hotline_oh
-
Posts
608 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
35
Everything posted by hotline_oh
-
How do I incorporate a generation load profile into PV*SOL?
hotline_oh posted a question in FAQ (Read only)
You can simulate your project using a generation load profile (e.g., from a hydroelectric power plant or a wind turbine) with certain limitations. Note that the generation profile must be lower than the consumption at all times. If the hydroelectric power plant generates and feeds more electricity into the system than is consumed, simulation is not possible. The overall profile must not be negative. You can also subtract the hydroelectric power plant's profile from your load profile beforehand in Excel and set the negative values to zero. This could look like this: To import the load profile, you only need the actual consumption values (only the values in one column), without time data or column headers. Importing a load profile is also explained in our help documentation. Limitations of the results: The total electricity consumption is not the actual consumption, but rather the consumption difference. The amount of electricity generated by the hydroelectric power plant that is not used to cover consumption is not calculated.
-
If your climate data is available in hourly resolution (i.e., 8760 values each for temperature, global radiation, wind, and relative humidity), you can import it into our programs by saving it as an ASCII file, tab-separated, with the extension *.dat. The first lines (the file header) must look like this: Line 1: Location name "Vienna" Line 2: Latitude, longitude, altitude, time relative to Greenwich, -30 should remain. 48.11,-16.21,170,-1,-30 Decimal places for latitude and longitude must be entered in minutes, e.g., Vienna 48.1866° => input 48.11. For locations in eastern longitude, negative signs must be used when entering longitude and time. For latitude, a positive sign corresponds to the northern hemisphere. Line 3: Blank line Line 4: Must be copied as is; tab-separated Ta Gh FF RH Lines 5-8746: The following data lines are listed in the following order: outdoor temperature - global radiation on the horizontal plane/m² - wind speed - relative humidity; tab-separated. -5.0 0 1.8 75.5 -5.4 0 1.5 78.0 ... ... Please note that missing values must be filled with "0". Further information on importing your own climate data can be found in our help section.
-
In the Shading/Horizon window, you can import horizon files using the import function. Our software is compatible with the HORIcatcher (Meteotest, Switzerland), Horizon (Energiebüro AG, Switzerland), and SunEye (Solmetric, USA) systems. In 2D planning: In 3D planning:
-
Your imported load profiles are saved in the file "ConsumptionDb.sdf", which you can find in the following folder: C:\ProgramData\Valentin EnergieSoftware\PVdatabase\Version6.0 To use the imported load profiles on another PC, transfer the "ConsumptionDb.sdf" file to the new PC.
-
Your favorites are saved in the file "PVSOL.ini", which you can find in the following folder: Documents → Valentin Energy Software → PVSOL Premium 2026: If you want to access your favorites from another device, open the .ini files on both devices and copy the favorites from one file to the other.
-
Module Count Limitation In the 2D planning of PV*SOL premium and PV*SOL, the number of modules per sub-generator is limited to 100,000. The 3D visualization allows a maximum of up to 7,500 elevated modules or up to 10,000 roof-mounted modules. Area Limitation When planning with the Google Solar API or with a map section from another provider, you are limited to a size of 200 m x 200 m.
-
For inverter configuration, it is recommended to divide large systems into subsystems, for example, one subsystem per building, per building section, or per inverter. If you need to add or delete modules later, you only need to delete the inverter configuration for the relevant subsystem, not the entire system. To maintain the inverter numbering, we recommend using the "Define Module Areas for Configuration" function. Detailed instructions with screenshots can be found in this article. First, define which modules should be configured together. Select the desired modules of the first module area, right-click on the selected modules, and choose "Add to 'Define Module Areas' Dialog." Repeat this for all module areas belonging to the same inverter/subsystem. (To access a different building, use the drop-down menu in the top menu bar.) Then, click "Configure" and configure Inverter 1/Subsystem 1. Repeat these steps for each subsystem/inverter. Subsequently, subsystems 1 to x have a fixed inverter assignment 1 to x. The inverter numbering is transferred to the string diagram and remains unchanged even if minor subsequent modifications are made to one of the configurations.
