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My 16kWp Domestic System

  • 18-03-2021 2:33pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭


    TL;DR I've almost completed the install of my domestic single phase solar PV system that provides:

    - 16kWp of DC power.
    - 11kWp of AC power.
    - 18.9kWh of battery storage.
    - 6kWp export limitation.
    - Full property 20A backup power from battery and PV panels.
    - 14MWh of energy per annum.

    I started with a "smaller" system (10.24kWp DC / 9.2kWp AC, 12.6kWh battery) but have the deposit paid to add a third array that's facing WNW plus more storage. Once this is finished I'll have 5.76kWp SSW, 4.48kWp ESE and 5.76kWp WNW installed on an outbuilding. Here's the parts list:

    50x 320W Solitek SOLID Pro M60 Glass-Glass Panels
    1x 5kW SolaX X1 Hybrid Inverter
    1x 6kW SolarEdge SE6000H Inverter
    32x SolarEdge P370 Optimisers
    3x 6.3kWh SolaX Triple Power Batteries
    K2 Roof Mounting
    Eddi Hot Water Diverter
    Zappi v2 Car Charger

    I went with these panels as they've a good warranty and power degradation guarantee. I also live very near to the coast and the all-glass structure is ideal for salty sea mist we get oftentimes.

    The SolaX inverter is ideal as it supports a large amount of high voltage battery storage, export limiting and also backup power supply if the grid goes down. I have a changeover switch ahead of my main consumer unit that I flick over if power goes and voila, power from stored energy and PV for everything (e.g. our well pump). It supports setting one max battery discharge level for normal grid tied mode and another for backup power mode, so I can always keep some energy in the tank in case of a power cut. It can also harvest excess energy from the second inverter to charge the batteries like a typical AC-coupled battery.

    The SolarEdge inverter is being used for its massive DC oversizing capability, I'll have the East/West panels on this inverter. It also supports export limiting so I have the option of using the functionality on both inverters to be doubly safe.

    We have a 220L hot water tank so will have plenty of capacity to soak up excess for showers with the diverter and my EV has a 64kWh battery too for even more self usage.

    We currently use about 9MWh of energy per annum. Eventually when we switch to having two EVs and replace our OFCH with a heatpump, I'd imagine most if not all of the excess I'll be generating will get used up. As it stands, we have a fully electric kitchen plus some other high load devices that will drain 8.5kWh of battery power by 9pm most days so extra battery plus a "late in the evening" west array is crucial.

    The install for this will have taken 5 days labor in total, including 2-3 electricians each day and about half a dozen roofers. If anyone wants to know my installer you can reach out via PM. No chance I was DIYing this, haven't the time or expertise. For the craic I did price up a comparable system on midsummer.ie and it was breaking €20k easily with just the main parts, no mounting, cabling etc... so I did pay more than that certainly but not multiples of. I did also get the grant.

    I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day. Or if I'm exporting power and forgot to plug in my EV, I'll get a notification on my phone to remind me. I've also automated some cryptocurrency mining machines (~1kW) to only turn on when there is excess power from PV or when the battery in already empty to avoid wasting stored battery energy. I'm planning to add a destratification pump to my hot water cylinder to allow the Eddi to dump even more power into the hot water tank as my immersion heater is only half length. I'm considering adding wind forecast-based pre-emptive battery charge up from the grid on the eve of weather warnings too.

    One thing I noticed over the winter just gone is battery temperature is important, namely keeping them above 0-5c. I'll need to build a mechanism to ensure this next winter (as they're in the outbuilding), I'm thinking a removable enclosure that I can put a small thermostatic heater (500W) in to keep them from shutting down.

    With a generous FIT of 5~7c, I might actually break even in the lifetime of this investment (everything is warrantied 20-30 years), but I also might fall short by a couple grand. And I'm ok with that. I'd consider myself an enthusiast. I want the "comfort" features like backup power. Can you put a price on the piece of mind of having power during a storm in the winter with a young family? And I have the added benefit of saving many tonnes of CO2 per year. Even when the Irish grid is eventually fully decarbonised, I'll still be more efficient as I'll generate power on site with not nearly as much loss as the grid has in transmission of power.

