Solar Power for Home

[33 RPM]

Having read sapperrests post and replies from a few months ago

im most interested in getting a solar system with battery for home

we are at the end of the line and the voltage fluctuates down to 180 volts or less

options to remedy touted are connecting 3 phase to the house at a cost of approx 300K

or the other option nay well be solar

yes i realise the " package " is going to be quite expensive.

any recent real life experiences with a solar setup , id like to hear of, or recent recommendations for a company who can provide quality products, for a fair price

Thanks.

[CharlieH]

MOVED to alternative energy forum

[McTavish]

11 minutes ago, 33 RPM said:

any recent real life experiences with a solar setup , id like to hear of, or recent recommendations for a company who can provide quality products, for a fair price

Ideally you should research product supplied locally to others and gain some ideas.

 

> What is your average monthly consumption in KWhours and roughly how much used by day -v - overnight.

> What region are you in, city or rural?

 

I installed a 10kw Deye hybrid system 4 months ago with 12 x 550w tier#1 panels and couldn't be happier.  I purposely did not purchase a battery as I believe costs may plummet within 12 months and quality/safety is also improving.

[33 RPM]

Chiang Mai

Doi Saket

cannot answer monthly consumption as the house is new, pool pump not operational yet

have 2 energy efficient cassette air cons in main kitchen living area  80 sqm approx, which have needed very little use these past 2 months

im primarily wanting to generate enough power to run

pool pump 1.8 kw

one cassette aircon and the usual suspects, fridge. some other electrics etc

and have reserve to send to the battery.

 

as for battery prices coming down, i wish they would as well, but from what i read, with the ever increasing demand for lithium, the battery prices are not going to drop in price any time soon 

[KhunLA]

Here's our 1 phase, installed.  8kWh Inverter/20kWh ESS   No recommendation, as located below Hua Hin.

 

Produces just enough for the house (<10kWh/day) on a few crappy days in a row, to probably 50+ kWh on good day, as we've haven't needed more.   Only produced 49, as that day we exported 15kWh. 

 

Produces more than enough to charge the EVs with excess solar.  

[Pink7]

My setup is 9kwh panels with 2 x 5kwk growatt inverters and 30kwh battery. All at 300K. Im very happy to have DIY it so i know how its build and how its working so im able to maintain it myself. Its was also quite cost effective.

 

Pink

 

[Danderman123]

One approach would be to install panels and a grid tie inverter, primarily to boost voltage back up to 220V. Of course, the inverter must be able to operate down to 180V.

 

This doesn't help you at night, no idea if you need extra power after dark, but it saves you from buying batteries.

[still kicking]

I have never seen a house with solar in Thailand (well there might be a few) where I live there is many (I guess every 4) But here the government helps you with paying for an installation of about 100500 baht so why the Thai government can't help to pay for part of that?

[KhunLA]

1 hour ago, still kicking said:

I have never seen a house with solar in Thailand (well there might be a few) where I live there is many (I guess every 4) But here the government helps you with paying for an installation of about 100500 baht so why the Thai government can't help to pay for part of that?

You need to get out more.   Along with being here/TH.  Also, if house was built with solar installation in mind when designed, you probably wouldn't be able to see the panels any way.   A roof with a slight pitch is preferred.

 

You can't see our panels, if standing in front of the house or from a distance.  You'd never notice them.

 

I'm actually surprised how many house I see with solar, considering there's not govt incentives or assistance.  No practical plan to buy back excess.

 

You'd notice solar if looking for, especially when riding the elevated rail lines at Krung Thep.

 

Our installer probably puts in 3 to 5 systems a week.  Only took them 1 day to install ours.  They're non stop working.

[still kicking]

Go out more? Just came back from a holiday in Ratchaburi I have not seen a single house with solar, yes maybe because you are a Farang you designed your house for solar. Normal Thai houses don't have solar. But as you know they be better off. I am not complaining but the government should help to install one.

