Buks

I'm not sure what voltage you want the isolator for, but CBI electric have a whole range of breakers for 80 volt. A CBI accredited re-seller should have a catalog that you could check out!

Hi guys, thanks for the compliments. I also started out looking at vacuum tube systems and heat pumps, however I found that they just had too many issues. To answer the question as to why I went with PV geyser heating: evacuated tube systems are sensitive to cold and can freeze, have problems with lime scale build-up and temps running away in summer and then there's the matter of the plumbing. To size the number of tubes so as to have perfect heating in the winter the system will be over spec in summer and the heating action of the tubes can not be turned off. If left unattended the only thing that can control temp is the TP valve. Should the pump be turned off, without the waters heat dissipation, the vacuum tubes can go to their stall temp of 255 - 270 degrees damaging the internals of the vacuum tubes and shortening their lifespan. In my opinion one should fit a roller shutter over the tube assembly to close off the sun once thermostat temp has been reached, however this is an additional expense! Heat pumps work better when the heat gain required is small like in summer. These systems use the heat generated by the compression of the gas to heat your water. The more heat that is gained from ambient air temp via the heat ex-changer or geothermal loop the better the compression temps thus the better the water temp. Generally heat pumps have a coefficient of performance (cop) of about 4, meaning that the input power of the pump is multiplied by 4, thus a 1 kW pump should have a heating output close to 4 kW. However in the winter when incoming water temps are lower and air temps are also low this cop can drop to 1, leaving one with cold water when it is needed most! A heat pump that is geothermally linked through an underground heat ex-changer tubing loop has a higher cop, 7 or more and is more consistent all year round, but is very expensive. I hope this helps to explain my choice in rather going with the PV AC/DC setup. So far this winter it has performed well giving me gains of between 28 and 36 degrees on a 200 L geyser necessitating AC boosting of no more than 30 minutes only a few times. For those who are interested, check out the Thermo Max system on www.kingspan.co.za. Clint, I used Deltek power in Alberton for my batteries and they gave me good service. Good power generating.

Thanks Wetkit, That's what I've done as well. Mike ,congrats on your Goodwe, I looked it up, a very impressive piece of equipment albeit on the expensive side. At least it can charge Li-ion battery packs maybe even Teslas new units. Please keep us posted as to it's output performance.

Hi Pony, I don't have it myself but it is on this site; http://www.rectifier.co.za/Solar/sunpower/pdf/sp_305Ewh_AR_ds_en_a4_p_194.pdf

Hi everyone, My solution to Eskom and the global warming issue goes like this; for hot water; a Geyserwise 900W/2200W AC/DC element powered through a Microcare 40A MPPT from 4, 305W black series Sunpower solar panels and then for electrics a 3kW plus Infini powered from 14, 305W black series solar panels with 8 100Ah Lead Crystal batteries as backup. The system works great, the geyser has been up & running for just over a month and in this time I've only had to add AC power for half an hour on two occasions, otherwise we see 75 degrees almost every day. The inverter is a peach. The Infini has been operational for 3 weeks now and has surprised me with it's output, and although the plan was not to run it grid-tied I tested it for a few days. The veld fire smoke here on the highveld really dampens the power generation, however I've still seen 21 to 24.4 kWh on normal sunny days and 13.1 kWh on a cloudy day. Here are some pics .

Hi guys, I'm new to the forum but have been reading the comments on the Infini with great interest as I have also fitted one. A brilliant piece of equipment! I have 14 305W sunpower solar panels with 8 100Ah Lead crystal batteries, Here in JHB we are plagued with veld fire smoke and this affects power generation badly, with that said I can still generate betwee 21 - 24.4 kWh per day and 13.1 kWh on a cloudy day. Generally I do not grid-tie but I have done some testing and would love to see what it is going to generate when summer arrives. I do have some small issues with my unit and I am hoping someone could help me with this. The AC voltage reading is within 1 volt but the DC voltages read incorrect. Battery reads 0.8 volt low and PV reads 5 percent high. My question is can these be corrected within the factory password and also what is the difference between the different standards?