Rodbuilder

Thanks. I know that I can set certain parameters based on times. I first need to understand all this stuff before I attempt to "fiddle" with it😉 One problem I see is that I will always be at risk if I do not buy another battery but its a bit steep to throw in another R30 000- With Solar assistant, can I do the changes from my desktop? It does not seem that the Sunsync interface can do that, I have to go to the machine and do it there.

I need to go out but quick response, I'll add more later. Main differences between us:- I need to warm geyser from PV, can do most days but today not, raining and heavily overcast and I need to be home to keep an eye on it. I have only 5.5 kw battery, I know that is not enough to carry me through the night, but often switch off grid around 04h00 and then charge battery from PV. Is a bit tricky as around 07h15 I make breakfast, coffee machine, kettle, toaster etc. I have that taped but wifey not so much. I could run around 6 hours at night, but that leaves no load shedding margin. Obviously we have electric stove and oven which runs outside inverter. I don't know quite how much that uses but probably around the same as the geyser My guess is that is already a major part of the issue. I can see Sunsynk app details. 10 X 640 panels, also facing N.E. Sunsynk 8 Kw Hybrid Hubble 5.5 Kw battery At the moment I am trying to learn how, what this all works to decide what I want to do about it. Not keen to spend more unless it clearly pays for itself. As to Pre Paid meter, I don't like that idea, just another hastle and wont change that unless clearly worth while.

I have Municipal account data since June 2008. Our monthly electricity use has been fairly stable till June 2022 when my PV panels became a factor. Average monthly usage based on 30.5 days for 24 months till June 22 (before PV) was around 425 units or then about 14 units per day. Were only 2 persons in the house and use power conservatively. Since June 2022 this has decreased slowly to 9.36 units per day for Sept 22, that equals a saving of 4.64 units or 33% I have been considering this, it seems a relatively small saving if I consider that many days the solar provides nearly all the electricity the house needs during daylight hours. If I then convert the saving to Rand it actually looks worse (4.64 X 2.88 = R13.38 pd = R408.18 pm) This would be a pretty reasonable saving, but it is not true when I look at my account as there are all kinds of Factors effecting the actual amount, of which the crucial one is a fixed charge portion of the electricity account. There has also been a tariff increase. My monthly saving has in actual terms taken from my account only been about R150 pm. The fixed portion of the electricity account is only set to increase as more people decrease their electricity consumption. Only my stove and oven are outside the inverter, so that is a given that I can not influence and for the past month I have done everything possible to run the house fully from the sun, even my geyser when I am at home. Although the monthly saving is not crucial, it does play a role and seems to be much less then I had reasonably anticipated. In coming month I expect to increase my saving somewhat, but will see. I also notice I seem to be using much more grid electricity then others, but “if you use little you can only save a little” I must compare the readings from my inverter to those provided by the City. I pay the City of Cape Town.

Nice to see how you did that. 15 Years ago I would also have done it myself, now I no longer climb on roofs! 5 300 wats seems good going, best I've seen on my system is 4.7 W (10 X 640 panels) this winter, also CT.

I have run in to a problem, not a technical one. The electricians who installed my PV system and who I have paid fully after they provided me with “proof” that the Registration submission had been made to the Cape Town City, have not been able to successfully comply with the City’s requirement. It seems that they do not have the ability to do so. What is more the City requires that a part of the certification process must be completed by a party that is certified/registered by SAPVIA https://www.sapvia.co.za/ I have a Sunsync 8 Kw Hybrid inverter. I need someone who is able to undertake this function for me OR refer me to someone as I do not have the technical electrical skills required. If there is someone who is able to assist, please be so kind as to PM me. I am in Fish Hoek in Cape Town. Thanks

2109279141 2022-09-10 06:51:14 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault leads to an Battery issue. Your comment the same, I tried the switch without effect, someone else said Hubble has a reset button underneath......... Whalah!! Problem gone! Thanks for your help, has been a stressful few days.

My list of errors is slowly increasing. This is this morning after shutting down the system. An observation, the very first fault appears at the bottom and is the same as the one this morning after restarting? 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault would that be PV or battery and how would I fix it? My reading tells me this is probably a battery fault? Is is safe for me to un-tic the CAN connection i Battery Setup/Batt Type? 2109279141 2022-09-10 06:51:14 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault 2109279141 2022-09-09 08:21:25 59 - AC_V_GridCurr_High_Fault 2109279141 2022-09-08 15:41:07 59 - AC_V_GridCurr_High_Fault 2109279141 2022-09-08 07:31:41 59 - AC_V_GridCurr_High_Fault 2109279141 2022-09-08 07:23:30 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault

Yes to all except Battery, not aware that has a switch as well, will look it up. and switch that off as well. Experienced Load shedding again last night 🤬 I JUST SWITCHED OFF EVERYTHING, INCLUDING BATTERY Started up after 10 minutes and it is now showing some life, readings not correct but it is the first time it has shown some numbers.

