Vertical fence pv

[Pocster]

10 minutes ago, Dillsue said:

If your still running solaredge then you can add more panels up to the max number of optimisers....24 if it's an SE3680H you've got. You also need to keep under the max DC input which is likely double the inverter rating. 

 

DNO is only interested in the max the inverter will produce so adding panels won't increase that.

 

If you're getting FIT then you need to notify your FIT payer of the addition.

 

If youre thinking of building a fence with panels, remember that lots of fences eventually blow down and pretty much all wooden fences eventually succumb with rot. Climate change ain't gonna make future storms any less intense and likely the opposite so use battleship engineering

Now you're talking. Please note in Poster world all fence posts are concrete and are embedded in a 1m wide ; 1m deep concrete trench that runs the entire length of the build. No mojo fence post is going down on my watch!

[Dillsue]

Just now, Pocster said:

But that's not my problem. Because in theory without adding anymore PV I could export 3.68waggies all day long.

Your grid connection will already be rated to carry 16amp export. Your inverter will push that out for hours on a sunny summers day so not a problem to do that every day, if you had enough sun

[SteamyTea]

1 minute ago, Pocster said:

But that's not my problem. Because in theory without adding anymore PV I could export 3.68waggies all day long.

It becomes everyone’s problem.

 

The 16A limit is a maximum, the DNOs know that it is very really reached, and if it is, not for too long.

It is similar to using a 13A plug.  It can take 13A for a short amount of time, but only 10A for extended periods.

[-rick-]

9 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

But for more time.

There will be very few hours a year that your thingy is 3.68, more likely 2.5.

By adding a bit more juice to your thingy, it will be closer to the 3.68 than it was.

So it is important to the local grid.  If you were to export 3.68 24/7, your local wire would get too hot.

 

I'd hope the grid aren't designing around this. They have to design for the hottest day of the year being the longest for sun anyway. On any modern solar install where roof space allowed, the inverter on days like that will max out before peak sun is reached as there will be a certain amount of pv overprovision. So adding more panels won't significantly increase load to the grid at the most critical time. Yes it might stretch the load out over a longer time but the difference should be marginal. The benefit of more panels is to generate more in cooler/less sunny conditions where overheating won't be a problem (if the grid can cope with peak inverter load as it should be able to anyway).

[SteamyTea]

Just now, Dillsue said:

so not a problem to do that every day

See above

[Dillsue]

4 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

See above

?? @Pocster is likely on a 60-100amp supply so the cabling will carry 16amp easily. If it can carry 16amp for 1 sunny day it can carry it every day.

 

I believe @Pocster has had extensive dialogue with his DNO over adding batteries so everything will almost certainly be specced right

[Pocster]

11 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

It becomes everyone’s problem.

 

The 16A limit is a maximum, the DNOs know that it is very really reached, and if it is, not for too long.

It is similar to using a 13A plug.  It can take 13A for a short amount of time, but only 10A for extended periods.

But by the same logic we could have the sunniest summer ever! and I spew 3.68squiggles at 1000Ampys . I potentially would add 4/5 panels . DNO suck it up.  

[Pocster]

19 minutes ago, Dillsue said:

?? @Pocster is likely on a 60-100amp supply so the cabling will carry 16amp easily. If it can carry 16amp for 1 sunny day it can carry it every day.

 

I believe @Pocster has had extensive dialogue with his DNO over adding batteries so everything will almost certainly be specced right

Oh yes!. A year of trying to get another Tesla - no go. Hence the SolarEdge. Whether these vertical panels are worth the cost relative to what they generate i.e. ROI is the next point . I'll ask my original installer and I'm sure it will be way to expensive for the small gain.

[JohnMo]

1 hour ago, Pocster said:

Whether these vertical panels are worth the cost relative to what they generate

You should only be paying £60 to 70 per panel. I added 2x horizontal panels in June (in a less than ideal position) and one panel has already paid for itself.

[Pocster]

11 minutes ago, JohnMo said:

You should only be paying £60 to 70 per panel. I added 2x horizontal panels in June (in a less than ideal position) and one panel has already paid for itself.

Oooooo. Thats nice and cheap!. So It's just the cost of a sparky then?

[-rick-]

11 minutes ago, JohnMo said:

You should only be paying £60 to 70 per panel. I added 2x horizontal panels in June (in a less than ideal position) and one panel has already paid for itself.

 

But if you are paying the original installer to do it vs DIY then the benefits might not stack up. Can't imagine an installer would get out of bed for a job thats not costing £1k,

[JohnMo]

2 minutes ago, -rick- said:

 

But if you are paying the original installer to do it vs DIY then the benefits might not stack up. Can't imagine an installer would get out of bed for a job thats not costing £1k,

But then you would be doing MCS anyway and this discussion wouldn't really exist. Then you are never likely to get much payback either. Not that I could see an installer doing a fence either.

[JohnMo]

7 minutes ago, Pocster said:

Oooooo. Thats nice and cheap!. So It's just the cost of a sparky then?

