Domestic Solar PV Quotes 2020

Deagol

maw wrote: »

no idea, this is as received on quote today

You'd want to get clarification of what they are quoting as it's not clear which type of inverter they are offering.

Wouldn't recommend the Alpha battery either. They have the same issue as the Pylontech's I see frequently offered. That '5.7kw' model has a maximum output current of only 56A - this means the maximum power output from it is around 2.4kw. Between base load and a cooker ring that's as much as it will do.

maw

Deagol wrote: »

You'd want to get clarification of what they are quoting as it's not clear which type of inverter they are offering.

thanks a mill. does it seem way off or reasonable otherwise?

MAULBROOK

maw wrote: »

thanks a mill. does it seem way off or reasonable otherwise?

About €1500 too much.

slave1

maw wrote: »

how does this compare??


Battery System (Alpha)

3.25kp of modules kitted to a 3kW Inverter

14 x Bisol Premium 325w Monocrystalline modules (All black modules)*

Bisol Mounting system on a Slate roof

1 x Projoy Fire Safety Switch

AC Switch Gear

Alpha 5 kWp Inverter kitted to 5.7kWh storage capacity

Costing

€10000(inclusive of VAT)

+€500(Eddie Hot Water Diverter)

€3000 (SEAI Grant)

€7500 Final cost after grant incentive

Previous poster was correct, you need to get clarity to get that 3kW inverter off the quote and that quote is thousands off what you should be paying.
Also get quote without a battery, work out the payback on battery, it's massive even doubtful it would pay back before it pops it's clogs.
Better off with more panels and a straight single phase dual MPPT inverter like Solis, that's the quote you need.
Post back their update.

graememk

Looks like the Solar inverter and battery inverter are separate devices.

things dont add up, 14 325 panels is 4.55kwp.

MAULBROOK

graememk wrote: »

Looks like the Solar inverter and battery inverter are separate devices.

things dont add up, 14 325 panels is 4.55kwp.

The more i read this the sloppier it gets. Like they couldn't be arsed.

Lleyn elec

Where is the best site to purchase panels and inverters from?
I’m a registered electrical contractor and have a 63x40 shed with a south facing roof on one.
Looking at a 6kW system, is there any model of inverter that is popular and type tested? Just looking at the NC6 form here at the moment.

maw

very helpful guys, thanks a lot. will let you know how it goes. more quotes to receive yet

MAULBROOK

Lleyn elec wrote: »

Where is the best site to purchase panels and inverters from?
I’m a registered electrical contractor and have a 63x40 shed with a south facing roof on one.
Looking at a 6kW system, is there any model of inverter that is popular and type tested? Just looking at the NC6 form here at the moment.

https://solartricity.ie/

Solis works for me,

graememk

MAULBROOK wrote: »

https://solartricity.ie/

Solis works for me,

Yeah Good guys there at solartricity, Register yourself as a trade too, Might start a whole new aspect of your business!

Midsummer is another one, Register there too and compare.

I have 20 of the 360w Longi on a 6kw inverter.

Geeyfds53573

Deagol wrote: »

You'd want to get clarification of what they are quoting as it's not clear which type of inverter they are offering.

Wouldn't recommend the Alpha battery either. They have the same issue as the Pylontech's I see frequently offered. That '5.7kw' model has a maximum output current of only 56A - this means the maximum power output from it is around 2.4kw. Between base load and a cooker ring that's as much as it will do.

If you have multiple Pylontechs I assume a higher output is higher?

graememk

Geeyfds53573 wrote: »

If you have multiple Pylontechs I assume a higher output is higher?

Yep, they are wired in parallel When you have more than one unit, They are 15S (15 cells, 3.2v) 48V nominal Voltage

So with 2 you can pull 112A which is about 5.3kw, if the inverter supports it.

Tarant

graememk wrote: »

Yep, they are wired in parallel When you have more than one unit, They are 15S (15 cells, 3.2v) 48V nominal Voltage

So with 2 you can pull 112A which is about 5.3kw, if the inverter supports it.

Be aware for the Pylontech, if the temp is below 13c it only charges at 10 amp x 52volt = 500 watt (discharge is still 25 amp = 1.25kw)
Was thinking of designing a heater for it (oneday)

Geeyfds53573

graememk wrote: »

Yep, they are wired in parallel When you have more than one unit, They are 15S (15 cells, 3.2v) 48V nominal Voltage

So with 2 you can pull 112A which is about 5.3kw, if the inverter supports it.

Thanks a mill glad I asked so Max AC 5000v may not cut it but an inverter Max AC @5500v will

slave1

Lleyn elec wrote: »

Where is the best site to purchase panels and inverters from?
I’m a registered electrical contractor and have a 63x40 shed with a south facing roof on one.
Looking at a 6kW system, is there any model of inverter that is popular and type tested? Just looking at the NC6 form here at the moment.

