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For two weeks I've been trying to get our electrician out to install our smart meter, and I'm losing patience.
So I wanted to sanity check something before I go any further. I’m looking at installing a smart meter into our distribution board in the garage to allow the Indevolt battery to charge from excess solar. The unit in question is the Solarman Smart Meter MR1-D5-WR (see photos).
The question is, how viable (and allowable) is this as a DIY install? I’m comfortable working methodically, but equally conscious this is edging into territory where I don’t want to create a bigger issue, either from a safety or compliance perspective.
The other sticking point is identifying the AC PV cable feeding back into the house. It’s not immediately obvious which is which in the board. Is there a safe and reliable way to test and confirm this, or is this firmly a "don’t guess, get a pro" situation?
I have read on some forums to wire it to a standard plug top with a 2a fuse and plug it into a standard socket if close by. You’re not actually wiring it into the consumer unit and it saves opening the consumer unit if it needs resetting.
Connecting that just needs live and neutral to any socket (or light). I wired my Huawei CT clamp meter to a lamp base.
For our inverter CT clamp, some rules may have been broken with the flexible power cable, as apparently it cannot go into consumer units. The main considerations were to not go into anything too new (so not in the shiny new CU) but to be protected by an appropriate MCB..
Of course this means that electrical home condition reports led to random comments like "too many cables around" (we have 4 CT clamps at the moment..).
8kW Solis S6-EH1P8K-L-PLUS hybrid inverter; G99: 8kw export; 16kWh Seplos Fogstar battery; Ohme Home Pro EV charger; 100Amp head, HA lab on mini PC
For two weeks I've been trying to get our electrician out to install our smart meter, and I'm losing patience.
So I wanted to sanity check something before I go any further. I’m looking at installing a smart meter into our distribution board in the garage to allow the Indevolt battery to charge from excess solar. The unit in question is the Solarman Smart Meter MR1-D5-WR (see photos).
The question is, how viable (and allowable) is this as a DIY install? I’m comfortable working methodically, but equally conscious this is edging into territory where I don’t want to create a bigger issue, either from a safety or compliance perspective.
The other sticking point is identifying the AC PV cable feeding back into the house. It’s not immediately obvious which is which in the board. Is there a safe and reliable way to test and confirm this, or is this firmly a "don’t guess, get a pro" situation?
Thoughts?
Looks like it needs power to the two terminals at the top (,so it should go in a box for safety) then the CT clamp around one of the wires between the electric meter and the cu, or if it's to measure solar around either the live or neutral coming out of the inverter wherever is convenient.
So you can put it in a box and connect it with a cable that has a plug on the end plugged into a socket. That just leaves the CT clamp. Easy if you are measuring grid draw/return because the live and neutral are separated, more difficult if it's the PV you need to measure because they are probably not. You may need a breakout box or you may be able to tuck it in the back of the isolating switch (be careful!). Alternatively it might be wired in single core from isolator to cu as mine (conveniently) was. Can't tell without being there or close up photos.
Thanks for the advice guys. If I get some time this weekend I'll wire it up via the plug and house it safely in a box, all while trying not to electrocute myself ⚡️🤣
I followed the cables this afternoon and have a good idea as to which the AC cable post Solaredge inverter is, so will clamp on there.
