EEVblog 1385 - 8kW Home Solar Power System EXPANSION!

Dave explands his 3kW home solar power system to 8kW using new 370W LG NEON 2 panels and Enphase IQ7+ micro inverters!
The complete installation video. Time lapse videos and other analysis videos to come on the EEVblog2 channel.
Thanks to LG Australia, Enphase and Clenergy:

Buy anything through that link and Dave gets a commission at no cost to you.

Donate With Bitcoin & Other Crypto Currencies!

[EEVblog]

*UPDATE*: If you follow me on Twitter you might already know this, and as many people have commented on below. The 5.1kW LG panel system will only output 4.13kW using the Enphase IQ7+ inverters. Because if you read the datasheet it only has a maximum output capacity of 290VA (295VA peak). So 14 x 290W = 4.06kW (4.13kW peak).

This is Enphases response, it's about about solar clipping and solar rating, I'll have to do a video covering this. Basically, it's not a problem for most system in many parts of the world, but it means there will be clipping and power loss (undercapicity) on high solar insolation days in summer.
With my old 3kW (12 x 250W) panels they did in fact output the full 250W rating in summer on many days because in Sydney we regularly get 1000W/sqm solar insolation in summer time, not 800W like they work from. I have almost 8 years of data that shows this to be true. If I hooked these 14 x 370W panels to a >5kW string inverter I have no doubt I'll get 5.1kW peak out of it in summer time.
So UNDERSTAND if you are using Enphase microinverters, they do not manufacture a module that will give the full 370W peak output power if you are in a high insolation area in summer time. As I said, most likely not an issue at all outside of summer time, or in many parts of the world.
Of course that will only be for a shortish peak during the day, but still, you are potentially limiting your panels when your inverter's output power does not match the panel.

For this system I am already peaking at the maximum 4.13kW peak in April. So my system will definitely cklip in summer time, it's just a matter of how much energy this wastes. I estimate as high as 10% on a really high solar insolation and completely clear day.

Their response:
"In order to increase the total energy yield over the lifetime of the system it is common practice to oversize the PV module (DC rating) to the Inverter size (AC Inverter maximum continuous power output rating). In Australia, the most common system size is 6.6 kWp on a 5 kVA string Inverter, this is a 133% DC:AC oversizing ratio. The maximum oversizing allowable in Australia for STC rebates is 133% or 0.75/maximum continuous power output of the inverter.


The commonly paired modules information on our US website, is a bit mis-leading as we would not recommend any PV module be paired with less than a ratio of 1:1 at an absolute minimum, the peak output of IQ7A is 366 VA so the minimum PV modules size for the IQ7A would be 365/370 W. However as per the documents above we always recommend oversizing by at least 125% as in most circumstances it will be beneficial with greater energy yield over the lifetime of the system.


The other important factor to consider is that the PV modules do not always operate at Standard Test Conditions (STC lab) values, they often operate at Nominal module operating temperature (NMOT) values which are also given on the PV module data sheet. For the LG 370 W PV modules you can see the NOCT values below:



Here you can see that the 370 W LG PV modules at NMOT only output 279 W which is more realistic than STC values which are tested in a lab at perfect conditions. Other factors could reduce this further these are; soiling, shading, angle and orientation."

[whitefields]

Imagine having Dave leaping around while you are trying to get the job done!

[TheMcSebi]

I was just about to think "why in earths name would the panels be facing north, the sun's never shining from the north"
Then I remembered that I live in europe and that the world is round

[viniciusmartins]

Thanks Dave for the business hope you enjoy the system and our service we are available anytime. Regards Vini team Finese see you soon when you want to install the battery

[thetron]

Dave: "You can't do a teardown on these inverters, they're completely potted". BigClive: "Were just going to soak these in a tub of acetone for about 6 hours and then we'll begin the teardown" :-D

[funtechu]

It's so weird to me that people complain about being able to see solar panels on a room. Personally, I love seeing solar panels!

