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Planning a 2 x 3kW Vicron System


oddysee

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Greetings all!  It's been a long time since I've been lured out of the shadows into signing up on a new forum.  What a great place this is - hats off to all the community leaders!

While I'm new to solar energy, I'm a long time petrol generator user.  In my previous city, it was commonplace to use a generator when the grid choked.  In the land of wine and fynbos, however, I hear no generators and I'm loathe to disturb the peace - not to mention that I no longer have a dedicated generator circuit.  So, I've decided to part ways with my Honda 6.5kVA genny to pave the way for some Vicron goodness.  Things appear to be worse than they've ever been so going green and sustainable seems inevitable.

Until recently, I decided I would "settle" with Goodwe due to the integrated MPPT charge controller, cost saving and NRS approval. My first love was always a Victron though and I'm leaning more towards this brand once more.  I'm particularly sold on the rave reviews, flexibility and their app.  The VictronConnect app has to be the best there is!  I'm an IoT guy and this sorta thing is super important to me.  I don't only want to consult a small LCD screen on the wall or do battle with an app that doesn't update properly.

My casual obsession and nightly research has led me to plan a system around the Victron MP II 48/3000.  While I'd love to spring for the 48/5000, it's not possible right now.  In order to get a "foot in the door", I figured I'd start with the 3kW now and then add another 6 months later.  Good or bad idea?  

In terms of solar panels, I'm not really sold on anything right now.  Battery-wise, I started off being 100% sold on PylonTech US2000B but I'm now intrigued by the UFO 5kWh.  I don't have a ton of garage floor space but have some great wall space that is already next to a mini-DB.

Fire away, gents!

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2 hours ago, oddysee said:

My casual obsession and nightly research has led me to plan a system around the Victron MP II 48/3000.  While I'd love to spring for the 48/5000, it's not possible right now. 

Can always add fronius in the future and run a mini grid system , this is how I would expand on mine if I did . 

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@calypso I’ve seen your thread mentioning this topic. Going Big Bang off-grid isn’t an option, maybe down the line...I’m guessing this is the approach of the majority.

@Mstott your install thread is what got me to join up. Absolutely epic! I’ll be keenly following your updates. I’ll look-up your Fronius reference - thanks  

My summer daily usage hovers around 17kWh :) while in winter it peaks at 35kWh :(. In winter, oil fin heaters are to blame for sure. I realise that going solar can be an education and some change may be needed. 

Edited by oddysee
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Here's Victron's battery compatibility list https://www.victronenergy.com/live/battery_compatibility:start I would stick to what's on the list. You would need 2 PylonTech modules to be compliant with their minimum requirements. I would stay with the tried, tested and trusted combinations. For me that is :-  MPII 3kVA, Venus GX device , 2 x US3000B , BlueSolar MPPT, ET112

The Victron stuff might be slightly more expensive but their combination of hardware, software, constantly improving firmware, support etc. makes them worth the extra expense.

Edited by VisN
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14 minutes ago, VisN said:

Here's Victron's battery compatibility list https://www.victronenergy.com/live/battery_compatibility:start I would stick to what's on the list. You would need 2 PylonTech modules to be compliant with their minimum requirements. I would stay with the tried, tested and trusted combinations. For me that is :-  MPII 3kVA, Venus GX device , 2 x US3000B , BlueSolar MPPT, ET112

The Victron stuff might be slightly more expensive but their combination of hardware, software, constantly improving firmware, support etc. makes them worth the extra expense.

I saw the 2 x requirement. What will the problem be setting up with 1 at first?

I want to use the battery only for critical UPS loads during load shedding

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So I’d hate to abandon my solar journey with a once-off intro and then never post again. Perhaps I went overboard with this intro thread and it should be moved to another section? @Energy

Also @Energy please can you correct the “Vicron” typo in my thread topic?

After the above is decided, I’ve got a very random “solar dishwasher” update. :D 

Edited by oddysee
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  • 3 weeks later...
On 2020/02/17 at 10:01 PM, oddysee said:

@calypso I’ve seen your thread mentioning this topic. Going Big Bang off-grid isn’t an option, maybe down the line...I’m guessing this is the approach of the majority.

@Mstott your install thread is what got me to join up. Absolutely epic! I’ll be keenly following your updates. I’ll look-up your Fronius reference - thanks  

My summer daily usage hovers around 17kWh :) while in winter it peaks at 35kWh :(. In winter, oil fin heaters are to blame for sure. I realise that going solar can be an education and some change may be needed. 

You can also use ABB for ESS.

https://www.victronenergy.com/live/ccgx:abb

 

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  • 1 month later...
9 minutes ago, TJ Botten said:

Out of interest I was under the impression that ABB was shutting down their inverter division?

What is the consensus on whether to use the Victron MPPT charge controllers or a separate PV Inverter with the Victron Multiplus II?

ABB has sold their solar manufacturing facilities to FimerSpa. This includes all three R&D centers as well as the Power-One factory where the string inverters are manufactured. As for the products, they are still exactly the same and operate with the same functions and still 100% compatible with Victron. Only the name changes. We were the technical partner for ABB string inverters in Sputh Africa and we are now the technical partner for FimerSpa.

When trying to decide whether to use AC or DC coupled, you have to look at a couple of things. What time of day is your load mostly. How big is you system and to an extent, what size battery do you want to put in.

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