Hey all,
I am new to solar and looking for help setting up a small solar and battery system for my home. I have read lots of good info on this forum but am still fuzzy on what system will suit my needs.
Our household uses approximately 10-12 kWh/day. Our goal is to reduce our reliance on the grid and eventually go off-grid. I am looking at a 6.6kW solar system with a hybrid inverter, but am confused about battery size and whether a 10 kWh battery is enough for overnight.
Also, if you have any recommendations for trusted brand names (panels, inverters, or batteries), that would be appreciated. I seen Fronius, Sungrow, and Tesla as options, but am not sure how they stack up against each other in long-term value.
Lastly, do you use monitoring tools or apps to see performance and Servicenow , is that worth the spend?
Thank you for your time and consideration! This forum has already been very useful, and I would appreciate insight into what others with similar setups have experienced.
martinanderson
Hello there,
It is a loot of talk about this. It depends.
How big is your budget? It doesn’t came just to inverter, batteries and PV. You also have to consider the mounting structure, the DC/AC cables, protections, communication with Ethernet, your location, irradiance and azimuth angle. You want to DYI or ask an installer to do this for you, etc.
What are your household applications? single phase or 3phase. What kind of loads you have during day and night. How often you use your loads.
Is your grid stabilized?
And most important, what are your energy prices and the total monthly electricity cost? If its lower than 100EUR/USD per month is not fully worth it.
If you can apply for govement discount, etc.
If you are just looking for brands. TOP inverters are VICTRON, SMA, FRONIUS MID range Huawei, Sungrow, SOLAX, very cheap ones don’t bother it’s a headache.
For batteries there are many brands on the market, but first you have to make sure they compatible with your inverter brand. Victron is compatible with any battery, other brands are compatible with BYD, TESLA, Pylontech. Huawei/SOLAX are only compatible with their own batteries.
For PV always look for the almost latest technology, right now TOPCON is the best and noncrystalline N-type the good choose.
Mounting structure most common and known is K2.
But all these questions can answer a good installer, check with your registered installers in your area. Look for how many projects they had and ask for customers reviews.