If you’re a registered electrician why not purchase up North, if properly invoiced/delivered to a ROI business address you should get exclusive of VAT as the gear was immediately exported from NI.

Deagol

Geeyfds53573 wrote: »

Thanks a mill glad I asked so Max AC 5000v may not cut it but an inverter Max AC @5500v will

It's to do with maximum output current from the battery. It's not quoted in the quotes - you need to go to manufacturer site and look at specifications.

To get maximum output power (watts) you multiply the maximum sustained current (be careful, lots of them quote a peak value which is only for 10sec) by the battery voltage (usually 48volts).

So for the Alpha 5.7kw - it's a 48v x 56amps (sustained max)=2688watts or ~2.7kw. Note that there are other things that feed in like ambient temperature etc but the max is the best to look at as it gives best scenario.

If you want to see the difference - look at Pylontech 5kw vs Puredrive 5kw max current...both 5kw but one is ~50A output and other is ~100A.

Geeyfds53573

Deagol wrote: »

It's to do with maximum output current from the battery. It's not quoted in the quotes - you need to go to manufacturer site and look at specifications.

To get maximum output power (watts) you multiply the maximum sustained current (be careful, lots of them quote a peak value which is only for 10sec) by the battery voltage (usually 48volts).

So for the Alpha 5.7kw - it's a 48v x 56amps (sustained max)=2688watts or ~2.7kw. Note that there are other things that feed in like ambient temperature etc but the max is the best to look at as it gives best scenario.

If you want to see the difference - look at Pylontech 5kw vs Puredrive 5kw max current...both 5kw but one is ~50A output and other is ~100A.

Thanks think I understand ... well so so ...but what are you looking for on the inverter size to see if the inverter supports it?

Deagol

Geeyfds53573 wrote: »

Thanks think I understand ... well so so ...but what are you looking for on the inverter size to see if the inverter supports it?

Technically - inverter changes DC to AC, the solar panels produce DC power, our grid is AC. So the convention is that inverter refers to solar panel to grid power.

For battery systems the convention is that you use a 'Hybrid' inverter.

A hybrid inverter has effectively two subsystems:

1) A standard DC-AC converter (the inverter).
2) A battery charging circuit (DC-DC)

And because of that it gets a wee bit complicated.

Lets take a 5kw inverter : generally, the 5kw part refers to the maximum DC-AC conversion rate. But, for the battery side - you need to be sure the battery can output at x rate of current. AND, what can the inverter do from the battery. That's because the batteries are 48V x max current (current * volts=watts/kilowatts). Whereas the panels voltage is summed (the panels are wired in series so each one you add makes voltage higher NOT current higher) so the voltage from the panels is much higher (and hence lower current).

So: golden rule I guess. The max current output of the inverter is much more important than the Kw output value.

Reading this back I'm not sure it's coherrent... sorry...

Best I can say is ask people here about specific models and we can probably better answer!

graememk

Deagol wrote: »

Technically - inverter changes DC to AC, the solar panels produce DC power, our grid is AC. So the convention is that inverter refers to solar panel to grid power.

For battery systems the convention is that you use a 'Hybrid' inverter.

A hybrid inverter has effectively two subsystems:

1) A standard DC-AC converter (the inverter).
2) A battery charging circuit (DC-DC)

And because of that it gets a wee bit complicated.

Lets take a 5kw inverter : generally, the 5kw part refers to the maximum DC-AC conversion rate. But, for the battery side - you need to be sure the battery can output at x rate of current. AND, what can the inverter do from the battery. That's because the batteries are 48V x max current (current * volts=watts/kilowatts). Whereas the panels voltage is summed (the panels are wired in series so each one you add makes voltage higher NOT current higher) so the voltage from the panels is much higher (and hence lower current).

So: golden rule I guess. The max current output of the inverter is much more important than the Kw output value.

Reading this back I'm not sure it's coherrent... sorry...

Best I can say is ask people here about specific models and we can probably better answer!

Havent looked into hybrid inverter much.

I am wondering is there even a DC-DC converter in it. Solar is 200-300V DC

And they all can charge from the grid.

It would be easier to put it all to AC and then just use a transformer and rectifier to charge the batteries - It would also need to have an inverter that can run in parallel with the Solar inverter. (and also on 48v) It cant use the same inverter that it uses for the solar.

So basically its a AC storage inverter and normal Solar inverter all in one box.

Which also means that if you crack it open, you might be able to stick a CT on the battery side of the hybrid inverter (although... warranty is out the window)

Deagol

graememk wrote: »

Havent looked into hybrid inverter much.

I am wondering is there even a DC-DC converter in it. Solar is 200-300V DC

And they all can charge from the grid.

