May 6, 20197 yr Hi all, a newbie here, so this solar thing has haunted me for a while now and I have come to a point where I think I know what I want and would like some feedback or opinions etc, I am moving into a new house in an area where there has never been load shedding , apparently due to the area sharing a feed with O.R.Tambo, so back up is not really necessary....yet. My plan is to split my DB in the essential and non essential and to power as much of the non essential with solar PV through an inverter (no batteries), non essential being things like the pool pump, geyser,tumble drier, washing machine, irrigation pump, security batteries etc. These will all be set to run during daylight (the security batteries will be beefed up to run through the night with no charging) My hope is that this will reduce my Eksdom monthly expenses.All lights will be LED, cooking is on gas. Does this make sense? I may oversize the inverter and add batteries at a later stage should the need arise to add additional equipment or for back up purposes. My reasoning for the above is that power from the grid is still the cheapest option , but any reduction in cost is a win.
May 6, 20197 yr It is difficult to base solar decisions on cost. It all depends on the depth of your wallet. If you buy the house and install solar on the purchasing cost it can come down in future against capital gains. Should be an important part of the decision.
May 6, 20197 yr 36 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: would like some feedback or opinions I agree that Eskom is still (slightly) cheaper than batteries. Not having to cater for load shedding I would go for a simple grid tied inverter (like the Solis). With this set up you do not have to separate the essential and non essential loads.
May 6, 20197 yr 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: where there has never been load shedding If this continues, then your only concern is saving money. So, continuing with that premise: You want a PV inverter and no batteries. 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: My plan is to split my DB in the essential and non essential Costs money, and is only a load-shedding strategy, not necessary for you. 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: will all be set to run during daylight If you are not maxing out your solar production already, then you will want to schedule your loads to do that during the day. First see what your load profile is though, before spending money. You will probably be spending a bit already getting a CoC. 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: I may oversize the inverter You will be constrained by regulations in this regard, put in the biggest allowed ( which isn't very big) from the get go. Over-panel it by 20%, is probably a good start. 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: and add batteries at a later stage If you don't have load-shedding there is no point of batteries. 53 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: cooking is on gas. Not a cost saving, again this only applicable in a load-shedding situation. Edited May 6, 20197 yr by phil.g00
May 6, 20197 yr 57 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: Hi all, a newbie here, so this solar thing has haunted me for a while now and I have come to a point where I think I know what I want and would like some feedback or opinions etc, I am moving into a new house in an area where there has never been load shedding , apparently due to the area sharing a feed with O.R.Tambo, so back up is not really necessary....yet. My plan is to split my DB in the essential and non essential and to power as much of the non essential with solar PV through an inverter (no batteries), non essential being things like the pool pump, geyser,tumble drier, washing machine, irrigation pump, security batteries etc. These will all be set to run during daylight (the security batteries will be beefed up to run through the night with no charging) My hope is that this will reduce my Eksdom monthly expenses.All lights will be LED, cooking is on gas. Does this make sense? I may oversize the inverter and add batteries at a later stage should the need arise to add additional equipment or for back up purposes. My reasoning for the above is that power from the grid is still the cheapest option , but any reduction in cost is a win. If this is the case, a grid-tie inverter with solar panels will save you some eskom money during the day. You don't need batteries and can thus save on that as well. And since there are no batteries, you don't need to worry about spitting the loads. The only adjustment you would need to make, to save more, is to run as much of your big appliance work during the day to benefit from the solar energy available. What would it cost? Since you don't need batteries, it would cost as much as you can afford, or are prepared to pay. i.e you can install a 1Kw system, or 2Kw or 3Kw, etc, depending on how much energy you want / need.
May 7, 20197 yr Author Thanks all, some good points, so essentially I need to measure my loads and decide which inverter and number of panels to buy? So am I correct in saying that the inverter will power the house using PV as a default and supplement with grid power once PV is not sufficient?
May 7, 20197 yr 1 minute ago, Hamtheman said: Thanks all, some good points, so essentially I need to measure my loads and decide which inverter and number of panels to buy? So am I correct in saying that the inverter will power the house using PV as a default and supplement with grid power once PV is not sufficient? Yes on both questions. A Solis inverter will work well in this case, and so also SMA, which are considered some of the best in the market though more expensive.
May 7, 20197 yr 2 minutes ago, Hamtheman said: the inverter will power the house using PV as a default and supplement with grid power once PV is not sufficient? In the case of a hybrid inverter, yes.
May 9, 20197 yr On 2019/05/07 at 8:17 AM, Johandup said: In the case of a hybrid inverter, yes. Grid tie inverters, without batteries. do this as well. It will, for example, feed the full 2Kw PV available into the grid. If the house needs 2.5Kw, the remaining 500w will come from the grid.
May 9, 20197 yr 50 minutes ago, SilverNodashi said: Grid tie inverters, without batteries. do this as well. It will, for example, feed the full 2Kw PV available into the grid. If the house needs 2.5Kw, the remaining 500w will come from the grid. Created for overseas markets where you can sell your electricity back to your supplier. And can make a profit out of it, off course. Then you use the supplier as your backup battery when the sun is down. Which is not true for this country.... But is up to each person to make up their minds where they want to spend their money.
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.