The Solar / Inverter / Power thread
- Thread starter Tag11
- Start date
biometrics
Active member
- Joined
- Aug 1, 2023
- Messages
- 179
- Reaction score
- 87
- Points
- 28
Do you get the app with the Deye? I used it a lot the first six months to get a feel of everything.
I use Solarman (Smart and Business, if your installer gives you full access) and the DeyeCloud app (on iPhone and in a web browser)
Maybe I'm crazy, but I wanna be sure that if the one service is down, I can access the other - they each have their quirks, I think overall I prefer the Solarman but the Deye's interface is prettier.
Maybe I'm crazy, but I wanna be sure that if the one service is down, I can access the other - they each have their quirks, I think overall I prefer the Solarman but the Deye's interface is prettier.
Update:
8kw Deye Inverter
3x 5.12kwh Shoto batteries
14x 555W JA Solar Panels
Electricity costs have dropped from R4,000-R5,000 per month down to R300-R600 per month, and we don't feel load shedding at all.
Household still uses an electric geyser, stove, oven, air fryer, aircon etc. Best purchase I ever made.
My system is up and running since yesterday at around 17:00. Went off-grid at that time with the batteries at 97%. Had my 24000btu inverter aircon running from 6pm through the night. Geyser was running all night too (have since configured my CBI timer for it). Batteries dropped to about 27% before the panels started getting decent sunlight. 5 of the 12 panels have shade until about 8:00 am, which is not ideal, but at least I have some more roof space for addition panels. Will see what generation I get during winter and then decide whether to get more panels.
Battery setup is 3 x 6.1kwh EVO batteries. Might get a 4th in a year or so’s time depending on necessity.
I have 4 adults (live in nanny and her daughter included) in the house and 2 little kids.
Battery setup is 3 x 6.1kwh EVO batteries. Might get a 4th in a year or so’s time depending on necessity.
I have 4 adults (live in nanny and her daughter included) in the house and 2 little kids.
TheHaunted
New member
We have installed a 5kW Deye Inverter with 2 x 6.1kW Greenrich Batteries and 8 x 550W Canadian Solar Panels.
I want to optimise our power usage to at least save a lot more then we are currently.
I haven't really set things up to save, I want to start using batteries at night and charge using the solar panels.
Where do I start?
We currently have a Geyser and Oven that is only connected to Eskom/Municipality, I want to get a Sonoff Geyser Timer so that we only use Solar to heat the water.
We use an 8000BTU Inverter almost every night from about 19:00 to 5:30 in the morning.
Our typical draw during the day is about 350W, I want to maximise our usage during peak solar times.
I want to optimise our power usage to at least save a lot more then we are currently.
I haven't really set things up to save, I want to start using batteries at night and charge using the solar panels.
Where do I start?
We currently have a Geyser and Oven that is only connected to Eskom/Municipality, I want to get a Sonoff Geyser Timer so that we only use Solar to heat the water.
We use an 8000BTU Inverter almost every night from about 19:00 to 5:30 in the morning.
Our typical draw during the day is about 350W, I want to maximise our usage during peak solar times.
bokka1
Well-known member
I have done my first full month on solar and I have used R340 of Eskom power.
My main culprit is my solar geyser that switches on at 6AM to bring the water temp up to 50 degrees, my wife and myself both shower in the early morning.
My battery is set to 40% SOC before Eskom kicks in, I will check and set that value a bit lower and see how it goes. My SOC is about 50% at 6 AM and that drops to 40% as soon as the geyser switches on.
I also have a 36 000 BTU CASSETTE INVERTER Air con that chows power.
I have 20 x 545w Canadian panels, 12 kw single phase Sunsynk inverter and two 10 kwh Volta Stage 3 batteries.
My main culprit is my solar geyser that switches on at 6AM to bring the water temp up to 50 degrees, my wife and myself both shower in the early morning.
My battery is set to 40% SOC before Eskom kicks in, I will check and set that value a bit lower and see how it goes. My SOC is about 50% at 6 AM and that drops to 40% as soon as the geyser switches on.
I also have a 36 000 BTU CASSETTE INVERTER Air con that chows power.
I have 20 x 545w Canadian panels, 12 kw single phase Sunsynk inverter and two 10 kwh Volta Stage 3 batteries.
Howsit Haunted, do you know what draw your geyser takes? Based on my consumption stats at the time that my geyser runs, I think I have a 2kw element. If you run your geyser through your inverter, you'll need to find a balance between heating the water at a time when your overall consumption is low and before your household needs it, otherwise you run the risk of tripping that 5kW inverter. Your draw (350W) is quite low, so it looks like you should be ok.
