lancelot Posted October 16, 2020 Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) Just installed a Sunsynk 8kw inverter DIY and want to share some info. We use about 1000kwh (units) per month in our house so about 33 per day with about half in the day and half after PV hours. This is about average for a family home I recon in SA. Already have 2 Solar geysers, gas plates and all lights LED. I wanted to be independent from the grid as much as possible which weighed heavier than economics although my return is still acceptable and higher after tax than any risk free investment. The whole house runs through the inverter including oven, the solar geyser AC elements, all plugs etc. Only the 4 Aircons is supplied before the inverter but with the Sunsynk CT which fit over the supply line the inverter will push electricity to them too if sufficient PV and battery power are available. I have one normal plug before inverter for if I have to weld or use heavy machinery. I Installed: Sunsynk 8kw Brilliant inverter easy to do DIY and with help from Powerforum posts. Jinko Mono Cheetah 400w panels * 18 - Connected in 2 series - 9 each. 9 panels in series match perfectly, max voltage around 410V real life in October (Sunsynk specs max 450V) and producing 97% of rated panel watts (3500w per string) max. Fitted on aluminium rails on tile roof. Fitting the brackets under tiles is quite a job got my son to do that. 6mm PV cable running in PVC conduit from panels to inverter. One set is facing West and the other facing North. I think if you can get East and west facing panels that is ideal, as you need PV power early in the morning to charge low batteries and then you want to produce as late as possible in the afternoon to have full batteries going into evening. Although not the ideal orientation PV panels are cheaper than additional batteries. Pylontech US3000 * 5 These batteries when 100% charged at 5pm run the whole house through the night (have about 20 outside lights 3 pc's etc) and start to charge at 6am from west panels on around 30% SOC in October. By 11:30 am the batteries are normally 100% charged, then I boost the geysers through Geyserwise on free electricity to increase their temperature so that they are still warm in the morning. PV protection DB with fuses, surge arrestors and DC isolators. Fuse and isolator between Batteries and Inverter Grounding ROD and all earth wiring. AC CB and change over switch etc in AC DB with relay for earth neutral bond Total cost about R 210 000 (ex own labour) except for heavy overcast days I am not using any power from Tshwane, bill was about R1800-R2000 per month. The feeling when the kettle and iron etc are on during the day and you know that it is not costing you anything (yes i know it is kinda) is priceless. Edited October 16, 2020 by lancelot YellowTapemeasure, Desh, Juokorow and 5 others 6 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloubul7 Posted October 16, 2020 Share Posted October 16, 2020 Well done on a very neat system. I must agree these Sunsynk units are awesome. I recently upgraded from an Axpert King to a Sunsynk 8.8kw unit. On the Axpert the best efficiency I could get from the panels were 70% however with the Sunsynk my average efficiency has increased to 89% of the rated power. This is a massive increase and well worth the paying extra for the inverter YellowTapemeasure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobster Posted October 16, 2020 Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, lancelot said: Total cost about R 210 000 (ex own labour) except for heavy overcast days I am not using any power from Tshwane, bill was about R1800-R2000 per month. The feeling when the kettle and iron etc are on during the day and you know that it is not costing you anything (yes i know it is kinda) is priceless. This interests me, and makes me jealous, because I have NEVER had an entirely free day with my system. It draws a little from the grid every day - even though in theory, on a clear day like today, the system can power the entire property. But congratulations on how well your system is working and on a nice, neat installation.In what direction do the two strings face? (Doh! Should have read before I clicked) Edited October 16, 2020 by Bobster doh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 16, 2020 Author Share Posted October 16, 2020 I have a Conlog smart meter that will trip if I sent power back (it will kill me to import 100w to prevent this) so for now I have simply switched off the municipal supply until I get a token to allow a little feedback. Makes for a little monitoring on the SOC of the batteries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Achmat Posted October 16, 2020 Share Posted October 16, 2020 Nicely done. My install came to about R200k and have been generating +50kwh these past 5 days in CT. Only have 3 x 3.5kw pylontech batteries and also need to increase it to 5 to get me through a full night. I have 3 strings. 