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I can vouch for Luxpower Inverters and Cyclone batteries. Luxpower units are 5kw and sell for +-R8000 each (City of Cape Town approved as well). What could work out cheaper is using 3 of these, giving you 15kw of installed capacity at +-R25000. These inverters run 2 x MPPT's, each with a maximum of 4400w input, totalling 8800w per inverter. The Cyclone batteries are supported locally by their importer Solarway and cost around R13000 per 5.12kw battery, with 10 year warranty. What may be more suitable is to covert your geyser to solar with a fall back to heating from your inverter. Thats what I do and its dropped my consumption massively. I've recently had my geyser hit 75 degrees C.

How long did it take CoCT to install the new meter? My commissioning approval letter states that they need to install a new meter (not feeding back to grid) however there is a backlog due to an influx of SSEG applications.

Using a small 1.2kw inverter generator. It is able to run the essentials such as lights, tv, wifi, but I am planning to upgrade soon. I'll test the outputs and confirm

My bond at the inverter output is permanent due to the separated neutral bars, granted at the time of install, we didnt consider adding a generator. Understanding the correct way would be to have a relayed bond for the inverter, would having 2 bonds in the system cause a problem? The generator is on an isolator which would only be switched on once the generator is connector. I would be able to make a bond before this isolator, therefore only creating the bond when the generator is running.

On e-services if it was done online. My father submitted his while they still took emailed applications, just under 2 years to allow commissioning and there was 0 way to track it. My application was smooth so far. Sparky did initial application, I installed the system, he came through and connected everything up and gave it all a look over, issued COC, Engineer came out and spent a whole 5 minutes, noted 1 thing that needed to be changed which was promptly done, and he's now submitted his documents.

Ordered a 32A 2P+E coupler Will have a 25A 2 pole breaker between connector and Inverter. Now a question on earth-neutral bonding. There is a bond on the inverter output. I also have a separate neutral bar as my inverter loads are separate to Eskoms loads. Would I therefore be correct in saying, that the neutral from the generator to the inverter must not be bonded because there is already a bond after the inverter? My understanding on EN bonding is limited but I cant see how a bond on the generator side would make any difference as there would be no earth leakage between the generator and inverter.

I think the reasoning is so that you dont have to worry about overloading the generator. Many times, people overload their inverters. A family member overloaded their 2 x 5kw inverters when his daughters decided to turn everything on, AC, kettle, microwave, hair dryer, etc. Now image the same but the power is coming from a generator half the size.

My calculation was based off of my current system costing R55000 with a saving of roughly R1100 per month, gives me an ROI of 4.1. Funny enough, I just did the calculation, if I buy another battery for R14000 (Cyclone F5 from Solarway Suppliers), that takes my overall system cost to R69000. Bearing in mind, this system costs includes all costs associated with the system such as raspberry pi, solar assistant, mistakes I made with wrong conduit, wrong breakers, etc. R69000 / R1400 = 49.2 / 12 = 4.1 ROI. This calculation doesnt take winter into account or yearly increases in electricity. I will be able to provide more accurate data after 12 months of continuous use. My system was considerably cheaper than most because I did the bulk of the work myself, call it 95% the install I did myself. Granted, I made some mistakes, it was still considerably cheaper than using an installer. System was still inspected and connected to DB by an electrician and electrical engineer has signed off.

Would your house insurance not cover this? My policy covers this:

System commissioned in December 2024. 5kw Luxpower SNA5000 1 x 5.1kw battery 8 x JA Solar 600w panels Geyser is solar and have not run element since November My grid use can be attributed to not having sufficient storage, I need 1 more battery at a minimum to get my grid use down: Overall, since installing, I've saved R3700, averaging R1100 per month saving. This could be up to R1400 with an additional battery. At the current price of electricity and my usage / generation, my ROI is +- 4.5 years as my system, fitted, with COC, wiring, engineer report, registration, etc, cost me R55000

Hi all I'm wanting to add a generator connection to my SNA5000 after going 48 hours with no grid and running out of battery. What would be a suitable connector for the generator? Needs to mount on an exterior wall and have a lead plugged into it

Hey all, needing some advice. I currently run a Luxpower SNA5000 with 8 x JA Solar 600w panels, split into 4 panels per MPPT. They run at 181V per string when under load and 205V per string when little to no load. With the overcast weather we've had in the last week, I've realized the panels arent sufficient to charge up even 1 battery, a problem come winter time. My thinking is I can add another string. According to the label on my inverter, my MPPT specs are: VOC - 480V Voltage Range - 120 - 385V 2 x MPPT's My plan is, put all 8 x JA Solar 600w panels onto 1 MPPT, this would put it at 428V VOC and 362.4V Vmp. The 2nd MPPT string would be 424.8V VOC and 358.2V Vmp This is within range of the inverter spec, but there is very little headroom on the Vmp in my opinion. Would this be safe? The above voltages are based on the panel data sheets, which are STC conditions, not NMOT.

