Okay so finally got a 5kW Sungrow inverter and 6.6kW Jinko Black Tiger Neo Panels
It is all quite new, but like all hobbies you go in to learn all about it.
I never thought it was worth it for the amount of power we use.
But now in a new place with Ducted AC and rising prices, caved in.
Just the last two weeks generating almost 40kwH a day, only using a few.
The feed in tariff is really bad at 2.225c off peak, and 10c between 3pm and 9pm. but it covers the daily supply charge.
guilt free AC
I think I am being converted.
Also my family members have had them for years, fly by night door knocker installers. One is non functional, nobody to call anymore for their warranty. The other is playing up.
Junk panels and poor inverters, with very bad installations.
DON'T DO IT!
It was two lots of door knockers that started the spark, and the rebates are going to be gone soon if you look.
I think everyone reputable today uses the same good stuff. The tech has come so far. Batteries are still **** and not worth it yet.
The installers are where the difference is made. So I rung someone I knew who has been doing it for a decade, an office in town, with industrial installers that don't muck around.
2 days they were on the roof (I knew him from a long time back, not friends or anything) . Took a week for Western power to change the meter.
BANG
You have to get up on the roof and wipe them clean every couple of years. Rain alone isn't enough because in the city oily diesel exhaust settles a film on them and that then bonds dust. In the bush it's the same but with eucalyptus oil being the culprit.
It's just like keeping your windows clean, except that with the PV it improves their output.
I am glad I waited, because the tech today is so much better than the non working **** I see on my friends and families poor roof.
Don't go door knockers. Also my installation was $1000 cheaper and would not take a month compared to the door knockers.
Yes Mr Milk,
The installer included a card for people that do it locally and it is quite cheap.
Never use the tap water. it is so hard.
I think the key is to have no shading or trees anywhere nearby. I would never install them if that was the case.
I think it will take at least 3 years probably 5 to break even.
but now the Ducted AC (very new and cost $14,000) can go do it's thing too with no guilt.
The AC was replaced just before buying the house 2 years ago. Works so bloody great and fast.
But using it woofed the power bills even just a few hours here and there.
I am sure many of you have had or still have Solar.
And bloody Western Power have complete control over the inverter. Emergency Solar Management. They can shut them off remotely. Already been hit with an ESM test.
Quite a rapidly evolving and interesting space, with all the regs and Tariffs changing so dynamically.
I don't know why somebody hasn't put solar panels on a small catamaran or a chinese quad bike yet.
Seems like a no brainer.
Select to expand quoteWindpasser said..
Okay so finally got a 5kW Sungrow inverter and 6.6kW Jinko Black Tiger Neo Panels
It is all quite new, but like all hobbies you go in to learn all about it.
I never thought it was worth it for the amount of power we use.
But now in a new place with Ducted AC and rising prices, caved in.
Just the last two weeks generating almost 40kwH a day, only using a few.
The feed in tariff is really bad at 2.225c off peak, and 10c between 3pm and 9pm. but it covers the daily supply charge.
guilt free AC
I think I am being converted.
I have a similar system but with a Fronius Gen24 inverter and Solar.Web monitor. I'm sending about 80 percent to the grid. Batteries are still too expensive. Maybe I should have got something smaller or buy an EV.
I used some software called Pylon to test panel layout and predict shading to get an idea of the return period, which was 3.6 years.
Select to expand quoteWindpasser said..
I don't know why somebody hasn't put solar panels on a small catamaran or a chinese quad bike yet.
Seems like a no brainer.
I listened to a visitng expert discussing solar panels on EVs. The return in Perth and Morocco was massive compared with many other places. However, a question from the audience pointed out that we don't like to park our cars in the sun.
Perhaps there is a guy in Queensland that made battery powered catamarans and battery powered post hole diggers and quad bikes and Chinese tractors....
I am sure you know.... Someone will help jog your memory
20 year return to pay for a battery that last 10 years and is basically a firebomb installed in your home to save a few bucks.
Not yet.
In the future maybe....long time.
Happy just to negate the daily supply charge with the feed in tariff, and if you are home you can burn as much energy as you want......even with a tiny 5kW system
I don't believe the 25year panel warranties and 10 year inverter warranties....
but if you can break even in 3-5 years, then the rest is all gravy before the next one.....
No guilt AC when my weather monitor said was 36C outside today after I went to Perth to go to Costco is absolute bliss.
25 year panel warranty seems good. They are predicted to degrade at 0.5%/year, so at 25 years just under 90% output.
Mine are 11 years old and last spring I happened to be looking at the inverter when it showed its highest ever instantaneous output and it also had its largest single day production.
6.5kw good qual panels and 5kw fronius inverter. Hot water on a device that only draws excess solar to heat water (can overide of really cloudy a few days running). So no charge to heat water, whixh is a big plus. Charge ev whenever it is sunny and the car is sitting at home. Would not consider a fixed battery, but when the retarded qld government fixes its regs ( dont hold breath) would seriously consider setting things up to run the house off the car
Select to expand quotemusorianin said..
...would seriously consider setting things up to run the house off the car
People sometimes talk about wanting to run the house from their car's battery. But would you?
What sort of range do you get on a full charged EV and what would you give up each day? What do you then do if you need to go for a longer drive? I guess if you know you have only short trips each day or none then it might work for you.
Select to expand quoteFormulaNova said.. > What sort of range do you get on a full charged EV and what would you give up each day? What do you then do if you need to go for a longer drive? I guess if you know you have only short trips each day or none then it might work for you.
