Solar Panels / City gas vs Cylinders

[ZZEC 1]

Hi guys, wondering if anyone can share their experience on laying city gas piping for their landed house? I read a post in 2017 that installation alone would be $4700 + how far they have to pay the piping. Has anyone done it here? Would like to know how much it came up to be. Would you choose to pay for city gas piping or just pay for monthly gas cylinders? 
 

Or would you use the money for laying city gas piping to pay for installation of solar panels instead? Then maybe just get induction hob? We are re-wiring to single phase 100amps. Is this enough for induction hob? 

[snoozee 98]

I didn't lay gas pipes for my house. wife isn't comfortable with having gas cylinders in the house as well so we are going full electrical.

why don't get 3 phase 63A instead of single phase 100A? for 100A supply, you will need to have a LEW do yearly checks. 3 phase 63A need not do the checks. even if you need to pay $5671 to SP for applying for ne 3 phase 63A, it would still be cheaper than having to need an LEW do yearly checks for your 100A single phase supply.

do note that for induction/ceramic hobs, there are many models. the more heating zone you have, the higher the power supply is needed. some 4 zone hobs need to have 32A supply. there are some models with 28A or 15A supply as well. some models for HDB only require a 13A supply but only have 2 zones. so if you are rewiring your house, just pull a 32A supply for the hob just in case next time you change to another model which requires higher electrical supply.

[petetherock 13]

Laying gas pipes lines is expensive, depending on your area and if there are others who have done it next to your home previously.

The cost will pay for many years of gas tanks.

I agree with 63A. Most homes up to even a detached can survive with a 3 phase 63A. Way better than 100A single, which has costs every year.

I can run a pool, a pond and all my aircons, plus my sound system with no issues in my home. A 35A supply for the electric hob will be useful. Plus another line for charging electric cars and one more for solar panels. 

[ZZEC 1]

Hi Snoozee & petetherock thank you guys for the invaluable advice once again!

I did not know that single phase 100 amps require annual inspection. What’s the inspection cost like? (Tried to google but can’t seem to find the info) will definitely talk to the contractor about changing to 3 phase 63amp. And maybe add the infrastructure for solar grid connection. Any ideas on whether solar make sense here? 
Read that typical lifespan is around 25 years, and the warm weather here degrades the PV cells faster. Sell back to grid if you’re SP user and if you’re open market user there a difference in calculating. And there’s a Intermittency Pricing Mechanism? Sounds suspiciously like additional tax for using solar.

[petetherock 13]

It takes around 8-10 years to break even and it’s not so easy but ask the sellers to take you through. 

As for 63a, this thread may help

 

[snoozee 98]

12 hours ago, ZZEC said:

Hi Snoozee & petetherock thank you guys for the invaluable advice once again!

I did not know that single phase 100 amps require annual inspection. What’s the inspection cost like? (Tried to google but can’t seem to find the info) will definitely talk to the contractor about changing to 3 phase 63amp. And maybe add the infrastructure for solar grid connection. Any ideas on whether solar make sense here? 
Read that typical lifespan is around 25 years, and the warm weather here degrades the PV cells faster. Sell back to grid if you’re SP user and if you’re open market user there a difference in calculating. And there’s a Intermittency Pricing Mechanism? Sounds suspiciously like additional tax for using solar.

check with your contractor and SP on whether SINGLE PHASE 100A requires inspection or not. I may be wrong here as I know THREE phase 100A would require inspection.

a single phase 100A at 230V will be at 23KVA
3 phase 60A at 400V would be at 41KVA
3 phase 100A at 400A would be at 69KVA

from what I read, EMA requires anything more than 45KVA do have annual inspection. so a single phase 100A is only 23KVA so might not require annual inspection.

but you need to determine if 100A is sufficient for your usage or not especially if you want to run aircon, induction cookers, etc all at the same time.

for solar power sell back to grid, you will need to "pay" a transmission cost. for example if currently SP is selling you electricity at 23 cents per KW, when you sell back to them, the price you get from selling would be about 18 cents per KW after deducting the transmission cost. the numbers I provided are not the exact number but just to illustrate the point of transmission costs.

since you are doing up your house now, just provision for an isolator for future use if you do not want to install solar panels now. else next time have to run wires would be more messy.

[ZZEC 1]

Thanks Petetherock for the thread! And Snoozee for the detailed explanation. We have checked with the contractor, according to him single phase 100A would not require inspection, only 3 phase 100A, I suppose it’s as per what Snoozee mentioned for 45KVA supply. 
 

The idea of planning for future electric car charging at home porch is tempting haha. Since gonna phase out ICE cars by 2040 right. Getting a few quotations for solar now, probably will do a small one sufficient for now and maybe upsize 10 years later. Still considering....

[petetherock 13]

Will be interesting to know which is better:

three phase 63 or single phase 100 ..

[snoozee 98]

2 hours ago, petetherock said:

Will be interesting to know which is better:

three phase 63 or single phase 100 ..

it's not about better. it's about how much power you need for your house.

for example, a 32A induction cooker would draw 7.36KVA of power (at max).

so if the house has a single phase 100A 230V supply, the maximum available power is 23KVA which would mean there is only 15.64KVA available for other appliances like aircon, water heater, etc.

But for a house with 3 phase 60A 400V supply, the appliances with heavy loading can be spread evenly across the 3 phases, eg: induction cooker is on brown phase, water heater on black phase, ducted aircon on grey phase. with a total available power of 41KVA, there's also slightly more room for installation of appliances which need higher current draw.

 

Edited March 26, 2020 by snoozee

[petetherock 13]

47 minutes ago, snoozee said:

it's not about better. it's about how much power you need for your house.

for example, a 32A induction cooker would draw 7.36KVA of power (at max).

so if the house has a single phase 100A 230V supply, the maximum available power is 23KVA which would mean there is only 15.64KVA available for other appliances like aircon, water heater, etc.

But for a house with 3 phase 60A 400V supply, the appliances with heavy loading can be spread evenly across the 3 phases, eg: induction cooker is on brown phase, water heater on black phase, ducted aircon on grey phase. with a total available power of 41KVA, there's also slightly more room for installation of appliances which need higher current draw.

 

Thanks for that, I think that would fit my definition of better..

I've always been advised to go for 3 phase 63A, best of both worlds and no annual inspection..

[JustinDavidson 0]

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[SherlynPadilla 0]

The choice between city gas, gas cylinders, or solar panels depends on your priorities, budget, and long-term goals. Each option has its advantages, so it's essential to evaluate your specific needs and preferences.

[doliver 0]

I haven't personally laid city gas piping, but I can share some thoughts. It really depends on your preferences and budget. City gas might have a higher upfront cost, but it can be convenient in the long run. However, if you're considering alternative options like solar panels, that's a great choice too. With a single-phase 100amps setup, you should be good for an induction hob. And if you decide to go the solar panel route, you might want to explore residential energy storage solutions to make the most of your solar-generated power. Check out acebattery.com for more info.

[Judii 0]

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