Following on from my solar geyser do's and dont's thread (https://www.avforums.co.za/index.php?topic=91967) I'm posting this separately as FD requested.
In January I went ahead and installed a 300ltr EVT solar geyser, pre-feeding a 200ltr conventional geyser on the other side of the house. There has been a definite decrease in power consumption, but the Geyserwise panels on both geysers tell me we still spend around 30% of electricity costs on heating water (six people, of which 4 are avid sporty types means lots of baths and showers every day).
So now I'm ready to take the solar plunge. I got an incredible Black Friday special and the installer and references checks out perfectly. The intended system has the following bits:
- 14 x 440WJA Solar Longi Monocrystaline Half Cut PV Panels (6.16kWp)
- 8kW Deye Inverter with Wifi dongle
- 2 x 5.12kWh Shoto LiFePO4 batteries (10.24kWh)
- Installation
- COC
The panels will be mounted flush-mounted on 7 degrees monopicth, facing true north. Going to use the Solarman app for remote monitoring initially, but plan to repurpose an unused Raspberry Pi with SolarAssistant to add remote management capabilities. Expecting this system to reduce my electricity bill by around two thirds and pay for itself in 3 to 4 years.
I can't vouch for the installer just yet ... will do so after Thursday's installation. I've been quoted as much as R 222 000 for the same specs, but several well-regarded installers came in around R140 - 155k, so shopping around pays off. I'll be paying R 125 000 fully installed with COC on the mega BF deal.
In January I went ahead and installed a 300ltr EVT solar geyser, pre-feeding a 200ltr conventional geyser on the other side of the house. There has been a definite decrease in power consumption, but the Geyserwise panels on both geysers tell me we still spend around 30% of electricity costs on heating water (six people, of which 4 are avid sporty types means lots of baths and showers every day).
So now I'm ready to take the solar plunge. I got an incredible Black Friday special and the installer and references checks out perfectly. The intended system has the following bits:
- 14 x 440W
- 8kW Deye Inverter with Wifi dongle
- 2 x 5.12kWh Shoto LiFePO4 batteries (10.24kWh)
- Installation
- COC
The panels will be mounted flush-mounted on 7 degrees monopicth, facing true north. Going to use the Solarman app for remote monitoring initially, but plan to repurpose an unused Raspberry Pi with SolarAssistant to add remote management capabilities. Expecting this system to reduce my electricity bill by around two thirds and pay for itself in 3 to 4 years.
I can't vouch for the installer just yet ... will do so after Thursday's installation. I've been quoted as much as R 222 000 for the same specs, but several well-regarded installers came in around R140 - 155k, so shopping around pays off. I'll be paying R 125 000 fully installed with COC on the mega BF deal.
