Loadshedding solutions

[pedal menace]

18 minutes ago, Showtime said:

Thanks, I'm going to test those. The solar panel would be a logical addition but it will get stolen before it get's a chance to prove itself. Makes me upset just typing that.

Problem is that right now Lithium Batteries are extremely hard to come by. Stock mostly unavailable

[The Ouzo]

33 minutes ago, TheoG said:

If you use these, its a straight swap.  Granted, a bit expensive compared to the normal gate motor bats, but worth it.  I got 2 of these in parallel on our gate motor, we didn't run out of juice yet!

https://www.electromannsa.com/products/electromann-lifepo4-lithium-8ah-12-8v-rechargeable-battery?variant=42055397834993

For longer than 4 hour failures I also have a small solar panel with built-in charge controller that I connect, also from Electromann.

thanks, going to look into getting one of these for the alarm.

[TheoG]

Just now, The Ouzo said:

thanks, going to look into getting one of these for the alarm.

Unfortunately they out of stock at the moment ... 😒

[dave303e]

So we have been on the system now since last night. Installers hooked the house to the inverter late afternoon and then installed the panels in the evening. 

At this stage in on and off drizzle this morning, we have been business as usual and done a load of laundry and battery is still at 100%. We did charge it up last night to full. Once I have the app all connected and set up will dive deeper. So far it all seems good. Base constant load seems to be very low so even in the rain we are creating a surplus.

Pic taken before it was all wired in, ceiling still to go into the shed as well.

[The Ouzo]

10 minutes ago, TheoG said:

Unfortunately they out of stock at the moment ... 😒

well it wont be anytime soon. so no hurry.

I've got 2 lead acid batteries that I bought for my UPS. Put them in and the first time the power went off the ups let all the smoke out. Batteries are still ok, the part on the circuit board in the ups that holds the smoke is no ok. So UPS gets tossed and batteries will go into alarm.

[Jensie]

1 hour ago, Robbie Stewart said:

I have one of these connected to my fibre and it lasts 8 hours before it needs recharging.

Yes I also bought the one that is going for R550. After a 4hr loadshedding time still on 100% charged. Much better that a normal UPS. Have not tested to see how long a charge will last.

[TheoG]

20 minutes ago, dave303e said:

So we have been on the system now since last night. Installers hooked the house to the inverter late afternoon and then installed the panels in the evening. 

At this stage in on and off drizzle this morning, we have been business as usual and done a load of laundry and battery is still at 100%. We did charge it up last night to full. Once I have the app all connected and set up will dive deeper. So far it all seems good. Base constant load seems to be very low so even in the rain we are creating a surplus.

Pic taken before it was all wired in, ceiling still to go into the shed as well.

Nice install enjoy !

I'm also getting a surplus at the moment, charging the batteries slowly but surely.

With 2 bad solar days in a row my batteries are at 38% at the moment because I refuse to charge them with Eksdom ... 🤪🙈

[Frosty]

Overcast days also mean the geyser doesn’t get to warmup using the original system, so it requires a boost from the panels and/or battery.

[TheoG]

3 minutes ago, Frosty said:

Overcast days also mean the geyser doesn’t get to warmup using the original system, so it requires a boost from the panels and/or battery.

I got 2 x 455W panels dedicated to the geyser, geyser temp is at 52 deg C without using any grid, more than happy with that.

Getting decent solar at the moment despite the clouds:

[taito]

I just bought a 2400 Mecer inverter for the TV/Wifi etc..  Does it warrant spending R 12k on a lithuim battery versus 2 deep cycles at R 4700 for both

[Frosty]

Just now, taito said:

I just bought a 2400 Mecer inverter for the TV/Wifi etc..  Does it warrant spending R 12k on a lithuim battery versus 2 deep cycles at R 4700 for both

Tell us in about 3 years when you need to replace the batteries, and the Lithium’s would still be working.

[TheoG]

Just now, taito said:

I just bought a 2400 Mecer inverter for the TV/Wifi etc..  Does it warrant spending R 12k on a lithuim battery versus 2 deep cycles at R 4700 for both

Without solar you can get away with the lead-acid bats to get you through load-shed ONLY.

As soon as you add some solar panels, LiFePO4 all the way !!!!

[taito]

Thanks for that. My plan is to go to the Hybrid 24v system that can do solar as well -in the long term. EISSSKOM will only get worse before it gets better. by the look of thinks a good hybrid inverted and lithium battery will be around 35k without panels.

[TheoG]

Just now, taito said:

Thanks for that. My plan is to go to the Hybrid 24v system that can do solar as well -in the long term. EISSSKOM will only get worse before it gets better. by the look of thinks a good hybrid inverted and lithium battery will be around 35k without panels.

Obviously I don't know your needs, but a 2400W inverter seems a bit small for the average house hold.  You would need to monitor it very closely not to burn it.

[The Ouzo]

1 minute ago, TheoG said:

Obviously I don't know your needs, but a 2400W inverter seems a bit small for the average house hold.  You would need to monitor it very closely not to burn it.

depends on what you want to run though.

[taito]

I will only do the TV//decoder//WI FI //phone charging and 2 LED lights ,,not planning to connect any15amp plugs ..

I have gas hob