We got a shiny new digital meter

[Dante99]

15 hours ago, Woof999 said:

the knowledge of no (or at least greatly reduced) days without power should also be factored.

How many days without power do you experience?  Where?

 

I can't remember a day without power, a few hours here and there for sure but not a full day except like 15-20 years ago.

[Old Croc]

16 hours ago, Woof999 said:

 

For me, the monetary ROI on solar is only one of the considerations. I'll be installing solar because the quality of power delivered in parts of Thailand is very low (voltage fluctuations, power cuts etc.) Damage to electronic items and the knowledge of no (or at least greatly reduced) days without power should also be factored.

 

Admittedly those might not be factors for others.

Yes, certainly valid considerations when thinking of solar.

I was going the same way when we moved to this property a few years ago. The service had all the problems you listed, although I do protect the electrical devices with top quality breakers and boards.

 

Then one day PEA turned up, removed the old lines, installed new posts, ran wire from the highway all the way to the house, and even gave us the new style meters. Apparently our little rural soi had met a magic number of 6 subscribers.

 

The service now is stable, cuts are few and relatively brief. Now an analysis suggests we stay with the norm. The costs of solar would need to greatly decrease to make it viable.

[Bday Prang]

so is it a "smart meter" ?    These have been the subject of some controversy in the UK. and the electrical companies there have been virtually forcing them on people. apparently they can monitor your usage and apply different tariffs, for  example, regarding on/off peak usage if required.  Thailand is probably getting set up for this, and maybe to nail those who might want to charge their EV's at home. 

[ExpatOilWorker]

21 hours ago, KhunLA said:

LFP battery ESS (which ours are) will probably last way longer than me, and probably the wife also.   So not expecting to buy any to replace them.    If anything, will add the EV's battery pack to the solar system, after the rest of the car craps out, in maybe 20 years or more.

 

A possible 3000 cycles, of which we only use about 33% per night, so times that 20 years by 3.   Pretty safe to say, we should be fine and not need to replace in our life time, since I'm 69, and wife is 47.

I have tears in my eyes now, both eyes  😢 👀.

It is a sad 😔 day and the world 🌎 had been turned completely upside down when you expect the Chinese made batteries in ur gadgets to outlive you.

Most, if not all the electronics I got from China only lasted a few years and I have a few temperature sensors that burn through batteries every 3-4 months. 

[KhunLA]

1 hour ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

I have tears in my eyes now, both eyes  😢 👀.

It is a sad 😔 day and the world 🌎 had been turned completely upside down when you expect the Chinese made batteries in ur gadgets to outlive you.

Most, if not all the electronics I got from China only lasted a few years and I have a few temperature sensors that burn through batteries every 3-4 months. 

And how many of those were bought in the last year, from the manufacturer, and have LFP chemistry? 

 

Which you paid more than ฿10k for, that wasn't designed to be a disposable item, since it would probably be upgraded and replaced before the battery even died.

 

Lets keep the comparison to mangos & mangos, not blueberries & watermelons 

 

Buy better, and it last longer, as I got a lot of Chinese stuff, that's still flying, still taking photo, still using 10 yr old batteries (not LFPs).

 

Don't penny pinch when buying electronics or the batteries to energize them 

Edited April 29 by KhunLA

[lom]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

Buy better, and it last longer, as I got a lot of Chinese stuff, that's still flying, still taking photo, still using 10 yr old batteries (not LFPs).

A lot of crap is manufactured in China mainly by smaller companies but there is also a lot of good products from companies with a name to defend.

I get a deja-vue feeling when people believe that everything Chinese is substandard, it reminds me of the 60's and the Japanese handheld plastic transistor radios and how we made fun of Japan then. 

[Siamic]

On 4/28/2024 at 10:20 AM, scorecard said:

Can you please share some photos of how you fixed the panels to your roof.

 

Asking because I have concerns about roof leaking after panels installed. Heard several interested farang talking on the same point:  want to install but frightened the roof will leak.

 

Thanks.

Me too. In Australia I had a solar pool heater array glued to my corrugated iron roof to avoid extra holes. The installers were reluctant, so I put a big blob of silicone mastic on the roof and also a big blob of polyurethane mastic. A week later I asked them to come and try pulling them off. The polyurethane won. So they glued it with 3M 5200 polyuretahne mastic and started doing that on other installations. I intend to try that with solar here at some stage.

[KhunLA]

20 minutes ago, Siamic said:

Me too. In Australia I had a solar pool heater array glued to my corrugated iron roof to avoid extra holes. The installers were reluctant, so I put a big blob of silicone mastic on the roof and also a big blob of polyurethane mastic. A week later I asked them to come and try pulling them off. The polyurethane won. So they glued it with 3M 5200 polyuretahne mastic and started doing that on other installations. I intend to try that with solar here at some stage.

Solar panel are more efficient, if having ventilation under them, or so I've read.

Edited April 29 by KhunLA

[Jenkins9039]

On 4/28/2024 at 9:02 AM, Old Croc said:

How much did the solar system cost, and how long will it take to pay for itself with reduced PEA bills?

Installed one for the neighbour recently, his bill was 4.2k a month, now about 1.8k a month.

[Woof999]

6 hours ago, Dante99 said:

How many days without power do you experience?  Where?

 

I've recently moved to an area where I'm told to expect it quite frequently. Nakhon Nowhere, very north eastern Isan. Previously I lived on the dark side east of Pattaya. Full days without power were in the region of once a quarter, mainly due to new developments and upgrades - lots of new properties being built in that neck of the woods. My average bill was in the region of 10k baht per month.

 

6 hours ago, Dante99 said:

I can't remember a day without power, a few hours here and there for sure but not a full day except like 15-20 years ago.

 

Then it probably isn't a factor for you to consider.

[KhunLA]

5 hours ago, KhunLA said:

And how many of those were bought in the last year, from the manufacturer, and have LFP chemistry? 

 

Which you paid more than ฿10k for, that wasn't designed to be a disposable item, since it would probably be upgraded and replaced before the battery even died.

 

Lets keep the comparison to mangos & mangos, not blueberries & watermelons 

 

Buy better, and it last longer, as I got a lot of Chinese stuff, that's still flying, still taking photo, still using 10 yr old batteries (not LFPs).

 

Don't penny pinch when buying electronics or the batteries to energize them 

@ExpatOilWorker On that, batteries, you do have to keep them charged up, and in the proper rotation, along with not drained to far, or charged up too for, for longer non use.

 

Good heads up, topping some up today: