MechanicalBuilder Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 1 hour ago, JohnMo said: 1 hour ago, JohnMo said: Sorry don't believe those figures are possible with an 8kW inverter. PV panels maybe able to produce that many kWh, but an 8kW inverter will not let that energy out. Especially if a G98 approved inverter is installed. 25682/365, is 70kWh a day on average, which is a production of 8kW constantly for 9 hours every day, have you actually done any checks on this to see if they are realistic? Those figures are well out of date. Your export rate is likely to 40 to 50% lower in 5 weeks time. my mistake it’s a 10kw 48/10000 multiplus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 Have you looked at PVGIS to see what you'll likely generate. It'll give you year round breakdown so you can see realistically what you'll have spare to export year round. AfAIK the only way you'll get reasonable export rates is with a variable export tariff like the ones Octopus offer but I think you need to give them control of your battery or be hands on exporting when rates are high Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechanicalBuilder Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 4 hours ago, LiamJones said: I have a grid connection and opted to self install solar because MCS + export makes no financial sense. Install only what you need. Even the octopus non MCS export doesn’t make sense to me with the fees involved. What size system do you have and did you get on with notifying the DNO, did it go ok? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramco Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 25 minutes ago, MechanicalBuilder said: What size system do you have and did you get on with notifying the DNO, did it go ok? We did a self install 6.5kWp ground mounted PV array - DNO were' fine with it - they did want the electrical certificate but were happy with everything else. Octopus were also happy after the DNO OK'd things and put us on export on Octopus Go - that's at the 8p export rate. At the weekend we moved onto intelligent Octopus Go, so 7p at night for 6 hours and 15p export. So it is possible to get on the more advantageous rates with a self install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechanicalBuilder Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 1 hour ago, Bramco said: We did a self install 6.5kWp ground mounted PV array - DNO were' fine with it - they did want the electrical certificate but were happy with everything else. Octopus were also happy after the DNO OK'd things and put us on export on Octopus Go - that's at the 8p export rate. At the weekend we moved onto intelligent Octopus Go, so 7p at night for 6 hours and 15p export. So it is possible to get on the more advantageous rates with a self install. Who’s your DNO if you don’t mind me asking? I’ve just contacted national grid and awaiting phone call from my local office. They were quite helpful on the phone so hoping the callback is the same. I would much rather complete a grid tied self install! I might be wrong but I think I will have to wait until building control has signed off the build before I can start as I’m sure it says it has to be installed by someone MCS accredited to be compliant? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramco Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 6 minutes ago, MechanicalBuilder said: Who’s your DNO if you don’t mind me asking? NG And I didn't phone them, just waited until I had the PV installed and then filled in the forms. As I said we needed the electrical sign off. So if your sparky is OK with that then you should be OK. I don't think building control care about MCS but I may be wrong, they didn't in our case but we put the PV in after completion. AFAIK, as far as the DNO is concerned it has to be electrically signed off to be acceptable. I think where MCS comes in is that some suppliers won't accept you on an export tariff unless you have an MCS certificate. Although legally again AFAIK, there is no reason why they shouldn't accept you. Octopus will accept a self install. If you have some time to spare read this post on the Victron forum - https://community.victronenergy.com/questions/131033/uk-ess-self-install-mcs-certification.html it explains a lot. Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechanicalBuilder Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 52 minutes ago, Bramco said: NG And I didn't phone them, just waited until I had the PV installed and then filled in the forms. As I said we needed the electrical sign off. So if your sparky is OK with that then you should be OK. I don't think building control care about MCS but I may be wrong, they didn't in our case but we put the PV in after completion. AFAIK, as far as the DNO is concerned it has to be electrically signed off to be acceptable. I think where MCS comes in is that some suppliers won't accept you on an export tariff unless you have an MCS certificate. Although legally again AFAIK, there is no reason why they shouldn't accept you. Octopus will accept a self install. If you have some time to spare read this post on the Victron forum - https://community.victronenergy.com/questions/131033/uk-ess-self-install-mcs-certification.html it explains a lot. Simon Thanks Simon. I’m sure I saw in my