October 7, 20223 yr Hi Everyone, Mitch here, live in Randburg. took the plunge and moved over to renewable energy like most people ive gotten to that point were I needed to get some sort of reliable power as my wife and I work from home, we had a generator installed but sold it as the diesel cost was getting out of hand and the noise was driving me crazy. I had a very limited budget and shopped around to get a system that would work within said budget. Great to have a platform were you can learn from everyone. System details below. 3KW Hybrid inverter (Sunmagic/Fivestart/Axpert Clone) Model Name: MP3024/24V3000VA MPPT Inverter Mode: Rated Power 300VA/300W DC Input 24V, 11,6A AC Output 230VAC, 50Hz, 13,5A AC Charger Mode: AC Input 230VAC, 50Hz, 17,7A DC Output 27VDC, 10-60A AC Output 230VAC, 50Hz, 13,5A Solar Charge Mode: Rated Current 60A System Voltage 24VDC Min. Solar Voltage 30VDC Best Vmp Range 30-105VDC Max Solar Voltage (VOC) 150VDC Battery 2.56KW 24V N- Energy Lithium Battery Solar Panel x 4 (Ingle) Model HS-66H - 400W Max Power (Pmax) 400W Max Voltage (Vmp) 36.00V Max Current (Imp) 11.11A Open Circuit Voltage (Voc) 43.30V Short Circuit Current (Isc) 11.66A Max Series Fuse 20A Max System Voltage 1500V So thats my system and Im not running any major items like washing machine, Dishwasher or pool pump, Geyser (solar so dont switch it on at all unless its a cold night or overcast) We've spilt the house electrical when we had the generator connected, so only lights, plugs and our fridges, all our fridges are A++ rated (Large Kitchen Fridge, wine cooler and bar fridge). The system seems to be working great over the last two weeks but dont seem to be gettting the best out of the solar, the max Ive had was 900W. We have the Solar connected in parallel, but seems to be just on the Minimum range for the Inverter so was thinking of connecting 2 panels series - 2 Panels series and then both series into parallel any advice on this? Also the solar combiner Box, should they get HOT? Thanks in advance
October 8, 20223 yr On 2022/10/07 at 10:54 AM, DrMitch said: We have the Solar connected in parallel, but seems to be just on the Minimum range for the Inverter so was thinking of connecting 2 panels series - 2 Panels series and then both series into parallel any advice on this? Welcome to the forum. Yes, you are correct, 2S2P will definitely work better with this inverter and will put you in the sweet spot for the mppt. On 2022/10/07 at 10:54 AM, DrMitch said: Also the solar combiner Box, should they get HOT? No, I don't think the box should get hot, unless it is out in the sun. The heat could come from bad connections or maybe inadequate wiring. With those 4 panels in parallel you are running up to 40A once they are joined at the combiner, so if the cable running from there to the inverter is too thin then it will get hot. Those cables should be at least 10mm2, maybe thicker. This will probably not be an issue anymore once you have rewired the panels as you will be halving the current. If you are still only getting 900W after rewiring the panels then it might be due to the panel angle and direction or shading etc.
October 8, 20223 yr On 2022/10/07 at 10:54 AM, DrMitch said: Hi Everyone, Mitch here, live in Randburg. took the plunge and moved over to renewable energy like most people ive gotten to that point were I needed to get some sort of reliable power as my wife and I work from home, we had a generator installed but sold it as the diesel cost was getting out of hand and the noise was driving me crazy. I had a very limited budget and shopped around to get a system that would work within said budget. Great to have a platform were you can learn from everyone. System details below. 3KW Hybrid inverter (Sunmagic/Fivestart/Axpert Clone) Model Name: MP3024/24V3000VA MPPT Inverter Mode: Rated Power 300VA/300W DC Input 24V, 11,6A AC Output 230VAC, 50Hz, 13,5A AC Charger Mode: AC Input 230VAC, 50Hz, 17,7A DC Output 27VDC, 10-60A AC Output 230VAC, 50Hz, 13,5A Solar Charge Mode: Rated Current 60A System Voltage 24VDC Min. Solar Voltage 30VDC Best Vmp Range 30-105VDC Max Solar Voltage (VOC) 150VDC Battery 2.56KW 24V N- Energy Lithium Battery Solar Panel x 4 (Ingle) so only lights, plugs and our fridges, all our fridges are A++ rated (Large Kitchen Fridge, wine cooler and bar fridge). The system seems to be working great over the last two weeks but dont seem to be gettting the best out of the solar, the max Ive had was 900W. Thanks in advance The rated power in the 1st 2 lines should be x10 in value. Due to the low load of only low power loads and battery charging it is normal to only see 900W from the panels. If you add a load like hair dryer on medium heat while fridge and lights are on in peak sun period you should see a higher PV output. Even then you might not see more than 1200W from PV. It could be that 700 of the 900W goes towards charging the battery and 150W towards loads. About 25-50W is used to power the inverter. Edited October 8, 20223 yr by Scorp007
October 9, 20223 yr Author 16 hours ago, jumper said: Welcome to the forum. Yes, you are correct, 2S2P will definitely work better with this inverter and will put you in the sweet spot for the mppt. No, I don't think the box should get hot, unless it is out in the sun. The heat could come from bad connections or maybe inadequate wiring. With those 4 panels in parallel you are running up to 40A once they are joined at the combiner, so if the cable running from there to the inverter is too thin then it will get hot. Those cables should be at least 10mm2, maybe thicker. This will probably not be an issue anymore once you have rewired the panels as you will be halving the current. If you are still only getting 900W after rewiring the panels then it might be due to the panel angle and direction or shading etc. Thanks for this Jumper, appreciate the feedback. will do this ion the next week and send an update
October 9, 20223 yr Author 14 hours ago, Scorp007 said: The rated power in the 1st 2 lines should be x10 in value. Due to the low load of only low power loads and battery charging it is normal to only see 900W from the panels. If you add a load like hair dryer on medium heat while fridge and lights are on in peak sun period you should see a higher PV output. Even then you might not see more than 1200W from PV. It could be that 700 of the 900W goes towards charging the battery and 150W towards loads. About 25-50W is used to power the inverter. Thanks for the feedback, did notice this on Saturday when the wife used the microwave. I was checking the system and noticed the PV power increase the minute there was a increase in load. During the day the system load sits at 18% to 25% depending on whats being used.
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