Garald Posted Friday at 20:10 Share Posted Friday at 20:10 (edited) Just got 3kW worth of solar panels installed; no battery. The power-grid monopolistic company will hook me up to the grid when it pleases (maybe in a few days, maybe in many months). In the meantime, how do I set up things (meaning mainly my heat-pump, water-heater included) so that it actually uses the power produced by the panels (functioning when there's sun out, that is, rather than waiting for the water to get cold first)? Edited Friday at 20:29 by Garald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conor Posted yesterday at 07:49 Share Posted yesterday at 07:49 You can't. It'll be a grid tied system. So it's sitting there doing nothing until it's fully connected up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 08:23 Author Share Posted yesterday at 08:23 (edited) 34 minutes ago, Conor said: You can't. It'll be a grid tied system. So it's sitting there doing nothing until it's fully connected up. Wait, this doesn't agree with what I've been told. My understanding is that I will be consuming whatever energy this produces until it's connected. (This is France, in case it isn't obvious from the picture; is it different in the UK?) Edited yesterday at 08:24 by Garald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conor Posted yesterday at 08:29 Share Posted yesterday at 08:29 What exactly do you mean by connected? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 08:36 Author Share Posted yesterday at 08:36 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 08:36 Author Share Posted yesterday at 08:36 6 minutes ago, Conor said: What exactly do you mean by connected? Connected to the city grid. Supposedly the panels are connected both (a) directly to my house and (b) to the grid. I've written to the company to confirm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 09:10 Author Share Posted yesterday at 09:10 Hm, trying to crop out the bit of the screenshot that describes my cat's behavior. It seems one cannot edit posts that are more than a few minutes old... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted yesterday at 11:40 Share Posted yesterday at 11:40 Haven't you already got a connection to the grid to power your house?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 11:44 Author Share Posted yesterday at 11:44 3 minutes ago, Dillsue said: Haven't you already got a connection to the grid to power your house?? Well, obviously, but I need another connection so that I can sell excess electricity to the town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jack Posted yesterday at 14:51 Share Posted yesterday at 14:51 3 hours ago, Garald said: Well, obviously, but I need another connection so that I can sell excess electricity to the town. The same connection is used for both import and export. The inverter manages things automatically based on how much power your panels are producing and how much power your house is using. Perhaps there's a new meter needed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted yesterday at 15:00 Author Share Posted yesterday at 15:00 8 minutes ago, jack said: The same connection is used for both import and export. The inverter manages things automatically based on how much power your panels are producing and how much power your house is using. Perhaps there's a new meter needed? Maybe that's the case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted yesterday at 16:44 Share Posted yesterday at 16:44 You can get PV diverters. These units are designed to turn on a remote load i.e. water heater, when they sense power being exported. There is usually a minimum generation they can work down to, so good for resistance loads, not so good for inductive loads like a heat pump. Heat pumps don't like being started and stopped too often. The usual way to 'run' a heat pump from PV is ti take the statistical route i.e. max generation is around local noon, so a couple of hours either side. You will still be importing energy during these times, but less than usual. You have to balance that with whatever you get changed for you importing energy, it may still work out cheaper to run the heavy loads at night, only you know your tarrif. Depending on what you get paid to export, you may find that the cash generated is a better option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted yesterday at 21:16 Share Posted yesterday at 21:16 9 hours ago, Garald said: Well, obviously, but I need another connection so that I can sell excess electricity to the town. Well its not that obvious. You're posting on a UK forum and over here we have a single connection for both import and export. There's no second connection required to connect solar PV to. Maybe it's different in France but I'd be surprised if it was. In the UK you need an export MPAN, but that's not a second connection Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted yesterday at 21:28 Share Posted yesterday at 21:28 Can you post pictures of exactly what you have inside, i.e. inverter and any switchgear and what is connected already and more importantly what is NOT connected? It sounds like you have a very different way of connecting and metering to us in the UK and until we understand how it is connected we can't advise much. It might be as simple as it is already connected but you are awaiting a separate export meter to be installed to enable payments of exported power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted 12 hours ago Author Share Posted 12 hours ago Sorry if I came off as rude - certainly not my intention! Here are some pictures. The cables from the new electrical board inside to the panels on the roof are contained in the grey tube you see on the outside, parallel to the black cables that connect the house to the grid (and to my neighbours‘ building, in a bizarre aerial installation). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted 11 hours ago Author Share Posted 11 hours ago (edited) More pictures. Edited 11 hours ago by Garald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted 11 hours ago Author Share Posted 11 hours ago 13 hours ago, Dillsue said: Well its not that obvious. You're posting on a UK forum and over here we have a single connection for both import and export. There's no second connection required to connect solar PV to. Maybe it's different in France but I'd be surprised if it was. In the UK you need an export MPAN, but that's not a second connection Oh, I post here in part because the French building forum I know is full of rude people who don‘t know anything. Maybe things are now clear from the pictures - should I take photos of anything else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted 11 hours ago Share Posted 11 hours ago 52 minutes ago, Garald said: Can you post pictures of all the other bits that connect to that white plastic trunking? there should be an inverter and some switches and possibly meters and things. I enjoy your posts here, please don't stop, it is interesting to see how other countries do things, the only frustration is we don't know the regulations in France so can't make much comment on what is correct from a French regulation point of view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted 9 hours ago Author Share Posted 9 hours ago Here are some more pictures. Is this enough? This panel is next to the main panel (and connected to it). Not sure I can show much more without wrecking things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProDave Posted 8 hours ago Share Posted 8 hours ago No I mean zoomed out other bits of equipment not more details of the ones you have show. Somewhere there should be an inverter, here is one as a random picture to give you an idea what it might look like It may not even be in the same room, but I would have thought it likely to connect to that run of white trunking running down the wall from the consumer unit you already posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted 7 hours ago Share Posted 7 hours ago 15 minutes ago, ProDave said: Somewhere there should be an inverter May be micro inverters on the back of the modules. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted 6 hours ago Share Posted 6 hours ago 42 minutes ago, SteamyTea said: May be micro inverters on the back of the modules. Fair chance. Grey conduit from roof is AC from micro inverters to surge protection then to Q2. Connection to main consumer unit is via RCD and Q1??? 2 cables and earth in the cable glands. All switched on so maybe already running or needs MCB in main consumer unit switching on?? Could be something completely different but micro inverters would work with what's been shown so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garald Posted 5 hours ago Author Share Posted 5 hours ago (edited) I take “micro-onduleurs” means the same as “micro-inverters”? See page 5 in the attached file. An app on my phone shows me how much the panels are producing, but it doesn’t yet show how much I am using. devis_DEV-28851_28851.pdf Edited 5 hours ago by Garald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillsue Posted 4 hours ago Share Posted 4 hours ago Google translate says 3 " MICRO-ONDULEURS THALEOS TRANSFORMER 2 "are micro inverters. If the app shows the panels generating then youre up and running. Anything you generate will be used to power your house and if there's anything you don't use it'll likely go the grid to power your neighbours 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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