Sunny Boy for Grid Tied??

[Cmy]

Until a week ago I was fixed on hybrid with batteries later. A Utility pre inspection approved grid tied, as is, vs a $6K electrical prep estimate for hybrid. Had planned on a S-A 15 or the EG4 18kPV so the world of grid tied options is new.

A hybrid installation estimate last year, for 48 Hyundai 305W and an EG4 18kPV, was $37K plus electrical work.

A grid tied estimate yesterday - 30 Q Cell g10s 405W and 30 micro inverters for $34.6K. Or change from micro to two Sunny Boy 6.0s for $28.5K. Never cared for micro so the lower Sunny Boy cost is an added benefit. This installer has two recent larger installs in the neighborhood with happy neighbors. Bid includes needed meter connection changes not in the hybrid estimate. Still checking on higher watt panels and if a SMA 7.0 is better for future expansion. Next door neighbor has had two Sunny Boys for eight years without problems.

Any reason not to go with the Sunny Boys?

 

[1201]

Or you can change to one growatt 11.4k and save another couple of thou. And you can add batteries later via ac coupling

 

[Cmy]

I would love to drive over to Sulphur Springs and load the trailer but the boss says I am too old to run around roof 20' off the ground. I think she is really worried about cleaning out the shop if I take a dive . Got a few more numbers to call but this last estimate was from the best referenced installer so far.

Utility inspection said they required backup and transfer switch be near the meter panel and not 150' away. So that changed me from hybrid to grid tied and add wall style battery(s), when needed, in the garage.

 

[Hedges]

The Sunny Boys I've had are good.
All discontinued now, although some SB -41 series which are allowed for new installs may be found.

Replacement Sunny Boy Smart Energy should be available Real Soon Now.
It is more expensive, and it accepts one HV battery (which unfortunately is more expensive than many LV batteries.) SBSE will require an external auto-transformer and transfer switch to support backup (I am guessing that can be near meter even if inverter isn't). And, it has anemic surge capability. I'm thinking an Easy-Start might let it support my sister's A/C. On the plus side, it supports overpaneling to 200%, 15kW PV on 7.7kW inverter, with the extra charging battery.

 

[lscotte]

I have a grid tied only system with a SB7.7US-40 (2019 vintage). It's a very solid inverter. Optitrak/Shade Fix works pretty darn well, better than I expected, as long as only a small portion of the string is shaded. No requirement for the rapid shut down nonsense here, so no additional module level electronics to fail, which is great. I have one string, I call my "bonus string" which gets a lot of shade in the winter. I added Tigo optimizers to see if they'd help beyond what the inverter can do, but they didn't really (still need to get the string MPPT voltage above the inverter's minimum 125V regardless of where VOC is to pull any current). No regrets with the inverter, it'll likely last way longer than the Chinese inverters, but also will never do anything more than what it does today (i.e. no provision for storage without additional hardware beyond just batteries) - so it's a basic, but solid, product.

 

[Cmy]

As suggested I looked at Growatt and liked them. Does the MPPT 16.9 amp short circuit limit allow one, or two, strings of Isc 13.8 amp panels? I know the four MPPs can have two strings each whether max amps is for each or both isn't clear to me. Tried SS but they didn't understand the question.

Sorry to see the old Sunny Boys no longer available. While I like the lower price of grid tied inverters and planning on at least two for 14kW of panels. Does it make any sense to buy hybrid instead just in case rare outages become more frequent? Switched from hybrid planning when the electrical prep estimate approached $7K and grid tied was approved as is.

 

[Hedges]

Hybrid should be cheaper than separate battery inverter AC coupled.

I will be installing the SMA hybrid Sunny Boy Smart Energy for my sister and neighbor.
Looks like it will be more expensive than Sunny Boy -41 series at least initially, hope the price comes down.
The upside of that model is optional battery can be installed, and it can be overpaneled to 200% without clipping - 15kW of PV can feed up to 7.7kW to grid and up to 10kW to battery.
Downside is the HV battery is expensive; BYD costs about 2x what server rack or PowerPro does.
One more downside is that transfer switch (and split-phase auto-transformer) will be a separately purchased box.

You can find other hybrids, e.g. SolArk or EG4 18kpv, with transfer switch built in and architecture of two separate 120V inverters. Also compatible with more economical 48V batteries.

Look for a UL listed ESS (bundle of inverter and battery), may be required by code now.

 

[1201]

As suggested I looked at Growatt and liked them. Does the MPPT 16.9 amp short circuit limit allow one, or two, strings of Isc 13.8 amp panels? I know the four MPPs can have two strings each whether max amps is for each or both isn't clear to me. Tried SS but they didn't understand the question.

Sorry to see the old Sunny Boys no longer available. While I like the lower price of grid tied inverters and planning on at least two for 14kW of panels. Does it make any sense to buy hybrid instead just in case rare outages become more frequent? Switched from hybrid planning when the electrical prep estimate approached $7K and grid tied was approved as is.

if you parallel strings you double the amperage. as long as the isc is below 16.9 you should be fine. my panels have an isc of 13.85a so absolutely no way i could put two strings on one mppt.