[steve187]

On 12/14/2023 at 3:04 AM, still kicking said:

Go out more? Just came back from a holiday in Ratchaburi I have not seen a single house with solar, yes maybe because you are a Farang you designed your house for solar. Normal Thai houses don't have solar. But as you know they be better off. I am not complaining but the government should help to install one.

i am in the throws of having a system installed, going to be 9x 570 longi panels, 5kw deye hybrid inverter with a 11kw battery 48v 248ah, the installer from Bangkok is busy all the time, i had to wait a month for him to fit me in, he found some time for his men to come and fit the panels, so he is coming next week to complete the install, system will not be seen from street level

[atpeace]

On 12/23/2023 at 1:19 PM, steve187 said:

i am in the throws of having a system installed, going to be 9x 570 longi panels, 5kw deye hybrid inverter with a 11kw battery 48v 248ah, the installer from Bangkok is busy all the time, i had to wait a month for him to fit me in, he found some time for his men to come and fit the panels, so he is coming next week to complete the install, system will not be seen from street level

Old thread but hoping you could answer a question.  My install I started today will be about the same size.  How many watts on a sunny day vs overcast? Thinking I might add another 2 panels to the 10 I had planned.  Thanks

[Crossy]

You can never have too many panels!!

 

Do watch your PV input voltage, the Deye (we have 3) has a maximum PV input voltage of 500V, the total of the Voc of your panels must not exceed that. If Voc of each panel is less than 50V then you'll be good to go with 10 per string. Obviously check with your particular inverter manual.

 

As to sunny/vs overcast, we can vary between >70kWh on a nice day to <20kWh on a damp and miserable day (we have 18kWP of solar, you do the sums).

[KhunLA]

@atpeace  I would expect 20-25kWh on a good sunny day.  On a crap day <10kWh wouldn't be a surprise.  

 

We use 3-4kWh overnight (14 hrs), and on a crap, batteries barely make it back to 100%, and that's being conservative use of electric during the day.

 

We have 18 X .540w panels, and have produced 50kWh on a sunny day, with an 8kWh inverter.

 

Using Deye as an example, their invert specs (5kW first column)

 

[steve187]

10 hours ago, atpeace said:

Old thread but hoping you could answer a question.  My install I started today will be about the same size.  How many watts on a sunny day vs overcast? Thinking I might add another 2 panels to the 10 I had planned.  Thanks

on a sunny day a max of  20kwh and yesterday really cloudy all day 5.6kwh

[atpeace]

@KhunLA 

Exactly the data I need.  I have some older panels from my camper(3x180w) that I installed years ago (wrong angles and other issues 🙂  ).  This gives me a better idea of the potential.

 

I got tired of flip flopping on the installation yesterday and just got in the car and drove to a solar shop in the sticks.  Not much around here and I haven't seen any houses with solar.  Solar here is mostly on  farms and fish ponds (500-1000 w).

 

Spent 3 hours talking to a nice kid that just expanded his solar shop last week.  Last visit a year ago he had only a few panels and I had to step over piles of wires just to get into the shop.  Now he has a nice setup with loads of panels to choose from.  I decided to just do it and put down a 5k deposit.  He will tentatively start the installation next week.  Only charging 2 baht per watt to mount panels and wire. I was going to do much of it myself but at this price, I will just be an observer.

 

I anticipate lots of issues with the install and I'm a patient person so that will be only a minor inconvenience.  The kid (22 yo) is nice and has been doing installations on farms and some houses for at least  a few years.  What could go wrong 🙂

 

This home was not intended to be a permanent residence (covid lockdown build ) but have slowly consolidated and now this is my only property.  My partner has others that we rarely visit in Jomtien  and Lamphang.  She likes it here and at this point I fear I have no choice but to call this home 🙂

 

Below is a quick spreadsheet I just did of the setup.  I want this to do this for <90k but no issue if I blow through that number.  

 

My setup ( should I oversize the panel production while staying under voltage limits of inverter??? ) I'm guessing my max elec units a month will be 550 watts April - June and be well under for most other months.  

 

 

 

 

 

[atpeace]

1 hour ago, steve187 said:

on a sunny day a max of  20kwh and yesterday really cloudy all day 5.6kwh

Perfect - Thanks.  Think I'll want to over panel the inverter(6.2 kWh) and with 550w panels @3,200 baht it seems a no brainer.  Last 3 weeks I barely saw the sun.

