June 2, 20215 yr Hi All, I have been dabbling in power backups since 2015, with a small inverter and deep cycle batteries, that served me well for the last 6 years. During that time I have also been researching energy efficient solutions and applied them all around the house (heat pump geyser, LED lighting, EE appliances, gas stove, etc). The time has come to now nose dive and do a whole home solution, with PV and a battery or 2. I generally like to source product myself, and contract a SP to do the work for me, but this industry scares me, let alone getting the right people to do the work, as well as the signing off and registration with City Of Cape Town. I've been reading good things about SunSynk 5Kw, which is probably where I am leaning towards. Mono Canadian looks to be what many use, not sure which size panel to go with. LiOn batteries obviously, but not sure which brand works best. Installers in CPT? I know none... options between those providing a turn-key solution, and those happy to work with equipment sourced by me. CoCT registration and Electrical compliance a must in both options. I'm aiming for low maintenance, easy to use, and scalable. Any advice and recommendations will be appreciated. On average, we go through about 650KWh in a month, although I'm not looking to break the bank, so a solid foundation for easy expanding is best. Thanks in Advance
June 2, 20215 yr 5kw sunsync @ R25k odd, 5.5 Hubble battery + @ R25k odd Poly panels - 455w 14+ @ R20k odd Including installation i think you looking at R80k odd
June 2, 20215 yr Author 34 minutes ago, nightcrawlernic said: 5kw sunsync @ R25k odd, 5.5 Hubble battery + @ R25k odd Poly panels - 455w 14+ @ R20k odd Including installation i think you looking at R80k odd That is a nice number 🙂 From my readings, mono looks more efficient although older tech. Thoughts?
June 2, 20215 yr 3 hours ago, Saliegh said: That is a nice number 🙂 From my readings, mono looks more efficient although older tech. Thoughts? You were probably reading old reviews. There's actually not much difference today between the two.
June 2, 20215 yr Author 1 hour ago, YellowTapemeasure said: You were probably reading old reviews. There's actually not much difference today between the two. i've been reading so much, it's coming out of my ears. Something I did notice was the efficiency difference, although it might be a brand thing... 17% vs 20.4%
June 2, 20215 yr Author 4 hours ago, Saliegh said: 5.5 Hubble battery + @ R25k odd Playing devil's advocate here... Why would I choose the 5.5 Hubble over 3 x Pylontech US3000C 3.5kWh Li-Ion Battery? on the one hand, you have better DoD, on the other, 1C Edited June 2, 20215 yr by Saliegh
June 2, 20215 yr 42 minutes ago, Saliegh said: Playing devil's advocate here... Why would I choose the 5.5 Hubble over 3 x Pylontech US3000C 3.5kWh Li-Ion Battery? on the one hand, you have better DoD, on the other, 1C Price performance. I have 3x US3000B's, if I did my 9 month old install over, I would opt for Hubble AM2s.
June 3, 20215 yr 14 hours ago, Saliegh said: i've been reading so much, it's coming out of my ears. Something I did notice was the efficiency difference, although it might be a brand thing... 17% vs 20.4% A 455W panel will give 455W no matter what the efficiency. A more efficient panel might be smaller by a small fraction but unless you're extremely space constrained it isn't an issue. Edited June 3, 20215 yr by tetrasection
June 3, 20215 yr 14 hours ago, Saliegh said: Playing devil's advocate here... Why would I choose the 5.5 Hubble over 3 x Pylontech US3000C 3.5kWh Li-Ion Battery? on the one hand, you have better DoD, on the other, 1C Also, he stated he uses +/- 22kwh a day. A single 5.5kwh battery ain't gonna cut it. Edited June 3, 20215 yr by tetrasection
June 3, 20215 yr Author 27 minutes ago, tetrasection said: Also, he stated he uses +/- 22kwh a day. A single 5.5kwh battery ain't gonna cut it. Yeah. It's really only to get me through loadshedding
June 3, 20215 yr depends on how much battery standby you need, I have a 4.8 kWh battery with 80% DOD, even with long winter nights, the battery lasts just about the whole night, might use 1 kWh per day from the day. I believe that Eskom is still cheaper than a battery
June 3, 20215 yr Author 1 minute ago, Tariq said: depends on how much battery standby you need, I have a 4.8 kWh battery with 80% DOD, even with long winter nights, the battery lasts just about the whole night, might use 1 kWh per day from the day. I believe that Eskom is still cheaper than a battery Yep, in an ideal country I would not necessarily be doing this
