zathras

Sunsynk 8kw with 2 x 5.1 BSL Powerline 5 and 14 x 550w panels. 7 east and 7 west. 

Hi
im noob to this forum and also to solar.
just completed my install of system as per the subject line.
 
quite neet…waiting to monitor the results.
 

Power Forum – Retirement Village Queries 2023/05/10 – Keith Fawcett, Hout Bay


 
Current Status

1.       I live in a Retirement Village in Cape Town – 40-Units (30-off 2-Bedroom Cottages + 10-off Single Bedroom Flats.


 
-          I am seeking to make a ‘sensible/well-reasoned Submission’ to the Body Corporate to address the problem of Load Shedding.

-          therefore, I need to be able to answer multiple queries


 
2.       ALL Units are North-facing with Sloping Roofs – all Units have individual Electricity Meters.


 
3.       There are currently multiple Solar Panels on the Roofs of Garages in the Car Parking area,- these Solar panels connect directly to City of Cape Town (CoCT) who ‘credit’ the Body Corporate (BC) Monthly Electricity Account accordingly – the BC then calculates the applicable ‘Electricity Usage’ accordingly to each Unit.


 
4.       There is (currently) NO Battery Storage facility – except for one medium-size Back-Up Battery to power the Security System at the Complex (Electric Fence – Security cameras, Electric Entrance Gates, some Security Lights, Communication to security Company, etc.)


 
5.       The ‘harvesting’ of our Solar Energy is ‘lost’ during Load-Shedding periods – since there is NO Electricity Connection to CoCT during that period.


 
QUERY-1. – ONE LARGE SYSTEM COVERING ALL 40-UNITS

6.       Is it feasible to install “ONE LARGE” Battery Back-Up system sufficient to provide (being the equivalent of a single 5kwh Inverter Battery Back-up to each Unit)?


 
7.       Is there a system which would prevent the ‘tripping’ of such a System if a Resident turns-on a high-power usage Appliance e.g. Kettle, Electric Heater, etc., and shutting-down the entire electricity supply to the whole Complex?


 
QUERY-2. – INDIVIDUAL SYSTEM FOR EACH UNIT

8.       Is it more feasible/more economical, to install individual 5kwh Inverter/Battery Back-up installations to each Unit?


 
9.       Initially (Phase 1 of the Project) we would be looking at installing individual Inverter/Battery Back-up – without Solar Panels, i.e. each Unit would be ‘harvesting’ Back-up energy from the CoCT – we are aware that there is a current ’back-log’ of supply of Solar Panels of approx. 12-months, but we need an interim solution to the Load-Shedding.


 
10.   Subsequently (i.e. Phase 2 of the Project), we would advance to installing individual Solar Panels to each Unit to harvest energy into their existing Battery Back-up systems.


 
11.   There would /could possibly be facility for further ‘harvesting’ of this ‘now-extended Solar power’ for supply to CoCT – after the individual Battery-Back-ups were fully charged (?).

FURTHER CONSIDERATIONS

12.   We are living in a Retirement Village with elderly Residents.

13.   We would not wish to have a variety of different Inverter/Battery Back-up systems.

14.   We cannot expect our elderly Residents to be subjected to ‘poorly reasoned’ Inverter Battery Back-up systems.

15.   ‘We’ would require systems which are well-designed for our particular requirement(s), and well-serviced’ by a reputable Contractor.

I have taken the opportunity to ‘ask advice’ from the Solar Forum, in the hope that I can be able to supply well-reasoned/well -researched written advice.


 
Best Regards

Keith Fawcett

[email protected]

(Retired ‘Scientist’ – 80-yrs old in September 2023)

A cautionary for coj residents-
TLDR:
don't save extra units in your prepaid meter.
 
Citypower in Joburg recently changed my Landis gyr prepaid meter, 6 months after I added solar. I have limit to load and zero export set on my inverter.
The Citypower subcontractor arrived without notice stating they had to change to a more sensitive itron meter which detects tampering. I had built up over 1000kwh over many months in anticipation of higher winter demand even though we only use a trickle feed on sunny days. Despite the subcontractor promising a next day refund voucher, and being sent picture evidence of solar backup and meter LCD display showing 1000kwh,  all I have received is a WhatsApp message from Citypower stating my requested refund doesn't match my recent buying pattern. No amount of fault logging or mailing regional revenue department has helped.  

Congratulations on your installation sir! You may want to confirm with your installer if 10 panels on one mppt could exceed the max voltage on a cold sunny day.