11 x 305w on 2 strings on MPPT 2 and 6 x 305w on 1 string in MPPT 1. The inverter cannot log more than 50kwh but will not stop production. They are working on increasing the D display firmware to resolve this. On track for 6 consecutive days of 50kwh. Grid usage has dropped from 1 200kwh to 200kwh for the past month. YellowTapemeasure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share Posted October 17, 2020 (edited) +50kwh per day is impressive, and that on 8540kw panels. On my solar calculator for Cape Town you are as close to maximum as can be. I assume your panels tilt and azimuth are near optimum. Edited October 17, 2020 by lancelot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Achmat Posted October 17, 2020 Share Posted October 17, 2020 17 minutes ago, lancelot said: +50kwh per day is impressive, and that on 8540kw panels. On my solar calculator for Cape Town you are as close to maximum as can be. I assume your panels tilt and azimuth are near optimum. I wish they were. It's almost flat mounted(5°) on my carport facing NW. I oversized my array due to not having it mounted in the ideal direction and inclination so I am just as surprised as anyone else at the amount of pv generation. shanghailoz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muchachos Posted October 19, 2020 Share Posted October 19, 2020 (edited) On 2020/10/16 at 12:06 PM, lancelot said: Nice system. Edited October 19, 2020 by Muchachos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryv Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 On 2020/10/16 at 12:06 PM, lancelot said: Installed: Sunsynk 8kw Brilliant inverter easy to do DIY and with help from Powerforum posts. Nice, love the batteries. how is the transfer time? (Transfer time <= 10ms) do you even see the transfer or is it only if you run from grid? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 22, 2020 Author Share Posted October 22, 2020 So far my grid has been completely off so can't comment on transfer time sorry. Batteries are amazing was running a 12000 btu aircon last night for 45 minutes and it only dropped by 4%. YellowTapemeasure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barryv Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 wow, that is amazing. I wish I could get some of those batteries for the house. My batteries is old and can't keep the house off grid at night for more then 45 minutes. Powerforum Store 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlbertG Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 On 2020/10/17 at 8:26 AM, Achmat said: I wish they were. It's almost flat mounted(5°) on my carport facing NW. I oversized my array due to not having it mounted in the ideal direction and inclination so I am just as surprised as anyone else at the amount of pv generation. I have almost the same 28 x 365 Panels of 10.22 kw and get about 65kwh a day, average at least 61kwh In Pretoria. Same inverter only Deye Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tariq Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 you guys that are getting the 50 kWh production, assume you are consuming that much power Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 24, 2020 Author Share Posted October 24, 2020 41 minutes ago, Tariq said: you guys that are getting the 50 kWh production, assume you are consuming that much power Or put it into the municipal battery and use it later? Asking for a friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tariq Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 Ok, CoCT makes it too expensive to feed in to the grid, thought you guys were consuming the power yourselves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowTapemeasure Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 On 2020/10/16 at 10:06 AM, lancelot said: Just installed a Sunsynk 8kw inverter DIY and want to share some info. We use about 1000kwh (units) per month in our house so about 33 per day with about half in the day and half after PV hours. This is about average for a family home I recon in SA. Already have 2 Solar geysers, gas plates and all lights LED. I wanted to be independent from the grid as much as possible which weighed heavier than economics although my return is still acceptable and higher after tax than any risk free investment. The whole house runs through the inverter including oven, the solar geyser AC elements, all plugs etc. Only the 4 Aircons is supplied before the inverter but with the Sunsynk CT which fit over the supply line the inverter will push electricity to them too if sufficient PV and battery power are available. I have one normal plug before inverter for if I have to weld or use heavy machinery. I Installed: Sunsynk 8kw Brilliant inverter easy to do DIY and with help from Powerforum posts. Jinko Mono Cheetah 400w panels * 18 - Connected in 2 series - 9 each. 9 panels in series match perfectly, max voltage around 410V real life in October (Sunsynk specs max 450V) and producing 97% of rated panel watts (3500w per string) max. Fitted on aluminium rails on tile roof. Fitting the brackets under tiles is quite a job got my son to do that. 6mm PV cable running in PVC conduit from panels to inverter. One set is facing West and the other facing North. I think if you can get East and west facing panels that is ideal, as you need PV power early in the morning to charge low batteries and then you want to produce as late as possible in the afternoon to have full batteries going into evening. Although