Encid

An added benefit of having motorized external roller shutters and screens is security.

I really like the idea of converting energy from the sun into electrical energy and then into thermal energy. In Australia where I originated from I have seen many homes with solar panels and hot water tanks on the roofs of suburban homes (particularly in the northern tropical states)... but none at all in Thailand. Maybe they are out there, but certainly not in the areas where I live and travel around. My future home build will have it's own hybrid solar energy system, but to use that system to power high wattage demand electric water heaters seems such a waste of energy rather than using a dedicated solar water heating system. Have any forum members installed such a system and are you happy with it? Do you have a backup hot water service such as a demand electric water heater that can provide hot water when the weather is miserable like this?

KSS and Somfy both supply all sorts of motorized external roller shutters and screens. I am also looking into this option for our new build.

Let's hope that the junta does not hear about this and try to impose something similar here in Thailand...

You are probably correct although I have not been back to measure them. As the poles are 8m long we will request that the builder re-plants the fallen poles to 2 metres depth and back-fill with concrete, as well as add the guy wires I mentioned earlier.

@Bandersnatch Great topic and good to see your system's evolution! Does your system have a BMS that monitors the batteries, provides battery protection, estimates the batteries' operational state, continuously optimizes battery performance, and reports operational status? Or do the Growatt inverters do that for you?

Awww... that takes all the fun out of it...

Now we're getting serious...

If he's anything like me he probably prefers to use hot water for shaving. Shaving in cold water tends to give me razor burn and hot water seems to soften my facial hair. In my case, having hot water available at the sink is a must-have.

Yes I see now where I made an error... our current average monthly consumption is about 1800kWh, or 1,800,000 Wh, divided by 30 days = 60,000 Wh/day. The results look vastly different with the correct daily consumption figures plugged in.

I must be doing something wrong... I just plugged in the location of our farm in Isaan, added 10 x 450W panels (4.5kWp) to a flat roof, and also 2 x 9kWh batteries (18 kWh), and then punched in 3 kWh as our daily consumption (based on our current usage). The results above show a lot of excess energy not captured. Am I missing something?

That really is a great price! Just comparing it with @Bandersnatch who paid 37.3K baht per inverter (same model) delivered 9 months ago.

Don't forget a guy wire on the final pole. I cannot stress how important this is, especially as the cables (two wire single phase like ours?) are being run immediately after the poles have been planted and the excavated holes and surrounding soil will still be soft. Here is a photo of our final pole 1 week after planting. See the guy wire? Note the lean towards the cable strain/weight already? Fortunately for us and despite the heavy rain over the recent months the angle of the lean has not increased.

To properly size a demand water heater, you need to determine the flow rate and the temperature rise you'll need for its application in your home. If you don’t know the flow rate, you can estimate it by holding bucket under the shower head and measure the flow for a minute. The flow rate through the water heater should ideally be around 10-12 litres per minute. This of course can be managed to suit personal preference at the shower hot water tap or mixer valve. To determine temperature rise, subtract the incoming water temperature from the desired output temperature. Unless you know otherwise, assume that the incoming water temperature is 20ºC or you can also estimate the temperature by holding a thermometer under a cold-water tap. For most uses, you'll want your water heated to a maximum temperature of around 40ºC, again this of course can be managed to suit personal preference at the shower hot water tap or mixer valve. Side note: be cautious of possible water temperatures above 40ºC because it increases the possibility of scalding. In this example, you'd need a water heater that produces a temperature rise of 20ºC for most uses. However in cool season the desired temperature rise or differential may increase to around 30ºC, particularly in the northern provinces where it gets down to single figures at night. Having said that, an 8kW demand water heater is really only needed if you have a bath or spa to fill, when a large quantity of very hot water is needed in a short period of time. Most residences in Thailand would need water heaters sized from 3.5kW to 6kW to meet average family needs.