-
If you created your string layout manually or with other planning software and want to transfer this layout to PV*SOL premium for documentation purposes, the best way to do this is by using the "Define Module Areas for Configuration" function. First, define which modules should be configured together. Select the desired modules of the first string (for larger systems: the first MPP tracker or the first inverter), right-click on the selected modules, and choose "Add to 'Define Module Areas' dialog." Then, click the "Define Module Areas for Configuration" button. Rename the module area to "String 1" (for larger systems: "MPPT 1" or "Inverter 1"), either using the button or by right-clicking and selecting "Rename." Repeat these steps for all other strings (or MPP trackers/inverters). For the last string, you can use the "Import all unconfigured modules" button: Then click "Configure" and select the inverter(s): The string plan will be generated according to your specifications. You define the direction, starting point, and course of the strings in the lower left corner:
-
An existing system is to be retrofitted with a storage system. A PV-adjusted load profile with 15-minute values for a full year is available. To take the PV-adjusted load profile (consumption profile minus PV self-consumption) into account, you need to perform two simulations. You model the installed PV system (taking module degradation into account, depending on how long the system has been operating) and use a standard consumption profile stored in PV*SOL that best matches your consumption type. Estimate the annual electricity demand: For the simulation, select the 1-minute time step. In the results, check whether the value "Total consumption – covered by grid" matches the annual total of your measured load profile. If the deviation exceeds 10%, adjust the annual electricity demand in the consumption profile and run the simulation again: Next, export the self-consumption data in 15-minute intervals. In Excel, add the 15-minute intervals of the measured load profile and the simulated self-consumption. For storage system design, you can now import your total load profile into PV*SOL. Delete the previously selected default load profile. Further information on importing load profiles can be found in our help documentation.
-
Select the ‘SolarEdge’ configuration option and first pre-select the inverter(s): Then pre-select the power optimizer(s): You can then use the button, which is now active, to generate an automatic configuration proposal featuring SolarEdge inverters and SolarEdge optimizers: For older program versions (up to 2021), a short tutorial video on polystring and power optimizer configuration is available here:
-
Using the example of a vent that shades two modules (with >1%): First, define a separate module area for the two shaded modules. Ensure that PV modules can be selected individually. Select both modules and right-click to choose "Add to 'Define Module Areas' dialog." Click "Define Module Areas for Configuration." In the "Define Module Areas" dialog: Rename the module area to "Roof Area South - shaded." Import all other modules and rename them to "Roof Area South - not shaded." Click "Configure." Next, in the inverter configuration window, select both module areas and choose "Configure module areas together": Now select the desired inverter, choose the polystring configuration (for one of the four MPP trackers), check the box for "Power optimizers," and assign the two module areas as follows: The two modules with optimizers are then correctly assigned in the string diagram:
-
The module tilt and orientation are influenced by two factors: the tilt of the mounting system and the pitch of the roof. Together, these two tilts determine the resulting module tilt and orientation. This can be visualized as follows: If you were to place a ball on the module surface, it would not roll exactly in the direction of the mounting system due to the two tilts, but would instead roll in the direction of the roof pitch. This is the resulting module orientation. The steeper the roof pitch, the greater the deviation of the resulting module orientation from the orientation of the mounting system. For example, if you have a mounting system facing south on a west-facing roof, the ball will not roll south, but southwest.
-
Hello Antonia, Thank you for your inquiry. The user license is not bound to one device. You can install PV*SOL on multiple devices and use it with the same sign-in details, but it is not permitted to use the program simultaneously on multiple devices. The Valentin License Portal is an online portal in which license managers can independently manage their company’s user licenses and assign them to license users. You can assign several license users to a license, but there can only be one active license user per license. You can find a detailed explanation in our help section.
-
Hallo, vielen Dank für Ihre Anfrage. In der 2D-Planung finden Sie das Symbol für die Wechselrichter-Verschaltung in der Hauptmenü-Leiste: In der 3D-Planung wechseln Sie erst in die 3D-Umgebung: Dort finden Sie den Reiter "Modulverschaltung": Die Testversion hat denselben Funktionsumfang wie die Vollversion, mit der einzigen Einschränkung, dass keine Projektberichte heruntergeladen werden können.