    Will add photos when its finally complete, should be within a month. Happy to answer any questions people may have.


«1345678

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 9,219 ✭✭✭markpb


    mp3guy wrote: »
    I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day. Or if I'm exporting power and forgot to plug in my EV, I'll get a notification on my phone to remind me.

    That's pretty cool!


  • Registered Users Posts: 235 ✭✭Patmwgs


    Thats a pretty impressive system. To get more self use you could up your hot water tank to 500 litres and it will make a nice storage backup. If your floor can take the weight.
    What county are you in? if we ever get back on flights we might spot that size from the air.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    Patmwgs wrote: »
    Thats a pretty impressive system. To get more self use you could up your hot water tank to 500 litres and it will make a nice storage backup. If your floor can take the weight.
    What county are you in? if we ever get back on flights we might spot that size from the air.

    I'm hesitant to make any more moves on the hot water tank as we'll likely replace it whenever we get the heatpump. The current one loses round 0.5c an hour, sometimes more, if it's not used which I'm not really happy with.

    I'm in Cork. You can see my house when landing there, though I haven't taken a flight since getting the panels.


  • Registered Users Posts: 235 ✭✭Patmwgs


    Im up the other end of the country in south donegal, you will get more sun than us.


  • Registered Users Posts: 10,706 ✭✭✭✭the_amazing_raisin


    mp3guy wrote: »
    I'm hesitant to make any more moves on the hot water tank as we'll likely replace it whenever we get the heatpump. The current one loses round 0.5c an hour, sometimes more, if it's not used which I'm not really happy with.

    I'm in Cork. You can see my house when landing there, though I haven't taken a flight since getting the panels.

    Probably a smart move as several heat pumps have their own proprietary tanks that you have to use

    I'm looking into installing solar myself, eventually up to 14kWp maybe. We have a heat pump and an EV and might be a 2 EV household by then, so there's plenty there to soak up excess

    One thing I've toyed with is getting an oversized buffer tank for the heat pump, something like 250l as opposed to the normal 50l. You could use a diverter then to heat up the water so you essentially have a big thermal battery for space heating (or even cooling) during the night

    Has anyone else ever tried this? I've seen a few articles about larger scale thermal storage but not much around a domestic day to day size store

    "The internet never fails to misremember" - Sebastian Ruiz, aka Frost



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  • Registered Users Posts: 64,548 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Impressive setup! Keep us updated on any work / improvements you make, could be an inspiration for anyone else reading this
    mp3guy wrote:
    I'm hesitant to make any more moves on the hot water tank as we'll likely replace it whenever we get the heatpump. The current one loses round 0.5c an hour, sometimes more, if it's not used which I'm not really happy with.

    That's crazy. We got a well insulated 360l Joule hot water tank installed 5 years ago and it loses 1C per day!

    Replacing the hot water tank is relatively very cheap (compared to any of the other stuff you have done). If the heatpump is still a bit of a pipe-dream or still a good few years away, you might consider doing it?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    unkel wrote: »
    That's crazy. We got a well insulated 360l Joule hot water tank installed 5 years ago and it loses 1C per day!

    Replacing the hot water tank is relatively very cheap (compared to any of the other stuff you have done). If the heatpump is still a bit of a pipe-dream or still a good few years away, you might consider doing it?

    Wow, ok maybe I do need to consider replacing it. The existing one is 15 years old but is factory insulated, perhaps it's time for a change.


  • Registered Users Posts: 156 ✭✭Ballylad


    mp3guy wrote: »
    TL;DR I've almost completed the install of my domestic single phase solar PV system that provides:

    - 16kWp of DC power.
    - 11kWp of AC power.
    - 18.9kWh of battery storage.
    - 6kWp export limitation.
    - Full property 20A backup power from battery and PV panels.
    - 14MWh of energy per annum.