I would start with grid tie. you can ac couple later if outages become more frequent. grid tie is very simple compared to hybrid

 

[Cmy]

Started planning hybrid over a year ago with batteries in the future . Sol-Ark was a simpler option than Schneider and had a string planning calculator. EG4 was attractive but either cost more than $5K. The utility's solar inspector approving grid tied but hybrid requiring changes, later estimated ~$7K, made an easy change to grid tied.

A pair of Sunny Boy or Growatt grid inverters at $1-2K seem a bargain. May need to rethink if a new SB pair is close to an EG4 cost.

 

[Hedges]

SMA SBSE not available yet, may be $2500 to $3200 initially.
Previous model SB -41 discontinued, some still in stock. I had been seeing the 7.7kW model listed around $1800, seems mostly sold out now.

I think other brands may be discounted due to low demand (net metering is dead in California), while SMA is less available and expensive for the moment.

 

[ssts]

Hello, we have full Q Cells QHome ESS G1 7.6KW hybrid inverter systems for sale.

Brand new still unopened in manufacturers packaging.

Inlcudes;

7.6KW inverter

3 batteries - 6.3kWh each - total battery storage of 18.9kWh per system.

Autotransformer and BMS included.

All for $5000. Full system.

 

[Cmy]

The 7.0 and 7.7 showing as discontinued makes the Growatt an easy choice. Get two and I have up to 6-8 strings with a 16.9A Isc. If the SBSE solution crosses $5k then hard to ignore the EG4/Sol-Ark options. Monthly net metering and wanting to offset summer month AC loads

 

[1201]

The 7.0 and 7.7 showing as discontinued makes the Growatt an easy choice. Get two and I have up to 6-8 strings with a 16.9A Isc. If the SBSE solution crosses $5k then hard to ignore the EG4/Sol-Ark options. Monthly net metering and wanting to offset summer month AC loads

I don't know how soon you plan to install but the new growatt storage inverter should be coming out in the next couple of months. To me it's a grid tie first inverter with storage solutions incorporated

SPH 10000TL-HU-US | Residential Storage Inverter | Growatt

SPH 10000TL-HU-US | Residential Storage Inverter | Growatt

us.growatt.com

 

[Cmy]

Older panels have ~50 Voc and Isc ~11 amps. Newer panels reverse that with ~38 Voc and 13+ Isc. Bluesun 415 has a 14.02 Isc. Will the new Growatt with a MPPT Isc limit of 27 amps be able to manage two 14a strings?

 

[Hedges]

The 7.0 and 7.7 showing as discontinued makes the Growatt an easy choice. Get two and I have up to 6-8 strings with a 16.9A Isc. If the SBSE solution crosses $5k then hard to ignore the EG4/Sol-Ark options. Monthly net metering and wanting to offset summer month AC loads

If we're lucky SMA's system crosses under $5k.

Assuming similar ABU to what SBS uses, that is probably $3.4k msrp, $2.5k street price

SMA Sunny Boy Storage Auto Backup Unit

The Sunny Boy Storage Automatic Backup Unit (SBS-ABU-200-US-10) is a fully integrated solution for whole home backup power. The ABU consists of several components. The first is a 200 Amp rated contactor, which automatically disconnects the home energy system from grid power during a power outage.

sunwatts.com

SMA 200A Automatic Backup Unit w/ Energy Meter (SKU Part Number SBS-ABU-200-US-10)

SUNNY BOY STORAGE AUTOMATIC BACKUP UNIT The fully integrated solution for whole home backup power While alternative backup systems offer merely a transfer switch and require additional hardware purchases, the new SMAAutomatic Backup Unit (ABU) is a truly integrated solution for whole home backup...

powerstore.com

SBSE, I think we're seeing $3.2k to $3.5k initially, maybe some sellers will have at $2.5k eventually. (I'd like to see it at same $1800 as SB)

SMA - Sunny Boy Smart Energy Hybrid Inverter - SBSE7.7-US-50 | 7.7kW | 600VDC 208/240VAC | Single Phase Hybrid Inverter

Product Description: SMA - SBS6.0-US-10 Battery Storage Inverter The residential PV market is changing rapidly. Your bottom line matters now more than ever—so we’ve designed a superior residential solution to help you decrease costs at every stage of your business operations.

solarkitdepot.com

SMA Sunny Boy Smart Energy Hybrid Inverters - EcoDirect.com

SMA Sunny Boy Smart Energy Hybrid Inverters, SBSE • SMA Sunny Boy Inverters is a market leader for solar inverters SMA is setting grid tie benchmarks again and again: leading-edge efficiencies of 98 % and new technology ensures maximum yields and the highest user convenience.

www.ecodirect.com

 

[Kuma]

Installed SB 5.0-us-41 with 15 455w panels, 6.82kw, last summer. Dont be afraid to oversize. Chose SMA due to reliability. As a dyi'er, I wanted to install the pv system and leave it alone for 10~20 years. Also, if a roof top install it may require RSD's depending on local code.