-
How can I configure two different roof areas with one inverter?
hotline_oh posted a question in FAQ (Read only)
Scenario 1: You can connect all modules on two or more roof areas together using the "Configure all unconfigured modules" button: Scenario 2: To configure several—but not all—modules from the same roof area to a single inverter, first select them by holding down the Ctrl key and left-clicking. Then, right-click and select "Configure": Scenario 3: You can also configure multiple module areas on different roof areas together. First, define which modules should be configured together. Select the desired modules from the first module area, right-click on the selected modules, and choose "Add to 'Define Module Areas' Dialog." Use the gray arrow to switch to the other side of the same roof. (Or you can use the dropdown menu in the top menu bar to switch to a different building.) Now select the desired modules of the second module area, right-click on the selected modules, and choose "Add to 'Define Module Areas' dialog." Then click the "Define Module Areas for Configuration" button: You can rename the module areas if necessary (right-click → Rename). Then click "Configure": In the inverter configuration window, select both module areas and click "Configure module areas together." You can then select the desired inverter:
-
On the "System Type, Climate and Grid" page, you can select the "Stand-alone PV System" (with and without a backup generator) system type. Planning stand-alone systems in PV*SOL is based on the SMA Off-Grid Configurator program, which we originally developed for SMA. This program contains the design rules that SMA has specified for us. These rules cannot be changed or deactivated. For example, only systems with AC-coupled battery systems can be planned; DC systems are unfortunately not possible. We understand that these rules may not necessarily apply to other manufacturers and may entail further limitations. For greater flexibility in component selection and improved transparency during the planning process, we recommend that you initially plan your stand-alone system as if it were a grid-connected system: On the "System Type, Climate and Grid" page, select a grid-connected system. Set the feed-in limit to zero; then no energy will be fed into the grid: The value under "Total consumption covered by grid" indicates the energy that cannot be covered by the PV system. This energy must be provided by the backup generator or (if you are not planning on a backup generator) "approach zero".
-
On the "System Type, Climate, and Grid" page, select a system type with a thermal system: After entering information for both consumers (household consumption and heat pump), you can add a second tariff on the "Financial Analysis" page: Now you can assign the corresponding consumer (household consumption or heat pump) to each tariff:
-
How do I create my own feed-in and from-grid tariffs?
hotline_oh posted a question in FAQ (Read only)
In PV*SOL premium and PV*SOL, please open the tariff database via "Databases" --> "Feed-in Tariffs" or "From-grid Tariffs" and select the "New" icon. Then enter the required data.
-
Can I adjust the monthly degression of the feed-in tariff?
hotline_oh posted a question in FAQ (Read only)
No, you must select or create the feed-in tariff for each month of commissioning. The tariff files are updated via the database update. -
The feed-in tariff shown in the table or graph changes every year, even if you haven't entered any degradation, because it displays the net present value, not the amount of the feed-in tariff. This means that each year's feed-in tariff is discounted back to its initial value using the interest on capital (current yield). If you want to see the feed-in tariff amount over time without interest, set the capital interest to zero.
-
The results presented in the project report, such as annual grid feed-in, specific yield, and CO₂ savings, refer to the first full year of operation.
-
Dear CarlSEL, Thank you for your inquiry. If you have already created a cable plan and subsequently make changes to the configuration, the cable/string diagram is not always updated. You must then delete the cable plan (press the ‘Delete all cables’ button), switch back to the Module configuration page and then back to the Cable plan page. Everything is then updated and the cables run in accordance with the configuration.
-
Hello, Thank you for your message. Please delete the fifth point of the polygon. The rectangular polygon may only consist of four points.
-
Hello, Thank you for your inquiry. To create this L-shaped building, draw several polygons and extrude the buildings one after the other. You deactivate the collision (right-click on the roof) and move the buildings towards or into each other. The polygons must be rectangular so that PV*SOL recognizes them as a gable or hipped roof: This tutorial explains how to draw an L-shaped building. To watch the tutorial in English, you can select the "English" audio track in the YouTube settings.
-
Dear Anders, Thank you for your inquiry. To create this L-shaped building, draw several polygons and extrude the buildings one after the other. You deactivate the collision (right-click on the roof) and move the buildings towards or into each other. This tutorial explains how to draw an L-shaped building. To watch the tutorial in English, you can select the "English" audio track in the YouTube settings. Please find enclosed the project file we have edited. Karin og Bent VAL.pvprj
