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New French wood 2 storey Garage, PV & electrics installation.
mab:
Hi Clockman
Can i ask where you find the sma communication doo dahs for 'a few euros'? whenever i've seen one for sale they're £60 or more!
Does one comms module fit them all or do you need a specific type for a particular SB?
I could do with one as I've got 3 SMA SB's (1200, 1700 & 4000tl), paid £50 for the 1200 and was given the other two, so paying £60-70 for a communication module seems a little steep, but as i'm running them into a powerjack inverter and they're still on standard UK grid setting it can be a right PITA - particularly the one on the hydro as the unloaded voltage shoots up when unloaded (i do have a dump load controller on there, but as it uses a triac to divert power to dump the peak voltage can still charge the SB's input cap to >320v which upsets the 1200 as it's too high)
although mine don't seem as bad as Scruffs - I usually have to start the lathe or weld at high power to trip them out.
clockmanFRA:
Hi,
I just keep a fleebay search for them, been doing that since 2014, max paid £30, min £4 but had a job lot.
Yes will work on the GTI Sunny Boys with the toroid in them.
Here's the installation manual.
BTPBINV-NRpiggy-back.pdf (1914.7 kB - downloaded 322 times.)
And here is what i fit them onto.
SBuseforSISIPVusage.pdf (386.52 kB - downloaded 278 times.)
clockmanFRA:
Scruff,
My ECO supply uses my toroid windings so i dictate which one will be the Neutral and stick to that premise.
However all my change over switches are 2 pole, so when i switch to ECO supply the Consumer unit gets a new Neutral and a new Live. Yes all from fleebay, but Kraus & Naimer.
All my Change Over switches are 3 position and the centre is OFF. So turning from ECO to EDF (local Utility supply) or EDF to ECO you have to travel through the Centre OFF position. Therefore no nasty surprises. And the EDF utility supply is 3 phase and i have split the phases, but EDF supply just 1 neutral. There pole transformer has 3 live and one common neutral winding output which is real nice.
The below is a 90amp 240vac changeover switch.
I have 9 consumer units here, in 9 separate buildings, each with its own changeover switch and each with its own Earth rod.
The smallest Kraus & Naimer change over switch is 60 amp and the biggest is 100amp.
Sadly I have to think into the future a fair bit, as when i am gone it may be that using the ECO supply and renewable energy might not be want the new owner wants here. They may just want a utility supply. This way all the buildings can be as the customer wants, and no hassle for my boys to sort out.
Scruff:
What I'm asking is have you conducted an earth loop impedance check on the ECO supply CM and do you know that your GFIs are operating correctly as per specified disconnect times and load thresholds? ie. Do your RCDs operate correctly on ECO supply?
The reason I'm asking is I'd say it'd be extremely difficult to pass such a test without neutralising the supply(s).
I would speculate that just because the French don't tie the neutral-earth at the domestic property they must elsewhere and compensate for the impedance with rather large earth nets.
When I look at the invested energy and resources of being off-grid and the associated losses in charge controller throttling, dump loads and over-supply for a rainy day I have to think that for the same invested in grid-interactive technology the result would be a greener planet.
For instance, the grid is my dump load for prototypes & system testing.
I don't need batteries with utility power, I can have double the solar instead.
I think people are romantically attracted to off-grid, I can't say it's efficient or economically competitive...unless you want to live in a boat/vehicle/off the radar etc... then it's a lifestyle economy but the lecky is still very expensive.
There's also the economy in green tourism.
Sure we can both argue that given our resources, skillsets, the price we pay for good hardware and not counting the not insubstantial amount of our time we invest in these endeavours aka free labour (of love), then it can be competitive. This is not exactly (global economy) sustainable, there'll be no mass uptake of the technomancy we call our bread and butter.
I like the way you futureproof it. This is a sign of the highest engineering principles. The facility to accommodate the want/needs/advancements of the future not fully realised at the time of the installation. It's a humble natured design acknowledgement that we can never fully understand the future nor applications of our creations and in the realisation of this making it open-ended/modular/upgradeable is what differentiates fashion from classic.
Option 3 could well be grid-tied eco with back-up. (Off-grid-tied...did I invent that? Can I claim it?..probably not :-[)
Sure there's legal hurdles and pitfalls to that and the French are not so complacent as the Irish are incompetent when it comes to reprimanding unsanctioned feedback.
Having said that, If I wanted to be legit, I can, in theory, tie everything I have (generators/vehicles/out-building installations etc...) to a microgrid with my marvellous Studer Xtenders and back-feed via the Xtender with some modifications to meet Irish compliance. I would only need sign-off on the Xtender in theory. Wouldn't be hard to get seeing as the average Irish inspector can't tell the difference between a B-type RCD (€200) and a trip curve B RCBO (€30).
bigrockcandymountain:
--- Quote from: Scruff on December 16, 2020, 05:23:04 PM ---I think people are romantically attracted to off-grid, I can't say it's efficient or economically competitive...unless you want to live in a boat/vehicle/off the radar etc... then it's a lifestyle economy but the lecky is still very expensive.
--- End quote ---
Yep, right on the money scruff. I like the freedom to twist and tape whatever wires i choose being off grid. Nobody can tell me not to.
Just running the power through the batteries costs 30 cents a kwh. That is 2.5x the price of grid power.
Having said that, i have kept rough track of costs here and kwh used and we are money ahead by a small amout being off grid. We donate a lot of time that isn't accounted for though. I try to talk people out of off grid more than talking them in to it.
The only observation a have for clockman is your ground rods are rather short...no offence ;) We use 2x 3m rods here.
And your building looks great. The satisfaction walking around your property, looking at all the fruits of your hard work must be great.
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