Solar power question

[hansje1980]

Hey guys,
I've been reading many threads about solar power in Thailand, and my question doesn't seem to be answered anywhere.
Is it possible instead of earning money (because it seems impossible in Thailand) for sending back to the grid, to have at least your meter going backwards when the sun is shining ? That will be fine for me as well. If this is possible, how would I be able to do this? I'm not a electrician
This way you don't need environment unfriendly batteries and space for them as well to store power, but having the meter run backwards would be awesome!
Thanks in advance!

[tingtong]

dream on?

solar in thailand is not the way yet to go...even though the sunny weather makes you think.

just put up with the standard electrical bills for the time being.

[cdmtdm]

tingtong i disagree ....compared to other countries solar in Thailand is cheap to instal ... so Hansje yes u can do it, but you must check with the local district elect supply office, to see if your permitted to instal in your area...

[hansje1980]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

dream on?

solar in thailand is not the way yet to go...even though the sunny weather makes you think.

just put up with the standard electrical bills for the time being.

just as a small project with few panels constantly when the sun shines make the power go backwards with about 100W and I will be happy. Not looking for replacing like my whole house with it haha. Just a geek here who wants to try things out without the need of storage, or receiving money for sending it back.

tingtong i disagree ....compared to other countries solar in Thailand is cheap to instal ... so Hansje yes u can do it, but you must check with the local district elect supply office, to see if your permitted to instal in your area...

what happens if I do it anyway, like how will they find out if I do it anyway? it will not work making it go backwards because I need approval? or do I need approval because it works but might not be allowed? thanks

[Naam]

just as a small project with few panels constantly when the sun shines make the power go backwards with about 100W and I will be happy. Not looking for replacing like my whole house with it haha. Just a geek here who wants to try things out without the need of storage, or receiving money for sending it back.

you mean you will switch off all your electric appliances in the house when the sun shines and make the meter run backward to make 3.6 Baht every day?

[gerry123]

just as a small project with few panels constantly when the sun shines make the power go backwards with about 100W and I will be happy. Not looking for replacing like my whole house with it haha. Just a geek here who wants to try things out without the need of storage, or receiving money for sending it back.

you mean you will switch off all your electric appliances in the house when the sun shines and make the meter run backward to make 3.6 Baht every day?

give the guy some room i think this is very interesting i would love to see the development of solar power

having said that i do think storage is the key factor keep this post going for more info (from those who know)

[cdmtdm]

just as a small project with few panels constantly when the sun shines make the power go backwards with about 100W and I will be happy. Not looking for replacing like my whole house with it haha. Just a geek here who wants to try things out without the need of storage, or receiving money for sending it back.

you mean you will switch off all your electric appliances in the house when the sun shines and make the meter run backward to make 3.6 Baht every day?

naam , why dont u use your seemingly high intelligence to add something constructive ? if not <deleted> go and lurk on your gold forum or pattaya forum whatever gets you some attention ...i have lost count of the threads you have destroyed ....smack in the mouth material...

[Lantern]

Any inverter that will make the meter run backwards will need to be approved. So as to shut down if the grid goes off

Reason being is that if the 240Vac grid goes down and your system is still pushing power to the grid the poor sparky trying to make repairs

is likely to get a belt.

[Naam]

just as a small project with few panels constantly when the sun shines make the power go backwards with about 100W and I will be happy. Not looking for replacing like my whole house with it haha. Just a geek here who wants to try things out without the need of storage, or receiving money for sending it back.

you mean you will switch off all your electric appliances in the house when the sun shines and make the meter run backward to make 3.6 Baht every day?

naam , why dont u use your seemingly high intelligence to add something constructive ? if not <deleted> go and lurk on your gold forum or pattaya forum whatever gets you some attention ...i have lost count of the threads you have destroyed ....smack in the mouth material...

so you think that pointing out making 3.6 Baht per day while the food in the freezer melts and the drinks warm up in the fridge is not constructive? get a life man!

[cdmtdm]

why point out an obvious blunder by mocking the guy ? with more than 25,000 posts on TV i suggest you get a life , or perhaps for once you might add something to a conversation other than demonstrating how big your ego is .... so what is your take on solar in Thailand ?

