007 RED

2 hours ago, Pink7 said:

Just made my first MC4 solar cable.. watched YouTube instruction when making it and it come out quite ok. I need to use 2 sets of MC4 tools because LINK * the company) use the black tool and the Panels the orange tool. Its different in the way the pins attach the mc4.

 

Pink

@Pink... I appreciate that your photos show your initial attempt at making an MC4 connection, but a serious word of warning.  Always ensure that the colour of the input and output wires are the same.

In your photo below you show a Red wire connecting to a Black wire.  If that was for real, considering the potential power of your system, you are most likely going to encounter some very expensive 'magic smoke'.

Sorry, but two things don't quite ring right with this story.

Firstly.  According to the linked BBC article, Adam Davies "sustained a fractured skull, bleed on the brain, punctured lung, broken ribs, broken clavicle, broken scapular and a fractured ankle".   Quite a tally of injuries and he's very lucky to be alive.

But take a close look at the published photo of him.  He looks remarkably well considering his recent trauma, relaxing on the beach, under the shade of a tree somewhere, enjoying a cool drink.  OK he's still got a chest drain in, but it would appear that he's out of hospital and that might indicate that someone has paid his hospital bill. 

Secondly.  Several forum members have commented on the need to read the 'small print' in the insurance policy. 

FYI... approximately 15 years ago the UK Financial Ombudsman, who also oversees the insurance business in the UK, directed all UK insurance companies to write their policies in 'Plain Simple English' and clearly state what is, and what is not covered by the policy.

Adam doesn't look stupid and he shouldn't have had any difficulty reading the T&C of his insurance policy before he purchased it.  It is noted that he's Welsh, so he could have asked for a copy in Welsh if that was his preferred language.  So it's not a fault of the insurance company if he assumed that the policy covered him for world wide travel for 12 months instead of it being an annual premium that only covers him for short duration (e.g. 1 month) stays outside the UK.

3 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

It's only within recent years that PM2.5 measurement technology became available on a widespread basis. For many years, Thailand had only five air pollution measuring stations, none of which could measure PM2.5, only PM10. PM2.5 is a sub set of PM10 and can be calculated as a percentage albeit, there is some disagreement about its accuracy, naturally. Regardless of that, a PM2.5 reading is always going to be smaller than a PM10 reading, that is without question. It therefore follows that your PM2.5 reading, translates into a PM10 reading of what, 400, 600, 1,000? FWIW I recall debates on this subject were that the percentage to use in the calculation was 20%.

 

So if you believe that reading is PM2.5, you may want to check it for accuracy against other measurement methods or devices, failing that, move pretty damned quickly!

FYI.... I've had my little MIC PM 2.5 cube now for about 2 years.  Shortly after l purchased it, l stopped by the environmental monitoring van parked outside the entrance gate of Mahidol University, Salaya, and asked the technician to give me her opinion on the little cube.

She confirmed that its output readings were PM 2.5, and she was somewhat suprised at its accuracy.   Compared with their very expensive metering system, the cube was reading just a couple of digits above theirs over about 30 minutes.

It may be small, MIC and relatively cheapish, but it appears to be fairly accurate.

It was because of our concerns regarding the pollution possibly created by nearby factories, one being a coffee roasting plant which was using wood burning roasters and no filter system on their output chimney, that l purchased the cube.

Fortunately the coffee roasting plant has changed to gas burners and they have installed a water scouring system to reduce pollution, but their system still occasionally belches soot out of the chimney when the plant starts up after a holiday, like last Tuesday.

When the cube reading gets above 100, doors/windows get closed asap, and the ac is turned on until the numbers come down  to below 75.

Its just one of the joys of living in Thailand.

On 1/3/2023 at 5:33 PM, nigelforbes said:

That is not a measure of <PM2.5, it looks like it might be PM10. A PM 2.5 reading of 35 would be very unhealthy, 50 would be dangerous.

