Moving hot water from CL1 to general usage

[IrisL]

Hi 

As of July 1 CL1 rates are 22 cents/KWh. Solar feed in tariff is still 5 cents/KWh. We have smart meter which tracks general usage, control load 1 and solar feed in tariff. Hot water operates from 10 pm onwards. Could you advise if it's possible to move hot water system to general usage and set the timer to run 9 am - 4 pm, when solar panels work.

Thank you in advance.

[Natalie-AGL · Accepted solution]

Hi IrisL,  Thank you for your question. 

Unfortunately, this is something that your retailer is unable to assist you with, however, an accredited electrician will be able to assist you and provide additional information with changing the hot water under your general usage tariff. 

Kind Regards, 

Natalie 

[IrisL]

Thank you!

[NeilC · Accepted solution]

@IrisL @Natalie-AGL 

It should be possible for your off peak meter to be reprogrammed to Controlled Shoulder (normally from 0930 till 15:30 in SA) which is the cheapest controlled load rate.

AGL should be able to arrange this for you.

Controlled load Peak^	55.605 c/kWh
Controlled load Off peak^	35.519 c/kWh
Controlled load Shoulder^	31.207 c/kWh

As you can see from my plan information that three Controlled load rates are available.

I have just spoken to SA Power Networks (My Supplier) and they have confirmed that it is possible and that AGL should create the appropriate work order to reconfigure your Smart Meter should decide to use that approach.

If you do not have a Smart Meter, this is still possible but reconfiguring your Meter would require an on-site visit to configure.

According to my plan hours for SA are:

Controlled Load Peak charges apply 6:30am to 9:30am and 3:30pm to 11:30pm everyday,

Controlled Load Off peak charges apply 11:30pm to 6:30am everyday,

Controlled Load Shoulder charges apply 9:30am to 3:30pm everyday.

However, you must be aware that OFF PEAK gives you 7 hours to heat your water and Shoulder gives you only six hours.

So you may find with Shoulder Time that in Winter the water does not become hot enough for your liking.

If you are on a single rate tariff, if you press the bypass on your Meter you will be charged that rate, if you have a Smart Meter and on a TOU (Time of Use) tariff and press the bypass you will be charged at the rate that is current at the time.

The other issue is that you will be using hot water in the morning that has not been heated, so if you shower at night and say have a quick shower in the morning that the water will be colder.

I have a Heat Pump Hot-water Service and as it has a timer, I set the time to come on at 10:30 in the morning, it normally takes about 3 hours and is, generally, using the power generated by our solar panels.

As Natalie has suggested you may opt to have an Electrician to install a Timer for your Hot-water Unit and set the Start / Stop times to operate when you are generating your maximum solar output. (If you do this make sure the Timer has battery backup and if you have Daylight savings you may have to manually adjust the time)

I would also suggest that you look at your plan as you should be able to get a better rate, say 10c for the first 10kWh and 5c for the remainder of the Day or at least 6c and you may be better off if you went to a TOU tariff.

Hope this helps.

PS:

Although you have stated you have a Smart Meter, I have supplied the other options that are available for non smart meter members reading this. I quoted SA rates and Times as these are the figures that I have access to but all this should be applicable to any State or Territory.

[IrisL]

Thank you!

I'm in NSW,  my current plan has only General Usage and Control Load 1. I'll investigate other plans and tariffs.  The other option I'm researching at the moment: apparently Fronius inverter supports load management. And it should be possible to install relay and setup load management so that when available solar power exceeds defined level, e.g. 2 KW, it can be used for hot water heater. This option is cheaper than to install diverter. My hot water heater uses 3.6 KW, so if at least half of that will be derived from solar, i'll break even. Most of the days solar produces 5 KW and we hardly use it. Hot Water heater will still be connected to Control Load between 10 pm - 5 am as a backup. I contacted the company which installed my solar panels, but their advise was to contact Fronius local installer, so it's in investigation stage at the moment.

Regards

Iris

[NeilC]

@IrisL 

Hi, Iris.

Fronius inverters are misleading and you need to read the manual in regard to there output.

If you want you can send me PM (Private Message) and I will give you a email address where you can send me your AGL data download.

To send a PM simply click on my username, log on, if not done so, then LIKE AN EMAIL send me a private message.

I have a two programmes that convert your data from the data file to the industry standard NEM 12 or 13 File.

If you decide to do this I can assure you that I have every clearance that is needed if you ask.

The only data that I need is the last six columns of your data file. I can then supply you with all the data for up to two years in a report.

[IrisL]

Hi @NeilC 

I downloaded Fronius Primo manual. It does have some useful information in Energy Manager
(under Relay menu item) section:

The "Energy Manager" (E-Manager) function can be used to activate the floating
switch contact in such a way that it functions as an actuator.
Thus, a consumer that is connected to the floating switch contact can be controlled by specifying a switch-on or switch-off point that depends on the feed-in
power (effective power).
The floating switch contact is automatically switched off:
- If the inverter is not feeding any power into the grid
- If the inverter is manually switched to Standby mode
- If the effective power is set to < 10% of the nominal output of the inverter

To activate the Energy Manager function, select the "E-Manager" item and press
the "Enter" key.
When the "Energy Manager" function is running, the "Energy Manager" symbol
will appear in the top left corner of the display:
When the floating NO contact is off (open contact)
When the floating NC contact is on (closed contact)
To deactivate the Energy Manager function, select a different function (ALL /
Permanent / OFF / ON) and press the "Enter" key

Notes on setting up the switch-on and switch-off points
If the difference between the switch-on and switch-off points is too small, or if
there are fluctuations in effective power, the result may be multiple switching
cycles.
To avoid switching on and off frequently, the difference between the switch-on
and switch-off points should be at least 100 - 200 W.
When choosing the switch-off point, the power consumption of the connected
consumer should be taken into account.
When choosing the switch-on point, the weather conditions and anticipated insolation should be taken into account.
Application example
Switch-on point = 2000 W, switch-off point = 1800 W
If the inverter is outputting 2000 W or above, then the floating switch contact on
the inverter is switched on.
If the inverter output falls to below 1800 W, the floating switch contact is
switched off.
This allows useful applications, such as operating a heat pump or an air-conditioning system using as much self-generated power as possible, to be implemented quickly

Regards

Iris

[NeilC · Accepted solution]

@IrisL 

Iris,

As I stated you need to read the manual and also understand the implications.

To connect your HW Service to the inverter, you will not have CONTROLLED LOAD  electricity at all

If you don't have TOU tariff you will be paying your DAILY RATE for electricity when ever you go below your preset limit.