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Mining - Solar PV

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  • 15-04-2021 4:31pm
    #1
    Alkers
    Registered Users Posts: 6,811 ✭✭✭


    Now that I have solar PV and am working from home, I'm playing with doing some ETH mining.

    Have found a few guides etc to follow but am wondering whether anyone has done something clever with managing to mine while the panels are generating an excess?

    Even something as rudimentary as scheduling it to start and stop an hour either side of sunrise and sunset would be a nice bit of automation.

    Any thoughts or input?


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    #2
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    From a financial point of view it's unwise to only mine during daylight hours (on your PV) as the revenue from mining is worth several times even the highest electricity day rate. So just mine 24/7 and be glad your PV is working for ya :D

    I got into PV myself soon after I started mining, even though at the time I had free electricity. I use the rigs to partially heat the house in winter and in summer I usually slow down the mining / sell some stuff


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    #3
    markmoto
    Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    Alkers wrote: »
    Now that I have solar PV and am working from home, I'm playing with doing some ETH mining.

    Have found a few guides etc to follow but am wondering whether anyone has done something clever with managing to mine while the panels are generating an excess?

    Even something as rudimentary as scheduling it to start and stop an hour either side of sunrise and sunset would be a nice bit of automation.

    Any thoughts or input?




    You would probably make more money selling electricity back to the grid.
    But love to see output in a few month.


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    #4
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    markmoto wrote: »
    You would probably make more money selling electricity back to the grid.
    But love to see output in a few month.

    You don't get paid for selling electricity to the grid.


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    #5
    markmoto
    Registered Users Posts: 788 ✭✭✭markmoto


    unkel wrote: »
    You don't get paid for selling electricity to the grid.


    Check this out
    https://greennews.ie/mss-scheme-energy-sold-back-to-grid/


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    #6
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Eh, yeah I'm well aware of that, we've been waiting for that for years ;)

    Not here yet though, it is supposed to be introduced in July. And it will only work if you have a smart meter, the vast majority of people do not yet have one. They are being rolled out but it could be 2-3 years before you have one. And then when all is setup for the feed in tariff, the rate is likely very low, barely worth your while unless you have a huge array and you don't use most of it yourself.


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    #7
    Alkers
    Registered Users Posts: 6,811 ✭✭✭Alkers


    unkel wrote: »
    From a financial point of view it's unwise to only mine during daylight hours (on your PV) as the revenue from mining is worth several times even the highest electricity day rate. So just mine 24/7 and be glad your PV is working for ya :D

    I got into PV myself soon after I started mining, even though at the time I had free electricity. I use the rigs to partially heat the house in winter and in summer I usually slow down the mining / sell some stuff

    Thanks for the reply, I'm just dipping my toes in with my current pc which is just about breaking even as it's fairly old - GTX 1050ti, hence wanting to opitmise for solar PV. You'd think it would be fairly easy to schedule programmes to run and PCs to turn on / off at certain times but I've not found anything particularly obvious.


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    #8
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Even a 1050ti is very profitable mining 24/7 even if you paid all of its electricity use at €0.20/kWh! Night rate and solar PV are small added benefits that reduce your cost.


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    #9
    Alkers
    Registered Users Posts: 6,811 ✭✭✭Alkers


    unkel wrote: »
    Even a 1050ti is very profitable mining 24/7 even if you paid all of its electricity use at €0.20/kWh! Night rate and solar PV are small added benefits that reduce your cost.

    Would you recommend ETH or something less mainstream?


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    #10
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    You can't mine ETH with a 1050ti unless you do it in Linux using lolminer in zombie mode. And even then you get badly reduced hash rates. Plenty of other coins you can mine though, many of them pretty profitable!

    I picked up a P106 (basically a GTX1060 3GB) there a few days ago for €60. It mines about €1 per day minus electricity costs of about €0.20. Gives you a good idea of profitability, your 1050ti does a bit better than that


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    #11
    randombar
    Registered Users Posts: 3,360 ✭✭✭randombar


    Looking for a rig to get into this, any suggestions?


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    #12
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    GaryCocs wrote: »
    Looking for a rig to get into this, any suggestions?

    You building it yourself and learning along the way or are you looking to purchase a turn key solution? Budget? Where are you placing the rig, does it have to be quiet?


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    #13
    randombar
    Registered Users Posts: 3,360 ✭✭✭randombar


    Yup, build myself, decent budget, would be happy to spend a few more quid if it saves elec or better return.


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    #14
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Problem is all GPUs are ludicrously overpriced. All modern stuff is now about 100% more expensive than full RRP :D :eek: Mid range cards selling for the guts of €1000. Each. And second hand older cards that sold for €40 about 6 months ago, sell for €250 now.

    Perfect storm. Mining is very profitable, so miners want nice GPUs and everyone wants to get into mining. Plus a lot of people with nothing to do because of COVID who spend their time gaming and desire nice GPUs. This big demand for cards is opposed to the huge shortage of global silicon chip production, so very little supply. Meaning prices go up and up.


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    #15
    randombar
    Registered Users Posts: 3,360 ✭✭✭randombar


    unkel wrote: »
    Problem is all GPUs are ludicrously overpriced. All modern stuff is now about 100% more expensive than full RRP :D :eek: Mid range cards selling for the guts of €1000. Each. And second hand older cards that sold for €40 about 6 months ago, sell for €250 now.

    Perfect storm. Mining is very profitable, so miners want nice GPUs and everyone wants to get into mining. Plus a lot of people with nothing to do because of COVID who spend their time gaming and desire nice GPUs. This big demand for cards is opposed to the huge shortage of global silicon chip production, so very little supply. Meaning prices go up and up.

    What kind of GPUs should I be looking out for? Are there older ones that are decent or ones for 500/600 new that would get me going?


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    #16
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Any GPU can mine as long as it has at least 3GB of video RAM. Unfortunately there are very, very few new GPUs to be found. Anywhere in the world.


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    #17
    randombar
    Registered Users Posts: 3,360 ✭✭✭randombar


    So the only important thing really is the GPU, what about the PSU, is it worth investing in an efficient one?


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    #18
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Good PSUs are also extremely expensive and hard to get. It often makes more financial sense to buy a cheaper, less powerful, less efficient PSU. Depending on your requirements too obviously. And how quiet you need the rig to be (i.e. if you have it in the house as opposed to in a garage / outbuilding / basement)

    I have mine in the house and I do have a couple of high end very quiet and very efficient PSUs. But I wouldn't buy them if I had to pay today's price for them


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    #19
    randombar
    Registered Users Posts: 3,360 ✭✭✭randombar


    unkel wrote: »
    Good PSUs are also extremely expensive and hard to get. It often makes more financial sense to buy a cheaper, less powerful, less efficient PSU. Depending on your requirements too obviously. And how quiet you need the rig to be (i.e. if you have it in the house as opposed to in a garage / outbuilding / basement)

    I have mine in the house and I do have a couple of high end very quiet and very efficient PSUs. But I wouldn't buy them if I had to pay today's price for them

    Thinking I'll put it out in the Garage all right so noise isn't an issue. Where should I go to buy all this stuff? Also any decent posts/threads on how to get set up?


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    #20
    unkel
    Registered Users Posts: 64,764 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Lots and lots on YouTube. If garage and noise is no problem then you can get away with a cheap Chinese mining PSU (roughly €100 second hand) or a server PSU. Where to buy? Wherever you can find them :D eBay, DoneDeal, Adverts, FaceBook, try all the usual online shops as well, you might get lucky (but you will likely spend a lot of time searching)


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