I could do it with the wife's car it's very low mileage, long trips are done in the surfwagon. If we needed it for a long trip, would just unplug it when the sun went down.
So occasionally it would take some planning, but would save a lot of dollars. ratio of feedback tariff to supply charge isn't good.
Not to mention taking the load off the grid, when solar supply cuts out.
Back in the the good old days before lithium batteries & electric cars, it was common practice for off the griders to have as big as possible deep cycle battery in the car that doubled as a house battery. The drive to work / kids to school, sort of gave enough amps to reduce generator time, 25 years ago PV panels were very costly and fuel was less than a dollar/ litre. It's the same concept in reverse. With all the advances in technology I find it odd that we're still using the same battery tec all be it with different metals ( oh yeah we used to be able to push start cars in the old days )
Select to expand quoteFormulaNova said..musorianin said..
...would seriously consider setting things up to run the house off the car
People sometimes talk about wanting to run the house from their car's battery. But would you?
What sort of range do you get on a full charged EV and what would you give up each day? What do you then do if you need to go for a longer drive? I guess if you know you have only short trips each day or none then it might work for you.
I guess it's more that I would like to have that flexibility to be able to do it. Current regs in qld make it virtually impossible. Also, a relatively standard car battery is way bigger than a currently standard house battery, and car batteries are getting bigger. Euros are already way ahead of us in terms of grid stabilisation. getting a bit of the op topic
End of last year I bit the bullet and had installed 13.5 kw of Q Cell panels through a 10 kw Fronius inverter, switched to powershop who were paying at the time 13 cents /kw hr (now 12) and have never paid a cent for power since. Through winter some days I used more than I produced (dollar wise), but the banked reserves from summer have covered this minor shortfall very well. 
. Would I do it again? Bloody oath.
Select to expand quoteUncleBob said..
End of last year I bit the bullet and had installed 13.5 kw of Q Cell panels through a 10 kw Fronius inverter, switched to powershop who were paying at the time 13 cents /kw hr (now 12) and have never paid a cent for power since. Through winter some days I used more than I produced (dollar wise), but the banked reserves from summer have covered this minor shortfall very well. . Would I do it again? Bloody oath.
Can I ask how much it cost you to install it? Is there a decent rebate on the installation still?
Select to expand quoteUncleBob said..
End of last year I bit the bullet and had installed 13.5 kw of Q Cell panels through a 10 kw Fronius inverter, switched to powershop who were paying at the time 13 cents /kw hr (now 12) and have never paid a cent for power since. Through winter some days I used more than I produced (dollar wise), but the banked reserves from summer have covered this minor shortfall very well. . Would I do it again? Bloody oath.
How big is the roof? Or have you got panels on the east & west as well as north? If so, did you calculate the max generation curve?
Panels are cheap enough now that you might as well put them in spots where they only produce 1/2 what they could if properly aligned.
Select to expand quoteFormulaNova said..UncleBob said..
End of last year I bit the bullet and had installed 13.5 kw of Q Cell panels through a 10 kw Fronius inverter, switched to powershop who were paying at the time 13 cents /kw hr (now 12) and have never paid a cent for power since. Through winter some days I used more than I produced (dollar wise), but the banked reserves from summer have covered this minor shortfall very well. . Would I do it again? Bloody oath.
Can I ask how much it cost you to install it? Is there a decent rebate on the installation still?
$15,750.00 installed on the roof in one day, could have had it cheaper if I was prepared to accept all chinese product. I wasn't!!
Select to expand quoteMr Milk said..UncleBob said..
End of last year I bit the bullet and had installed 13.5 kw of Q Cell panels through a 10 kw Fronius inverter, switched to powershop who were paying at the time 13 cents /kw hr (now 12) and have never paid a cent for power since. Through winter some days I used more than I produced (dollar wise), but the banked reserves from summer have covered this minor shortfall very well. . Would I do it again? Bloody oath.
How big is the roof? Or have you got panels on the east & west as well as north? If so, did you calculate the max generation curve?
Panels are cheap enough now that you might as well put them in spots where they only produce 1/2 what they could if properly aligned.
Panels are installed in two sections, one facing roughly north, the other roughly west. On a good day they run the house and return 60+ kw to the grid.
Select to expand quoteWindpasser said..
Summoning Macro.... Where is the Macro
Macro's gone off grid.
But don't worry, Macro will be back. Because Macro is the grid.
Make sure you inspect annually.
www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-27/solar-system-fire-maintenance-warning-for-home-owners/103026362
Select to expand quotewestozwind said..
Make sure you inspect annually.
www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-27/solar-system-fire-maintenance-warning-for-home-owners/103026362
Yeah wow. I see a lot of setups with the plastic isolators just out in the sun on a tin roof cooking away.
Very happy with my inverter as the DC isolator switch is built into the inverter, and not on the panel strings.
Makes sense why they would do that now.
And I don't understand why people have their inverters outside, and many exposed to the weather and direct sunlight.
They get bloody hot.
support.solarquotes.com.au/hc/en-us/articles/115001759153-My-Inverter-Keeps-Tripping-or-Reducing-Power-On-Over-voltage-What-can-I-do-
Anyone else have this problem mine has only started doing it last few weeks in peak sun period.
We had something like that when ours was first installed, turned out they used to lighter wiring between the unit and the meter box as over a certain distance they are required to use heavier cable.
Once changed never a problem.
There is a national standard on instalation requirements which is where my beloved found the information.
Its been in for 4yrs not a problem till now.Seems ok on weekends when street voltage drops a bit.
