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Considering solar PV installation
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One of the drivers for us opting for Solaredge is the transparency of knowing each individual panel output in real time. Should a panel or optimiser go down then it will clearly show up and it's identity known.. Without this system all that is known is that output is less than it might be, but as to which panel/optimiser it is remains a mystery. Each would have to be tested by the installer clambering up on the roof before identifying the culprit. In the case of Optimisers these are behind the solar panel which would need removing in order for access to be gained.Having said all that it is unusual for them to fail, but it can occur and I'd prefer to know sooner rather than later armed with the additional knowledge of which panel or optimiser might be the culprit. But I appreciate it may not appeal to everyone.East coast, lat 51.97. 8.26kw SSE, 23° pitch + 0.59kw WSW vertical. Nissan Leaf plus Zappi charger and 2 x ASHP's. Givenergy 8.2 & 9.5 kWh batts, 2 x 3 kW ac inverters. Indra V2H . CoCharger Host, Interest in Ripple Energy & Abundance.3
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Yeah "piece of mind" is a good reason right enough 👍West central Scotland
4kw sse since 2014 and 6.6kw wsw / ene split since 2019
24kwh leaf, 75Kwh Tesla and Lux 3600 with 60Kwh storage3 -
Coastalwatch said:One of the drivers for us opting for Solaredge is the transparency of knowing each individual panel output in real time. Should a panel or optimiser go down then it will clearly show up and it's identity known.. Without this system all that is known is that output is less than it might be, but as to which panel/optimiser it is remains a mystery. Each would have to be tested by the installer clambering up on the roof before identifying the culprit. In the case of Optimisers these are behind the solar panel which would need removing in order for access to be gained.Having said all that it is unusual for them to fail, but it can occur and I'd prefer to know sooner rather than later armed with the additional knowledge of which panel or optimiser might be the culprit. But I appreciate it may not appeal to everyone.I do wish I had gone with SolarEdge from day one as I am convinced that even on an unshaded roof the output is better (and I would know where my problem was). To add it retrospectively would be expensive as presumably one would need to change inverters, so if you are thinking about Solar Edge I would say do it as if you don’t you’ll always wish you had.Northern Lincolnshire. 7.8 kWp system, (4.2 kw west facing panels , 3.6 kw east facing), Solis inverters, Solar IBoost water heater, Mitsubishi SRK35ZS-S and SRK20ZS-S Wall Mounted Inverter Heat Pumps, ex Nissan Leaf owner)1
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If we have another system installed, we would have Solaredge+Optimers again without hesitation. When you check the tolerance on the panel outputs some makes can vary by 10%. Therefore, if on a string, every panel is limited to the worst performing panel. With Optimisers you get the most out of each panel.
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Coastalwatch said:One of the drivers for us opting for Solaredge is the transparency of knowing each individual panel output in real time. Should a panel or optimiser go down then it will clearly show up and it's identity known.. Without this system all that is known is that output is less than it might be, but as to which panel/optimiser it is remains a mystery. Each would have to be tested by the installer clambering up on the roof before identifying the culprit. In the case of Optimisers these are behind the solar panel which would need removing in order for access to be gained.7.25 kWp PV system (4.1kW WSW & 3.15kW ENE), Solis inverter, myenergi eddi & harvi for energy diversion to immersion heater. myenergi hub for Virtual Power Plant demand-side response trial.1
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JKenH said:so if you are thinking about Solar Edge I would say do it as if you don’t you’ll always wish you had.
(I have two very dissimilar strings, so maybe it's a case of ignorance is bliss and one of my panels is underperforming without me knowing about it - but there almost always seems to be plenty of power.)7.25 kWp PV system (4.1kW WSW & 3.15kW ENE), Solis inverter, myenergi eddi & harvi for energy diversion to immersion heater. myenergi hub for Virtual Power Plant demand-side response trial.0 -
Hexane said:JKenH said:so if you are thinking about Solar Edge I would say do it as if you don’t you’ll always wish you had.
(I have two very dissimilar strings, so maybe it's a case of ignorance is bliss and one of my panels is underperforming without me knowing about it - but there almost always seems to be plenty of power.)Northern Lincolnshire. 7.8 kWp system, (4.2 kw west facing panels , 3.6 kw east facing), Solis inverters, Solar IBoost water heater, Mitsubishi SRK35ZS-S and SRK20ZS-S Wall Mounted Inverter Heat Pumps, ex Nissan Leaf owner)0 -
Interesting discussion. All three companies seemed keen on SolarEdge, and there is a bit of shading on our roof. With a difference of £50-70 per panel, it adds perhaps 15-20% to the total cost, so like others I wonder about the payback. That's a big difference to recoup!On the other hand, the warranty on the inverter is 12 years (extendable to 25), versus 5 years on a typical string inverter - that's a big potential saving in years 6-12. There's also the monitoring via the app, which is less easy to put a value on, but does appeal to me. That, plus perhaps a reasonable guess of a 5%+ increase in output, seems like it might be worth the difference, at least for me personally. Plus the third company quoted for panels with SolarEdge optimisers at a price per kW similar to the standard system prices quoted by the other two (and couldn't quote for a system without SolarEdge).2
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My very cheap Growatt inverter has a 10 year warranty, although I've heard anecdotal reports that their customer service is a bit lacking.
If you have mains gas then an Iboost will actually cost you money so, thrown in or otherwise, I wouldn't recommend one on a post FIT installation. I'm not sure why people keep recommending them.1 -
Yes, one of the companies included an iBoost in the quote, but it's pretty clear that (post-FIT) it makes neither financial nor environmental sense, as long as the SEG price is higher than the cost of gas, and the grid relies on fossil fuels.3
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