    I started with a "smaller" system (10.24kWp DC / 9.2kWp AC, 12.6kWh battery) but have the deposit paid to add a third array that's facing WNW plus more storage. Once this is finished I'll have 5.76kWp SSW, 4.48kWp ESE and 5.76kWp WNW installed on an outbuilding. Here's the parts list:

    50x 320W Solitek SOLID Pro M60 Glass-Glass Panels
    1x 5kW SolaX X1 Hybrid Inverter
    1x 6kW SolarEdge SE6000H Inverter
    32x SolarEdge P370 Optimisers
    3x 6.3kWh SolaX Triple Power Batteries
    K2 Roof Mounting
    Eddi Hot Water Diverter
    Zappi v2 Car Charger

    I went with these panels as they've a good warranty and power degradation guarantee. I also live very near to the coast and the all-glass structure is ideal for salty sea mist we get oftentimes.

    The SolaX inverter is ideal as it supports a large amount of high voltage battery storage, export limiting and also backup power supply if the grid goes down. I have a changeover switch ahead of my main consumer unit that I flick over if power goes and voila, power from stored energy and PV for everything (e.g. our well pump). It supports setting one max battery discharge level for normal grid tied mode and another for backup power mode, so I can always keep some energy in the tank in case of a power cut. It can also harvest excess energy from the second inverter to charge the batteries like a typical AC-coupled battery.

    The SolarEdge inverter is being used for its massive DC oversizing capability, I'll have the East/West panels on this inverter. It also supports export limiting so I have the option of using the functionality on both inverters to be doubly safe.

    We have a 220L hot water tank so will have plenty of capacity to soak up excess for showers with the diverter and my EV has a 64kWh battery too for even more self usage.

    We currently use about 9MWh of energy per annum. Eventually when we switch to having two EVs and replace our OFCH with a heatpump, I'd imagine most if not all of the excess I'll be generating will get used up. As it stands, we have a fully electric kitchen plus some other high load devices that will drain 8.5kWh of battery power by 9pm most days so extra battery plus a "late in the evening" west array is crucial.

    The install for this will have taken 5 days labor in total, including 2-3 electricians each day and about half a dozen roofers. If anyone wants to know my installer you can reach out via PM. No chance I was DIYing this, haven't the time or expertise. For the craic I did price up a comparable system on midsummer.ie and it was breaking €20k easily with just the main parts, no mounting, cabling etc... so I did pay more than that certainly but not multiples of. I did also get the grant.

    I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day. Or if I'm exporting power and forgot to plug in my EV, I'll get a notification on my phone to remind me. I've also automated some cryptocurrency mining machines (~1kW) to only turn on when there is excess power from PV or when the battery in already empty to avoid wasting stored battery energy. I'm planning to add a destratification pump to my hot water cylinder to allow the Eddi to dump even more power into the hot water tank as my immersion heater is only half length. I'm considering adding wind forecast-based pre-emptive battery charge up from the grid on the eve of weather warnings too.

    One thing I noticed over the winter just gone is battery temperature is important, namely keeping them above 0-5c. I'll need to build a mechanism to ensure this next winter (as they're in the outbuilding), I'm thinking a removable enclosure that I can put a small thermostatic heater (500W) in to keep them from shutting down.

    With a generous FIT of 5~7c, I might actually break even in the lifetime of this investment (everything is warrantied 20-30 years), but I also might fall short by a couple grand. And I'm ok with that. I'd consider myself an enthusiast. I want the "comfort" features like backup power. Can you put a price on the piece of mind of having power during a storm in the winter with a young family? And I have the added benefit of saving many tonnes of CO2 per year. Even when the Irish grid is eventually fully decarbonised, I'll still be more efficient as I'll generate power on site with not nearly as much loss as the grid has in transmission of power.

    Will add photos when its finally complete, should be within a month. Happy to answer any questions people may have.

    That’s one hell of a well thought out system, can you pm me your installer, tried a couple of installers expanding mine and run into that 6kw export limit where export limitation is not allowed on an inverter , only 6kw inverter limit size applies.


  • Registered Users Posts: 107 ✭✭Coltrane


    mp3guy wrote: »
    TL;DR I've almost completed the install of my domestic single phase solar PV system that provides:

    - 16kWp of DC power.
    - 11kWp of AC power.
    - 18.9kWh of battery storage.
    - 6kWp export limitation.
    - Full property 20A backup power from battery and PV panels.
    - 14MWh of energy per annum.