[tingtong]

why point out an obvious blunder by mocking the guy ? with more than 25,000 posts on TV i suggest you get a life , or perhaps for once you might add something to a conversation other than demonstrating how big your ego is .... so what is your take on solar in Thailand ?

hm, a seemingly negative comment, like mine, was actually also just trying to state the obvious.

is that a bad thing?

Naam, in fact has a point! ( or should say 3.6points?)

While you think solar is not that expensive to install here, i dont think ( or ever heard) that Thailand would offer similar incentives to do so than many other countries, including my not so sunny home country in EU.

A shame really, since Thailand has lots of sunshine, and a not so reliable grid.

But all that said, electricity is cheap, return on investment is questionable at best like this.

You can have your solar garden lights, but even they use strorage ( battery).

Without storage probably you can use it to pump water with a solar powered pump, yep, that might prove cost effective and satisfy the need for a hobby solar system.

But what I also meant, while electricity is so cheap in Thailand, it probably isnt the way to go.

Nor will 1-2 panel make justification for a new meter to install that can go backward a bit time to time....how could it, i dont really understand, as that few panel probably wouldnt produce more than a fridge or TV needs, and assume OP probably has both?

But hey, dont take posts wrong, it is a nice theory, and would love to see that solar is a viable alternative here...i just think it is not, from many points.

[Naam]

why point out an obvious blunder by mocking the guy ? with more than 25,000 posts on TV i suggest you get a life , or perhaps for once you might add something to a conversation other than demonstrating how big your ego is .... so what is your take on solar in Thailand ?

why wasting time repeating over and over again what was discussed ad nauseam (no it's not nauseum!) in several threads? pointing out obvious blunder (in whatever way) is in my [not so] humble opinion a duty to protect other participants to fall for that blunder.

by the way, i'm not quite sure whether the OP is really that naïve, lacking the most basic arithmetics / logical thinking or is he just trying to bullshit and wasting time of other TV-members.

and what do you call mocking? i stated plain facts and the "rofl" was clearly justified. now back to your dark corner and try to think hard how to get a life! if you have questions in that respect don't hesitate to ask.

[Bkungbank]

Last year caretaker government introduce this projects due laws where needed to apply licence to supply electricity to grid very troublesome where finally this project abandon pending to ament laws to able household to install solar power grid to earn income from egat. BUt if you think to direct into some big batteries then generat some fans or home appliance then it's okay done quitely but legal have to wait few more years for it.

[Crossy]

If you have an electromechanical meter (the type with a rotating disc), it will go backwards if a grid-tie solar inverter is generating more power than the house is using. it will go forwards again at night. Electronic meters 'should' also understand exported power but it would be wise to check if you have one of these.

If you are a net-user of power nobody will care about your solar provided you are using an inverter with island-protection (so it shuts down if the grid goes off).

It's always wise to talk to your local MEA/PEA office to tell them what you're doing mind.

Thailand does have a facility to pay extra for solar generated power, but the scheme was so poorly advertised and application was open for such a short time, that few ultra-small generators have signed up.

[Naam]

Last year caretaker government introduce this projects due laws where needed to apply licence to supply electricity to grid very troublesome where finally this project abandon pending to ament laws to able household to install solar power grid to earn income from egat. BUt if you think to direct into some big batteries then generat some fans or home appliance then it's okay done quitely but legal have to wait few more years for it.

are you joking? why should the latter be illegal?

[Forkinhades]

** Warning **

Any profanities in a post, and it will be removed, and the poster given a warning.

[Forkinhades]

profanities <deleted>

[IMHO]

Technically yes, you can spin the meter backwards. Legally no.

The official solar rooftop program had a very limited list of approved inverters they'd allow you to use :

https://www.pea.co.th/vspp/Documents/Rooftop/List%20of%20Inverter.pdf

No chance your PEA is going to approve you connecting to the grid in any way unless it's one of these, and highly unlikely they'll sanction you tying to the grid via the existing sell meter....

[AllanB]

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

[seedy]

Costs in CNX as of this spring.

