Otto ES

Yes, that is correct you will loose only the string that has the shadow, your other strings will  still be generating power as normal.
I use a Axpert 5KVA so I don’t know if other inverters will have the same effect.

Glad you got it fixed. This is what happens when you have too much time and OCD:

Looking back at it now I feel like I can do better

As someone who is in the process of selling right now, I can explain this to some extent. It's not the R50 on that one item. It's the combination of R50s across everything that is suddenly inexplicably wrong... and no home owner can understand each system, and everyone is equally adamant that it is imperative to get this done.
In my case it was an electric fence. In 2010 there were no requirements for the fence. Now it needs a compliance certificate. The first company quoted me 15k to repair the fence. Essentially the cost of entirely replacing it. The second company quoted R2700.
Guess which one I used. You see, the regulations merely require that it is earthed at multiple points and that you have a gate contact (not dangling chains)... but the 15k guys faulted numerous extra things... things I would probably do if it was for myself.
I also had to fix a small roof leak (the kind I would not bother with myself, but was terribly worrying to the new owner). The electrical and beetle inspection is still upcoming. Now some electricians pretty much run around making sure your RCD works and that all the light switches and sockets are earthed... others wants to charge you for earthing the Satelite dish.
Then I also had to hand over 8k (around 4 months worth) to the municipality to clear the municipal account.
Mean while I am actually also buying a new place... so I'm over 100k into transfer- and lawyer fees...
Trust me. You may THINK the seller is thick in the dough cause he's selling his house at profit, but frankly this is a time of terrible terrible cash flow.

If you are going through roof tiles I think this gland will not work because its thread is to short to catch on the tile.
I personally prefer a galvanised conduit for going through the roof tiles and siliconed and saddled for sturdiness. The conduit can than also be earthed to your earthing system for extra protection.

That cable gland is also (most likely) not UV-resistant.
I see a few sellers selling the dektite aluminium flashing. Sustainable has it for around R700 (a tad steep), also look on bidorbuy, or just google it. No idea how good a product it is, but looks similar to what is available internationally.
 

Hi All
I am a Noob with this and only found this forum recently (should have searched better) . The post is a bit long for which I apologize.
I am in the planning phase of my solar installation with a parallel non grid tied system at this point. 
Hardware:
12 panels of about 300W each 3 kW inverter/MMPT (Victron EasySolar II) - already ordered Batteries PylonUS3000 - already ordered (might add second one in future) I am still considering how to  do the wiring and this is where I can use so advise from the community.
General background on off grid installation:
I am planning to move some of my loads to only run during the day from solar Swimming pool pump only run if the sun is shining - makes sense Run one air con during the day if enough power is available Power the internet permanently - to keep the rest of the house happy (I already have a solar hot water system) One or two separate plugs for general use Connect some lights permanently to the off-grid system to make use to the available capacity and for backup (to conform to the wiring code, wire to be separate from grid supply) Over time I might move more loads over to the battery to get maximum returns on my investment (I am comfortable with Raspberry pi and programming so the logic for the scheduling I hope to automate) I did read the "My Solar 12V home" post Some people suggest to rather have a DC system  (will still have an inverter for 220V loads during the day but will be switched off ) e.g.. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/edisons-revenge-will-direct-current-make-a-comeback-in-us/ This make sense because it is more efficient to directly run low voltage loads from DC, e.g. LED lights, internet  router,  chargers, laptops, etc. The inverter also draws power permanently even if it has light load or no load. (Background: depending on the inverter it can draw significant power from your battery. typically 20W ->  20*16 = 320Wh  - Easysolar II is more efficient and draws 11W -> 11*16hours = 176Wh which is about 176Wh/(3.5Wh*0.90) = 5.6% of the battery's capacity  with 90% discharge which is still significant. Over a year this is  64kWh) I know there are practical problems with a DC system, but as a backup I think you can side step most of these I do understand that I need separate trunking for the DC and a desperate DB What I do not know:
So if I want to go DC, are there  standard plugs or can I use any plugs I like like barrel connectors? If I want to automatically switch my AC or DC loads individually, can I add these in the DB board and what relays/switches and controllers do I use to do this legally? Can I use a Sonoff for example?  (I want to run the logic on the Raspberry Pi the control signals can be either logic control signals, WiFi or RS485) Thanks