not the ideal orientation PV panels are cheaper than additional batteries. Pylontech US3000 * 5 These batteries when 100% charged at 5pm run the whole house through the night (have about 20 outside lights 3 pc's etc) and start to charge at 6am from west panels on around 30% SOC in October. By 11:30 am the batteries are normally 100% charged, then I boost the geysers through Geyserwise on free electricity to increase their temperature so that they are still warm in the morning. PV protection DB with fuses, surge arrestors and DC isolators. Fuse and isolator between Batteries and Inverter Grounding ROD and all earth wiring. AC CB and change over switch etc in AC DB with relay for earth neutral bond Total cost about R 210 000 (ex own labour) except for heavy overcast days I am not using any power from Tshwane, bill was about R1800-R2000 per month. The feeling when the kettle and iron etc are on during the day and you know that it is not costing you anything (yes i know it is kinda) is priceless. Neat installation! I also like your battery rack, with removable side panels and space for fans. I also mounted mine on geyser brackets. I do allnighters, with 5.5k Sunsynk and 3x US3000 batteries, they are between 49% to 65% SoC in the mornings when they start charging, then again my daily consumption is about 1/3 of yours. What's in the flammable blue drum? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowTapemeasure Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 On 2020/10/22 at 7:14 AM, Barryv said: Nice, love the batteries. how is the transfer time? (Transfer time <= 10ms) do you even see the transfer or is it only if you run from grid? The Sunsynks are brilliant, basically built like a UPS -- transfer time is completely unnoticeable between solar, battery, grid (and I assume wind turbines therefore too). My prepaid meter does not mind if I draw zero watts from the grid, but I have set it up to constantly draw 10W so that it keeps the grid is in sync -- if I ever need to sustain power (for example if there are clouds moving over) and it gives the inverter's UPS more choices (a wider array of sources) to draw power from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowTapemeasure Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 On 2020/10/16 at 10:06 AM, lancelot said: What app are you using to generate the graphs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Achmat Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 31 minutes ago, YellowTapemeasure said: What app are you using to generate the graphs? Looks like one of the Solarman websites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowTapemeasure Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 10 minutes ago, Achmat said: Looks like one of the Solarman websites. Yes it does, but it looks a lot cleaner. I currently use https://pro.solarman.cn/ Do you have a listing of the others? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Achmat Posted October 24, 2020 Share Posted October 24, 2020 7 minutes ago, YellowTapemeasure said: Yes it does, but it looks a lot cleaner. I currently use https://pro.solarman.cn/ Do you have a listing of the others? You can login to the other portals from here https://www.solarman.cn/english.html tonio and YellowTapemeasure 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 25, 2020 Author Share Posted October 25, 2020 11 hours ago, YellowTapemeasure said: What's in the flammable blue drum? The 3 drums are actually to refill a thirsthy generator on another property of ours. The 700kva generator uses 129l of diesel per hour if running at 100%. Interesting there I have a 428pkw solar installation so once generator is running the solar start to produce again and assist the generator much like possible on small scale with Sunsynk. YellowTapemeasure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 25, 2020 Author Share Posted October 25, 2020 I use either SolarmanPro or Solarman Smart. Both on PC and mobile. I find the smart app is beter for history graphs like to see what was lowest SOC today. And Pro is updating faster and is easier to check current data. YellowTapemeasure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlbertG Posted October 26, 2020 Share Posted October 26, 2020 On 2020/10/24 at 3:40 PM, lancelot said: Or put it into the municipal battery and use it later? Asking for a friend. You can use municipal battery, but if your meter have the symbol on it in the photo then the inverter say it is putting back but the meter stand still Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancelot Posted October 28, 2020 Author Share Posted October 28, 2020 Do any of you have similar import of power from the grid on your Sunsynk? I set the inverter to draw 100W from the grid all the time (3 fase Conlog Smart meter from Tshwane). On reviewing the graphs I get random spikes of power pull from grid, while batteries are still charged. It's just a small amount but still perplexing. I also witnessed a few times that (max 180w) got pushed back twice during the day, my meter did not trip which is a surprise based on experience of other users on this forum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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