Solar panel: sink or bath switch

masterboy123 · 26-09-2020 4:02pm #1

We have moved to a new house with A3 rating and there are solar panels. There is a Bath/Sink switch which is supposedly attached to our solar panels to provide hot water on first floor only. Please see attached image.

My question is do we leave it Turned On constantly and how will it effect our bills?

26-09-2020 4:58pm

Impossible to say how a immersion switch operates with solar panels without knowing how it is wired. I suggest that you direct this question to the person that wired it.

corglass · 26-09-2020 6:50pm

masterboy123 wrote: »

We have moved to a new house with A3 rating and there are solar panels. There is a Bath/Sink switch which is supposedly attached to our solar panels to provide hot water on first floor only. Please see attached image.

My question is do we leave it Turned On constantly and how will it effect our bills?

A quick way to test is to count the number of revolutions of you electricity meter in 1min in both on and off position during the day.

If there's a difference then power is coming from grid

John.G · 26-09-2020 8:05pm

masterboy123 wrote: »

We have moved to a new house with A3 rating and there are solar panels. There is a Bath/Sink switch which is supposedly attached to our solar panels to provide hot water on first floor only. Please see attached image.

My question is do we leave it Turned On constantly and how will it effect our bills?

There are two types of solar panels, solar thermal which heats the water via a coil in the HW cylinder and this can be topped up with a dual immersion which works in the normal way.
The other type which I assume you have produces electricity and is paralleled with the mains so that if you produce in excess of requirements then it exports to the grid but you don't get paid for it. Because of this a diverter can be fitted which will divert this excess automatically to a heating (immersion type) element in the cylinder. Don't know if this is your system or not, also don't get first floor only reference.

Spocker · 26-09-2020 8:18pm

Post a picture of the equipment in your hotpress. What type of solar panels are they, flat or tubes?

masterboy123 · 26-09-2020 9:30pm

Thanks you all!

The solar panels are flat. There is a grid in our attic which shows some sort of numbers, I suppose those are the electricity unit generated by the solar panel.

We have digital ESB meter, how do I calculate usage on this with please? @Corglass: how do I check revolutions per minute on this?

Please find attached picture of the boiler :

27-09-2020 11:41am

masterboy123 wrote: »

There is a grid in our attic which shows some sort of numbers

Can you post a photo of this?

We have digital ESB meter, how do I calculate usage on this with please? @Corglass: how do I check revolutions per minute on this?

There aren’t any on these newer meters.

Please find attached picture of the boiler

This is a photo of a hot water cylinder not a boiler.

LeBash · 27-09-2020 12:00pm

AFAIK, the solar just heats the water regardless and thats just an immersion switch.

Thats how my install thats 12 years old works anyway.

There are some summer mornings where I have to run off hot water with no heating on at all.

John.G · 27-09-2020 1:06pm

Still not sure if the ops is solar thermal or not?.

Sleeper12 · 27-09-2020 3:50pm

LeBash wrote:

There are some summer mornings where I have to run off hot water with no heating on at all.

You might want to have your system serviced as you shouldn't have to do this.

masterboy123 · 28-09-2020 8:50pm

My apologies for the delay in posting the pictures.

Please see attached images of boiler system and solar panel system which is in the attic.

Let me know your thoughts how our solar system is working :

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John.G · 28-09-2020 9:14pm

As suggested above I think you will have to see how its all tied in and how the diverter, the electric immersion and the heating coil all inter act together, but since it is a new house then there are probably lots of your type of systems around so should be relatively easy to get hold of how it works.

liveandnetural · 29-09-2020 6:21pm

"My question is do we leave it Turned On constantly and how will it effect our bills?"

your esb bill will increases

if you have in on during the day the pv solar will generating electricity and in turn heat your water for no cost
if you have it on in the evening/night (no sunlight) you will use the esb to heat your water

there's is another school of thought about leaving immersions on 24/7 but we wont open that can of worms

masterboy123 · 29-09-2020 9:38pm

Thank you very much!!

It makes sense now. I did get hot water upstairs without turning on the boiler this afternoon. But later in the evening it was luke warm water and when i turned on this switch for 5 min, then got really hot water again.

liveandnetural wrote: »

"My question is do we leave it Turned On constantly and how will it effect our bills?"

your esb bill will increases

if you have in on during the day the pv solar will generating electricity and in turn heat your water for no cost
if you have it on in the evening/night (no sunlight) you will use the esb to heat your water

there's is another school of thought about leaving immersions on 24/7 but we wont open that can of worms

Solar panel: sink or bath switch

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