    I started with a "smaller" system (10.24kWp DC / 9.2kWp AC, 12.6kWh battery) but have the deposit paid to add a third array that's facing WNW plus more storage. Once this is finished I'll have 5.76kWp SSW, 4.48kWp ESE and 5.76kWp WNW installed on an outbuilding. Here's the parts list:

    50x 320W Solitek SOLID Pro M60 Glass-Glass Panels
    1x 5kW SolaX X1 Hybrid Inverter
    1x 6kW SolarEdge SE6000H Inverter
    32x SolarEdge P370 Optimisers
    3x 6.3kWh SolaX Triple Power Batteries
    K2 Roof Mounting
    Eddi Hot Water Diverter
    Zappi v2 Car Charger

    I went with these panels as they've a good warranty and power degradation guarantee. I also live very near to the coast and the all-glass structure is ideal for salty sea mist we get oftentimes.

    The SolaX inverter is ideal as it supports a large amount of high voltage battery storage, export limiting and also backup power supply if the grid goes down. I have a changeover switch ahead of my main consumer unit that I flick over if power goes and voila, power from stored energy and PV for everything (e.g. our well pump). It supports setting one max battery discharge level for normal grid tied mode and another for backup power mode, so I can always keep some energy in the tank in case of a power cut. It can also harvest excess energy from the second inverter to charge the batteries like a typical AC-coupled battery.

    The SolarEdge inverter is being used for its massive DC oversizing capability, I'll have the East/West panels on this inverter. It also supports export limiting so I have the option of using the functionality on both inverters to be doubly safe.

    We have a 220L hot water tank so will have plenty of capacity to soak up excess for showers with the diverter and my EV has a 64kWh battery too for even more self usage.

    We currently use about 9MWh of energy per annum. Eventually when we switch to having two EVs and replace our OFCH with a heatpump, I'd imagine most if not all of the excess I'll be generating will get used up. As it stands, we have a fully electric kitchen plus some other high load devices that will drain 8.5kWh of battery power by 9pm most days so extra battery plus a "late in the evening" west array is crucial.

    The install for this will have taken 5 days labor in total, including 2-3 electricians each day and about half a dozen roofers. If anyone wants to know my installer you can reach out via PM. No chance I was DIYing this, haven't the time or expertise. For the craic I did price up a comparable system on midsummer.ie and it was breaking €20k easily with just the main parts, no mounting, cabling etc... so I did pay more than that certainly but not multiples of. I did also get the grant.

    I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day. Or if I'm exporting power and forgot to plug in my EV, I'll get a notification on my phone to remind me. I've also automated some cryptocurrency mining machines (~1kW) to only turn on when there is excess power from PV or when the battery in already empty to avoid wasting stored battery energy. I'm planning to add a destratification pump to my hot water cylinder to allow the Eddi to dump even more power into the hot water tank as my immersion heater is only half length. I'm considering adding wind forecast-based pre-emptive battery charge up from the grid on the eve of weather warnings too.

    One thing I noticed over the winter just gone is battery temperature is important, namely keeping them above 0-5c. I'll need to build a mechanism to ensure this next winter (as they're in the outbuilding), I'm thinking a removable enclosure that I can put a small thermostatic heater (500W) in to keep them from shutting down.

    With a generous FIT of 5~7c, I might actually break even in the lifetime of this investment (everything is warrantied 20-30 years), but I also might fall short by a couple grand. And I'm ok with that. I'd consider myself an enthusiast. I want the "comfort" features like backup power. Can you put a price on the piece of mind of having power during a storm in the winter with a young family? And I have the added benefit of saving many tonnes of CO2 per year. Even when the Irish grid is eventually fully decarbonised, I'll still be more efficient as I'll generate power on site with not nearly as much loss as the grid has in transmission of power.

    Will add photos when its finally complete, should be within a month. Happy to answer any questions people may have.

    Congrats on a great setup and thanks for sharing!