Depending on how you actually mounted them. But if you were buying fence panels anyway but instead installed PV, the PV per m² is possibly cheaper than fence panels. So buy back is an electrician (if you need one).

[DamonHD]

The DNO and others may well care about how many kWh you produce/export as well as peak kW or A because of their diversity calcs.  At the very least it adds more noise to the industty settlement process.

 

And I've been involved in NG/ESO and gov discussions about understanding where assets are and how they behave.  You won't be helping!  B^>

 

Realistically, adding a couple of panels' worth of generation - ie a small chunk of a existing output - probably won't hurt anything.

 

And I'm absoutely not going to show you this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CJFTBR41

 

[Dillsue]

44 minutes ago, DamonHD said:

The DNO and others may well care about how many kWh you produce/export as well as peak kW or A because of their diversity calcs. 

Are the DNOs able to gain any meaningful peak generation info from domestic scale PV info when they never ask for details of the direction and inclination of installed panels??

[DamonHD]

All this stuff is going to become more important to help delay or schedule substation upgrades, etc.  And so there has been evidence gathering on what info should be collected and collated by whom, and who should be able to see that data:

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/improving-the-visibility-of-distributed-energy-assets

[Dillsue]

10 hours ago, Pocster said:

Oooooo. Thats nice and cheap!. So It's just the cost of a sparky then?

Plus mounting rails, clamps, cable, conduit, optimisers. Mounted vertically will improve winter generation but total for the year will likely be lower than roof mounted at an angle. If you're bothered about £ROI then maybe run the generation through PVGIS, but if you've got  £ to blow crack on and enjoy the novelty 

[JohnMo]

4 hours ago, Dillsue said:

Plus mounting rails, clamps, cable, conduit, optimisers. Mounted vertically will improve winter generation but total for the year will likely be lower than roof mounted at an angle. If you're bothered about £ROI then maybe run the generation through PVGIS, but if you've got  £ to blow crack on and enjoy the novelty 

They can be mounted directly to or between the posts if you wanted. Would look tidier than on rails as well. But still need clamps of some sort - pretty cheap though. Optimisers may not be needed, my vertical panels don't have any, and don't suffer, depends how you get shade.

 

Overall generation is slightly lower over the year, but not that much, certainly better than nothing.

 

Just had a look at the price of composite fence panels, and PV works out about the same price. Both would be maintenance free after install. Vertical panels don't need cleaning either.

[Dillsue]

2 hours ago, JohnMo said:

They can be mounted directly to or between the posts if you wanted. Would look tidier than on rails as well. But still need clamps of some sort - pretty cheap though. Optimisers may not be needed, my vertical panels don't have any, and don't suffer, depends how you get shade.

 

Overall generation is slightly lower over the year, but not that much, certainly better than nothing.

 

Just had a look at the price of composite fence panels, and PV works out about the same price. Both would be maintenance free after install. Vertical panels don't need cleaning either.

The panels will need mounting on something so there'll be a cost for that something, whatever it is. If the fence is a boundary between the OP and neighbours it's likely to need to be aesthetically pleasing and I doubt the neighbours would want to look at the back of PV panels. It's a Solaredge system so it won't work without SE optimisers. Cables will likely need managing. I'd be fairly confident there'll be more costs than just the panels and a spark??

[JohnMo]

1 hour ago, Dillsue said:

neighbours it's likely to need to be aesthetically pleasing

Bifacial panels provide that.

 

My 2 panels including inverter mounts and cable etc was £410 for 1kW all in. If I had installed 2kW would have been about £600.

[Pocster]

4 hours ago, Dillsue said:

The panels will need mounting on something so there'll be a cost for that something, whatever it is. If the fence is a boundary between the OP and neighbours it's likely to need to be aesthetically pleasing and I doubt the neighbours would want to look at the back of PV panels. It's a Solaredge system so it won't work without SE optimisers. Cables will likely need managing. I'd be fairly confident there'll be more costs than just the panels and a spark??

Have a solid fence between me and neighbour anyway. So PV and my side of fence not an issue. My installer will do this ( they cited that as long as it's not visible from the street then planning isn't required..... ) - but I suspect their costs may make this a futile exercise - but would a nice sparky just do it??? 

[gravelrash]

46 minutes ago, Pocster said:

Have a solid fence between me and neighbour anyway. So PV and my side of fence not an issue. My installer will do this ( they cited that as long as it's not visible from the street then planning isn't required..... ) - but I suspect their costs may make this a futile exercise - but would a nice sparky just do it??? 

planning states 5m from a boundary unless mounted to property

[Pocster]

2 hours ago, gravelrash said:

planning states 5m from a boundary unless mounted to property

Yeah I might ignore that one 😊 

[DamonHD]

5m between what and a boundary?

[Dillsue]

13 hours ago, gravelrash said:

planning states 5m from a boundary unless mounted to property

Doesn't an existing fence count as property, as opposed to a free standing ground mounted array??