 

PM10 figures on the other hand tend to be higher. 80-120 is poor, more than 300 is extremely poor/dangerous. 

 

 

https://www.indoorairhygiene.org/pm2-5-explained/#:~:text=Most studies indicate PM2.,breathing issues such as asthma.

Sorry to correct you, but it is a PM 2.5 meter, and that was the reading at approximately 9 am on Tuesday morning.   As I said, the air was really foul outside the house, and it was like a dense mist hanging around at ground level.  The level was definitely in the Danger Zone, hence my comment about needing to get a new gas mask.  Thankfully by around 10:30 am it cleared as the sun warmed things up.

I've attached below a picture of from the instruction manual and you will see it clearly mentions PM 2.5.  The label on the base of the device also indicates that it's a PM 2.5 meter.

Below is a photo I took about 30 minutes ago which shows a reasonable reading.

Yep, the air is foul at the moment.  I live on the western outskirts of BKK and the dust is noticeably accumulating on my solar panels.

No signs of any actual burning locally, but suspect the local factories are starting up their processes.   This morning at approximately 9 am my little PM 2.5. meter was almost off the scale as shown below.  

Time to get a new gas mask !

3 hours ago, MJCM said:

Re: Cleaning Panels

 

birds ????. They use the panel edges as their toilets

As a proficient DIYer.. How about a few of these?

14 hours ago, degrub said:

Black coloured ties should have the highest UV degradation resistance. 

As per the OP... Under Solar Panels... so they will be in the shade/dark and little if any UV degradation is likely to occur, so colour is not important.

I just looked at my panels again this morning - less than 24 hours after I cleaned them - and already there is a fine layer of dust on them.  It looks like I may have to do them again next week. 

The culprit is the pollution hanging over us because of the cold layer in the upper atmosphere.  My little PM2.5  meter is almost off the scale, as shown below.  (photo taken 3/1/23 @ 9:51 am)

My problem is getting up onto the car port roof (approx. 4 meters above the ground).  At 76 YO, falling through the cement roof tiles is going to mean a very expensive hospital bill, or possibly a cheaper trip to the local temple ????.

10 hours ago, zappalot said:

oh, ok, actually I thought they are roughly all about the same size and about 22 kg max...

 

So have to rethink, the link I included does not provide any such specs...

 

so have to rethink...

 

thx so much...

Yep, they are big and heavy.   FYI... I've attached below the spec.

SRP-(655-670)-BMC-HV_210_EN.pdf

Good luck with your proposed project.

4 hours ago, Crossy said:

If the good weather continues, I'll have to turn off export earlier than usual.

I'm not quite in the same 'boat'.  Since the meter was read 14 days ago my small scale system has been satisfying most of our daytime needs, resulting in us only needing to purchase 13 units.

I checked the panels yesterday and, as can be seen from the photo below, they are 'caked in dust' which must have a degrading effect on their efficiency, so I  early this morning it was up on the car port roof with the hose and soft brush.  They looked brand new when I finished.  I'm not sure if there will be any significant improvement in output as its difficult to measure with so many variable.

That said, if the weather remains the same until the next meter reading in 13 days, we'll have an extremely small bill, possibly the lowest since the system has been in operation.

@zappalot  You are aware that these solar panels are big, very big!  2384 x 1303 x 35 mm and they weigh a mere 38.5 kg each.   

Looking at your roof pictures, I would beg to suggest that at that weight you are going to need to seriously think how you will get the panels up that roof.  Also looking at the angle of the roof you're going to need some very substantial fixings to hold them down with that weight.  The last thing that you want is for them to lift off in the wind and slide down and hit someone/something, as that would be very expensive.

@stubuzz  As I mentioned above, things may have changed since I last went to the MoFA at CW, but looking at the requirements for submitting your request for legalization one of them is that you need to complete an application form.  These are available on a desk which is in front of you when you get to the top of the stairs on the 3rd floor.  The problem being that there/was is only limited space available to complete the form and if there are several people there it can be a bit of a 'bun fight'.  So I've attached a copy (PDF) below (which hopefully is still current) so you can print out and complete at your leisure before going there.