June 3, 20215 yr 22 hours ago, Saliegh said: Hi All, I have been dabbling in power backups since 2015, with a small inverter and deep cycle batteries, that served me well for the last 6 years. During that time I have also been researching energy efficient solutions and applied them all around the house (heat pump geyser, LED lighting, EE appliances, gas stove, etc). The time has come to now nose dive and do a whole home solution, with PV and a battery or 2. I generally like to source product myself, and contract a SP to do the work for me, but this industry scares me, let alone getting the right people to do the work, as well as the signing off and registration with City Of Cape Town. I've been reading good things about SunSynk 5Kw, which is probably where I am leaning towards. Mono Canadian looks to be what many use, not sure which size panel to go with. LiOn batteries obviously, but not sure which brand works best. Installers in CPT? I know none... options between those providing a turn-key solution, and those happy to work with equipment sourced by me. CoCT registration and Electrical compliance a must in both options. I'm aiming for low maintenance, easy to use, and scalable. Any advice and recommendations will be appreciated. On average, we go through about 650KWh in a month, although I'm not looking to break the bank, so a solid foundation for easy expanding is best. Thanks in Advance Hi there. I am curious about your heat pump, have you noticed any material saving on your bill since installing? And the other question that plagues me, how does it perform in winter months?
June 3, 20215 yr 2 hours ago, Saliegh said: Yeah. It's really only to get me through loadshedding Do you have a prepaid meter or do you have an Eskom account where you pay close to 2k a month for availability etc. excluding power usage?
June 3, 20215 yr Author 12 minutes ago, GTP said: Hi there. I am curious about your heat pump, have you noticed any material saving on your bill since installing? And the other question that plagues me, how does it perform in winter months? Hi @GTP There is a definite visible saving. I think my geyser element draws 3kW/h (150l copper), whereas the 5kW heatpump that I have uses ~1.5kW/h. Works well in winter. Take a bit longer to heat the water. Some time management helps (running is around midday is most efficient in winter, etc.
June 3, 20215 yr Author 1 minute ago, tetrasection said: Do you have a prepaid meter or do you have an Eskom account where you pay close to 2k a month for availability etc. excluding power usage? I have a prepaid meter
June 3, 20215 yr 2 minutes ago, Saliegh said: I have a prepaid meter Yeah in that case use eskom as a battery... if you were paying monthly charges over and above electricity charges I think it would be worthwhile getting an extra battery and kissing eskom goodbye.
June 3, 20215 yr Author I have a bit of a dilemma. I have committed to 10 x 455W panels that will be connected to a 5kW SunSynk. My pitched roof faces W and E. What will be the best layout such that I get the optimal yield during Summer and Winter?
June 4, 20215 yr 11 hours ago, Saliegh said: I have a bit of a dilemma. I have committed to 10 x 455W panels that will be connected to a 5kW SunSynk. My pitched roof faces W and E. What will be the best layout such that I get the optimal yield during Summer and Winter? Also if you have space for additional panels, make sure that you can add them easily if you decide to add more. I think you could go 7 panels on each MPPT
June 4, 20215 yr 4 minutes ago, Achmat said: I think you could go 7 panels on each MPPT You should be able to put even 8 of those panels on one MPPT - but not more than 14 in total
June 4, 20215 yr Author 13 minutes ago, Achmat said: Also if you have space for additional panels, make sure that you can add them easily if you decide to add more. I think you could go 7 panels on each MPPT Yeah, @Tariq suggested that I do get 4 additional now before the work begins. I've hit my budget on this for now. Maybe in a year or so I can expand harvesting and storage Edited June 4, 20215 yr by Saliegh
June 4, 20215 yr Even if you're not exporting, if your main breaker is 60A you're limited to 3.5kW generation capacity on Eskom or several municipalities like CoCT. 4.6kW if you're on a 80A breaker.
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