GivEnergy or Fox ESS

[jpk]

Has any one had experience with either of these home storage batteries. I've got an installer lined up and I'm between 3 givenergy 9.5's with 3 of the 3 kW AC coupled inverters or 7 Fox ESS 4800 batteries (1 master & 6 slaves) with the fox kh10 hybrid inverter. Interested in any charging/discharging issues like if the temperatures are low ans any other issues if any

 

[Jomarkh]

What about the All In One from GivEnergy?
Do have solar or just doing batteries?

 

[Bam Bam]

Has any one had experience with either of these home storage batteries. I've got an installer lined up and I'm between 3 givenergy 9.5's with 3 of the 3Kw AC coupled inverters or 7 Fox ess 4800 batteries (1 master & 6 slaves) with the fox kh10 hybrid inverter. Interested in any charging/discharging issues like if the temperatures are low ans any other issues if any

Yes - 3x inverters seems strange when there is the all-in-one. Are you on three phase?

To answer your question, though, I've got givenergy and like them. There do seem to have been losses since the Winter kicked in, and they haven't gone away so it is possible that the change was actually a software update leading to a different way of measuring within the app.

Friends have fox and don't find the app as intuitive.

So my sense is that Givenergy might be a bit better on the software side, but perhaps Fox has more experience on the hardware side.

Are the maximum outputs the same?

 

[jpk]

The all in one can only manage 6kW continuous charge/ discharge rate and can't be wired in parallel which is why I'll need either 3 smaller inverters wired in parallel or 1 bigger one to deliver the higher rates I desire to be able to run the whole house and charge my EV when needed during peak hours and be able to draw enough to fill the battery in time off peak. No solar or plans for solar

 

[Bam Bam]

The all in one can only manage 6Kw continuous charge/ discharge rate and can't be wired in parallel which is why I'll need either 3 smaller inverters wired in parallel or 1 bigger one to deliver the higher rates I desire to be able to run the whole house and charge my EV when needed during peak hours and be able to draw enough to fill the battery in time off peak. No solar or plans for solar

I see. So you are looking to fill a large battery in a small window of off-peak time, and charge the car while running the house during the peak, hence the need for a high charge/discharge rate? Could you try to qualify for Intelligent Octopus Go and then you'd have a longer charging window?

I suppose the problem with speccing everything around current tariffs is that they change all the time and you might end up wanting a new one - as an extreme example of this we had a solar quote based on a tariff that was withdrawn shortly after (before the required equipment would have arrived in the country)!

I suppose having the higher in/out rates perhaps gives you more flexibility to select tariffs in the future. You could get in the wholesale markets and import/export!

6kW output sounds like a lot to me when I've got 4kW from my battery, going up to 5kW when the sun is shining. Very rarely exceed 4 but then I usually put things on timers for different times, except overnight where it doesn't matter so much if you are drawing from the grid.

What I like about the Givenergy is that they give you opportunities to make extra money. Givback scheme over the winter and Octopus Intelligent Flux over the summer. The latter only works with solar though.

Givenergy allow others (with your permission) to control the equipment which will be increasingly valuable in the future I expect. If Fox don't offer that potential for smart integration (I don't know) then that is a major plus for Givenergy.

 

[jpk]

I wanted the giv energy and reached out to them a couple of months ago and then again last week regarding connection of the all in one's in parallel and they were honest in saying it's something they are currently testing but don't know when it will be rolled out. Unfortunately I work nights, use around 24 kWh 5 days a week for my EV commute, but obviously can't take advantage of off peak rates as my car isn't at home. I'll often see loads around 9kW when charging the car and just having an air fryer on so the only way is large home storage which should reap some significant savings. Tariff wise I'm leaning towards the eon next drive that gives 7 hours off peak @ 6.9p per kWh as I have a Simpson and partners EVSE which only supports Octopus Go and not Intelligent at the mo.

 

[Bam Bam]

I wanted the giv energy and reached out to them a couple of months ago and then again last week regarding connection of the all in one's in parallel and they were honest in saying it's something they are currently testing but don't know when it will be rolled out. Unfortunately I work nights, use around 24 kWh 5 days a week for my EV commute, but obviously can't take advantage of off peak rates as my car isn't at home. I'll often see loads around 9kW when charging the car and just having an air fryer on so the only way is large home storage which should reap some significant savings. Tariff wise I'm leaning towards the eon next drive that gives 7 hours off peak @ 6.9p per kWh as I have a Simpson and partners EVSE which only supports Octopus Go and not Intelligent at the mo.

Ahh I see - quite an unusual case where you can't take advantage of the cheap overnight 5 days a week and need the energy during the week.

Shame you can't have solar as it sounds like you're a perfect use-case: your car could absorb loads if it is parked during the day! (Well, for March - October at any rate).

Have you checked the prices on agile? Might be quite cheap during sunny days at daytime. Could be expensive at other times though.

Glad to hear Givenergy are still providing prompt responses to customers - they are on the cutting edge so trying to roll out new products to suit customer demand.

Here's a wild alternative if you've got enough parking space - buy a cheap second EV that can also handle your commute and rotate them (MG 3 days a week and Zoe/leaf etc. 2 days p/w). Then you can top the other car up overnight. Doesn't make your home energy use any cheaper though!