[steve187]

46 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Perfect - Thanks.  Think I'll want to over panel the inverter(6.2 kWh) and with 550w panels @3,200 baht it seems a no brainer.  Last 3 weeks I barely saw the sun.

get the biggest battery that fits with your budget, I have 11.5kwh, that keeps my bills down to 60kwh ish monthly, about 300thb ish

[atpeace]

2 minutes ago, steve187 said:

get the biggest battery that fits with your budget, I have 11.5kwh, that keeps my bills down to 60kwh ish monthly, about 300thb ish

Good advice and that shouldn't be a problem to add more at install or the future.  My 4pm to 8am electric usage isn't substantial but want to splurge with the ACs in the exercise room (2000w draw during hot months for a a couple hours a day- then off-computer, smart bikes, treadmill...) and bedroom during the day as well as add another pond pump (400w x2) that will run 5 hours a day during the hottest months.  The pond got disgusting this year and don't want that to happen again.  Now has a stream/river running into it so not an issue but another dry cold season and the filth will return.

 

My needs are perfect for solar.  High usage needs during sunny months and during 8am-4pm).  I'm cool with a <1000 baht PEA bill if I can live in extreme comfort :).  Just have to do some more research on over paneling the inverter.  Seem to be a non issue as long as I'm under the inverter's voltage and amp limits which is easy to do (450w and 120 amps).

[sandyf]

On 12/14/2023 at 1:32 AM, still kicking said:

I have never seen a house with solar in Thailand (well there might be a few) where I live there is many (I guess every 4) But here the government helps you with paying for an installation of about 100500 baht so why the Thai government can't help to pay for part of that?

If you travel around Thailand at night you will see quite clearly why the government has no need to get involved in handing out incentives.

Government grants were invariably a result of an inability to meet demand, for whatever reason. I got energy conservation grants for cavity wall and loft insulation long before anyone had ever heard of solar.

 

The government itself is committed to generation by solar and theoretically that should maintain a reasonable price for the population without the need for large personal investment. Only time will tell.

[BritManToo]

15 minutes ago, sandyf said:

The government itself is committed to generation by solar and theoretically that should maintain a reasonable price for the population without the need for large personal investment. Only time will tell.

Solar electricity costs double coal electricity.

More solar and less coal/oil will mean huge electricity price increases

[BritManToo]

35 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Good advice and that shouldn't be a problem to add more at install or the future.  My 4pm to 8am electric usage isn't substantial but want to splurge with the ACs in the exercise room (2000w draw during hot months for a a couple hours a day- then off-computer, smart bikes, treadmill...) and bedroom during the day as well as add another pond pump (400w x2) that will run 5 hours a day during the hottest months.  The pond got disgusting this year and don't want that to happen again.  Now has a stream/river running into it so not an issue but another dry cold season and the filth will return.

 

My needs are perfect for solar.  High usage needs during sunny months and during 8am-4pm).  I'm cool with a <1000 baht PEA bill if I can live in extreme comfort :).  Just have to do some more research on over paneling the inverter.  Seem to be a non issue as long as I'm under the inverter's voltage and amp limits which is easy to do (450w and 120 amps).

Not enough battery, expanding later is often problematic.

there's 280ah Lifpo4 batteries available at 1,700bht each now.

16 x 1700 = 27kbht, add the BMS at 3kbht and you get a 13.5Kwhr battery for 30kbht.

[atpeace]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

Solar electricity costs double coal electricity.

More solar and less coal/oil will mean huge electricity price increases

One of the reason I went with Anern inverter was because you stated you have had no issues.  Still no issues?  The kid that will be installing it has only o few years of solar install experience and wasn't able to describe how the grid and inverter will supply the load.  From an earlier post you made, you descibes it as a a tandem relationship.  They both will supply at the same time.  E.g., load 4000 kWh = 2500 w panels + top off 1,500 grid ). That is how I hope it woks but could deal with the grid completely taking over is solar is not sufficient and providing the complete 4,000 kWh.

