Done and dusted ................ now I do not have to totally rely on Eskom
Done and dusted ................ now I do not have to totally rely on Eskom
Looks impressive, do tell the details!Originally Posted by HR Solutions
Done and dusted ................ now I do not have to totally rely on Eskom
Number of batteries.
Amp/Hour of batteries.
Brand and model of batteries.
Inverter size, brand, model.
Charger details.
What is the load you are planning to pull with the unit.
Price of the unit.
~Expenses will eat you alive! - My first Boss~
Ellies FBIT2000
1200 W
2000VA
2 x Deep cycle batteries within black cabinet that is on wheels - 105amp each
So I have more than enough to power a quite few lights, 42inch flatscreen, DSTV etc
I have had my name down for a while for this unit - just arrived and they are literally walking out of the shop
Price R8500 including vat
It certainly looks a lot more swish than my setup. Are you using it for powering other stuff such as router, PC's etc? I'm interested in how it performs, how long it takes to charge, how noisy is it and so on. Please let us know how it performs.Ellies FBIT2000
1200 W
2000VA
2 x Deep cycle batteries within black cabinet that is on wheels - 105amp each
So I have more than enough to power a quite few lights, 42inch flatscreen, DSTV etc
I have had my name down for a while for this unit - just arrived and they are literally walking out of the shop
Price R8500 including vat
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tec0 (06-Jun-15)
Earlier this week I bought a smaller one because I was getting tired of waiting. Then all of a sudden this came into stock today so I was very lucky to get it. So I have taken the smaller one with one battery to work and have this one at home. Does not make a sound at all except when I took its power source out and a fan came on. Was just testing so don't know of any other noises but will let u know when we have a proper load shed. The fan noise sounded pretty quite and acceptable. According to the spec sheet it will run for 4 hours with quite a lot of things attached.
I think by next month i will take a chance on cheaper import... i know... i know... I will check out the locals first and take it from there. I want a solar system. I payed for my home getting it off Eskom power seems like a good idea.
Here is the math,
My power bill is already really low because I use power saving products and gas for cooking. I also have a energy monitor that tells me to a T what my power bill will be. I am planning to install a gas water heater this month but i don't want it piped into my home due to the many stupid laws they have governing the install. So it is going to be a portable unit that will be mounted to a trolly system. Like the type you get for outdoor use. This will allow for added safety without compromising the house's piping in any way.
This will allow me to switch the water feed from mains to my 5000L tank when needed. My tank is not inline as inline tanks need a 1000watt water pump to activate each time i turn a tap. That is just stupid so mine is totally isolated system that I can put inline at will at any time. The portable water heater will connect to this system and feed 16L per minute at a temp of 50 degree Celsius into my existing piping without any modification. I worked out the heat loss and will have 40 to 39 degree Celsius water flowing out of the tap. "Hot enough"
Cool thing is i can still use my electric geyser... It has a timer installed on it so really I cannot complain.
Installing the solar system, I will have 2000 watts per system there will be two systems "independent" The first system will be used to run my refrigeration only. Meaning I will only pull a maximum load of 400Watts of it. It will have a larger battery bank then the secondary system and the battery bank can also be charged from my generator "9000 watt 25 Amp generator" The second system will be sun dependent only with a smaller battery bank and will need to service a maximum load of only 300 Watts. It will drive the lights and my basics. The 300 watts is the max load i pull for my basics "tested" Last note the solar system will not be connected into the existing electrical. It will be a totally independent system.
My house has a interesting build and I found the perfect placement for my solar panels. After doing some testing I know for a fact that I will get the morning and afternoon sun without much effort.
This will be a 3 month project
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Only system that will still run on Eskom power will be my washing machine but it only runs for an hour every second to third day.
peace is a state of mind
Disclaimer: everything written by me can be considered as fictional.
I am playing with another idea currently. I saw I can not afford an off grid system. Too many batteries and the price kills it. So what if one goes grid tied without batteries? This will be purely to bring the Eskom account down and not for load shedding. (Which seems to be a thing of the past in any case) For that and other power outages, I will use my UPS system for mission critical equipment.
When my panels produce nothing or a bit, I will use Eskom. (At night and rainy days)
So, when the sun shines, I use my panels free electricity. When there is a shortfall, I draw from Eskom. When I produce too much, I dump it somehow useful as we can not feed back to the grid. I estimate about 36 panels @250 watt. Still a huge expense but I figure it will pay for itself in 5 years.
First point of departure, I will have to get one of those smart meters to monitor my total consumption for a month, to see when I use how much power.
But is the idea possible? Say it is a cloudy day and my panels produce 2600 watt. Can one draw the balance (6000 watt) you need from the grid? Or is it a case of all or nothing?
What is all the equipment you need in such a setup called? What worries me the most, is how do you draw the shortfall from Eskom and marry it to your own. How do you dumb the excess by sending it somewhere else?
~Expenses will eat you alive! - My first Boss~
It is called a grid tied system, simply put is that the inverter is synchronised to the mains, and increases the voltage ever so slightly, so that the solar system provides as much power as the solar system can give and the balance is then provided by ESKOM. The only problem with this system is that the energy is only available when there is sun, and it may be when you really do not need this energy.
Victor - Knowledge is a blessing or a curse, your current circumstances make you decide!
Solar pumping, Solar Geyser & Solar Security lighting solutions - www.microsolve.co.za
Video as promised.
For some reason the forum says it is an illegal file and will not show preview.
Here is the direct link.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sib9...ature=youtu.be
Last edited by Dave A; 08-Jun-15 at 12:24 PM.
~Expenses will eat you alive! - My first Boss~
tec0 (08-Jun-15)
Love your UPS hack, excellent and your question is a damn good one. I spoke to a guy from Battery Centre and he told me my charger was killing my batteries now they are selling a charger that can charge deep cycle battery and it will cost me about R1250 for it. Now thing is with your normal UPS and i think you knew this already so sorry for repeating it. There is no real why to stop it from charging your battery because by design it just stupidly charge the battery to death "had a few UPS's" and if you check the voltages on them you will see that even when the battery hits 14 volts it just continue to charge.
I have no clue how you will get around that yet.... That said YOU DID THE HACK! and not many can say that
excellent post
Last edited by tec0; 09-Jun-15 at 08:42 AM.
peace is a state of mind
Disclaimer: everything written by me can be considered as fictional.
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