Sonoff Africa

Hello @HennieL
the date will be determined by the interest and interaction of the members.
The draw gets decided by a Random Number generator however to qualify is clear on the post by the forum admin @Energy-Jason
We do not share your data with any 3rd party unless you give us express permission and we follow the POPIA act stringently and typically we will only share 3rd party info if it is linked to after sales support we do not sell our database to anyone and only use it for the intended purpose.
I hope this clarifies everything
Regards
@Powerforum Store

Sounds like your neighbour is trying to over compensate for something 😆

On the real though, very difficult comparing an apple with an orange, as the rest of the forum have already commented.
I have 18 x 550w panels, and most days my peak is in the 8kw range.
Once batteries are charged I have a steady load of about 3500w for the pool pump and heat pump + base load.
So there are times when I have no extra load to run to make use of the PV so then the system is only pulling enough for that load of 3500w
Then I have days usually weekends when everyone is home and we have pull every bit of PV available which makes me smile.
I run the batteries down to 50% across all time slots so just to charge the batteries is about 15kw daily.

Would be good to understand your load requirements throughout the day, battery SOC during the time slots etc. all plays a part...

Hi,
My recommendation would be to always power up the device on an extension cable. No Load.
Only the “Live in” and “Neutral in” connected and no outputs connected.
Then power it up and add it to the app at the comfort of your desk or work bench.
There are many configurations like calibration for motors which inter lock the channels or switch mode which is most commonly used.
There are also different switch types that can be used to control S1/S2, will add picture at the end.
Also after having it “ON” for around 5 minutes and connected to the eWeLink app there should be a firmware update available. It’s always easier to get it done before installation.
Under the device settings per channel you can select the last power state and you can set it to “OFF” and then the device will not active any channels. If nothing is connect to S1/S2
Please Reboot the device and see that all setting where save successfully.
Once this is done please power down the device and connect the other half of the extension to the Sonoff device output and test with load only with app control. No S1 or S2 connected.
If you are happy with everything and the power management side like threshold setting (if used.)
Please have a look at the diagram, before connecting S1/S2 because this is where I have done a similar thing. Wanting to quickly switch on the switch, I accidentally put a jumper between the L1 load to S2 port and it don’t work well.
Regards,
Sonoff Africa

Hi
Hope you are well, this is a brand new Sonoff Gate/Garage switch. Very nice because it has a input for a hard wired button and a output for gate or garages.
It would assist if you wanted to keep the Automation in the Sonoff app.

Regards
Aleks

My inverter is installed in my garage and during summer it gets quite hot in Bloemfontein. When you park a hot car in there it gets even hotter. I realized the Inverter DC side reached temperatures of near 90 degrees during midday. I installed 3 x 120mm computer fans on top with a temperature controller switching the fans on and off. The thermistor is attached to the heatsink. The heatsink temperature is about 20 degrees below the internal temperature indicating by the app. With the fans the temperature stays below 60 degrees.
I 3D printed the bracket and bought the temperature controller from an online store for under R200 with a 12V powersupply. Is anybody is interested visit Thingiverse:Thing6468217 to get the STL files for the bracket. (Search Sunsynk 5kW)
 

Hi madness_za
Congratulations! and Sonoff Automation Kit will be on its way to you this afternoon.
I will message you the tracking number shortly.

Regards
Aleks 😀

Hi All!
I have decided to select active forum members into an excel sheet. Google Random number selector will select the winner.
I feel it is much better to reward active members than some one that has not logged in since 2013.
Lets see tomorrow who the random number gen selects tomorrow! Damn that water valve goodie is really cool! 😆
Awesome.
Jason

Sonoff Home Automation Starter Kit
 

SONOFF POW CT Ring Smart Power Meter
Track Energy Usage Easily: Sonoff POW CT Ring to your home’s power system to monitor how much energy your appliances or rooms are using. It gives you clear insights into where your energy is going, helping you save money and use less power.
 

Sonoff TX Ultimate T5-120-1C
Smart Light switch: Featuring a circle of RGB colour edge lights, the TX Ultimate serves not only as a switch status indicator but also as a versatile night light or ambient light, adding a touch of illumination to your surroundings.
 

 
Sonoff ZigBee Bridge Ultra
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience.  
 

 Sonoff Door/Window Sensor (Zigbee)
Real-Time Alerts: Receive instant notifications on your phone whenever a door or window is opened or closed, whether you're home or away.
 

Sonoff Presence Sensor (ZigBee) with PSU
Presence Detection: The presences Sensor is powered by 5.8GHz microwave radar, the SNZB-06P can detect movement or stationary individuals. Lights automatically turn on as you approach and stay illuminated until you depart.