[vincei]

Hi Dave, Just finished single handedly constructing/installing and doing all the wiring for the 11KW solar install at my place. So nice to see my insanely high electricity bills drop 90+%. Didn't do a roof mount because that requires way more red tape/systems. Also didn't do grid sell either because that gives the "authorities" the leg in to stick their nose into your business. I can't say I'm surprised that they'll start to penalize you for grid sell - I'm sure that'll be coming to the US before the drop of a hat. Most of my neighbors are going solar too and one whose been on Solar the longest said he's now starting to owe the electricity company money again! ... figures :-/ It gets super windy here in my corner of Connecticut so I'll be adding a small wind turbine for those days when the sun doesn't want to cooperate. Good luck with the new system!

[bjarkeistruppedersen]

You missed the oppotunity to do an april fools joke about installing a solar driveway 🤣

[dinushkam]

this reminds me, how long i have been watching dave

[tasman]

Hi there Dave I'll be watching your YouTube quite a few years now and what I've learnt now about solo panels and how it is installed and the right inverters and the LG side panels I didn't realise there was a lot of work involved yes what a top job those guys did and I learnt a lot to

[rabidpb]

46:30 typical. Brand new and it's got a big greasy pawprint on it already.

[andi]

Remember watching when you first installed the solar system and it’s awesome to see you’re upgrading it even more! :D really enjoyed this video

[m.zohaibusman]

Put some cover on them so they don't get damaged from rain 😎

[jelle_smid]

I love my LG Neon2 black 320 panels!
Installed 13 of them exactly 2 years ago. (
South facing at a 40 degree angle, with optimisers and connected to a SolarEdge inverter.
Produced 9, 66MegaWatt so far.... roughly 4700kwh per year.
Living in The Netherlands with our climate that is so amazing to me! Best descision ever.

[BitBanger]

We have microinverters on our 10.5KW system (2 strings). Only had one fail in the last 3 years, but most importantly didn't bring down the entire grid. Great stuff!

[Poebbelmann]

Dave: You want the panels in the north.
Me: What!?
Also me: Ah, yea. He is down under!

[GetRealGreg]

As an accredited CEC installer, watching these guys that are described as LG's top installers is just disappointing. Where to begin.

-Everyone starts off having their harness *actually connected* to an anchor point and then quickly abandons that. Like wearing one but not connected offers you any sort of protection.
-Using plastic/nylon cable ties (the cable restraint system has to last the life of the system. Nylon cable ties last approx 2-5 years out doors so can't be used. If you use cable ties, the stainless steel variants are the proper ones to use)
-Reusing a 7 year old D.C isolator. This is just annoying. A brand new and better designed unit costs $35 excluding GST for god's sake. We all know how water/moisture ingress in the RTI is usually the cause of most solar fires, so why risk it by using an old one when a new and better designed one costs just $35?
-Using dektites designed for tin roofs instead of the proper, much larger, versions for tile roof penetrations
-Incorrect IP rating junction box used on the roof (with a questionable gland). Don't even get me started on the silicone job they did there ffs.
-Having different length end rails is just such poor workmanship.
-Tiles at some rail bracket locations are clearly not correctly seated and in turn pushed up risking water ingress (CEC claim that not me)

At the end of the day, ultimately, you can have the best hardware but if it's installed poorly then each one is just a point of failure. The fact that they did all of this while being recorded just shows they genuinely don't know and just haven't been trained correctly. One of LG's top installers.

[jonathanwilhelm]

Hey day I think the date code is YY/MM/DD

[iamrodos]

I got the Enphase system. Boosted my confidence in it to know Dave was willing to put it on this roof. I thought it was great, now its even better. The Enphase API is great, as is hacking against the local Envoy. I hope you look into a battery. Be great to see what you select.

[Cptnbond]

Anti-seize paste prevents problems with old screws that refuse to work many years later. It has proven very effective in high corrosive conditions with steel-on-steel, aluminum-to-aluminum, and many other applications.