    I would recommend you look next at a heat pump. It’ll cost you much more all-in than your oil, even allowing for your solar-surplus, but will be the right thing for the environment and an interesting project for an enthusiast! It will also tend to focus your mind on more insulation/air tightness. Don’t worry overly about which comes first (insulation or HP). I put an A2W into a very old, largely un-insulated house when I bought it and haven’t been too shocked by the bills and the comfort levels have been incomparable with the too hot/too cold regime of previous central heating systems. You may to invest in a few supplemental electric space heaters until you’ve done your insulation, in case the HP can’t manage.

    I had terrible problems with my EPS/changeover switch. I wanted and paid for something that would power some or all of the house through the panels or battery if the grid failed. It seemed to work but while commissioning it the installer zapped about 10 devices in the house. The power supply while in EPS mode seemed to be ‘dirty’. Still working my way through replacing the fried devices. And won’t be using EPS again any time soon.

    Well done again, enjoy the installation and post those pics when ready!


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    Coltrane wrote: »
    Congrats on a great setup and thanks for sharing!

    I would recommend you look next at a heat pump. It’ll cost you much more all-in than your oil, even allowing for your solar-surplus, but will be the right thing for the environment and an interesting project for an enthusiast! It will also tend to focus your mind on more insulation/air tightness. Don’t worry overly about which comes first (insulation or HP). I put an A2W into a very old, largely I insulated house when I bought it and haven’t been too shocked by the bills and the comfort levels have been incomparable to the too hot/too cold regime of previous central heating systems. You may to invest in a few supplemental electric space heaters until you’ve done your insulation, in case the HP can’t manage.

    I had terrible problems with my EPS/changeover switch. I wanted and paid for something that would power some or all of the house through the panels or battery if the grid failed. It seemed to work but while commissioning it the installer zapped about 10 devices in the house. The power supply while in EPS mode seemed to be ‘dirty’. Still working my way through replacing the fried devices. And won’t be using EPS again any time soon.

    Well done again, enjoy the installation and post those pics when ready!

    Heatpump is definitely the next item on the list, but a few years down the line as the existing boiler is only a year and a half old. Happy to take a financial hit on it, even if it reverses most of my PV generation gains. Will be approaching carbon neutrality then :)

    I had some initial troubles with my EPS also, turns out it was just lots of tiny little amounts of earth leakage adding up across the house and numerous outbuildings tripping a 30mA RCBO between the EPS and my consumer unit. Had to trade it up for a 300mA, but it doesn't bypass the more sensitive ones protecting the house.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,150 ✭✭✭holdfast


    Insulate for sure before fitting a heat pump and size it right in relation to the heat load. It will save money and more important prevent short cycling


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,428 ✭✭✭quietsailor


    mp3guy wrote: »
    TL;DR I've almost completed the install of my domestic single phase solar PV system that provides.

    Thank you for such a comprehensive write up, that's a great explanation


  • Moderators Posts: 6,840 ✭✭✭Spocker


    Thats a great system mp3guy, and this is the icing on the cake :pac: :
    mp3guy wrote: »
    I've also automated some cryptocurrency mining machines (~1kW) to only turn on when there is excess power from PV or when the battery in already empty to avoid wasting stored battery energy.


  • Registered Users Posts: 64,548 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    I missed that bit about the miners!

    I wouldn't do that by the way. Mining is insanely profitable at the moment, even if you'd pay €0.50 / kWh. Either sell those rigs at inflated prices and use the proceeds towards your system, or keep mining with them and use the mining proceeds to fund your system. You can't lose here :D

    (except when you keep your rigs and only run them for a few hours here and there)


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    unkel wrote: »
    I missed that bit about the miners!

    I wouldn't do that by the way. Mining is insanely profitable at the moment, even if you'd pay €0.50 / kWh. Either sell those rigs at inflated prices and use the proceeds towards your system, or keep mining with them and use the mining proceeds to fund your system. You can't lose here :D

    (except when you keep your rigs and only run them for a few hours here and there)

    I happened to already have the rigs for other purposes so took the opportunity. We have a water treatment shed that needs to stay above freezing in the winter, so rather than put a small oil filled radiator in there I'll be putting one of the rigs in. It's 2021, why put in an electric rad when you can put in a radiator that does sums that people pay you for?


