Crossy

Our place was Fraser Towers in PJ. We didn't actually have a balcony ("too high"), only lower floors had actual balconies so our usable space was bigger ???? The "best" thing about Fraser was the cooled pool, kept the locals out (too cold) and was great after toasting in the sauna for the Scandinavian feeling!

Our place in KL had a separate "mini-balcony" for the A/C outdoor units and clothes drying rack, it wasn't visible from outside the building or from other units (except from their own A/C balcony). See the circled "notch" in the building. Clever eh? Our condo here had the units mounted above the balcony doors, not ideal but at least they didn't take up the (minimal) balcony space.

Wikipedia has a good description of the various earthing schemes in use around the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthing_system Thailand is 3-phase, 4-wire, TNC-S with MEN (multiple earthed neutral) or PME (protective multiple earthing) in UK speak. Generally, the neutral is held down near ground by the multiple grounding points (your and everyone else's local rod plus a rod at every third power pole). Problems can occur when there has been "work" done to your meter and the person has managed to swap L and N on the outgoing side. There was a thread a while back where a member noticed his kitchen floor above the earth rod was getting warm. This turned out to be a reversed supply! TNC-S with MEN is actually very safe (the Aussies use it and they have one of the safest electrical systems on the planet), but things can go awry when inexperienced people mess with it. Back on-topic, there's nothing to stop you using 2-pole MCBs or RCBOs, but, just like the UK, it's not really necessary.

This ^^^. Or ask if they can ship "Thailand Special Line" (same, same but different), either will ensure all the charges / fees are handled before you get involved.

I think 90% of us would say Qcon, purely for the better insulation properties (lower A/C energy costs). Built correctly there really aren't any disadvantages.

Definitely keep it above ground if it's going to be bolted. Cinch it all up then coat the whole lot with spray-galvanising or a couple of coats of acrylic paint.

Your existing UPS probably just needs batteries, usually readily available sealed lead-acid. The Voltronic unit is effectively a hybrid solar inverter with batteries in a UPS shaped box. Nice simple solution in one box. Nothing really comparable available locally, you'd be looking at a small hybrid inverter, battery pack and solar panel(s).

Don't. How is the cable attached to the rod? Generally, the connection should remain above ground or be in an earth pit to avoid corrosion reducing the effectiveness of your earth.

Please can you post a scan of your current bill and one you are comparing with? The only recent changes have been Ft (and an Ft rebate for low users). If "other costs" are doubling you may have a billing issue.

I don't know if the relief will be short lived, but our daily usage is heading back down towards our normal 30kWh after peaking at double that. As noted in an earlier post, our habits haven't altered, just the weather.

OK people. Enough! If you really, really want this thread re-opened PM myself or any on-line mod and make your case.

The brown thing top left is a Chang knife switch which looks like it's being used as a solar isolator, top right looks like an AC rated MCB, the + - markings confuse me somewhat but I suspect it's being used to connect to the mains. Bottom device looks like an energy meter to check your production. I also note a Schuko type plug rammed into a Thai outlet, so no earth continuity which with a transformerless inverter like that one could lead to a shock hazard from the panel connections.

For a bit of a reality check your 1kW system will generate about 3.6kWh of energy per day (dependent upon weather of course). Definitely worth having of course.

Generally yes, most inverters allow a degree of over-panelling provided you never exceed the maximum input voltage (Voc of your panels). A 600W/VA inverter would likely be OK with 700W or so of panels.

The UK isn't known for being cheap. A 1hr 15mins flight for 150 squid (6,300 Baht) per person would seem the right ball-park. https://www.wingly.io/en/flights/2011948

Hence my suggestion to contact Philips with your photos and a photo of the bulb packaging.

Bummer, I thought you might be able to get a replacement lamp out of IKEA. Do you still have the bulb packaging? Philips may be interested (or may not but an email to their customer service dept. costs nothing).

No reason not to believe you, but like others, I thought the tale may have been a little "enhanced". I take back all those thoughts immediately. Compensation will be paid in positive thoughts!

Wow! Just wow. And I thought there was some artistic licence involved! Did the bulb come from IKEA too??

Nigh on impossible these days. It's not all junk mind. We buy a lot of laser-cut stainless fabrications from a company called Shanghai Huaming Intelligent Terminal Equipment Co. Superb quality despite the company having a large sign outside that reads <read the initial letters>

Fit two in the back, two in the front!

I was surprised to find (from their website) that Philips still make and sell incandescent lamps. They do list their production locations none of which is in China, of course that doesn't mean anything here.

Do you have photos of the exploded lamp? A proper investigation needs photos ???? And, as others have asked, what's the IKEA catalogue number of the unit? (a link to the online catalogue would be nice) I have had incandescent lamps go bang on occasion, but very, very rarely.

Enough people!!

Single was released in November 1995.