Kloon

Did Sunsynk remove the upgrade request form from their site? It is 404ing all of a sudden.

I am also experiencing the same inconsistencies. I have narrowed it down to when Limit to load is enabled, any non-essential loads that import via the grid do not get accounted for in the grid import figure of the inverter. I use home assistant to switch between export and limit to load in the evenings to avoid non-essentials like my geyser draining my battery, and then I have my geyser on a sonoff switch with energy monitoring. When limit to load is enabled and the geyser is on it clearly shows power being consumed via the sonoff and via the CT sensor of the inverter shows the equivalent power being consumed from the grid, but these figures are not accounted for in the grid import figures in my stats. Curious if this is something others are experiencing as well and if this is something we should contact Sunsynk about, or perhaps I just need a firmware update where this was fixed already? I am on COM:E426 - MCU:6022-1724

You basically answered your own question, off-grid vs hybrid. The list of approved inverters are only for when you connect to the grid, if you are not connecting to the grid then COCT does not have a say as it does not affect them. The list only applies to NRS 097-2-1 which is for grid interconnection.

I see they are advertising these panels again for dirt cheap. R5.99 per watt including VAT. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks, do you run it continuously or in intervals? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So this is not entirely solar related, I just moved into a new place and it has pool heating via those black tubes on the roof. The previous owner did not have it set to auto run and I cant seem to find any info about an efficient schedule to run the pump on for heating the pool a bit. The tubes are on a north facing roof and get sun throughout the day, would appreciate some advice on the intervals to run the pump on and for how long it should run per cycle. Thanks! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I saw this on Bonanzatech

I see the SMA Sunny Boy 5000's price has come down a lot recently, they are also fanless and from my research quite decent units. Perhaps worth a look at them, a lot cheaper than the ifini 5k, close to R20k cheaper atm.

So I posed the question about the max output to the Voltronic team and this is their reply based on the 5KW Infinisolar

So that answers my question then. If I run a 3KW unit in grid-tie mode and need to use 6KW total for say an hour at a time it should be fine as long as Eskom is online to supply the shortfall? I get that as soon as the grid goes down so will the whole unit seeing as I don't want to run batteries as a start. And this all can then happen with the DB connected to the inverter, perhaps just add a changeover switch to bypass the inverter and use Eskom directly should the need arise.

I get that, but that still does not answer the question if you can have the inverter next to the grid and have the grid still supplement your excess energy needs. What I mean by next to the grid is, not having the grid being fed through the inverter, but I guess then there will be no way of telling how much extra energy is needed to draw from the grid.

@Janma Thanks, actually looking to do that. I did some research and seems like the efergy is a good start, but will read up some more and perhaps start another topic on that.

I can attest to that, although I do not have a solar water system currently, in the 5 years of living where I live now, I had to get the Kwikot geysers replaced 2 times already due to bursts.

Hey @Green Bum, thanks. I am not too clued up on the technicalities and what is possible hence I am trying to find out. Ideally if I could get away with a 3KW inverter that would be great, as long as I can have that supplement my full house load in conjunction with Eskom without having to use separate circuits or switches. Is it even possible to wire the inverter in such a way that it sits next to Eskom providing its power and then only drawing what is needed extra from Eskom?

Anyone have any feedback on this make http://www.sustainable.co.za/fronius-primo-8-2kw-single-phase-grid-tie-inverter.html Obviously I wont buy through sustainable but is Fronius any good, that 8.2KW unit should be just what I need for my scenario.

This is exactly what I am trying to find out, I will be running in grid-tie mode to get the boost from Eskom when needed, just wanted to make sure the rating on the inverter is not the total it can handle even when using Eskom.

Okay so the 3KW is for the total load on the inverter even when drawing from solar and eskom at the same time. Budget wise I am trying to keep it as low as possible but do not want to skimp on quality, I also have to keep in mind space for PV panels on the roof, there a pretty big north facing roof but doubt I will be able to accommodate a lot of PV panels and a water heating system. Also going from the 3KW model to the 5KW model is quite a jump in price, almost double for just 2KW extra. I guess I can just have my brewing stuff on a different circuit that only gets feed by Eskom as TTT suggests, but can I then have the other circuits to run in grid-tie mode?

Wow, blown away by all the feedback, thanks! Hopefully I did not ruffle too many feathers with this topic I will be going through each reply in more detail and making notes for the installer. When it comes to brands for tanks and tubes, are there any specifics I should try and avoid? For example is Suntank geysers okay to use? I could not find anything on tube brands but would appreciate any advice there as well!

So I have been reading up on the different types of inverters and just have a couple of questions. I will be moving into a new place in 2 months and busy doing some research into going solar and get away as much from Eskom as possible, my first change will be moving over to solar water heating system and moving to gas for the oven/stove. After that I would like to look into a PV setup, since I work from home and have a domestic during the day I will need the majority of my power during the day time so was thinking of a grid-tie solution without feeding back to the grid and battery back ups. My main question is this, if I get say a 3KW inifisolar plus and just hook up the PV panels with the excess power needed being drawn from the grid, will it be able to handle loads in excess of 5KW? For example, I brew beer as a hobby and have an electric setup, this setup runs at around 25A at full load, it has 2 5.5KW elements, of which only 1 runs at any given time and then a couple of small pump, but the current can be drawn for long periods of time when I do boils, ie 60min+, it does work in pulses but still. Assuming the whole DB will be fed through the inverter for ease, if I need excess power of what the PV panels can produce will the inverter be able to handle a load like that? Or is the 3KW rating on the inverter just applicable to the input power from the PV panels? Maybe I am looking at the wrong inverter, I also looked at the Axepert but they do not seem to be able to provide power via the PV panels and also pull in excess power from the grid to compensate for higher loads, seems like it will just switch to either PV panels or grid, and also requires batteries.

Hey everyone First post, but have been lurking the forums for a while and reading up, learned a lot so far regarding solar. I have purchased a new home and with that I am wanting to move most of my electricity needs towards solar, my first step would be to convert to solar water heating, after that I would like to move to a grid tied PV setup with no battery backup at first and then later maybe add some batteries. Anybody got some recommendations on systems and installers for a solar water heating setup in the northern suburbs of Cape Town? I know I want a vacuum setup and it should provide adequate warm water for a family of 5.