Solar panels at home, worth it?

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121278790#Comment_121278790

I use the gen 2 Tesla ‘dumb’ charger, but I can manually dial the cars charging rate from anything from 5 -32 amps… A Zappi would of course completely automate the process, but I still manage quite well, and for me this is where having a storage battery helps a lot as it can act as a buffer if solar production dips below what I’ve set the car to charge at, or if it goes above…. Bathe battery will take the excess…

Generally what I like to is let the home battery get to about 70-80% (if a lovely sunny day) and if it’s charging at say 2-3kW… I’ll set the car to charge at about 1.8-2.8kW, allowing the remaining trickle to continue going into the house battery or else to the Eddi when the house battery is full… I’ll also then throttle the car so enough excess goes into the Eddi before production drops off. And when excess drops below the minimum rate the car will charge at (1.15kW), I’ll stop the car charging and let any remaining excess go into the Eddi (if it hasn’t reached max temp yet).

ablelocks

for anyone considering getting a loan to install solar or other upgrades, it may be worth considering waiting until early next year

Ministers approve new low-interest retrofit loans for homeowners – The Irish Times

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121278790#Comment_121278790

The FIT are pretty similar to night rates. No real benefits to charging off solar

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121282075#Comment_121282075

I never charge off solar now. Always charge at night for 5c / kWh. During the day I get paid 27c / kWh for feeding my solar to the grid. Works out very well, even on a half decent day in winter my total electricity bill for the day is negative. Including all my electricity use, charging both my EVs, heating all my water and substantial electric room heating too. All because night rate is extremely cheap and FIT is extremely generous

maddness

Thanks for all the reply’s, a lot more than I thought I’d get!

It turns out we can’t get solar panels after all due to an extension we have on our roof!

micks_address

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121286191#Comment_121286191

Thats just too funny

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121286191#Comment_121286191

Get a second and third opinion on that. I was told I could only fit 7 panels by a few installers but ended up with 16. Even post a picture of your roof from google images here if you feel comfortable doing that for an opinion.

Buffman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121286191#Comment_121286191

I'll translate that for you. You were probably talking to an installer who only wants easy grant installs and doesn't want to tackle anything which might be slightly more challenging. Take a photo of your roof and send it to multiple installers and you'll eventually find a good one who'll be able to design a system for you.

fafy

I had an assessor down today, they measured up, and they came with a preprepared presentation with 16 panels initially,(from google maps) but i said i want to max out the panels, so, they can fit 18 panels to the roof, which will need to be landscape orientation mounted, to fit the 18 panels- Jinko 430 watt panels, 10 at back(facing East), 8 front(facing west), we could have gotten more panels up, but are restricted somewhat, by 3 velux windows in our attic conversion.

They suggested a Growatt hybrid invertor, and a 5kw battery, allthough i said i need 10kw of battery storage, which impacts the invertor model choice, I don’t need an Eddi water heater, as i plan on being on a very low night rate, or, use the battery to heat the water.

We have 2 EV’s + heatpump. We have more than enough space in the utility room, for a 10kw battery which will reside where the old gas boiler lived, and the invertor can be fitted nearby.

Tricky in my case was the cable runs, from the attic, down to the invertor, we have an ensuite up there, which would have been the easiest cable run, which makes the cable run more tricky, so they are sending out an electrician, to fully investigate and finalise how the cables will come down from the attic, with minimum disruption.

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121287261#Comment_121287261

How many strings are they giving you? Could you mount the battery and inverter in the attic?

can you the cables externally and then into the utility ?

fafy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121287399#Comment_121287399

What is a “string” ? Do you mean sets of interconnected panels, which is two, one on back roof, one on front roof.

Attic mounting for battery & inverter is possible, but that location can impact battery and inverter performance/efficiency, as tempertures vary significantly in the attic.

For cabling, ideally want to try and avoid external cabling, and i fully agree.

Repolho

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121282142#Comment_121282142

May I ask who your provider is?

My rates are substantially more than that and I've just switched!

unkel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295059#Comment_121295059

Pinergy 5c/kWh incl. VAT, FIT 27c/kWh incl. VAT, day rate 47c/kWh plus a €100 welcome bonus. Best deal in Ireland by a long shot, since the very first Energia EV deal nearly 3 years ago!

Maestro84

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121282142#Comment_121282142

I wonder will that 27c per KWH that they are paying last much longer..

jlang

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296825#Comment_121296825

Won't cost them to keep it through the winter as an incentive to switch as long as the day rate they get is well over that. Not a lot of sun and can't be too many doing the load a large battery at night and unload during the day thing. Though they may well want to cut it before the days get longer next year.

kris_2021

Any recomendation for Sout Tipp?

joe1303l

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121300662#Comment_121300662

Eco Solar in Kilsheelan were good to deal with for a Zappi Install, can’t vouch for them on PV Panels. Good standard of workmanship and a fair price. Had to wait a few weeks to get it done as they seemed pretty busy.

n.d.os

We put in 12 panels and a battery earlier this year. Two electric cars and to be honest we see very little return from them. The battery was a waste of money becaise the car drains it in 45 mins. I think solar panels are great for homes that use a normal amount of electricty but once you get into charging EVs they are hopeless. Still, they do save you a bit of money. Just don't bother buying a battery.