I have my geyser on at 4 AM until 5:30 AM, then at 11:15 AM until 12:15 AM and then again from 15:30 until 17:00. The 4AM slot draws a lot of power from the batteries, but there's no other way around it for me currently. The 15:30 slot is a mixed bag, but if I have sunlight at the time, it does not drain my batteries and put me at risk for night time usage.
Do you only run it once a day? I set up my geyser start and end times based on an article I read and then tweaked it for my household needs, but I'm not sure if it's overkill or not. Will get some advice on it in the near future. So far, I've not had any instances where I've not had hot water, but I'll see how my current schedule fairs when winter hits.
Really tested my system's load management on Sunday where I had two ovens, the geyser, an air fryer and the pool all running at the same time. I think I saw over 6kW of usage. I was fiddling with the time of use settings at the time and it looks like I drew power from the grid at that time. That said, it was good to see that the inverter took it in its stride. Ir looks like my 12 x 555w panels can provide around 6kW when demand is high, which is a good sign. The installer mentioned a figure of about 4.8kW, but I think he was being conservative so as not to set expectations too high.
bokka1
Well-known member
I have a solar geyser that is fine for the day and night showers, it is the early morning showers that is the problem, the water is between 30 and 40 degrees and needs to be pushed to 50 degrees to allow two people to have a lekker shower.
Tonight I am going to override the timer and keep the geyser on the whole time to see if I use less power that way.
I have pushed my system to over 9000 watts solar coming in, my max is 10900 watts.
Tonight I am going to override the timer and keep the geyser on the whole time to see if I use less power that way.
I have pushed my system to over 9000 watts solar coming in, my max is 10900 watts.
TheHaunted
New member
bokka1
Well-known member
Go read up on that, it takes much longer to heat up the water with the 2kw element.
Might be worthwhile based on his inverter size, as if his geyser goes through it, there's not much wiggle room before the inverter decides to trip. But yeah, the electricity usage calculation should be done (including the cost to change to a smaller element) to determine if it's a viable change. Bigger element may be on for a shorter amount of time, using more watts vs the smaller element being on longer using less watts.
TheHaunted
New member
Ja at the moment, the oven and the geyser is bypassing the inverter.
We have a gas hob so cooking food is still possible. The "time of use" section in the Deye manual is half a page. I still need to figure out how to set it properly. We are still using almost R1500 of electricity per month. I need to bring that down considerably.
We have a gas hob so cooking food is still possible. The "time of use" section in the Deye manual is half a page. I still need to figure out how to set it properly. We are still using almost R1500 of electricity per month. I need to bring that down considerably.
@TheHaunted I've recently had my time of use settings checked by a professional; he's monitoring my system this week as well and then will confirm the final settings. Here is my config currently:
1:00 to 5:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 70%
5:00 to 9:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
9:00 to 13:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
13:00 to 17:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
17:00 to 21:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 80%
21:00 to 1:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 80%
It looks like it's setup with loadshedding in mind, as well as battery longevity.
1:00 to 5:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 70%
5:00 to 9:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
9:00 to 13:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
13:00 to 17:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 50%
17:00 to 21:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 80%
21:00 to 1:00 -> Grid Charge = Ticked -> Battery = 80%
It looks like it's setup with loadshedding in mind, as well as battery longevity.
AfricanTech
Member
- Joined
- Aug 1, 2023
- Messages
- 78
- Reaction score
- 65
- Points
- 18
When not afflicted by clouds, I don't tick Grid Charge during the day at all - the panels must charge the batteries not Eskom - I'm extremely 'sug' for Eskom to charge the batteries and only do so when there isn't enough sun or when heavy LS stages hit during the night.
My config that I've been running with since September (I'm in Cape Town) is:
April was my first full month on my solar system. The stats for the month, from my Solarman app (not read up about its accuracy yet), show that I consumed 930 kWh of which 313.60 kWh was "purchased" (Eskom). There were a few cloudy/rainy days at the beginning of the month and my time of use settings are very conservative (ito battery use at night), so I'm quite happy with the results.
Around 66% saving on electricity usage costs for the month. I recently dropped my time of use SOC values for the night and early morning to around 60% whilst loadshedding has been "paused". I might decrease them further.
Around 66% saving on electricity usage costs for the month. I recently dropped my time of use SOC values for the night and early morning to around 60% whilst loadshedding has been "paused". I might decrease them further.
bokka1
Well-known member
Mine is at 40% and thus far I have been safe, even when we had loadshedding.
I can see that my winter Eskom usage will increase but for March and April I am very happy.
R340 Eskom usage for March, R500 for April.
My electricity was between R5000 to R6000 per month before the install.
I must just get someone to check my geyser's blanket to see if it is still correctly covered, I am using my most electricity in the early morning heating up that mofo.