Solar Power is cheap and it’s going to get even cheaper very soon.

[motdaeng]

40 minutes ago, motdaeng said:

which is against the PEA regulations and imho not the best advice ...

 

i forgot to mention that PEA is now replacing the old disc meters with smart meters.

this means they can see if you're feeding electricity back into the main line!

 

one more thing, if you install solar panels and a few weeks later a smart meter is installed,

your ROI calculations (including feeding back) might not work out as planned.

 

but anyway, it's up to you ...

( i'm not against solar; i might install it myself too!)

[The Fugitive]

1 hour ago, motdaeng said:

 

i forgot to mention that PEA is now replacing the old disc meters with smart meters.

this means they can see if you're feeding electricity back into the main line!

 

one more thing, if you install solar panels and a few weeks later a smart meter is installed,

your ROI calculations (including feeding back) might not work out as planned.

 

but anyway, it's up to you ...

( i'm not against solar; i might install it myself too!)

Good thinking thanks! I realise I might not live long enough to get my money back, however if we're only talking 90,000 Baht it isn't crucial.

[edwinchester]

1 hour ago, motdaeng said:

 

i forgot to mention that PEA is now replacing the old disc meters with smart meters.

this means they can see if you're feeding electricity back into the main line!

 

one more thing, if you install solar panels and a few weeks later a smart meter is installed,

your ROI calculations (including feeding back) might not work out as planned.

 

but anyway, it's up to you ...

( i'm not against solar; i might install it myself too!)

Our plan is to go off-grid fairly soon as we save so much anyway. Installation of a smart meter will just hasten the switch.

As a further comment when we talked at PEA about installing solar panels, we were interested in the feedback bonus, the guy we chatted to told wifey the meter may run backwards! He actually said if you don't go overboard cutting the bill too quickly and by way too much it's unlikely a smart meter will be installed anytime soon.

[Crossy]

20 minutes ago, edwinchester said:

Our plan is to go off-grid fairly soon as we save so much anyway. Installation of a smart meter will just hasten the switch.

As a further comment when we talked at PEA about installing solar panels, we were interested in the feedback bonus, the guy we chatted to told wifey the meter may run backwards! He actually said if you don't go overboard cutting the bill too quickly and by way too much it's unlikely a smart meter will be installed anytime soon.

 

Yeah, we had a very similar conversation with our local PEA chap, but it was way back in 2019.

 

Things seem to have changed now and I wouldn't recommend installing a system that spins the meter backwards unless you use a hybrid inverter that can run with or without batteries so you can add storage when (rather than if) you get an electronic meter.

[bkk_mike]

On 2/13/2024 at 9:00 AM, Bandersnatch said:

 

The first problem with Batteries is Depth of Discharge (DOD) and Li-ion batteries have a 80% DOD so you are only getting 8kWh out of a 10kWh battery. There are also some efficiency losses converting DC to AC to run the aircon.

 

Aircon sizes and power draws vary. I designed my house to be very well insulated and well sealed. I use 8,500 BTU aircons that have a max power consumption of 680W, but most of the time it’s only the fan that is running.

 

If you have big leaky windows your aircon will be constant cooling warm air that finds it’s way into the room so it will spend more time operating close to it’s max power consumption.

 

 

Luna 2000 series looks like it's LFP

The home page on them says 100% DoD.

(That is making an assumption that all Huawei Luna 2000s are LFP, maybe prior gen weren't... - but for house batteries, the extra volume for LFP is not really an issue - and they would normally be cheaper than regular lithium ion by capacity because they don't need any cobalt.)

[KhunLA]

This is way too cool, and easy to build.   Whether as backup, or to supplement your PEA/MEA bill.  For back up, you wouldn't even need solar panels, though limited to 5kWh.   Can charge off the grid, house outlet, and have when needed.

 

For reference, we use 8kWh overnight (14 hours) with 13k BTU running 6 hrs, along with 65" TV, 2 laptops & 2 frigs.  Frigs running for all 14 hours, the rest, just 6 ish hrs.

 

 

[edwinchester]

On 11/5/2024 at 2:49 PM, KhunLA said:

This is way too cool, and easy to build.   Whether as backup, or to supplement your PEA/MEA bill.  For back up, you wouldn't even need solar panels, though limited to 5kWh.   Can charge off the grid, house outlet, and have when needed.

 

For reference, we use 8kWh overnight (14 hours) with 13k BTU running 6 hrs, along with 65" TV, 2 laptops & 2 frigs.  Frigs running for all 14 hours, the rest, just 6 ish hrs.

 

 

Watched that myself only yesterday. Yes, great little kit as a backup in emergencies.