I've been participating quite regularly on the forum for a short while now, but earlier this week I finally got my setup installed and comissioned.
Some information:
Sunsynk 8kW Inverter 2 X Greenrich WM5000 wall mount batteries 10 X Longi 555W panels, all facing north. I was originally planning on going 6+6, with one string facing north and another facing east/west due to size constraints on my north-facing roof. But the installers managed to fit 10 on the north facing roof alone, and we reckoned 10 facing north is better than 6 facing north and 6 facing east/west. I was considering buying 8 more, and put another 10 on the other roof so that I can use the other MPPT as well, but that might come in the future, pending my actual usage patterns.
Solar generation is good so far, and in fact it seems over specced. On sunny days I have this large notch in the middle of my PV graph. The batteries are recharged by 10h, and the rest of the day's loads are quite low. 
I have my geyser connected to the inverter Aux port, as a semi-critical load. I'm still playing around with the settings to find the most optimal configuration, but so far it seems like it's working. I've made another post explaining how I set things up. I reduced the geyser element to 2kW, so that when it runs it can run 100% off solar. I don't want to cycle my batteries during the day for hot water. The geyser thermostat is also set as high as it can go, so that it can act like a thermal battery of sorts, taking up more of that sunshine if the rest of my loads don't call for it.
Total outlay was just north of R200k. I purchased the expensive equipment myself (inverter+batteries+pv), and contracted an installer to do the actual installation for me.

A few Sunsynk / BSL combinations with various panel strings. 

Hi guys, I present to you my new project.
21 trina-solar solar panels (505w) and a 10kw Goodwe inverter
 
 

This is my installation at my house that does the trick. My requirements.... Or rather the wife, was lights, TV in bedroom and lounge, wifi, the induction plate, (used sparingly during LS) and the blinds or screens that can be dropped when the sun hits. 
3Kw Sinyrji Hybrid with 2 deep cycle batteries... So far, all works perfectly during loadshedding. 

We supply over 1000 PSUs monthly. The range is in the sub 5A category. All our designs for surge proofing is B.
My question is why would you want to clamp a strike at say 600V if A is used when the MPPT can only withstand a say 145/400V?
How would the SPD protect the panels?
Although A can be used I have never seen PSUs designed as such.

8kw Sunsynk Inverter with 2 x 6.4kwh BSL batteries and 10 x 455w panels. 
 

My installation was completed on Friday. Me and my families journey towards an Eskom free life has begun. 
I thought I'd share a few nuggets of "wisdom" of my experience so far. 
(I'm writing this thread while simultaneously smirking for writing this thread and thinking "what a tw@t" as many of you may well do after you've read this thread.) 
1. On buying the components yourself and getting someone to do the install. Don't. Here's why. The installer carries the warranty and the risk. Separating the components and labour and expecting an installer to treat your equipment with the care and consideration R100,000+ equipment requires is naive. (Well... stupid is a better word, but naive is nicer.) Plus, when something does go wrong, how do you test it, how do you convince the supplier your installer knows what they're doing?  The installer will say the equipment is faulty (is it really, or did he break it?) The supplier will say the installer is a hack and they're voiding your warranty. Trust me, it's not worth it. Just get a reputable installer, and purchase the components in full through them. Forget about saving a few thousand rand and skimping on the install, this is a LOT more complicated than just buying a battery and an inverter. (I wish I knew that before I wrote that article. In my case, my inverter was faulty. I had some really weird stuff happening over the weekend and the installer came by and swapped it out, no questions asked. Everything is now humming along as it should. So lesson learnt and I agree with the advice shared by @Leshen, @Steve87 and others. 
2. Consider your installation site carefully. Even better, PLEASE consult your wife and either get her to make the decision or make it with a massive amount of tact involving her. As it stands we need to move our equipment due to my ill considered installation site leaving me with a rather ugly decoration on one of my lounge walls. Trust me, cabling is a lot cheaper than divorce, so don't be snoep about finding a location that is not within 5m of the DB. 
3. Clouds matter. Yes, stupid as it sounds, I figured "well the sun is still out there above the clouds... what harm can a bit of water vapour do?" So I downscaled the number panels I needed  to compensate for a better inverter and battery to fit my budget. Not the end of the world, but yes. Clouds matter. 
4. Check your final quote carefully and check everything that arrives on the day of installation.  I did not realize my installer had swapped the solar panels I had planned for and requested with a different make and size panel.  I opted for 470W Jinko panels and I got 415W JA panels. I'm a bit peeved about that as I never realized that had changed on the quote until the installation was done and my production volume was a lot less than I thought ... (that and the clouds...)
5. Carefully consider your geyser strategy. I was a bit confused about a few things inverter related but I think I have a handle on it now. The installer did something to do with an aux port or something like that so my geyser and oven are on non-essential. I manually control my geyser with a Sonoff switch. Any spare PV will supply geyser so I am currently monitoring manually but will soon be configuring a Home Assistant (HA) server to automate this via Solarman and HA. I may even opt for a completely different water heating strategy down the line. 
6. And finally, factor in expansion. I got this one right at least. My current panel array is fitted with ample room for 8 more panels. Currently it's 1 row of 8 on top and 2 panels below and  but will soon be 2 rows of 8. I'll also add a second battery and even a second inverter (if my wife lets me ). So far all is good, we pushed the appliances tonight and barely managed to get over 4kw. 
Those are my nuggets. Hopefully it helps someone.  I'm still using a bit of CoCT power but I'm covered for LS. Aaah yes. Load shedding. Wife: "So now... we have ample power for load shedding but there is no load shedding..."  I spent last night with my wife telling me I could have bought a cheap inverter and a few gel batteries from the paki shop in Milnerton and she could have gone on a nice holiday...      
 