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121301239#Comment_121301239

You’re using the system wrong if you are using a home storage battery to charge an EV.

The majority of us with Solar PV also have an EV and it works fine for most of us…

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121301239#Comment_121301239

I think a battery makes if you charge it at night rate electricity while also charging the car at night. Use the battery during the day when the panels are not giving you the power your house needs. Of course the battery needs to be depleting each day for it to make sense. Using it to charge the EV seems senseless to me.

ted1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121301239#Comment_121301239

What size battery? And are you charging it during the boost ?

are you not charging your car at night ?

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121301239#Comment_121301239

You need to ask the people here who know how to utilise it best so you benefit from it. A good start would be what you got installed and maybe post it in another thread like this one https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058222496/solar-for-dummies/p75 not my call on the thread name!

n.d.os

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121301253#Comment_121301253

Firstly, the only time the battery charges is on a bright day so you can rule out most of the year here in Ireland. Ours has been sitting around 18% for weeks. People in the house all day every day.

Yes, I could phone the solar panel company and have them change the settings so the battery doesn't deplete at night but with two electric cars, charging both at night isn't always an option and for a time there we were only on a 4 hour window for low cost charging at night.

The batteries are tiny 5kwh and a complete waste of money. If you are generating electricity during the day, most of it will be running the house and you might as well send the rest back to the grid because it's a peanuts amount, even in the summer.

As I said in my previous post, solar panels are fine, just don't expect massive savings if you are a busy household. If you bill is a little over €100 per month and you don't run electric cars, your account will likely be credited on a bimonthly basis.

I genuinely believe that a lot of people fail to see how badly the panels work in the wet months. Batteries are worse. You will easily be 8 years getting your money back at which point technology will have moved on.

I've heard of people been quoted as low as 5-8 grand for 10 panels. Go for it but dont waste your money on a 5kwh battery. Sell your excess electricity back to the grid. I know batteries shouldn't be used to charge EVs but a time will come when a lot of people will have two on the driveway and as easy as it is for everyone to say charge at night or don't charge using the battery, the Solis systems are complicated and it's not as simple as hoping on a phone app to change the settings to suit your routine that day/week.

riddles

What is the life span of a solar panel?

How much does the tech advance comparing a panel from 7-8 years ago to today? Thx

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121303932#Comment_121303932

Why aren’t you charging the home battery at the same time you are charging the cars?

If you have a cheaper night rate, the only time the home storage battery should be depleting is when the electricity you pay for is at its most expensive…

You really need to be talking to either your installer or else some folk in the renewables forum who will be able to help you as it sounds like you are not making the best use of your system.

My (5kWh) battery is the best part of my system as it allows grid shifting, as well as a buffer for peaks and troughs in generation, and also to run the house for hours after the panels have stopped generating (while still in expensive dayrate)

I also have a Solis invertor and changing the charging settings couldn’t be simpler…

https://youtu.be/qCtriOPoS_Y?si=A6LJuauXDgzFKPgH

https://youtu.be/h1A80cSOrhA?si=K5K2O0LKPYyqUj2x

AndyBoBandy

FYI,

it’s winter now for me and I’m charging my battery to 100% every night, and it will not start depleting until 8am when the night rate ends…

for the last 6 weeks I was only charging it to about 55%…

Just because the battery isn’t being used by yourself to its full ability, it doesn’t mean you should rubbish the idea of having a battery…

rockdrummer4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121304027#Comment_121304027

And why not, he is giving his opinion, their is alot of ppl who posted how great it is to have a battery, good to get the other side.

Gumbo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121303932#Comment_121303932

Deffo a case of RTFM 😁

You need to learn how to use the system. My 5.2 kWh battery has been charged up regularly of the last few weeks so maybe something’s wrong with yours?

What is your daily generation?

what’s your daily import/export?

I wouldn’t be buying PV to charge a car, that was your first mistake/assumption. But it does help.

CBCTer

i found it is a nightmare to get someone to service a solar system. Mine stop working 2 years ago, the company that installed it is no longer in business, got another company to have a look at it, told me just needed a top up fluid but it was not the case, still not working. I have rang the company who provide the system who gave me a list of installer in Ireland and none of them serviced it despite installing it. I am now trying every plumber around where I live most of them know nothing about solar. One told me he will come next week so maybe there is hope, Because of it, I will recommend solar

AndyBoBandy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121304047#Comment_121304047

But it’s an opinion based on use of the system that isn’t maximising it’s potential… He’s waiting for sunny days to charge his battery, which he won’t get again until March/April…. So yes, doing that is a bit pointless and does make a battery pointless and not worth it…

its 8:11am and my battery is at 99% because there’s no chance the sun will run the house until around 11am if I’m lucky…. Then when that happens and production meets demand, the battery will stop depleting and whatever’s left will be for late afternoon when solar production stops completely in the hope that there’s enough juice left in the battery to make it to 11pm when the night rate starts again…

If I was doing what the op was doing, then I’d agree that batteries are a waste of money…. But as I actually use my battery to its full potential, I’m the complete opposite and think a battery is an essential part of a setup (especially in Winter)