Justin91

My latest thoughts after having read through the above: Deye / Sunsynk - These are the two brands I recognise. Solis and Luxpower I have heard of, but I have never seen them in action. What struck me though, is the Deye support in SA really not that great? Are Solis and Luxpower really worth it? I would like to get a lot of it automated at some stage. 8KW vs 12 KW inverter - We are a household of 4 plus the domestic worker there during the day only. 2 small kids and 2 adults. I would like to get the geyser onto the essential side of things, even if it means putting in a 2000W element. If I do that, surely 8KW would be fine? I do have a 0.75KW pool pump which runs for 4 hours a day. My stove is gas. I am also looking to put in 3 aircons, but they will be inverter type R32 energy efficient ones (likely 2x 9000 BTU and 1x 12,000 BTU). I technically have two geysers plumed in series, but generally I only run one. However, what I could do I suppose is run one after the other during the day in order to ensure that there is enough hot water for everyone, but I am never pulling more than 2000W. Washing machine, dishwasher, kettle, iron would be the other usual high-power suspects. Would 8KW manage? Panels - I will stick to the trusted brands, N-Type. Likely 12-16 panels. Batteries - Hubble and Dyness are again the two I recognise. Cyclone definitely seems cheaper, but not common. Any other thoughts or suggestions? Due to cost I might start with 1x 5KW to get through the night, and another 1-2 at a later stage. Assuming I purchase the inverter, panels and batteries - how much (ballpark) can I budget on for other materials and installation. I have a standard pitched roof.

Thanks for the feedback so far. Out of interest - are most people trying to connect their entire house as essential and manage when their geysers / pool pumps etc. run, or is it still preferable to put geysers etc. onto non-essential, but then, are you not forgoing the saving on those items as they will always draw grid power?

I am looking to install a grid-tied system in a house we moved into a few months ago. It seems that now over the last few months we average about 800kWh of power consumption a month, which I anticipate will go about to +-1000kWh in winter. My thoughts on an initial installation are: 12KW Hybrid Inverter 12 Panels (roof is north facing. There are tall trees on the western side of the roof that may cause shade in the late afternoon, so I will install it on the eastern end of the north facing roof) 10KW Batteries. Other info: I have a single 3KW geyser; Stove is gas, oven is electric; No airconditioning as yet, but probably a couple inverter units to come soon. Questions: What are the brands to go for on the inverter, batteries and panels? Is 12KW inverter right, or could I go for 8KW? Any general insight / advice is welcome.