Also, please be aware that you need to have the original certified copy of your passport, and a 'certified' translation (English to Thai) of the certified copy of your passport, plus a copy of the translation.  FYI... There is a photocopy facility available on the second floor -reasonable costs per page. (see Chapt. 25 of the instruction https://consular.mfa.go.th/th/publicservice/เอกสารที่ต้องเตรียมเพื่อขอรับบริการรับรองนิติกรณ์เอกสาร )

Important......  Be sure to take your passport with you as they will want to see that you have more than 10 working days left before your permission to stay/visa expires.  Don't ask why.

Hope this helps.

MFAlegalizationform.pdf

@stubuzz.... If you look at the MoFA web link that I attached to my previous post, you will see that 'Express' service is available, at an extra cost of course.

I know that things have changed since I last went there a few years back, namely the introduction of the appointment system, but when I used the express service it was only available for customers who submitted their documents between opening time (8:30 am) and 11:30 am.  Collection would then be same day after 2:00 pm.  Anything submitted after 11:30 am would be standard service with next day collection. 

I would strongly suggest that you opt for an appointment as early as possible to ensure that you can use the express service.

FYI.... The Legalization Section is located on the 3rd floor of the MoFA Consulate building at CW.  There is a photocopying shop on the 2nd floor with reasonable prices if needed.  There is a Thai style cafe/restaurant and coffee shop on the 1st floor.

Good luck. 

Further to my recent post (2 above) concerning my visit to my local BKK bank branch to obtain a new passbook, and inquiring as to why they now seem to need a copy of my permission to stay status, today I had occasion to visit their foriegn currency transaction section at their head office (Silom Rd - BKK) in order to transfer GBP to THB.

In the past they have always required my passport and taken a copy of the biographical (photo) page which they ask me to sign.  Today the staff member returned from the photocopier with a single A4 sheet containing both my passport biographical data page and the page containing my latest permission to stay based upon retirement stamp (the paper was in landscape format).

I asked the staff member why she had taken a copy of my permission to stay page as in the past it has only been the biographical data page.  She reiterated, almost word-for-word what the manager of my local BKK bank had said, namely that it is now policy following a directive from the Bank of Thailand.

I then asked her, what would happen if the date of my permission to stay had expired.  She replied that she would not be able to process my request to transfer funds from my foreign currency account to my savings account.  She also stated that she would have to report the failed transaction to another department, but would not be drawn when I asked her which department that might be.  This again was basically the same response as given by my local BKK bank branch.

So it seems that this is now the norm.  Expired permission to stay date = no transaction.

It will be interesting to know what happens to those forum members who have indicated in the past that when they have an over-the-counter transaction with their bank they use their pink card or Thai driving. licence.

@stubuzz & @HampiK

FYI.... There are 2 Consular departments at the Klong Toey office. 

One deals specifically with renewing Thai national's passports and no appointment is needed for this (walk in) service.  I think that this is what @HampiK is refereing to as he mentions "renew Thai passport for my wife". 

The other department deals with the legalization of documents which is what I believe @stubuzz needs.  That is to say either confirming that the signature of a foreign consular official on a document (e.g. copy of a passport) is authentic, or that a translation of a document from English to Thai is accurate. 

The localisation service at both Kong Toey and Chaeng Watthana used to available as a walk in service prior to 2020, but unfortunately Covid restrictions changed all that and its now an appointment only service to restrict numbers.

When I last used the localisation service at CW, a couple of years back, I sent my document and payment to them by post (EMS).  They returned them duly authenticated by EMS a couple of days later.  I'm not sure if the postal service is still available but I have found the web link (below) to the MOFA Legalization at CW....  Maybe give them a call.... Hope this helps.

https://consular.mfa.go.th/th/page/cate-6441-รับรองนิติกรณ์เอกสาร?menu=5d68c88b15e39c160c008184