Where can you buy a grid tie inverter?

unkel

That can be used safely and legally in Ireland? And how much are they? Any online sites where you can buy one?

I'm not talking a big system here, max a few hundred watts. I'll buy and install one or a few PV panels myself

Not out to save money here, more for educational purposes to show the kids

Do you need to register with the ESB to qualify for the feed in payments? If so, how to go about that?

quentingargan

Unfortunately, in Ireland the ESB has a unique standard to which inverters must conform. The UK uses G83, and a new standard in Europe is EN50438. But Ireland has unique variances to EN50438 which are tighter in relation to permitted voltages and frequencies.

That means expensive testing for anyone wanting to sell inverters in Ireland. So far, only three companies I know of have done this, so that reduces the field a bit.

If you have a conforming inverter, then details of how to get paid for your exports are here.

I don't know the position in relation to using other non-conforming inverters if you should decide that this is just for fun and you don't want to be paid for your exports.

Here is the rub though... while ESB makes microgenerators conform to unique standards and certify their inverters, in practice, the grid works to a different, much lower standard. This often means that our inverters shut down because the grid itself is working outside a range in which our inverters are permitted to work:rolleyes:

unkel

quentingargan wrote: »

That means expensive testing for anyone wanting to sell inverters in Ireland. So far, only three companies I know of have done this, so that reduces the field a bit.

Rough idea of the price of one? Say for 300W? Please PM me if you feel you can't post here.

quentingargan wrote: »

If you have a conforming inverter, then details of how to get paid for your exports are here.

Oh I don't like this bit:

ESB wrote:

When the micro-generator has been installed and we have received the necessary ETCI electrical certification we will install import/export metering.

So that means that I have to use pay an approved sparky to fill in an official form and then the ESB have to physically install some equipment at my home? At a cost?

quentingargan

The smallest one I know of that has been brought through certification is 1.2kw. There aren't any smaller ones that I know of meeting the Irish standard. Ballpark price for that is about €1K including VAT.

And yes, you will need a registered sparky to fill in the form.

ESB will install the buy&sell meter for free, but that arrangement is only confirmed to December this year. They may or may not renew it after that I suppose...

Its an expensive game to demonstrate the system. If you decided to use up the inverters capacity, you would be installing about 1.3 to 1.4kw of panels, costing you some €2,750 to €3K. So a €4K investment might give you about €200 to €220 income.

The alternative Heath-Robinson option for a few panels might be batteries powering a few lighting circuits in the house with a modified sine wave inverter.

unkel

Thanks quentin. I think I'll pass for now. I'll check again in about a years time what the story is

In the mean time, I have a 5W PV panel on my shed, an old car battery and a cheap inverter. They work. They'll have to do for now for educational purposes