The Alternative Energy Thread - Generators, Solar, UPS, Wind

[AkbarGr8]

Will check the firmware. I made sure that the baud switch was correctly configured.

Thank you

[centos]

Please message me the contacts for these vendors. Thanks

[centos]

Installers quoting 115-120 / watt in Lahore, todays rate.

[AkbarGr8]

That is accurate, similar in khi.

[umans]

InfiniSolar V IV manual-20211115.pdf (6.6 MB)
See page 57 of this manual.

[umans]

Panels from Mesol Lahore and inverters from random vendors/resellers whoever gives better rate. Currently everyone is selling in black

[AkbarGr8]

Yes, been following the same manual to no avail.

[noobie]

Yes, I'm also getting 120/watt rate in Lahore. Rate was around around 100 to 105 2 weeks ago.Is there any size difference between 545/550w vs 640/690 watt panels?Trying to figure out if its worth purchasing 640w+ panels instead of 545/550 to save space for future expansion.

Thanks!

[AbbasJin]

The physical size difference doesn’t look that much on the surface.

You could do a per inch square calculation if bigger panels are worth it.

Canadian solar

545w CS6W: 2266 x 1135 x 30 mm
690w CS7N-TB-AG: 2384 x 1303 x 33 mm

545W CS6W: 89.37 x 44.49 x 1.18 inches
690W CS7N-TB-AG: 93.86 x 51.18 x 1.3 inches

I do wonder though if buying now is a good idea. Solar panels went from 78rs/watt to 120rs in less than 30 days iirc whereas ruppee depreciated less than that. It’s just fomo pricing at this point. Considering globally panels are getting cheaper 20-30% even at the 78rs price point.

I was over the fence at the 78rs point but budget constraints didn’t allow. Now I’m thinking maybe wait it out a year when things calm down and the black market scalpers run out of steam plus the global price decrease trickles in in about 7-8 months.

[mrdeejay]

There are news of govt removing all taxes on solar equipment/modules. That might drive down the price in a month or two.

[centos]

I don't know any vendors. I only know installers and they don't want to sell just the inverter but the whole system.

I want to buy inverter and battery now and panels few months later.

[exxorebel]

Hi Guys, Have recently got a 12 KW On grid system installed. Does on grid export everything or does it direct the electricity to home consumption first and only excess is exported?
System details are Goodwe 12 KW On grid inverter with 19 610 W Jinko Panels.
Also, I have 2 DBs with direct connections from meter. The solar is connected with DB on first floor. If the answer to first question is yes, how to know if the load from ground floor is also being managed from solar?

[AbbasJin]

Your solar installer can answer the DB situation better. But generally your inverter will feed your energy needs first and only export the excess to grid after that.

[exxorebel]

Has anyone tried AC Coupling an on grid inverter?

[mgalaxy3]

Can someone suggest.

Is net metering possible on single phase hybrid inverters? I heard net metering mostly requires 3 phase? I'm confused. If u have 3-phase meter, then single phase hybrid inverter is useless?

Most hybrid inverters I could find (5kw to 10kw) are only single phase.

Secondly,
When using hybrid inverter, if grid is off (loadshedding), does inverter run heavy loads like AC from solar?

Basically want the hybrid inverter to run AC on solar (when grid off), but if solar is down or not enough, then continue to run small appliances from battery, excluding AC which should not drain the battery.

Hybrid inverter options I could find for 5kw/10kw:

Inverex Nitrox (local)
SolarMax Onyx (local?)
GoodWe
InfiniSolar (local?)

Not sure which one should be chosen.. (EDIT TO ADD: should have low/NO fan noise, preferably fan-less cooling)

@saqibhassan95 @centos @AkbarGr8 @umans

[noobie]

I'm in the process of getting 10kw hybrid system installed and i opted for 12KW Nitrox inverter (will expand PV Capacity in future). It has dual output. You can put critical load on critical output port and heavy load (which should not run on batteries) on heavy output. It has smart load feature which allows you to configure when to turn off heavy load i.e you can specify if battery capacity < 80% turn off heavy load and keep feeding critical load from battery.

[mgalaxy3]

I'm in the process of getting 10kw hybrid system installed and i opted for 12KW Nitrox inverter (will expand PV Capacity in future). It has dual output. You can put critical load on critical output port and heavy load (which should not run on batteries) on heavy output. It has smart load feature which allows you to configure when to turn off heavy load i.e you can specify if battery capacity < 80% turn off heavy load and keep feeding critical load from battery.

Oh nice. It seems 3 phase hybrid. Was 3 phase required for net metering in your case?
(also can you share the price you got it for)

[noobie]

Not sure if 3 phase is required for net metering. (I am not very familiar with this stuff) This is the inverter my Solar Installer recommend after i gave him my requirements (10KW capacity for now and 15kw pv capacity in future and must be hybrid as battery backup is critical for my usage and i also wanted to be able to segregate heavy and critical load). Paid 945K (1 week ago) for it. Price might be higher now as everyone seems to be in extortion mode due to USD-PKR volatility.

[AkbarGr8]

Are you located in khi or punjab? For khi you absolutely need a 3 phase inverter (the nitrox 12kw hybrid is mouth watering).

If in punjab, you can opt for single phase hybrid but please confirm the minimum load required.

The inverex nitrox 6kw (red box) ip65 should have a dual output for that purpose but you need to ask a professional installer if the shutoff feature will work on traditional non lithium batteries.

Good luck

[hassannabeel27]

Is net metering possible on single phase hybrid inverters? I heard net metering mostly requires 3 phase? I'm confused. If u have 3-phase meter, then single phase hybrid inverter is useless?

I have a net metering connection with ongrid inverter and recently I purchased a separate single phase nitrox 6kw hybrid. Nitrox is exporting on its own phase. As per solar installer, net meter will take into account the output of single phase. According to him, not all phases draw same amount of electricity. Sometimes heavy appliances are on different phase and would draw more energy on that phase while turned off appliances on other phase would be doing export to grid.

Secondly,When using hybrid inverter, if grid is off (loadshedding), does inverter run heavy loads like AC from solar?

Our ongrid inverter turns off in loadshedding but Hybrid inverter keeps on feeding when solar is available. During night time loadshedding, smart output turns off which has two ACs on it.

Basically want the hybrid inverter to run AC on solar (when grid off), but if solar is down or not enough, then continue to run small appliances from battery, excluding AC which should not drain the battery.

This is exactly what nitrox smart load does. It also has setting to only charge battery when solar is available and charge settings for peak times. But I have not been able to explore these.

Hybrid inverter options I could find for 5kw/10kw:

Inverex Nitrox (local)SolarMax Onyx (local?)GoodWe InfiniSolar (local?)

Inverex is the only one offering 4 years of warranty. Not sure how much is comprehensive and all. Keep in mind that hybrid inverters are more prone to damage and have lower life compared to hybrid. There is also another solution to just use offgrid separate inverter along with ongrid inverter. And have auto relay to switch solar to offgrid inverter when loadshedding. Cost of nitrox 6kw hybrid was 4 lac 2-3 weeks ago. It must be much more now due to dollar hike.

Not sure which one should be chosen.. (EDIT TO ADD: should have low/NO fan noise, preferably fan-less cooling)

Nitrox doesn't have fan. It has a big heatsink at the back side