 

Hi @Reapr, I've been running a drop in replacement as a load shedding backup for over a year now with no hassles. Mecer 200ah 2nd life lithium. Cheapie ceil inverter sees it as a lead acid battery. Since July, the battery has been connected to an epever mppt solar charge controller, on AGM setting {was close to the upper and lower voltage cutoffs I wanted to use}, so it also sees it as a lead acid battery. Think the BMS in the battery should handle everything for you. In my setup, I've never let the voltage go below 13.1v, so I can't speak to longevity with deep discharge.

Just got my install finished on Fri 12th Nov 2021 - can't wait for load shedding... 🙂
SunSynk 8kW inverter 4 x Hubble AM2 5.5kWh ~20kWh 16x400W Seraphim 6.4kWp in 2 strings of 8 JHB South, North facing, roof slope is ~23° Evacuated Tube Thermosiphon Solar Geyser Solar-Assistant RPI3b


I have the RIOT and the "Older" SolarMan WiFi
RIOT does not seem to work with the SunSynk 8kW inverter at this stage 😞

Since I had a RP3b lying around I've also tried Solar-Assistant.
So far Solar-Assistant is my preferred tool as it works locally and cloud with a rich data and access to mqtt.

Good evening from a new member.
So, the journey has started for us too. Our roof faces 12° West of North and a slope of 40°. Split level. I planned the roof layout on Cad and started the painstakingly slow process of attaching the hooks to the trusses. Using the Variosole railing system. Due to the slope of the roof I had to be very careful to prevent ending up in hospital with a broken something. After two weeks of working for an hour or two after work it was done. Those huge PV panels were glaring at me from a distance. I devised a lifting & sliding mechanism with a rope on a pulley to hoist then pull the panels up against the roof. (I am doing all this alone - so it's up and down the ladder 10 times per panel...) At 51 years of age your body feels the aches after a while.... The panel installation went smoothly - took another week or so to get them all up. I reticulated the wiring in Bosal conduit fixed to the railing. 4 strings, 8 & 6 panels grouping x 2. The reason for the unequal numbers due to expected shading on part of the roof. I decided to group the shaded panels in the two sets with 6 panels each. When I was about 3/4 done with the larger roof section I noticed the panels are slightly miss aligned and are dropping off on one side. I had to work from one side and do both rows in one go due to the slope. When all the panels were up I had to go back and do adjustments to align properly. I could not face looking at skew panels every day. (I have been told that I do need to seek professional help for my problem and I will - but only when I'm finished and happy....)
I have now reached the point of mounting the electrical equipment and switchgear in the garage - and hence registering on this forum. I am not an electrician. I do however intend to install this system so that any worthy electrician will be envious. The equipment layout has been planned and I'm busy putting up the P8200 trunking to house the wiring. There will be two ducts alongside each other to split A/C & D/C cables.
I have a few questions and I am sure as I go along more questions will come up. I'm hoping some of you friendly folks will be able to assist with your experience and knowledge and help a mechanical man with electrical know-how please?
I will be connecting the two 5.5kW hybrid inverters in parallel to give us 11kW. I have read the training manual and watched Keith Gough's training videos. There is so little good technical literature out there! I find it frustrating sometimes. Anyways - The freedomwon battery has 4 power cables. Would I be assuming correct that after the inverters are connected in parallel that I can wire one set of cables to each inverter? I do realise this is a  stupid question - (and there will be many more!) I just want to make 100% sure that what I'm doing is right. Would really appreciate your feedback and tolerance for all the dumb questions that will follow. Oh, and if someone needs advice on how to install man alone against a steep slope - I can offer my experience and share pics of the devices I made to help make it easier.
Below a few sketches of the planning phase and how it turned out eventually. (Still need to make some alignment adjustments on the bottom row). Rest of the work is now in the garage.

