So now I have a solar PV system how do I make the most of it???

John_Pierpoint

Those in the South of England, especially those with the added value of reflection off the sea; now say a few magic incantations and cross their fingers. hoping there will not be panels on the lawn in Monday?

Martyn1981

Helen18 wrote: »

Hi all,

Well we're narrowing things down a bit but still not sure how to proceed....

Most companies agree we have enough of a shading issue as well as needing to use several different orientations to make using either power optimisers or micro inverters. I'm just totally confused about which to choose. Diff companies seem adamant about one or the other, slating the one they don't offer. I don't know which is better or why. Or if either have a poor reliability record? Anyone have any info on either? Start up voltages have been mentioned - but info seems conflicting.

Thanks
Hx

Hiya Helen. Don't know if there are any comparisons for you to use. I'm very happy with the PO's, but that doesn't mean that MI's wouldn't be just as good. Companies are probably just pushing what they normally install, and think are best.

Sorry to be so vague, but there might not be a right (or wrong) choice.

One possible thought, if you do decide to go over 4kWp, but can't get DNO permission, then the SolarEdge SE3680W inverter (which is a capped 4kW model) might serve you well. I've no idea how you go about capping MI's - but that doesn't mean it can't be done, I just don't know much about them. So this might be a helpful key factor, or possibly irrelevant. Sorry!

Mart.

John_Pierpoint

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Those in the South of England, especially those with the added value of reflection off the sea; now say a few magic incantations and cross their fingers. hoping there will not be panels on the lawn in Monday?

Compared to 1987 that was almost a non event.

This time last week the storm was expected to sweep thought about midnight.
By Friday it might have been as early as 18:00.

The approach was from SW a week ago but by Sunday morning it was meant to sweep up the Channel and turn sharp left so blowing over Essex from the South.

In the event it came at me from WNW and owing to its trip across country all the way from the Bristol Channel, it was almost pedestrian: no problem standing and no Jet engine roaring noise like 1987. Though it seems the Isle of Wight did manage 90 MPH and Dover went over 60 MPH.
Remembering that the energy of a moving body is proportional to the square of its speed, I doubt the impact was more that half of 1987.

The maximum gusts were about 07:00, just as the yellow sun was rising over the Estuary, and at 06:52 the lights flashed off, on, off, on and the shock was sufficient to turn ON a 1980 midi (small stacking) musical system.
However a repeat performance at 07:08 resulted in a power cut until 13:50.

Most of the afternoon was overcast and blustery drizzle, resulting in the grand total of 0.49 kWh generated all day.

The power cut left my inverter flashing an emergency yellow light and the message "no grid" interspersed with "Checking Riso" [what ever that means].
So I turned off the two strings of panels as well as the grid supply, as my inverter resorts to battery backup and I did not want that to be helped to go flat.

I am never quite sure the correct sequence for turning off and on the Inverter, but mains on, shortly followed by both strings of PV panels, seemed to fire up the inverter within half a minute.

So life is back to normal now.

Fruit_and_Nut_Case

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

The power cut left my inverter flashing an emergency yellow light and the message "no grid" interspersed with "Checking Riso" [what ever that means]

Riso seems to be Insulation Resistance. Sorry I can't work out how to do subscripts.

mac2008

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

...I am never quite sure the correct sequence for turning off and on the Inverter, but mains on, shortly followed by both strings of PV panels, seemed to fire up the inverter within half a minute.

So life is back to normal now.

I was told to always shut off AC side first and never to shut down DC side under load. Not sure why - arc risk?

InVestor_2

My installer placed a nice laminated instruction card with diagram next to the fusebox, and isolation switch.


One sign of a good installer I thought.


Never had to use it, but very handy especially as the years roll by.

EricMears

Fruit_and_Nut_Case wrote: »

Riso seems to be Insulation Resistance. Sorry I can't work out how to do subscripts.

There doesn't seem to be any way in the MSE editor (even the 'advanced' version) of putting in a subscript. Method adopted of changing font size is probably the best you can get.

The lines below were composed in MSword (any other wordprocessor would do) seemed to be rendered OK when I viewed them in the editor but finished up in the forum as simply large & small characters - completely missing the point when I wanted to use a superscript !

E=MC2

H2SO4

John_Pierpoint

mac2008 wrote: »

I was told to always shut off AC side first and never to shut down DC side under load. Not sure why - arc risk?

My "installer booklet" left behind by the installer says commission the DC side first and then turn on the AC side and turning off is the reverse of that procedure. , I guess that boils down to "switch the AC when the DC is working? (obviously if the DC has turned itself off due to low light conditions the AC switch changes nothing anyway).
When the inverter is permanently "on" on the AC side but relying on the DC to wake up the battery powered initial relay in the morning and closes down each day, the DC voltages are very small in comparison with what is happening at noon.
There is also an appeal not to try to squeeze output from initial low light conditions by adjusting the 70% excess voltage required to turn on versus the turn off voltage, for fear of "knackering" the relays with excessive cycling.

My inverter display certainly does not do subscripting.;)

Doc_N

Anyone else concerned that when the Government announces shortly (as it surely will) that the 'Green Taxes' are to be taken off energy bills and added to general taxation, FIT payments could be at risk?

Theoretically, no risk at all, because they're based on a government 'promise to pay', but I suppose it depends how much you trust governments, and how much damage the switch to general taxation would cost the Treasury.

agentk

Doc_N wrote: »

Anyone else concerned that when the Government announces shortly (as it surely will) that the 'Green Taxes' are to be taken off energy bills and added to general taxation, FIT payments could be at risk?

Theoretically, no risk at all, because they're based on a government 'promise to pay', but I suppose it depends how much you trust governments, and how much damage the switch to general taxation would cost the Treasury.

YES very concerned. I would not trust any government to run a tap!