Energy Matters Forums

[flywire]

There seems to be a few issues with monitoring power production so I am keen for some advice.

Assume that a SMA SMC 10000TL-10 inverter is on a garage wall 10m to 30m from the computer through brick and steel stud walls. I want a cost effective system that takes as little to manage as possible and don't mind running cable. I don't want to run my computer all of the time just to monitor my inverter.

Options seem to be:
1. SMA SMC RS485 Interface kit - 485PB-SMC-NR
2. SMA Bluetooth Interface kit - BTPBINV-NR A
3. Third party clamp logger

What are your thoughts?

[karlajensen]

3rd party meter such as an Efergy (my favourite) or a Current Cost Envi-r
are the least expensive options at $80-150

RS485 card is available on the ApolloEnergy website
we have one in SA and NSW at $168.23 and you can buy it on-line.

The BT I would not recommend in your situation as it is unlikely over that distance to work reliably
and costs similar $.

Once you are talking to it pvbeancounter is the software of choice to upload to www.pvoutput.org

[flywire]

The BT I would not recommend in your situation as it is unlikely over that distance to work reliably
and costs similar $.

I suspected that this might be the case and thank you for your advice.

My initial preference would be to use the inverter although I realise that I am actually interested in what the smart meter measures. What is the practicality of using a RS485 Piggy-Back module in the inverter ( 485PB-SMC-NR ) given that I am not concerned about the cabling issue?