paperwork somewhere that it has to be installed by someone MCS accredited, I think it maybe the site insurance and structural warranty. I’ve had so much paperwork to get through I’ve lost track haha. I’ll have a read through that forum later on when I get home from work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 2 hours ago, Bramco said: Octopus will accept a self install I tried twice and they said no. Have DNO sign off, structural engineer certification etc, even have an MCS cert for the battery, but not for the PV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LiamJones Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 7 hours ago, MechanicalBuilder said: What size system do you have and did you get on with notifying the DNO, did it go ok? 8kw via g99. Did it myself all went smoothly. Approved after about 3 weeks. UKPN. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechanicalBuilder Posted February 26 Author Share Posted February 26 My architect had the saps recalculated and we have to have a 4kW system as a minimum to be able to get our as built certificate and complete. The MCS financial blackmail is a joke, I’m all for doing things correctly and safely but come on 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duncan62 Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 48 minutes ago, LiamJones said: 8kw via g99. Did it myself all went smoothly. Approved after about 3 weeks. UKPN. Could we get some more info on how you went about this to avoid MCS nonsense please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LiamJones Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 10 hours ago, Duncan62 said: Could we get some more info on how you went about this to avoid MCS nonsense please? sure, I’ll try and get something written up. But in short. For UKPN, you log on to smart connect (create an account) then follow the form. The most complex part is the line diagram, but that’s way more simple than it sounds, i just did a diagram with the supply head, consumer unit and inverter. Then a line between them. They only care about the AC side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 11 hours ago, MechanicalBuilder said: My architect had the saps recalculated and we have to have a 4kW system as a minimum to be able to get our as built certificate and complete. The MCS financial blackmail is a joke, I’m all for doing things correctly and safely but come on If that's the case you really should be concentrating on insulation and airtightness. To 'require' that much PV would indicate you barely scrape through min building regs standards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 (edited) 12 hours ago, Duncan62 said: Could we get some more info on how you went about this to avoid MCS nonsense please? The DNO and MCS are completely different things independent of each other. DNO interraction is to ensure grid safety/security isn't compromised. Search the forum for G98 and G99 and there's a mountain of info MCS is to ensure your generation is from renewables and meets certain standards Edited February 27 by Dillsue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramco Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 16 hours ago, JohnMo said: I tried twice and they said no. Have a read of the Victron forum post I linked to above - there's some advice about how to deal with a 'computer says no' from Octopus. Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 4 hours ago, Bramco said: Have a read of the Victron forum post I linked to above - there's some advice about how to deal with a 'computer says no' from Octopus. Simon Reapplied, this time I stuck in the MCS cert I have for the battery install (no MCS for solar install), DNO email for G98 acceptance. Will so what pops out the other end. But computer said yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MechanicalBuilder Posted February 27 Author Share Posted February 27 13 hours ago, JohnMo said: If that's the case you really should be concentrating on insulation and airtightness. To 'require' that much PV would indicate you barely scrape through min building regs standards. Yeah it’ll be very well insulted and air tight as a matter of course anyway. He’s said we could get away with less but has calculated for 4kw. Either way I’m going to have to have it. I’ve been trawling through my emails and paperwork as I’m positive I’ve seen it written that any solar has to be installed by someone MCS accredited. Spoke with the National Grid today, very helpful chap on the phone. He’s going to look into the transformer upgrade and cable run they’ve proposed and he said he should be able to give me some idea of what they would allow. That might help me decide. I’m still tempted to get my MPAN number and just go off grid anyway. They want me to be green so I’ll see how they like the Perkins pumping carbon into the atmosphere to charge my batteries during winter 😂😂😂😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 2 minutes ago, MechanicalBuilder said: paperwork as I’m positive I’ve seen it written that any solar has to be installed by someone MCS accredited May be written but not true, but it does make export and getting paid reality, instead of hopefully. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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