I have been installing solar systems and have been installing the ZN-shine for the last  1.5 years. The panels are great, I have not had any problems so far. I have the 370 Watt panels on my roof and I have installed them on 2 other projects as well. I have not had any comebacks so far and yes my vote also goes to Sunsynk, You can also have a look at the Dyness batteries, I have used them on all my projects. So far no problems.

Just a bit of FYI
Bought a BMS from lithiumbatterySA.co.za where the BMS suddenly stopped working after about a month.
I chatted to the tech department who basically said there is nothing they can do and said it was just from wear and tear. (Ive had it a month). This was pretty amusing as a few days prior the same tech guy said it was probably a loose/bad weld on the board.
I stated that i thought it came with a 1 year warranty but they said there was nothign they can do. Thought this was an interesting warranty
Anyhow It took a bit threating consumer act thing and going online for the tech guy (Ben was his name I think) to wake up. His boss I believed phoned back not in the best tone. He said I can send it and they will asses it. From his tone and the experience thus far I presumes this was a lost cause. 
Got the BMS checked out myself and it turns out the issue was the male molex connector that connects the thin wires to the BMS. The internal metal connectors became loose. Replace this and you are good to go. Dont bother with the lithium guys
 
 
 
 

Just received my gift today and so excited to give it a try. Thank you powerforum 🥳

The newer Sunsynk's MPPTs take 13A and 22A for the 5K and 8K respectively. Even for some of the older ones with updated firmware, contact the Sunsynk WhatsApp support group with serial # to confirm.

Dear @zathras
I am no expert, but here are my 2 pennies worth of comments.
No experience with the panels you mentioned, but they have a high max current of >10 A.  The Deye / Sunsynk inverters will only take a max of 18 A per MPPT, so you can only hookup 1 input per MPPT (each MPPT has 2 inputs).
I have an OHM inverter (same as Deye / Sunsynk - all made by Deye and there are many other brands), but I have noticed that only Sunsynk has any form of support and/or regular upgrades, so would agree with you about going for the Sunsynk above the Deye.
Good luck

Then I would rather go for the BSLB POWER WALL 10.2 KW check the forum store they have a special on it we all know its a reasonably good product..

Pairing the inverter with a battery in terms of battery size doesn't guarantee that you will not over charge or over discharge you battery. How you set up your system to avoid conditions that will lead to your warranty being voided, is the trick. For example, if you know that you will be using your back up system only to power few lights and a TV, you can safely use one Pylon US2000B with a 5KW inverter without a doubt. If you were to use a smaller inverter, you will have an issue with overloading the inverter when in By-pass grid mode. when the grid is not available i.e loadshedding, your heaters, stoves, geysers and all other heavy power consuming appliances can be isolated so that your one battery can only be used to run essentials. It is not a must to match the inverter out put to the battery, it is a must to match your battery capacity to your essential load demand 

With all those clouds, doesn't look too solar friendly 🙂
I don't think double sided panels are a good option, they ideally want a mirror surface from below to help with power generation. Normal panels look white from below, at least mine do.
Do realise that the solar panels get pretty warm when the sun lets them produce electrons and underneath them you get plenty of warmth being radiated in the form of infrared, I guess, radiation, as high as they would be off the ground, maybe thats not an issue, but you may need some extra insulation layer underneath the panels, to make it not like sitting in a grill with heat from above...

Hi all, need some advice on a solar installation I am considering. Chime up if you think this is a really bad idea. I have an existing North facing pergola that i have repaired and extended. I realise that the low angle would not be ideal, but I am considering covering the structure with solar panels as per the first picture. My reasoning is that i would save some of the costs of a Klip-lok roof on this 27m2 structure and use it to cross-subsidise the panels and associated costs. A few questions: 
Do only bi-facial panels look like the first picture when seen from underneath? I have found this link online and wonder if anyone has experience with these panels (Canadian Solar 300W Poly Bi-facial BiKu Frameless) or the seller: (1) (japsolar.com) Hopefully pair with 8KW Sunsynk and Hubble or BSL battery, so can expand over time. Ideally would like to support the Powerforum store (if it makes financial sense) and the reputable installers on this forum.
Few more details/ideas: Located in JHB area. I have a Prepaid meter (Landis+Gyr Model CIU PLC Mk3), current usage <500kwh per month, single phase. Foresee I will be working from home at least 3 days per week even after Covid19 is over. Existing energy saving from Led downlights throughout, 200l Solar Geyser and Gas stove. Do not want to export power. Perhaps I may start with a Grid tied solution (panels and inverter) and add the battery/ies later and move to Hybrid as budget allows.