Beginning My Energy Storage Journey In The UK!

[Lpallen1987]

Hi Everyone!

Firstly I'm new here and new to energy storage so be nice, I might come out with some silly questions but I'm a quick learner!

My background is I'm a HVAC engineer with a can do attitude and I like saving money

I had a quote from a local reputable company for a solar panel and battery system to be installed. the company representative informed me that there wasn't enough room on my roof to install solar panels and recommended a battery only system. The battery system would charge from the grid during the night at a low pence per Kw rate and we would then use the batteries during the day which sounds great!

Now why couldn't I install this myself? started my research, found this forum, all the batteries and equipment seems readily available.....

where's the best place to start?
where's the best place to buy the kit in the UK?
I think I'm going to use 3 Plyon US5000 Batteries
An inverter to convert the DC battery voltage to 240v AC... manufacture recommendations?
Do I need some sort of controller to charge the batteries at night and use them during the day?

Thanks in advance!

 

[MSRConf]

Sounds like your looking for a Hybrid Inverter, Solis do a range, many others. ITs Technologies have a good website that supply various packages, batteries, or individual items.

 

[SeaGal]

Hi Everyone!

Welcome! Here is my 2p worth...

Firstly I'm new here and new to energy storage so be nice, I might come out with some silly questions but I'm a quick learner!

There are never silly questions... only silly answers (sometimes)

I had a quote from a local reputable company for a solar panel and battery system to be installed. the company representative informed me that there wasn't enough room on my roof to install solar panels and recommended a battery only system.

How much space do you have? What is its orientation? Is there any shading? Would be good to get opinions from people on here before you dismiss that as an option.

The battery system would charge from the grid during the night at a low pence per Kw rate and we would then use the batteries during the day which sounds great!

I suppliment our PV production during winter with charge up from low-cost economy 7 tarriff and have avoided all peak rate energy. You will need to factor in a round-trip efficiency of about 85% into your ROI calculations though to cover the losses from AC to DC and back to AC again.

Now why couldn't I install this myself? started my research, found this forum, all the batteries and equipment seems readily available....

In many cases you can - you may need a Part-P qualified Sparky for final connection and/or sign-off - see my posting here that covers most of UK-related regs...

Octopus Energy will no longer require MCS certification in the UK

https://gtec.co.uk/clause-5-8-octopus-opens-up-the-solar-pv-market-with-a-paragraph/ I'm not sure how exactly the UK's permitting and approval process works but this sounds like a major win for DIY.

diysolarforum.com

where's the best place to start?

Here.

where's the best place to buy the kit in the UK?

There are now quite a few solar specific suppliers in the UK... TradeSparky, Midsummer Wholesale, Bimble Solar and SolarTradeSales spring to mind.

I think I'm going to use 3 Plyon US5000 Batteries

For batteries, do take a look at Fogstar in the UK. Pylontech, although popular, do have some limitations in that they are 15 cell, rather than 16 cell architecture, which will limit the power they can deliver.

An inverter to convert the DC battery voltage to 240v AC... manufacture recommendations?

Quite a few of us are using Solis in the UK (me included). Their RAI product is for battery storage without PV input. Sunsynk are also highly recommended by members on this forum.

Do I need some sort of controller to charge the batteries at night and use them during the day?

The inverter is bi-directional, so can charge at night and discharge to meet house load.

 

[Steve_S]

You have a few options assuming you do not intend to get involved with a Feed-In-Tariff "scheme" (with the negative connotation as they are scams now).

1) Battery Backed grid, which is Inverter/Charger + Batteries acting as a backup, charged during Low Rate times
2) Load/Cost Shifting: As above BUT charging batteries during Low Rate times for usage during High Rate periods (to offset the higher cost grid power)
3) Similar to #2 but with added solar that also charge the batteries (even if limitedly) reducing what is pulled from Grid to charge. Note that if there is enough solar input available, it could even run the home using Float (post-charging state).
* Case in point, I an float by noon & battery bank is 100%. I still have more solar input than it takes to operate my home and so it runs entirely off solar while the sun ids up & generating enough to do so, then the batteries start to take over as the sun energy declines.

Sadly I have to say STOP WITH PYLONTECH !!!
These are actually really good battery packs BUT they are NOT STANDARD !
A standard & normal 48V LFP Battery pack uses 16 cells with a Nominal Voltage of 51.2V and a "working voltage" range of 48-54.4V
The PylonTech Battery Packs are 15S, using 15 Cells instead of 16. They have a Nominal Voltage 48.0V and "Working Range" of 45V-51.0
It is very difficult to add Standard LFP 16S Packs to a Pylontech bank because the voltage profiles require a compromise that results in wasted energy storage capacity.

Roof Solar depends on several things.
1) Angle/Pitch of roof
2) Facing Direction
3) Obstructions/Shadow/Shade potentials & issues.

There is a wide variety of Solar Panels with different tech. There are several panel brands & types that perform better is shade / low-light conditions than others. Some are better in Full Sun only and so on. It's important to get the Right Panels for the Location & Situation (far too many ignore that - often to their financial detriment). Optionally, in some cases Bi-Facial panels can be a real boost but not in many cases...

Equipment:
Well, there are MANY Options and of course Price Points to go with it. TBH you really do get what you pay for and that has never been more true than with solar gear. Victron is a Top 5 Global manufacturer, they have an incredible software eco-system for the management & control of ALL their devices. Their hardware is Top Grade & everything is fully supported for YEARS ! with software & firmware updates etc. Of course, you pay for that but once setup & running, you'll be worry-free for years.

There are many good 1st & 2nd tier manufacturers to choose from but seriously stick to the Big Name Brands with a history. There are a lot of cheaper "Value" grade gear out there and they can be good but they have real limits and much less functionality & capability.

The BIG Gotcha that everyone misses... Tier-1 & Top Quality products like inverters can be up to 97% efficient so you're wasting little and often they also have a very low idle power consumption. Tier-2 & Value grade gear tend to be between 85-90% efficient and have a much higher idle consumption which is wasteful.

Typically, the standing recommendation is to not pull more than 250A off a battery bank for a single Inverter.
48V@250A = 12,000W. 12,000W ÷ 230VAC = 52.1A *Gross back of envelope math, not accounting for losses)
A single 12,000W inverter can deliver that 230V/50A.

 

[Q-Dog]

Maybe you can build a pergola/shade structure/patio cover to mount panels?

 

[xcentric]

Given the cheap cost of oanels, putting them in suboptimal positions is now quite feasible. Be surprised if there was nowhere to mount your panels that sort of worked

 

[MrPablo]

I agree, panels can be quite effective, even in non-standard places.
I have an array of 10 on a garage roof and 3 on a wall, all working well.

 

[hazlad24]

I agree, panels can be quite effective, even in non-standard places.
I have an array of 10 on a garage roof and 3 on a wall, all working well.

I wanted to do this but wife wasn't having any of it :D