 
 Sonoff Smart Water Valve (ZigBee)
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience
 
https://sonoffafrica.co.za/
 

Giveaway Link will be posted soon. Thank you
Sonoff Africa Home Automation Starter Kit .docx

Sonoff Home Automation Starter Kit
 

SONOFF POW CT Ring Smart Power Meter
Track Energy Usage Easily: Sonoff POW CT Ring to your home’s power system to monitor how much energy your appliances or rooms are using. It gives you clear insights into where your energy is going, helping you save money and use less power.
 

Sonoff TX Ultimate T5-120-1C
Smart Light switch: Featuring a circle of RGB colour edge lights, the TX Ultimate serves not only as a switch status indicator but also as a versatile night light or ambient light, adding a touch of illumination to your surroundings.
 

 
Sonoff ZigBee Bridge Ultra
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience.  
 

 Sonoff Door/Window Sensor (Zigbee)
Real-Time Alerts: Receive instant notifications on your phone whenever a door or window is opened or closed, whether you're home or away.
 

Sonoff Presence Sensor (ZigBee) with PSU
Presence Detection: The presences Sensor is powered by 5.8GHz microwave radar, the SNZB-06P can detect movement or stationary individuals. Lights automatically turn on as you approach and stay illuminated until you depart.

 
 Sonoff Smart Water Valve (ZigBee)
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience
 
https://sonoffafrica.co.za/
 

Giveaway Link will be posted soon. Thank you
Sonoff Africa Home Automation Starter Kit .docx

Sonoff Home Automation Starter Kit
 

SONOFF POW CT Ring Smart Power Meter
Track Energy Usage Easily: Sonoff POW CT Ring to your home’s power system to monitor how much energy your appliances or rooms are using. It gives you clear insights into where your energy is going, helping you save money and use less power.
 

Sonoff TX Ultimate T5-120-1C
Smart Light switch: Featuring a circle of RGB colour edge lights, the TX Ultimate serves not only as a switch status indicator but also as a versatile night light or ambient light, adding a touch of illumination to your surroundings.
 

 
Sonoff ZigBee Bridge Ultra
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience.  
 

 Sonoff Door/Window Sensor (Zigbee)
Real-Time Alerts: Receive instant notifications on your phone whenever a door or window is opened or closed, whether you're home or away.
 

Sonoff Presence Sensor (ZigBee) with PSU
Presence Detection: The presences Sensor is powered by 5.8GHz microwave radar, the SNZB-06P can detect movement or stationary individuals. Lights automatically turn on as you approach and stay illuminated until you depart.

 
 Sonoff Smart Water Valve (ZigBee)
Seamless Smart Home Integration: Connects Zigbee devices to Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home, and SmartThings for a smoother, more connected home experience
 
https://sonoffafrica.co.za/
 

Giveaway Link will be posted soon. Thank you
Sonoff Africa Home Automation Starter Kit .docx

Yip that fancy new pow with ct is only connected to eskom incoming, mostly though that nice new meter is hardly ever on as my eskom is manually switched off most of the year 🤣
It measures quite accurately as compared with my fluke meter needed a small calibration but now measuring great, for my domestic use anyway

Hi
WannabeSolarSparky
I love your installs, They always get done and work well.  
One thing to remember is to always have the POW and the CT on the same power feed and phase for accuracy.
 
Aleks
Sonoff Africa

Hi,
All I can officially say on the topic is that you should check for a valid NRCS certification if the devices are wired into the grid.
I would recommend Sonoff Africa, Qi Systems, Eifere, Mica, Leroy Merlin,  Key Electric, New World, Dafron, Wisp Net,Blue Planet, Incredible Connection, HiFi Corp and Lite-Glo who stock the full range. The availability and range of stock is very area-dependent.
The biggest reason is the NRCS certification, which is also required by law.
Again, this is just my opinion. Please let me know if I left you off the list and you do have valid NRCS certification for Sonoff products.
Aleks

