Waldo JaquithJul 30, 2024
This is brilliant. In Germany, it's popular to buy €200 solar panel / inverter combos that plug into a nearby power outlet, feeding the power back into the grid, running their power meter backwards. "Installation" just takes a minute. Folks in apartments simply hang them from their balcony “like wet laundry.” Over 500,000 have been sold. With power at €0.25/kWh, the payback time is about 27 months—after that, it's just free electricity. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/29/business/germany-solar-panels-climate-change.html?unlocked_article_code=1._E0.zL83.1FCeoxOrFDBY&smid=url-share
Germans Combat Climate Change With D.I.Y. Solar Panels

Plug-and-play solar panels are popping up in yards and on balcony railings across Germany, driven by bargain prices and looser regulations.

The New York Times
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@waldoj
just a few words from germany:
Typical electrical installations in German homes are fused with 16A, while the cables allow a load of 20A or even 25A. So, there is a reserve of at least 4A.
Balcony power stations (BPS) with (soon) 800W are therefore permitted, as they can feed in 800W/235V => ~4 A current.
If more powerful BPS were installed, more current could also be drawn on one circuit, but then the cables would blow instead of the fuses in the event of an overload.

/1

Jul 30, 2024 at 5:53amWeb
Show threadisbjørnJul 30, 2024

@waldoj
The current regulation also provides for the installation of a special “Wieland” plug [1] so that the contacts cannot be touched. In addition, the inverters must switch off if they cannot find any mains power, i.e. if they are not plugged into the household grid.

But -- quite honestly -- most BPS probably run without an electrician having connected them, most of them have not been registered and some probably have a significantly higher output 👼

[1] https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/516f1-TM9PL._AC_SL1500_.jpg

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Show threadisbjørnJul 30, 2024

@waldoj
From a purely technical point of view, it would certainly be possible to connect BPS with a higher output if they were connected directly and via a separate line to the domestic power distribution system -- but this is not permitted in Germany, or would then be a “normal” PV installation with all the usual requirements.

I don't know the details about the US, but I suspect that the electrical system differs significantly from that in Germany (not only because 110V instead of 235V)

/off

Show threadisbjørnJul 30, 2024

@waldoj
/addon
Some fuses are also only designed for 10A, so there would be a larger reserve if the more capable cables are installed (probably not) -- to be on the safe side, however, only 800W are permitted.

I also remembered another point in favor of the “Wieland” plug:
The ordinary “Schuko” socket is only designed for 10A continuous load, it only has to withstand 16A for 10 minutes :-)

/off^2