  • Registered Users Posts: 65 ✭✭Niceday20


    mp3guy wrote: »
    TL;DR I've almost completed the install of my domestic single phase solar PV system that provides:

    - 16kWp of DC power.
    - 11kWp of AC power.
    - 18.9kWh of battery storage.
    - 6kWp export limitation.
    - Full property 20A backup power from battery and PV panels.
    - 14MWh of energy per annum.

    I started with a "smaller" system (10.24kWp DC / 9.2kWp AC, 12.6kWh battery) but have the deposit paid to add a third array that's facing WNW plus more storage. Once this is finished I'll have 5.76kWp SSW, 4.48kWp ESE and 5.76kWp WNW installed on an outbuilding. Here's the parts list:

    50x
    1x
    1x
    32x
    3x




    I went with these panels as they've a good warranty and power degradation guarantee. I also live very near to the coast and the all-glass structure is ideal for salty sea mist we get oftentimes.

    The SolaX inverter is ideal as it supports a large amount of high voltage battery storage, export limiting and also backup power supply if the grid goes down. I have a changeover switch ahead of my main consumer unit that I flick over if power goes and voila, power from stored energy and PV for everything (e.g. our well pump). It supports setting one max battery discharge level for normal grid tied mode and another for backup power mode, so I can always keep some energy in the tank in case of a power cut. It can also harvest excess energy from the second inverter to charge the batteries like a typical AC-coupled battery.

    The SolarEdge inverter is being used for its massive DC oversizing capability, I'll have the East/West panels on this inverter. It also supports export limiting so I have the option of using the functionality on both inverters to be doubly safe.

    We have a 220L hot water tank so will have plenty of capacity to soak up excess for showers with the diverter and my EV has a 64kWh battery too for even more self usage.

    We currently use about 9MWh of energy per annum. Eventually when we switch to having two EVs and replace our OFCH with a heatpump, I'd imagine most if not all of the excess I'll be generating will get used up. As it stands, we have a fully electric kitchen plus some other high load devices that will drain 8.5kWh of battery power by 9pm most days so extra battery plus a "late in the evening" west array is crucial.

    The install for this will have taken 5 days labor in total, including 2-3 electricians each day and about half a dozen roofers. If anyone wants to know my installer you can reach out via PM. No chance I was DIYing this, haven't the time or expertise. For the craic I did price up a comparable system on midsummer.ie and it was breaking €20k easily with just the main parts, no mounting, cabling etc... so I did pay more than that certainly but not multiples of. I did also get the grant.

    I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day. Or if I'm exporting power and forgot to plug in my EV, I'll get a notification on my phone to remind me. I've also automated some cryptocurrency mining machines (~1kW) to only turn on when there is excess power from PV or when the battery in already empty to avoid wasting stored battery energy. I'm planning to add a destratification pump to my hot water cylinder to allow the Eddi to dump even more power into the hot water tank as my immersion heater is only half length. I'm considering adding wind forecast-based pre-emptive battery charge up from the grid on the eve of weather warnings too.

    One thing I noticed over the winter just gone is battery temperature is important, namely keeping them above 0-5c. I'll need to build a mechanism to ensure this next winter (as they're in the outbuilding), I'm thinking a removable enclosure that I can put a small thermostatic heater (500W) in to keep them from shutting down.

    With a generous FIT of 5~7c, I might actually break even in the lifetime of this investment (everything is warrantied 20-30 years), but I also might fall short by a couple grand. And I'm ok with that. I'd consider myself an enthusiast. I want the "comfort" features like backup power. Can you put a price on the piece of mind of having power during a storm in the winter with a young family? And I have the added benefit of saving many tonnes of CO2 per year. Even when the Irish grid is eventually fully decarbonised, I'll still be more efficient as I'll generate power on site with not nearly as much loss as the grid has in transmission of power.

    Will add photos when its finally complete, should be within a month. Happy to answer any questions people may have.

