase energy meter installed before my installer closed shop for December, but alas no joy so will have that put in as early as possible in January. My motive is to quantify who the big offenders are from a grid usage POV and put in whatever measures are necessary to replace/minimise that usage. If you either own or have experience with a similar sized system and usage patterns, what would your advice be in terms of interventions and priority. My current thinking is to follow this sequence (but mindful of my lack of experience/knowledge hence the ask for input) Install energy meter and quantify usage Replace (what are likely 3kW) elements in my two 150L geysers with 1.5kW ones Consider replacing our electric hob/oven with an induction hob–current setup is rated at 7.5kW (hob) and 3.65kW (oven) – I'm really keen to hear from those who've had induction hobs installed and what your tips would be to manage peak loads etc.. Add an extra 4.8kW Pylontech UP5000 battery to increase storage capacity (which I'd like to hold off as long as possible to reassess my actual energy storage requirements) Appreciate any and all inputs! I am mindful that these are in all likelihood the cries of an impatient noob and the fix may well be some patience on my part 🙈

Thanks for your thoughts @0012 and @hoohloc – a 4S3P configuration would make sense (the optimal operating voltage for my panels is 41V, so with four in series, that doesn't sound far off). You were correct @0012, my panels are rated for 9.65A per panel string, so that checks out too So much to learn, but what a resource this is! Thanks again

Hi all, this forum should come with a warning label 🙈 I spend WAY to much time on here. Have learned a lot in the brief time I've been a user (or at least I think I have). On to my question.. I have an array of 15 Canadian Solar panels (405W), well technically only 12 as the other 3 are on a separate array connected to a PowerOptimal Elon for heating my geyser. I'm trying my hand at reverse calculating the array's wiring configuration based on amperage. I've been observing it over the last couple of days, and it rarely rises above the 20A mark (earlier today it briefly breached 30A, but only for a few seconds). Would it be accurate to assume that, based on this maximum amperage observation, my array is likely wired completely in series? My panels are roof-mounted, north-facing with zero shading/obstruction so this would be feasible. Just checking my logic...or in all likelihood, the lack thereof 😏

I like the idea of a top cover. I decided to go the "low tech" route and cover the exposed ports on my wall-mounted UP5000's with black insulation tape.