Only time I've seen this was when the fly by night sparky used AC breakers. As others have mentioned, loose connections could've also caused it. DC arcs incredibly easily and heats up pretty quick. What I do to try prevent loose connections, is after a couple of days of the system running, I go back and check all connections again. I've seen it on both AC and DC sides before, where connections that were previously tight, are now extremely loose.

Havent had any problems so far. It seems that its a brand of Solarway Suppliers and backed solely by them. With that, my dealings with Solarway Suppliers have been phenomenal and bought 95% of the system from them. They even loaded my panels on my trailer and secured the load to ensure its done correctly. Going to be buying another F5 battery soon

Hey everyone Saw this install at the flat behind our house and I just have to ask, isn't there a SANS regulation that covers conduit? I cant say I've ever seen such corner cutting before, excuse the pun. But bliksem, its not even perfect 45 degree cuts. If this was my house, I wouldn't be happy.

You are correct. After doing some more reading, Stäubli invented the MC4 connector however they refuse to license the standard to others, which has in turn caused many to start copying, which is where the problem comes in.

Hows this. My parents just got their permission to install letter, 1 year and 7 months after submitting the application. "This city works for you".

This is something that manufacturers irritate me with. MC4 is not only a connector type, but a standard, yet some manufacturers think they can deviate from the standard and make subtle changes to the design, causing brands to be incompatible with each other due to risk of poor contact, and therefore heat, melting and possibly fire. Imagine the standard South African type M plug or for UK users, the type G plug. Now imagine every manufacturer of plugs and sockets, of which there are many, decide they are going to vary their pin design in length, or thickness by 0.1 - 0.2mm. The amount of havoc there would be in the market, as well as the fines they'd get for this. The same should be applied to the solar industry. This is the set standard, you abide by it, if you don't, you get a hefty fine and held liable for damages incurred.

What unit did you go for if you dont mind we asking? I see many dont sell DIY units and insist on a professional install. Finances got hit a bit on my side over the last couple weeks, so I bought a 12000BTU portable unit yesterday for R1600, used of course. So far today, its been amazing, mainly because its running 100% off solar. Cant use it at night though

Looking at doing the same quite soon. The inverter AC is the better choice. Inverter AC's have a gradual start up, ramping up slowly and once the room has been cooled to the desired temp, ramps down and consumes little power to maintain the temperature. A single speed AC is exactly that, single speed. Big spike in draw to get the pump going, then it hums away at 1.2 - 1.5kw, then shuts off, then back on, and off, repeating this cycle. The extra money on the inverter AC in the long run is worth it as you'll use less power (more to go to charging up batteries). I found a chap in Cape Town that has a special on Alaska 12000 BTU inverter AC's, installation back to back included for R7999.99, Aircon Deals (airconsdeals.co.za). My parents had a 24000BTU inverter unit installed. They have 2 x Sacolar 5kw inverters. Has never peaked more than 1.5kw and cools their open plan lounge and kitchen down nicely.

Have heard of a case where lighting struck nearby and killed the BMS of a Dyness battery. Might be something similar here.

And the system is now operational. Everything has been connected and tested. System is working as expected. Now to start saving for a 2nd battery

Some updates: All conduit redone with 25mm 6mm solar rated earth cable pulled to the panels Additional earth cables pulled from main DB Sprague added over battery leads between fuse and inverter Battery comms cable rerouted Battery earth cable covered with sprague where exposed PV conduit changed to 100x40mm Sparky coming tomorrow to inspect my work and connect to the DB

The panels are connected as 4 panels per string, 2 strings total. No wires are touching the roof and fully covered in sprague. The roof is not in an ideal direction though, facing ENE however I have noticed great output from the panels throughout the day. There will unfortunately be some partial shading until around 09:45 in Summer on the 2nd string caused by my solar Geyser

One of the down sides of printing with ABS is that if you don't use an enclosure to maintain a high temperature, the print begins to warp due to rapid cooling. This is with a 100°C print bed and 235°C nozzle temperature, cooling fans off. As I recently moved in, I've yet to setup my enclosure. The enclosure traps heat in which allows the print to gradually cool, preventing the print from warping. To try and minimize this further, I printed the Pi case with a 10mm brim to give the case more surface area to stick to the print bed.