[atpeace]

4 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Not enough battery, expanding later is often problematic.

there's 280ah Lifpo4 batteries available at 1,700bht each now.

16 x 1700 = 27kbht, add the BMS at 3kbht an you get a 13.5Kwhr battery for 30kbht.

Ok, I am always trying to cut corners and need to just do it right the first time :).  I think now I'll first spend more money and add 2-4 more panels (6.6kWh - 7.8kWh).  Once installed and running and I have more knowledge buy a 280ah battery.

 

Do you see any issue with having 7.8 kWH on the Anern 6.2 (6.5kWh input) inverter?  It would be very rare that it would hit 6.5kWh limit and would be well under the voltage and amp limit. Form what i gathered the extra watts would simply be discarded which isn't an issue.

 

[BritManToo]

1 minute ago, atpeace said:

One of the reason I went with Anern inverter was because you stated you have had no issues.  Still no issues?  The kid that will be installing it has only o few years of solar install experience and wasn't able to describe how the grid and inverter will supply the load.  From an earlier post you made, you descibes it as a a tandem relationship.  They both will supply at the same time.  E.g., load 4000 kWh = 2500 w panels + top off 1,500 grid ). That is how I hope it woks but could deal with the grid completely taking over is solar is not sufficient and providing the complete 4,000 kWh.

Most installs take the electricity they need from the sources available, mine is set to SBU (solar, battery, utility).

So it takes from Solar, then tops up from battery, and as a final resort mains.

Get yourself at least a 10Kwhr battery ..... or you'll regret it later.

This was my biggest mistake ....... not getting a big enough battery at the start.

Adding more batteries later may not work, it didn't for me, and I ended up wasting 20kbht as the batteries didn't work well together.

[BritManToo]

6 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Ok, I am always trying to cut corners and need to just do it right the first time :).  I think now I'll first spend more money and add 2-4 more panels (6.6kWh - 7.8kWh).  Once installed and running and I have more knowledge buy a 280ah battery.

Yeah, then you waste the money you spent on the first battery.

Really, I know what I'm doing (now), do not buy a small battery and expect to add on (successfully) later.

Also make sure you aren't sold second hand batteries, about half the self builds I see are second hand (10yo+) batteries.

 

Running with no battery at all is better than buying the wrong battery.

PS.

I have a 48v x 100ah battery (10yo+), it actually stores around 2Kwhr, useless for anything.

Not connected as it drags down my bigger 48v x 200ah battery (10yo+) that stores around 5Kwhr.

[atpeace]

4 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Yeah, then you waste the money you spent on the first battery.

Really, I know what I'm doing (now), do not buy a small battery and expect to add on (successfully) later.

Also make sure you aren't sold second hand batteries, about half the self builds I see are second hand (10yo+) batteries.

OK, point taken and easy enough to resolve. 280 Ha battery it is 🙂 What about installing the battery after the system is up and running for a few weeks?

 

I mentioned I had no issue with blowing through my 90k budget.  Seems like now that is a reality 🙂

 

 

[BritManToo]

2 minutes ago, atpeace said:

OK, point taken and easy enough to resolve. 280 Ha battery it is 🙂 What about installing the battery after the system is up and running for a few weeks?

 

Yeah, that's no problem.

My inverter has been working perfectly for 2+ years now and survived 1x shorted out and 1x utility power going mad.

[atpeace]

Just now, BritManToo said:

Yeah, that's no problem.

Sorry, Ill stop pestering you in a moment.  I have to go for a run anyhow before it is too hot. Did you build your own or order your battery? Off for a run - Thanks!!!

[BritManToo]

5 minutes ago, atpeace said:

Sorry, Ill stop pestering you in a moment.  I have to go for a run anyhow before it is too hot. Did you build your own or order your battery? Off for a run - Thanks!!!

Built my own, it's just 16 batteries linked + to - in a long line, then a BMS added.

Careful with the socket driver, easy to get a big bang if you brush it against another battery terminal.

(Yeah, I did it a couple of times)