Hi,
I would definitely use the POWR320D (Geyser Timer on Sonoff Africa) for the pool motor since the startup current is much higher than the operating current during the initial start of the pool pump.
You can create scenes to mirror one of the channels (4CH Pro) to the POWR320D. Once you click the remote to turn "ON" the 4CH Pro (let's say channel one), it will run the scene and turn on the POWR320D. The same will apply when you switch it off.
For the lights, I would use the other channels of the 4CH Pro.
I prefer using the POWR320D on most of my devices, not only because it shows how much power is utilized, but also because it has some built-in threshold protection under the threshold setting. It features voltage and current high/low settings, as well as clever protection that stops the scenes from running in case of an overload. If that happens, you’ll need to use the button on the device or power cycle the device manually.
Depending on which inverter brand you're using and whether it has an NC/NO port for battery low indication, you could combine a specific time (e.g., 9:00 am to 3:00 pm) with the NC/NO port status being above the desired battery level. You can connect this to a Sonoff MiniR2 S1/S2 port, so if it's cloudy, your batteries won’t run flat.
It's definitely easier to just use a time-based cycle for the pump. Sonoff/eWeLink offers some nice and simple sunrise and sunset scenes that are pre-configured based on your location, and you can add delays to them.
Try to keep things as simple as possible in the scenes, as it should be easy to install and maintain.
Sonoff Africa

You're right, surge current on a non-VSD pump is often quoted as 2-3x rated current which could very well overload 10A in this case...

These smart breakers and switches should be used in conjunction with a mcb as the smart breakers do not have a kA rating like a normal mcb and would not withstand fault currents that could be as high as 2000 amps depending on the curcuit impedance. You need to wire these smart switches in series with a normal mcb that has a kA rating. NB the smart breakers can not replace the existing mcb in your db board.

Hi
The solution is to run your devices/schedules from scenes. When LoadShedder is "ON" then you turn "OFF" the device and "DISABLE" scene automatically with in the Load sheading scene.
When LoadShedder is “OFF” you let the Recovery scene "Enable" the scenes and not the device.  When the time/schedule matches a given time it will turn "ON" based on the scene pushing the device "ON" from the eWelink server.
It works very well, we have this setup in over 2000 sites now and the only challenges were network issues which the Sonoff iHost has resolved.
Hope this helps and if you have any questions please feel free to contact us.
This was part of our original design and unfortunately may not apply to non-genuine LoadShedder due to hardware and wiring. 
 
Aleks 
Sonoff Africa

Hi
Unfortunately not, I would be great if they did one.
Aleks
Sonoff Africa

Agreed get max power out of your solar day as you can, try automate a bit and try run big loads before low light. A few habit changes and using sun power is fun as long as its got a bit of planning. If you need any Sonoff's to monitor give me a shout I can help with that.

Hi
The Sonoff LoadShedder fits in the DB Box

 
Sonoff MiniR3 Pool (Smart Timer)
Sonoff POWR320D Geyser (Smart Timer)
https://www.sonoffafrica.co.za/product/sonoff-loadshedder-bundle/
You can use the coupon code "PowerForum"
Will give you an additional discount.

 
Bundle Pack is more cost effective.
 
Aleks
 
 

Hi
The Sonoff LoadShedder fits in the DB Box

 
Sonoff MiniR3 Pool (Smart Timer)
Sonoff POWR320D Geyser (Smart Timer)
https://www.sonoffafrica.co.za/product/sonoff-loadshedder-bundle/
You can use the coupon code "PowerForum"
Will give you an additional discount.

 
Bundle Pack is more cost effective.
 
Aleks
 
 

Hi, 
You can definitely use a Sonoff POWR320D on a Geyser's up to 3Kw elements. Its all about a good installation and the termination of the cable's into the Sonoff. 
Aleks

Hi
There are defiantly a lot of factors to consider in which will shut down first. The make and size of the inverter and batteries, if it’s during the day if solar is available to keep the load up. The general rule is if the system is 5kw with correctly sized battery then load shedder will do the job very consistently every time and shut down the devices.
A good example is.
1. If the Toaster, kettle and the geyser is running when load shedding happens your inverter will drop the load before as it was probably in bypass already due to overload.
2. If the Toaster, kettle are running and the geyser is on but the water is hot and the element is not running then no problem the load shedder will shut it down with time to spare.
You can also run different configurations for different times of the day or night.
Easiest way to explain it is that as long as the inverter can keep the load up for 2 seconds then the load shedder will work ever time.
Aleks

Hi, How are you?
1. Its a lot easier if they are all on Sonoff devices. All the Scene's would be in eWelink but you can also go via IFTTT to Tuya smart life. It just requires an eWelink VIP license. R169 per year. 
2. They need to be in the same account as scenes dont work cross accounts and you would need to use IFTTT again.
Hope that helps.
Aleks

As a start the laodshedder can then be used to wirelessly take a load off when in loadshedding so it does not use the batteries. 
 
I have installed I think 7 now on different sites when I discovered this and the clients are so happy we not chasing, digging or charging for cable just to have something off.
 
For now it's been a great success, just hoping these in field tests don't fail and keeps grafting. I expect a minimum of 1 year working life. Hopefully more but it's technology and s#-t happens hahaha.