[bruceluigi]

Solar power’s definitely getting cheaper, and it’s making a lot more sense to jump on it. Panels are way more affordable now, and batteries are catching up too, which makes setting up a system less of a hit on the wallet. Even if the upfront cost feels like a lot, you end up saving big on energy bills over time.
I’ve been digging into solar setups myself, and I found solarsmart.ie super handy for checking out different options and figuring out what might work for me.

[yankee99]

here are a few quotes which i think are extremely cheap 

 

HUAWEI - SUN2000-5KTL-L1 / 1

- Longi-LR7-72HGD-600M / 9

- HUW-DDSU666-H / 1

หมวด ตู้ไฟ Ac/Dc

- ตู้ Combiner

- ฐานฟิวส์ DC

- ลูกฟิวส์ DC

- เบรกเกอร์ DC

- Surge Protection DC

- RCBO AC

- Surge Protection AC

หมวด ไฟฟ้า

- MC4

- PV-6sq.mm. Balck

- PV-6sq.mm. Red

- YAZAKI 6 mm. สีเขียว/เหลือง

- YAZAKI 10 mm. สีดำ

หมวด Mounting

- ราง อลูมิเนียม 4.2 เมตร

- ตัวต่อราง อลูมิเนียม

- Mid Clamp 35-40 mm.

- End Clamp 30-40 mm.

- Ground Lug ล็อคสายกาว

 

  ฿97,809

 

10kw version of above ฿175,000

[Crossy]

Beware Huawei inverters!

 

Many, if not all, use expensive high-voltage batteries and third-party units are not available, so future expansion may be prohibitively expensive.

 

[BritManToo]

On 12/17/2024 at 8:03 AM, yankee99 said:

฿97,809

60kbht too expensive for a system with no battery.

I'd expect a 200-300ah @48v battery (10-15Kwhr) included for that price.

No need to list the other items costing 10-20bht a piece.

No need for special cables, 2.4mm twin works perfectly.

4mm single from Inverter to fuse box (or double 2.4mm).

4mm x4 to from inverter to battery, if you have batteries.

 

600w Longi x10 = 27kbht

6k2 Inverter = 12kbht

So that's 40kbht worth of equipment and you want to pay 100kbht?

[yankee99]

22 hours ago, BritManToo said:

60kbht too expensive for a system with no battery.

I'd expect a 200-300ah @48v battery (10-15Kwhr) included for that price.

No need to list the other items costing 10-20bht a piece.

No need for special cables, 2.4mm twin works perfectly.

4mm single from Inverter to fuse box (or double 2.4mm).

4mm x4 to from inverter to battery, if you have batteries.

 

600w Longi x10 = 27kbht

6k2 Inverter = 12kbht

So that's 40kbht worth of equipment and you want to pay 100kbht?

Do i want to pay 100k of course not. Can you share some companies that install 5kw for the same or less with or without batteries.  

[Crossy]

6 hours ago, yankee99 said:

Do i want to pay 100k of course not. Can you share some companies that install 5kw for the same or less with or without batteries.  

 

Unfortunately, the solar companies have you over a barrel, particularly if you intend exporting (legally) to the grid. The regulations require use of approved equipment and (the expensive bit) an approved installer.

 

We DIY'd an effectively off-grid system, only using the grid for our water heaters (which keeps the meter moving) and charging the batteries in the event of a few dull days.

 

Global House used to do installed systems at sensible prices, but their website search seems to have been "upgraded" to "totally useless". If you have a local branch, they would be well worth a chat. 

[Bandersnatch]

2 hours ago, Crossy said:

Global House used to do installed systems at sensible prices

 

Here's a photo I took in Global House in April 2018. You could have bought a 325 Watt panel for ฿6,500 or ฿20/Watt 

 

The last panel I purchased was 660 Watts for ฿3,890 that’s only ฿5.89/Watt as  Posted April 29  

 

[arick]

On 2/13/2024 at 1:42 PM, Guderian said:

 

Thanks. Am I reading this right? You've got a 5kW inverter with somewhat more than 5kW of panels attached, and in the early morning it was producing around 2.5kW, which soon went up to occasional peaks of 4kW, maybe averaging around 3.5kW during that time between 10:30 and 14:00? I'd eyeball the average for the day at around 3kW. Is that fair?

How many bolts are your panels producing

[Unamerican]

Is this at all related to Thailand? 

[Bandersnatch]

14 hours ago, Unamerican said:

Is this at all related to Thailand? 

 

I started this discussion with current prices from Thailand. I have 55 solar panels have been buying them for 7 years. In that time Solar panels have doubled in capacity and halved in price in Thailand.