    Thanks for you detailed write up.

    Very interested in "I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day."

    What's involved in setting the automation up?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    Niceday20 wrote: »
    Thanks for you detailed write up.

    Very interested in "I've setup quite a serious amount of automation on top of this to optimize things, for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day."

    What's involved in setting the automation up?

    I'm using https://www.home-assistant.io/ as the main engine behind it all. You have to get your hands dirty with Python, yaml and Jinja when writing custom integrations for devices that don't have anything pre-existing.


  • Registered Users Posts: 64,548 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    mp3guy wrote: »
    I happened to already have the rigs for other purposes so took the opportunity. We have a water treatment shed that needs to stay above freezing in the winter, so rather than put a small oil filled radiator in there I'll be putting one of the rigs in. It's 2021, why put in an electric rad when you can put in a radiator that does sums that people pay you for?

    Tell me about it. I saved a small fortune on my gas bill this winter :D

    My point is that it is a very inefficient use of your mining rig. Either sell it for ludicrous money, or mine with it 24/7 (preferable using the heat obviously)


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    Well I can't sell them as I use them for other things. And I don't want them draining the green energy I capture in my batteries either.


  • Registered Users Posts: 64,548 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    mp3guy wrote: »
    Well I can't sell them as I use them for other things. And I don't want them draining the green energy I capture in my batteries either.

    Perhaps a bit of topic, but interesting all the same :) what miners do you have, what hardware and what do you mine?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    unkel wrote: »
    Perhaps a bit of topic, but interesting all the same :) what miners do you have, what hardware and what do you mine?

    Just a few modern GPUs, 3090, 2080 Ti and 1660 Ti. Ethash. The machines are suspended most of the time. They wake up every 20 minutes to check for surplus power / empty battery and run for however long.


  • Registered Users Posts: 64,548 ✭✭✭✭unkel


    Nice. If I were you I'd put some effort into finding a way to run them 24/7 and mine when you don't need them for your other stuff. Not only can they run mostly directly on PV or on cheap environmentally friendly night rate, they will also generate the revenue for you to do more renewable / environmental stuff. Think about it, double whammy!

    That 3090 alone makes about €2,500 net profit per year...


  • Registered Users Posts: 116 ✭✭Northumberland


    I read the description of your system carefully and with a lot of interest, it really looks very good, the sort of thing that i have dreamt of. But I have a rather nice smaller system here in Ireland that serves me well, 4 Pylontech batteries, Solis Hybrid inverter, (and a second small inverter for a couple of large panels on a SW facing roof side).

    The thing I wanted to ask you - I read "for example the system will automatically decide whether or not to charge up the battery on night rate based on the solar forecast for the next day" - I am a long way I am afraid from doing that automatically, but would quite like to do it manually for a while - Question - where do you get your solar forecast for the next day from?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    I use https://solcast.com/. It's an API, so you can't browse it like a weather forecast.


  • Registered Users Posts: 116 ✭✭Northumberland


    Thanks for that info, I 'signed up' and find it absolutely brilliant, it predicts my past, and most probably future, generation to within 100 watts, uncannily accurate. Wish there was an easy way to automate a link between that and my Solis Hybrid inverter, but dont think I will be getting in to Python programming, although that would be a challenge! Thanks again and good luck


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    And here it is


  • Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 18,559 Mod ✭✭✭✭slave1




  • Registered Users Posts: 12,030 ✭✭✭✭KCross


    mp3guy wrote: »
    And here it is

    Room for plenty more! :pac:

    I see the transformer is casting a shadow. Does it affect it much or is that facing a direction where it doesnt matter much?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    KCross wrote: »
    Room for plenty more! :pac:

    I see the transformer is casting a shadow. Does it affect it much or is that facing a direction where it doesnt matter much?

    That's a reflection, not a shadow. But even on the summer solstice it will barely cast a shadow on the edge of the array at sunset. Have optimizers on E/W anyway!


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  • Registered Users Posts: 3,953 ✭✭✭mp3guy


    Just got word today ESB have acknowledged receipt of my new Form NC6, to dispell any myths about > 6kW installs with export limiting.


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