We run an air source heat pump. When the mains electricity goes off we have no heating or hot water but we have 18 x solar panel and 2 x 7kw batteries. I need a way to run the ASHP from electricity we are generating or have stored when we have no mains electric. How does this happen? We have a generator which we can use but have no idea whether we can link this up.
Ann Edwards
With a hybrid inverter, maybe, e.g. solar goes into the inverter as DC.
You’d need to get the EPS circuit wired up and some changes to the household circuits. Have a look at the eps options on the GivEnergy KB site.
If it’s an AC input, where the solar has its own inverter, that’ll likely shut down on the loss of grid (as it’ll be grid tied for following the frequency)
Only exception to that, I guess, would be if you had a gateway system like Tesla power wall offers. But GE don’t offer this feature.
The details of the Emergency Power Supply (EPS) are provided at:-
https://kb.givenergy.cloud/article.php?id=12&oid=1
You need to be sure the ASHP startup and running current/power does not exceed the capability of the GivEnergy inverter.
Plus a dedicated electrical install with Earth Rod for the EPS circuit(s).
AnnEdwards I'd expect the ASHP power consumption to be higher than the max output of the built-in EPS, so not really feasible to drive the ASHP directly from the inverter.
You may be able to switch from mains to local generator with the inverter still connected to provide some of the power, depends on how your generator would play with the inverter under various load conditions. This is no different to your DNO coming along with a Diesel generator when they're repairing power lines. Best to get a company with experience of off-grid systems to take a look at the details for you.