In our case we had to cross rice farming land first, and the cables had to be elevated so that farm machinery could get through. Also the bund walls between the rice paddies are regularly broken down and reinstated in order to control water level and flow during the rainy season, so routing cables underground in conduit was not an option. Having said that now that we have a power pole on the edge of our building site (approx 1.5 rai), we will be running the power underground to the building locations. As the OP has stated that he needs to run "some 130 metres down the fence line to the proposed site for a new bungalow" then an underground solution may be a good option.

C'mon Will... show us the photos! Have you got a house build topic of your own going yet?

When it comes to building our house I plan to be there every day observing. If something isn't being done correctly I will call the builder immediately and get him to sort his people out. If anything is done in an unsafe manner I will stop the work from continuing... there will be no injuries on my build if I can help it.

Our builder was most unhappy when he saw the first pole laying down... his people had only put minimal concrete in the hole as can be seen from the photo below. The pole was sunk deep enough (1.5m), but it should have been completely covered in concrete to the full width of the hole. As it was at a change in direction guy wires should also have been fitted to prevent the pole from being pulled back towards the cable run. It's all down to cutting corners and saving time and money. I bet he tore strips off the work crew!

That seems to be a pretty good price

Hafele products are good... their prices vary depending on style and quality.

More bad news... 2 more poles have fallen over with all the heavy rain this year. In the interim the cables are now supported on bamboo poles running straight across the farm. Our builder is most embarrassed and apologetic and has promised to fix them and install proper guy wires at cable changes in direction as I suggested he do several months ago. I am really trying hard not to say "I told you so..." but I think he's lost enough face already. I don't need to rub it in... he knows! No photos to show because most of our family is infected with COVID again... so we are staying clear for a while.

As 20-25% of the poles will be buried in a hole and backfilled with concrete you should consider utilizing 8m poles instead of 6m, thus keeping the cables well elevated. Will it be a straight run or will there be changes in direction? If a straight run then the final pole will need a guy wire to hold it upright against the strain/weight of the cable run. If you have changes in direction then you will need guy wires to brace the poles against the strain/weight of the cable run. (Speaking from bitter experience here!)

We had 9 x 8m high poles @ 30m centres run from the PEA supply across farm land to the site of our new house and it cost 100,000 baht. That included the supply and install of the poles, concrete, cables, and connection box with breaker. So 55K for your project sounds reasonable. Here are some photos of ours...

I went there this afternoon at about 1:30 to do my annual extension... I will NEVER EVER go on a Monday again! The queue outside was 85 persons long and it took 2 hours to reach the front door. Only 2 large oscillating fans were running to cool people down... probably 4-6 would have been more appropriate. Everyone was sweating profusely and tempers were getting short, particularly with queue jumpers who invariably try their luck. I would have left to try another day but I already had my bank statement signed and dated that day. Once inside the building it only took 5 minutes to process as all my paperwork was in order, and I departed with a numbered ticket in hand. I will go back tomorrow after 2 to collect my passport. It is a disgraceful situation as (predominantly) elderly people must queue for hours without any form of seating in the heat. Sure there is a canopy to keep the sun off, but it is still sweltering hot and everyone is sweating profusely by the time they finally reach the front door. The office needs to be relocated in my opinion... it is too small, understaffed for the volume of people being processed, and poorly located in a small soi in Jomtien with no public carparking, and to treat foreigners like that (both tourist and long-stayers) is degrading and shameful. It will be 100 time worse once the country fully opens up and the office is inundated with tourists from other Asian countries. They should take a closer look at some of the Immigration Offices in other provinces, particularly in the North-East or Isaan, where there is ample public parking, ample seating and waiting areas inside the building in air-conditioned comfort along with toilets and drinking fountains, and no need for outside queues. Rant over... Anyway to answer the OP, if you cannot do the 90 day report online as has already been suggested and you MUST do it in person, there is a desk for 90 day reporting in the carpark to the right of the entrance. You hand in your passport and your completed TM47 form (plus completed TM30 form if you don't already have one) and take a seat. They will give you a ticket/number. You should get your passport back within 30-120 minutes. Up to you if you wait there or wander down the soi for a quiet ale and return a bit later. And... avoid Mondays like the plague!