Crossy

Many if not all off-grid hybrids can top-up the solar by using grid energy. BUT I'm not aware of an off-grid hybrid that can go over rated capacity when topping up from the grid (we are entering the realm of the on-grid hybrid here), of course they may or even probably do exist. Many have a "bypass" facility but this completely bypasses the inverter so no energy is taken from the solar or batteries. In order to avoid future issues I would bite the bullet and get enough inverters to parallel for your prospective load now. One never knows if the same model will be available when you need to expand, or, for that matter, even if one is available will it be compatible with your older version. In reality, I'd be tempted to go on-grid hybrid and adjust your house wiring to split off your "essential loads", it's not such a major task. When you get your EV just add another on-grid hybrid or even a pure grid-tie if you are only going to charge during the day. An on-grid hybrid plus a grid-tie is what we have and they play remarkably well together, even charging the batteries from their combined outputs which is something I didn't expect as there's no comms between them.

I assume you also remember the delightful Mary Millington ???? John died in 1988, he was only 43, probably got an erection and died of lack of blood to the brain! We are both showing our age!!

I know not these "inches" of which you speak!

That 3rd picture is either a huge panel or a little guy ????

In my professional life I would never consider anything other than Fluke! But of course my employer paid back then. Now as a lowly consultant I'm not allowed to touch the tools let alone have them bought for me ???? https://www.lazada.co.th/products/fluke-376-fc-true-rms-1000a-acdc-iflex-2500a-ac-nist-traceable-calibration-certificate-f376fc-i2389524585-s8130685560.html

A handy-dandy trick for clamp meter users is to make yourself one of these:- That's just 10 turns of equipment wire, pass your current through that and clamp the coil through the hole and you magically multiply your reading by 10, so your 0.5A reads as 5A. Great for smallish currents on a 60A range ????

@MJCM be aware that many of the cheaper clamp meters only do AC current.

I would get one with a current clamp that does DC since you're looking at solar ???? EDIT - I have one of these https://www.lazada.co.th/products/uni-t-ut204-600aac-600adc-uni-t-ut204-mini-digital-clamp-meter-i1971178318-s15109530046.html

Yeah, I've got a couple of mates looking at doing just this coz they're at home during the heat of the day.

Now on international news https://edition.cnn.com/2022/08/04/asia/thailand-chonburi-nightclub-fire-intl-hnk/index.html

Yeah, you can never assume "Private" messages sent via forum software are truly private ???? That kind of discussion is best taken to an alternative medium.

What sort of "surges" are you protecting against? Lightning induced surges - Use MOV surge suppressors (most UPSs include these). Voltage surges when the power returns after a blackout - Use a delayed re-start unit. I would suggest that all of us should use MOVs by default, either nice meaty ones on the incoming supplies or good quality plug-in units on the expensive gear (or both of course).

Attention!!! Please respect the forum rules. More posts have been removed. 22. You will not discuss methods of bypassing or blocking advertisements on ASEAN NOW, other websites or circumventing any censorship of the internet or other communications by lawful authorities.

Obviously running this site isn't free and the $$$ has to come from somewhere (I know that's stating the obvious but sometimes ...) So, would anyone actually go with a subscription model to be ad-free? Possibly along the lines of some of the news sites, say 5 free threads a day then the ads kick in. I doubt the cost would be significant but I've not done any numbers.

I've always been "หมู" (pig), I'm year of the pig so I suppose that's where it came from (and absolutely nothing to do with me being pink and fat!), even my UK grandkids call me "grandad moo".

On the flexy to tap connection, I've never used tape, the rubber washer does the job.

Short time running with the UPS on battery, that's the only time that the inverter part is operating ????

Unless your UPS is pure-sine anything with an induction motor may make "interesting" noises or potentially overheat. Of course, this doesn't apply to "inverter" fridges. For short times, shouldn't really be an issue.

Yeah, looking at your photo that's what they've done!

Yeah, a sensible sparks would disconnect at the outgoing side of the meter where the cables are both black. And, I see you have that rare animal, seals on your meter ????

Yeah, just to confuse there are off-grid hybrids (with separate mains in and out connections) which can actually export via the mains in connection. They are sometimes referred to as on/off-grid hybrids, but that term is also used for what are really plain off-grid hybrids. It's a nightmare of terms and marketing I'm afraid. You have to read the specs very carefully to see what you are really buying.

Ouch. Did your man disconnect at the meter when he did the work? If so it's sooooo easy to get the polarity swapped putting back the two black wires (I've put white tape on the neutral at the meter, just in case). That would also explain the LEDs glowing.

It's a hybrid, so it has a grid connection, you need to read the pinned thread on inverter types ???? Calling it an "off-grid hybrid" is counter intuitive I know, it's really an off-grid with a battery charger (most are a little smarter than that but generally).