 

[jpk]

I'll be going solar on my next house, probably 3 years away, where I intend to stay a while longer to hopefully see a decent return. The batteries will be easy & cost nothing to transport and reinstallation with new DNO application costs will get wrapped up with the solar installation. I'm not loyal to any energy provider so when the the batteries are in I'll pick whichever suits my needs best. Agile is attractive but I prefer to know what I'll be paying consistently over a period of time as I do a fair amount of mileage. I'm probably a rare case of someone who doesn't want or need a seg/ feed in tariff as well as I intend to use every last electron. If I move closer to work and have the spare capacity I'll maybe research the cost benefits of importing with the aim to export at a profit. I was talking to my installer earlier and he's happy for me to pay of a credit card so I'll put it on a 0% spending card and put the £12k I have in a 2 year fixed saver which will reduce my installation costs to £10,800 by the time I have to clear the card ?

 

[Bam Bam]

I'll be going solar on my next house, probably 3 years away, where I intend to stay a while longer to hopefully see a decent return. The batteries will be easy & cost nothing to transport and reinstallation with new DNO application costs will get wrapped up with the solar installation. I'm not loyal to any energy provider so when the the batteries are in I'll pick whichever suits my needs best. Agile is attractive but I prefer to know what I'll be paying consistently over a period of time as I do a fair amount of mileage. I'm probably a rare case of someone who doesn't want or need a seg/ feed in tariff as well as I intend to use every last electron. If I move closer to work and have the spare capacity I'll maybe research the cost benefits of importing with the aim to export at a profit. I was talking to my installer earlier and he's happy for me to pay of a credit card so I'll put it on a 0% spending card and put the £12k I have in a 2 year fixed saver which will reduce my installation costs to £10,800 by the time I have to clear the card ?

Sounds like you've got a plan!

So maybe the portability of the units to a new place is a consideration? It sounds like they are similar spec anyway. AC coupled and perhaps you could use AC micro-inverters on your future roof and you won't need ever a DC inverter.

 

[FormerOctavia]

The all in one can only manage 6kW continuous charge/ discharge rate and can't be wired in parallel which is why I'll need either 3 smaller inverters wired in parallel or 1 bigger one to deliver the higher rates I desire to be able to run the whole house and charge my EV when needed during peak hours and be able to draw enough to fill the battery in time off peak. No solar or plans for solar

I have had GivEnergy for 2 years, and it's been brilliant. They also have the charger and smart plugs, so the ecosystem is there in one app. The UI is good. And they have a tie up with Axle for a tasty export bonus.

 

[jpk]

Are you using the all in one and do you ever exceed it's maximum output. I'm a total newbie so have zero experience, does it just switch to the grid if you exceed it or does it just draw the difference

 

[FormerOctavia]

When you get to the max output, it pulls from the grid. But to be honest, this doesn't happen that much, 3000W is quite a lot. In the summer, it charges from my modest solar during the day, and so we take very little from the grid. In the winter, we cheap charge at night at 7.5p, so cheap all year round!

I am not using the all in one, I have a separate inverter with 2 * 8KWh batteries.

When you get to the max output, it pulls from the grid. But to be honest, this doesn't happen that much, 3000W is quite a lot. In the summer, it charges from my modest solar during the day, and so we take very little from the grid. In the winter, we cheap charge at night at 7.5p, so cheap all year round!

I no nothing about the Fox, but I can recommend GivEnergy and you won't be disappointed

 

[jpk]

Thanks for your input, it's always better & more trustworthy getting personal reviews rather than trawling through potential paid reviews from sellers

 

[andi]

We have Fox ES system. 10 kW battery pack with 3.5kw sola panels. Cost 2yrs ago were 8k. Fitted. We are saving approx £1500 per year. This consists of 2 electric cars and the house. Broken down, £500 Conservative on house, over £1000 on fuel costs for both cars. I would change a few things, not putting the system in the loft for one. Learning how it all works in detail sooner.you cannot have any more than 3kw going into house or grid unless you have agreement with you supplier.

 

[jpk]

We have Fox ES system. 10 kW battery pack with 3.5kw sola panels. Cost 2yrs ago were 8k. Fitted. We are saving approx £1500 per year. This consists of 2 electric cars and the house. Broken down, £500 Conservative on house, over £1000 on fuel costs for both cars. I would change a few things, not putting the system in the loft for one. Learning how it all works in detail sooner.you cannot have any more than 3kw going into house or grid unless you have agreement with you supplier.

Yeah I believe the import/export limits will be covered in the g99 application to the dno, anything below 3.76Kw can be installed without permission but obviously that advantage is cancelled out by the lower limits permitted.

 

[Bandanaman]

We have Fox ES system. 10 kW battery pack with 3.5kw sola panels. Cost 2yrs ago were 8k. Fitted. We are saving approx £1500 per year. This consists of 2 electric cars and the house. Broken down, £500 Conservative on house, over £1000 on fuel costs for both cars. I would change a few things, not putting the system in the loft for one. Learning how it all works in detail sooner.you cannot have any more than 3kw going into house or grid unless you have agreement with you supplier.

There's no limit on what you can have going into your house, the limit is on what you can export to the grid.. you could have a 5Kw inverter, but have it set so it can only export 3.68Kw to the grid (on the fox ESS you can set whether you have G98 or G99 permissions, which limits the export side to the grid. G98 covers standard household install (3.68Kw export lock) whereas G99 covers bigger installs (to I think 50Mw) Just ensure you have the right permissions for your EXPORT.

 

[andi]

You learn something new every day.
I'm still learning about this system. Even though I have 10kw batteries the inverter sets the limit like you say. I expect around 15yrs for the batteries, but the inverter I don't know what to expect in regards to reliability.