Am I crazy or a genius?

[Winnersh Dave]

Hi,

I have what I think is a brilliant idea, let me know if you think is daft:

So we have 2 council building lets say 5 meters apart. Each has a separate DNO supply (single phase). One building has 3 solar arrays on it with 3 inverters (SolarEdge system). The other building has nothing.

So my question, would it be cost effective to extend the cabling and move the larger inverter 6.5kW and install in the building that has no solar feed?

My thoughts are that we only need the breaker boxes and it would be a quick solution to having a lack of solar that could be gainfully used in the building and even power a battery and power diverter?

Feel free to rip me apart or come and have a look if you think it is an opportunity for your business?

 

[Andy™]

what exactly are you trying to achieve?

 

[Winnersh Dave]

what exactly are you trying to achieve?

I want to supply solar power to the other building, the FIT is pathetic, so I would rather supply the second building with the excess power. The second building has a separate grid supply, so my logic says install one of the inverters in this building?

 

[ProDave]

And if these PV systems are on the Feed In Tariff system, then absolutely not, you would me "moving" the array to a different MPAN which would invalidate the FIT contract.

 

[Winnersh Dave]

And if these PV systems are on the Feed In Tariff system, then absolutely not, you would me "moving" the array to a different MPAN which would invalidate the FIT contract.

Thanks, that is the sort of pointers that I was looking for.

However, is losing a 5p per kWh FIT, but gaining a solar powered building and at relative low cost (extending cable moving inverter and adding relevant breakers) worth it? Especially if I put in a battery and power diverter to reduce dark hour costs and reduce gas?

 

[Winnersh Dave]

Thanks, that is the sort of pointers that I was looking for.

However, is losing a 5p per kWh FIT, but gaining a solar powered building and at relative low cost (extending cable moving inverter and adding relevant breakers) worth it? Especially if I put in a battery and power diverter to reduce dark hour costs and reduce gas?

Also I would not be moving the full array, I would still have 2 inverters and 10kWh solar generation on the existing MPAN. It is just like losing a few solar panels?

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Hi,

I have what I think is a brilliant idea, let me know if you think is daft:

So we have 2 council building lets say 5 meters apart.

When you say two Council buildings... do you mean buildings owned by a local council?
or some ex-council property that you now own?

What exactly is your relationship with these buildings? Landlord / tenant / other ?

How do you propose installing any required cabling between the buildings.. Overhead / Underground?
Who owns the land between the buildings?

Are there any public rights of way between the buildings that would need to be considered in relations to hazards, dangers, permissions etc.. with any connecting cables you propose to install?

Are the buildings dwellings (homes etc..) or commercial (office/factory unit etc..)..

Beside the energy saving returns etc that you are looking at..
Have you considered the management and control of the proposed arrangement in the event of faults/maintenance work..?

i.e. if someone needs to undertake any work on an installation they must be aware of all sources of energy that could introduce potentially dangerous voltages onto any parts they need to work on...

Does your proposal allow for easy, identifiable, clearly labelled points of isolation for anyone working on the electrical installation..
And / Or, could someone undertaking work at one building, remove power from the other building?

Basically as well as your 'green usage' considerations..
you must also ensure that in the event of a fault the system will fail safe..
and in the event of fault/maintenance work all contractors can easily isolate all parts of the installation they need to work on.

Which are all much easier if a single person/business owns the rights to buildings / land that a proposed installation is going to take.. ?

 

[glenns]

Maybe this is a daft idea... but why not just install a new system on the second building ??

 

[binky]

Moving existing PV gear can be much easier said than done. The panel clips and bolts that hold the frames together can corrode up in a way that means they can only be removed by destruction. The use of aluminium and stainless steel in direct contact guarantees you will get electrolytic corrosion, ie dissimilar metals will form a weak battery when wet. I'm fairly convinced solar gear has been deliberately designed to do this to prevent any loosening of components over it's 30+ year lifespan.