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Grant solar panel instructions... Need help!

  • 09-06-2019 7:44pm
    #1
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭


    I recently moved to a house with solar panels (house built about 8 years ago). But I'm not sure I'm operating the system properly. I downloaded the instructions but I can't make head nor tail of them.
    Today for example, water was lukewarm at 5pm(had central heating for water on for 30 mins at 6am). I know it was showery but sun was shining a fair bit also. Can anyone give me a dummies guide how to best operate this solar panel system? Or how do I even know its working?? Please excuse my ignorance!


Comments

  • #2
    Rows Grower
    Registered Users Posts: 7,785 ✭✭✭Rows Grower


    toby2111 wrote: »
    I recently moved to a house with solar panels (house built about 8 years ago). But I'm not sure I'm operating the system properly. I downloaded the instructions but I can't make head nor tail of them.
    Today for example, water was lukewarm at 5pm(had central heating for water on for 30 mins at 6am). I know it was showery but sun was shining a fair bit also. Can anyone give me a dummies guide how to best operate this solar panel system? Or how do I even know its working?? Please excuse my ignorance!

    Going from memory on when I got my system installed about a decade ago I was told the best thing about solar panels is they will bring cold water to about 7 degrees even on a cloudy day.

    This is where you will save on traditional fuel costs, ie. it costs very little to get from 7 degrees to hot water compared to going from "cold" water to hot.

    Let the solar panels do their job and then top up the water heating with whatever other source of fuel you are using.

    It works for us anyway, after a nice day we stick the oil on to heat the water for twenty minutes and are sorted for a hot bath.

    After a very nice sunny day there is no need to put on the oil boiler.

    Solar panels need to be serviced every few years too, a guy runs some blue dye through the system, charges about 200 euro and moves on to the next three or four jobs he has that day.

    "Very soon we are going to Mars. You wouldn't have been going to Mars if my opponent won, that I can tell you. You wouldn't even be thinking about it."

    Donald Trump, March 13th 2018.



  • #3
    Gumbo
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 38,347 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    You should have better than that. I had a full cylinder of hot water (200L) today by midday.


  • #4
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    We paid a guy a lot of money to top up the glycol or whatever it is... He said it should work but I still don't know if its working or not!! I never programmed the water to come on for a few days last week and we had no hot water in the morning for a shower.... I know it wasn't very sunny last week but should it have been cold??


  • #5
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    kceire wrote: »
    You should have better than that. I had a full cylinder of hot water (200L) today by midday.

    Was that on solar alone?


  • #6
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    This is my control panel... If anyone can advise on best (easy) way to programme it.... Maybe it's programmed incorrect.


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  • #7
    Rows Grower
    Registered Users Posts: 7,785 ✭✭✭Rows Grower


    kceire wrote: »
    You should have better than that. I had a full cylinder of hot water (200L) today by midday.

    I know, but for the little amount of times we would have a bath instead of a shower it's easy to justify spending the 200 euro on oil.

    "Very soon we are going to Mars. You wouldn't have been going to Mars if my opponent won, that I can tell you. You wouldn't even be thinking about it."

    Donald Trump, March 13th 2018.



  • #8
    homah_7ft
    Registered Users Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭homah_7ft


    That looks to be the same system as mine and we had a tank of piping hot water around noon on solar alone (normal for this time of the year). The system was here when we bought the house and luckily never had to go at the control box. If I can find out anything I will let you know.


  • #9
    R11
    Registered Users Posts: 551 ✭✭✭R11


    homah_7ft wrote: »
    That looks to be the same system as mine and we had a tank of piping hot water around noon on solar alone (normal for this time of the year). The system was here when we bought the house and luckily never had to go at the control box. If I can find out anything I will let you know.
    I'd appreciate that ,thanks.
    Would you(or anyone else) have enough for 2 showers in the morning?Or would you need to pop on the timer to heat water for half an hour each morning?


  • #10
    homah_7ft
    Registered Users Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭homah_7ft


    We have a pumped shower and we have enough hot water for several showers in the morning at this time of the year.


  • #11
    Gumbo
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 38,347 Mod ✭✭✭✭Gumbo


    toby2111 wrote: »
    Was that on solar alone?

    Yeah. Solar PV. Been like that for the last 6 weeks give or take.


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  • #12
    R11
    Registered Users Posts: 551 ✭✭✭R11


    homah_7ft wrote: »
    We have a pumped shower and we have enough hot water for several showers in the morning at this time of the year.
    Ok,mine must be banjaxed so. As I said I left hot water unprogrammed during the week and water was too cold to shower. So obviously something is not working properly. Thats why I think maybe the settings on our panel are incorrect,as previous owner never bothered with solar panels....


  • #13
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    Took this picture at 7.10am... Its the days production from the control panel, its 0.00. So is C2, total production.... That's not right is it?


  • #14
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    Just saw that I've been posting under my name on my phone and my wife's while on laptop... Apologies for confusion!


  • #15
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    We had a good few hours of sunshine here this evening. Water is not exactly boiling, just warm. Neighbour said his is piping hot. Is there anything I can try before calling for someone to have a look at it?


  • #16
    n97 mini
    Registered Users Posts: 8,295 ✭✭✭n97 mini


    toby2111 wrote: »
    We had a good few hours of sunshine here this evening. Water is not exactly boiling, just warm. Neighbour said his is piping hot. Is there anything I can try before calling for someone to have a look at it?

    There's another thread on here somewhere, where the temperature probe that turns on the circulating pump wasn't correctly installed, so the pump was never coming on. Maybe start looking at that end of things?


  • #17
    toby2111
    Registered Users Posts: 2,280 ✭✭✭toby2111


    n97 mini wrote: »
    There's another thread on here somewhere, where the temperature probe that turns on the circulating pump wasn't correctly installed, so the pump was never coming on. Maybe start looking at that end of things?

    OK, thanks. I'll check that out.
    I put the pump on manually earlier, it goes back to auto after 30 minutes. Water not any hotter and production still at 0....


  • #18
    SteelyDanJalapeno
    Registered Users Posts: 14,234 ✭✭✭✭SteelyDanJalapeno


    Hi did you ever figure this out?

    Having similar issues


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