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wongtop: The problem isn’t only on the Vector side, you are getting a reasonable amount of voltage drop/rise between your meter and inverter which could be reduced by fatter ac cable between your switchboard and inverter. You’ll need cables more than twice the cross sectional area to solve the problem this way (if it’s even possible).
If you end up talking with Vector another possible solution might be to ask if they will let you run an Australian profile on your inverter which generally allow higher inverter voltages before the inverter starts clipping.
Yeah my inverter is about 16-17m distance from the meter box, so that could be a factor too. What kind of voltage rise from inverter to meter is normal?
Do you know if Vector has previously allowed customers to run an Australian profile like that?
EgorNZ:We had an issue with our 8.2kW Fronius shutting down intermittently due to grid voltage variations. Our installer did a firmware upgrade on the inverter under Fronius AU's direction which solved the problem. Worth asking your installer if they have a good enough relationship with Fronius to try doing the same on yours?
Do you know if Vector has previously allowed customers to run an Australian profile like that?
Our previous setup at our last property ran an SMA that also suffered from grid voltage issues and the installer in that case widened out the acceptable voltage parameters with good results. From what I remember (12+ years back) it was a more DIY based piece of corrective action by a skilled electronics design engineer but it solved the problem without any issues.
https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/
Question is what sized cabling is there to the meter?
My sub-board is about 25m from the main board/meter and that's where my solar will be connected. But there is 16mm2 cabling between the 2 locations, so it's good for 63 amps
Jase2985:We had an existing 6mm TPS cable which was rated for around 32A (20m run) but replaced it with 2x 10mm single cables as a 'future proofing' strategy so that putting our entire 8.2kW (or more) generation back through to the meter board was possible if we install batteries at the house end.
Question is what sized cabling is there to the meter?
My sub-board is about 25m from the main board/meter and that's where my solar will be connected. But there is 16mm2 cabling between the 2 locations, so it's good for 63 amps
https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/
EgorNZ:Possibly. Someone with better electrical knowledge than me should recognise the coding stamped on the insulation. 6mm refers to 6 square mms of cross-sectional area of the copper cores.
Is this 6mm?
https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/
Jase2985:
@EgorNZ see if you can find any markings on the cable that might help identify it. Product number etc
The text reads "NEXANS (NZ) V-90 ELECTRIC CABLE 450/750V" but that doesn't reveal the specifications. The black printed text reads "3011" but I don't find any corresponding parts on the Nexans website with that number. 🤷♂️
Just guessing from the dimensions, it could be this product, which is 4mm²: https://www.nexans.co.nz/.rest/catalog/v1/product/pdf/CNZP09A1002WVHF
EgorNZ:Jase2985:@EgorNZ see if you can find any markings on the cable that might help identify it. Product number etc
The text reads "NEXANS (NZ) V-90 ELECTRIC CABLE 450/750V" but that doesn't reveal the specifications. The black printed text reads "3011" but I don't find any corresponding parts on the Nexans website with that number. 🤷♂️
Just guessing from the dimensions, it could be this product, which is 4mm²: https://www.nexans.co.nz/.rest/catalog/v1/product/pdf/CNZP09A1002WVHF
pipe60:
The black text is normally the meter markings. You could strip the red or black back to copper then measure the diameter of one core then work out the area of the core and times it by the number of cores, the earth will be smaller.
This cable is in active service as part of the PV system, I don't think I can cut into it 😁
I'll just have to wait and see what the sparky thinks
EgorNZ:Have you received an itemised invoice for the installation? The specifications of the cable used, together with how many metres the run is, should be on that.
pipe60:
The black text is normally the meter markings. You could strip the red or black back to copper then measure the diameter of one core then work out the area of the core and times it by the number of cores, the earth will be smaller.
This cable is in active service as part of the PV system, I don't think I can cut into it 😁
I'll just have to wait and see what the sparky thinks
https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/
Is it a 3 core (2c+e) cable or a 2 core cable? as i see an earth right next to it?
If it is the one linked, with 4mm2 conductors, there would be about a 3% drop (7.2V at 240V) down the length of the cable and i would only be good for about 39A over that distance. that's getting close to the limit.
Jase2985:
Is it a 3 core (2c+e) cable or a 2 core cable? as i see an earth right next to it?
If it is the one linked, with 4mm2 conductors, there would be about a 3% drop (7.2V at 240V) down the length of the cable and i would only be good for about 39A over that distance. that's getting close to the limit.
I'm not 100% certain as I can't visually inspect the end of the cable. But it looks to me like it's only 2 core, with insulation separating the cores. As you say, there is a separate earth wire. Also, one of the cores (live I guess?) appears to be significantly larger than the other.
In which case it's not the Nexan product I linked, and doesn't match anything on their website
This is an interesting concept; the prevalence of roof top solar in Australian states threatening the viability of large scale solar farms and even wind turbine projects. https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/2024/02/08/rooftop-solars-success-results-in-struggling-large-scale-segment/
https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/
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