It would be easier to put it all to AC and then just use a transformer and rectifier to charge the batteries - It would also need to have an inverter that can run in parallel with the Solar inverter. (and also on 48v) It cant use the same inverter that it uses for the solar.

So basically its a AC storage inverter and normal Solar inverter all in one box.

Which also means that if you crack it open, you might be able to stick a CT on the battery side of the hybrid inverter (although... warranty is out the window)

I would guess there's a DC-DC converter - doing it via an AC xfmr and bridge rectifier or similar would be very inefficient and more expensive. But without looking at the specs carefully and maybe opening one up it's not something I know for sure.

EDIT: Yes, checked it: MPPT is a DC-DC converter and that seems to be the common denominator with Hybrid.

Geeyfds53573

Deagol wrote: »

Technically - inverter changes DC to AC, the solar panels produce DC power, our grid is AC. So the convention is that inverter refers to solar panel to grid power.

For battery systems the convention is that you use a 'Hybrid' inverter.

A hybrid inverter has effectively two subsystems:

1) A standard DC-AC converter (the inverter).
2) A battery charging circuit (DC-DC)

And because of that it gets a wee bit complicated.

Lets take a 5kw inverter : generally, the 5kw part refers to the maximum DC-AC conversion rate. But, for the battery side - you need to be sure the battery can output at x rate of current. AND, what can the inverter do from the battery. That's because the batteries are 48V x max current (current * volts=watts/kilowatts). Whereas the panels voltage is summed (the panels are wired in series so each one you add makes voltage higher NOT current higher) so the voltage from the panels is much higher (and hence lower current).

So: golden rule I guess. The max current output of the inverter is much more important than the Kw output value.

Reading this back I'm not sure it's coherrent... sorry...

Best I can say is ask people here about specific models and we can probably better answer!

Thanks Deagol

graememk

Deagol wrote: »

I would guess there's a DC-DC converter - doing it via an AC xfmr and bridge rectifier or similar would be very inefficient and more expensive. But without looking at the specs carefully and maybe opening one up it's not something I know for sure.

EDIT: Yes, checked it: MPPT is a DC-DC converter and that seems to be the common denominator with Hybrid.

Mppt is the tracking hardware to get the most out of the panels, is nearly on all inverters (basically all grid tied ones)
All we need is bigclive.com to do a tear down on one and see how it really works.

phester28

Does anyone know if a hybrid inverter will supplement the solar on high demands. I.E When you want to boil your kettle

Deagol

phester28 wrote: »

Does anyone know if a hybrid inverter will supplement the solar on high demands. I.E When you want to boil your kettle

Not sure what you mean? Do you mean if the battery is charged and you go from being net producing to consuming will the battery make up the shortfall? If so, yes - inverter constantly monitors and balances to use battery in case were load is higher than solar is supplying.

There are settings in the inverters were you can adjust the behaviour as well - but I've left mine well alone

championc

phester28 wrote: »

Does anyone know if a hybrid inverter will supplement the solar on high demands. I.E When you want to boil your kettle

I assume you are looking to clarify as to whether the kettle can draw a COMBINATION of both Solar and Battery sourced energy simultaneously. If so, then yes.

Anyone use solarpvs.ie, just looking for reviews as I am looking at getting them to do mine. Its gilroys?

Would you count it normal to ask for a deposit?

Deagol

Deleted User wrote: »

Anyone use solarpvs.ie, just looking for reviews as I am looking at getting them to do mine. Its gilroys?

Would you count it normal to ask for a deposit?

Don't know anything about them but the website is very amateur - spelling and grammar errors in abundance. If that's the care and attention they take doing their work then I'd be questioning the care and attention they might take doing the solar install. Could be that they just hired a cheap web designer of course but you'd expect someone would take a good look at their own 'shop window' .....

I'd recommend to make sure you get some recommendations from other clients first... :cool:

BryanF

Deleted User wrote: »

Anyone use solarpvs.ie, just looking for reviews as I am looking at getting them to do mine. Its gilroys?

Would you count it normal to ask for a deposit?

recommendation /comments on specific companies by PM thanks

samdeluxjones

Got a quote from one of the wholesalers mentioned in this thread.

Longi 360w @ €93.29 X 16

Solis 5Kw Hybrid €1029.30

Pylon2.4Kwh battery €680 X 2

16 panel tree system ground mount €1500

€160 delivery.

Is there much difference or advantages going for the modular lithium ion batteries or the ones that look like car batteries apart from cost?

What are main reasons for choosing between 12, 24 & 48v batteries?

Thanks.

Deagol

samdeluxjones wrote: »

What are main reasons for choosing between 12, 24 & 48v batteries?

Thanks.

Inverter is current limited - so for example assuming inverter has max output of 100amps:: 12v X 100Amps= 1.2kw / 24v X 100amps=2.4kw etc.