125 amp deep cycle battery - 5,600

280 watt poly crystal panel - 5,500

310 watt mono crystal panel - 9,500

2000 watt pure sine wave inverter 24V input - 14,300

At those prices payback will be a long way down the road.

[Showbags]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

[Crossy]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

I'm intrigued by the 'solar generator' too, is it a domestic sized system??

[IMHO]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

I'm intrigued by the 'solar generator' too, is it a domestic sized system??

+1, what is it? According to Google Images, the 'solar generators' I'm seeing are just PV panels connected to a fancy looking inverter.. some of them with batteries and a charger circuit.

[Naam]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

I'm intrigued by the 'solar generator' too, is it a domestic sized system??

there's no such thing like a "solar generator" without photovoltaic panels. available are portable compact units containing batterie(s) and inverter charged by a separate panel.

http://www.mysolarbackup.com/

[Crossy]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

I'm intrigued by the 'solar generator' too, is it a domestic sized system??

there's no such thing like a "solar generator" without photovoltaic panels. available are portable compact units containing batterie(s) and inverter charged by a separate panel.

http://www.mysolarbackup.com/

It was the assertions that they are more efficient and cheaper that caused me intrigue.

[IMHO]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

My brother in law was still waiting to be connected to the grid after completing his house, so we chucked in a small Solar system, a small plug and play type, he is as pleased as punch with no bills at all. He is now not bothered with chasing them for a supply, it was a small cheap system though, not what you have in mind.

I am thinking out loud now, so don't laugh, but what about a budget solar system, backed up by mains? Maybe you could halve your bill for not much outlay. I would forget about selling any excess, the council guys are too busy collecting for their BMW fund, to bother with paying you.

I don't quite know why solar panels are being pushed worldwide, solar generators are much more efficient, cheaper too. Only see them in Spain.

Whats the difference ?

I'm intrigued by the 'solar generator' too, is it a domestic sized system??

there's no such thing like a "solar generator" without photovoltaic panels. available are portable compact units containing batterie(s) and inverter charged by a separate panel.

http://www.mysolarbackup.com/

LOL at some of the marketing spin at that link.. They must be imagining some post-apocalyptic scenario where the entire country is without power.. but in which case dust is probably enveloping the Earth rendering solar power useless

But the number one reason you don't want to be caught in a time of crisis with a gas generator is...

Gas Stations Can't Pump Gas Without Electricity!

Edited March 24, 2014 by IMHO

[Naam]

if all assertions on ThaiVisa were true our cars would run on tap water, our electric meters would spin backwards 24/7, our homes would be freezing cold at ambient temperatures of 36ºC, our wives were all royals, our mia nois former Ms Universe, our dogs would play stock markets successfully...

[cdmtdm]

i have a small project that will require pumps running 24/7 , for me the investment to install enough panels and grid tie to offset this running cost is a no brainer , no backup inverters etc , no batteries ..just panels and a grid tie .... the fact is the cost of elect is Not going down and the cost of solar components Will come down over time ... good quality gear is essential , not cheap garbage out of China .... have a google of some of the countries embracing Solar at the moment .. the solar farms up around KK , Nong Khai , Udon are massive .....

[Showbags]

i have a small project that will require pumps running 24/7 , for me the investment to install enough panels and grid tie to offset this running cost is a no brainer , no backup inverters etc , no batteries ..just panels and a grid tie .... the fact is the cost of elect is Not going down and the cost of solar components Will come down over time ... good quality gear is essential , not cheap garbage out of China .... have a google of some of the countries embracing Solar at the moment .. the solar farms up around KK , Nong Khai , Udon are massive .....

How much water are you pumping and to grow what ?

Apparently you cannot tie into the grid, all allocations given out and no more for the foreseeable future.

I had a tech from Solartron come to our place to quote just what you want to do, but not 24/7 to pump from a bore for rice.....it was circa 300k from memory and he confirmed no grid ability.

[cdmtdm]

i had the elect supply company come out to the village ,no problem with grid tie here , i need to offset the running cost of 2 x .75kw pumps ...24/7 operation ....