OK, just got home and had inverter off the whole day. Switched it on now. The only thing that is OK is the battery SOC ar 99%. The rest are precisely as the above graph shows, Zero or near zero readings. I'll attach some of the individual graphs later. I've asked an electrician to come check out the wiring and see if anything has gone faulty. First graph was yesterday when I tried to switch on. It looks like it "tried"? Others are all from the 8th the day the trouble started.

I Again thank you for a lot of information. It seems to me that my inverter has gone belly up because nothing has changed and it does not seem to be working. I have left it off for 10 minutes on two occasions in the hope it would "reboot" or something but no go. What does a man do under those circumstances?😥 My household kitchen loads are less then yours, not sure how that is but there are only two mature adults living here, which is also part of the problem when attempting to save power, "you cant save a lot if you don't use a lot" At night I have a steady 320 (ave) load, fridge, freezer(that vary the load) computers, 3 Cameras, Security lights, 3 routers some odds and sod on standby. I spent the money to change all lights to LED. Below is an indication of what happened this morning @ 07h25 SOC was 73% PV just started to come in @ 0.5

Geyser was not on, no dubt about that. This is precisely what I am doing "Cheapest way is to watch your loads when there is no grid and minimal / no solar" and why I can categorically say geyser was not on, only I do that and then in a very controlled an managed way. However I was not watching what was going on in the kitchen and grid had been off since 04h00 so yes, battery could have been slightly lower then I suggested but not a lot as I have been making notes how much powere certain things take and how long my battery lasts at night etc. Any case, I thank you very much, but now how do I get the situation right again so I can see what is happening in my system? If I want to not be on grid at night, I will indeed need to get another battery, or even two if I also want to have a safety margin for load shedding. For obvious reasons I am not keen to do that but if only solution will reconsider. I was hoping I could program the system in such a way that I could run part of the night on the one battery.

I was on Batteries and had grid off. Estimated SOC about 62% I do now realise that it was just after breakfast. Kettle had been on, Coffee machine, toaster some together. Have done that before and checked it, takes about 2.2 KW for Kettle and toaster. There was little or no PV at that time because of heavy overcast. Situation is unchanged at the moment. Below about 13h30. Also put on geyser 20 min ago which normally has immediate effect (it handles it easily) but had zero effect, did not show the load increase nor the immediate increase in PV? Geyser usually run @ total load at around 4 kw for 25 minutes mid day and PV provides around 3 KW battery the rest. I am still in a very steep learning curve but am totally out of my depth with this. My instinkt is to switch it off for a while like most digital stuff?

For the first time this morning I had two faults in my Sunsynk 8KW inverter: 2109279141 2022-09-08 07:23:30 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault 2109279141 2022-09-08 07:23:30 56 - DC_VoltLow_Fault I switched it all off and restarted, but now dont have proper displays in my app and on the inverter dials. My app shows "Normal" I can not see any data for the grid, PV or incorrect data. This can't be correct, I have nice sunny weather, PV should be much higher, Battery and grid may be correct but load not. Must I be worried, where must I look or what should I do? Sorry this is my first time with this.

I did a similar thing today for the first time switched off the grid. Then systematically switched on stuff to establish what can and what not and made notes of usage. If I exclude my oven/stove and manage my geyser, can run everything but do need to keep an eye on it and train partner to do same. Was getting 4.5KW PV with very overcast conditions around 11h00. I need to learn how to manage battery, so it does not charge at night from grid after load shedding. What I don't know is if it may not cost more to keep on charging/discharging battery (in reduced life span) then the value of the extra energy generated. Unfortunately electricity is one area I am not very familiar with.

Thanks for all the welcomes! Was looking at Gas Electric but for the moment have two primitive portable gas stoves. Just two mature people living here so can manage most things in life.

I have been a lurker for a while. Retired and live in Fish Hoek, Western Cape. During June 22 I took the plunge and purchased a Sunsynk 8 Kw inverter, Hubble 5.5 Kw Battery, and 10 X JA Solar 460W Pannels. This was just in time before the latest load shedding saga. I plan to learn how this system works and how to optimise the settings to and maximise my benefit. I have today switched of the grid and ran the system under cloudy conditions, and ended the day with my geyser hot, battery fully charged and zero cost for power. I will now have to switch on otherwise no dinner for me! Only my stove and oven are not on my system and will remain that way.

I have been a lurker for a while. Retired and live in Fish Hoek, Western Cape. During June 22 I took the plunge and purchased a Sunsynk 8 Kw inverter, Hubble 5.5 Kw Battery, and 10 X JA Solar 460W Pannels. This was just in time before the latest load shedding saga. I plan to learn how this system works and how to optimise the settings to and maximise my benefit. I have today switched of the grid and ran the system under cloudy conditions, and ended the day with my geyser hot, battery fully charged and zero cost for power. I will now have to switch on otherwise no dinner for me! Only my stove and oven are not on my system and will remain that way.