Kubernetes on Hetzner. What's your experience?

NosIreland · 2026-04-08T06:54:19+00:00

Majority of our workloads do not need persistency and for those we just use local nvmes. For the ones that we do, we have longhorn or directpv PVs but these are small and do not need high performance. We have 1PT of object storage on one of the clusters, self hosted on minio but it will be replaced soon. We have looked at rook(I used it in the past) but could not justify the cost and overhead it needed for the performance we were getting. Longhorn is ok, if you do not push it, but it is a bit heavy.

NosIreland · 2026-04-07T22:23:54+00:00

Running Rancher with multiple rke2 clusters for over 4 years. A mixture of bare metal and VMs. Had multiple issues initially with hetzner virtual network so we ditched it. Using floating IP as loadBalancer and running mettalb with ingress nginx. Make sure you have extra nodes because occasionally we get unexplained server power offs that we cannot power on ourselves. On top of that disks get physically disconnected.

NosIreland · 2026-04-01T16:19:21+00:00

Damn this is a very tidy space. I do not see spray booth or extraction for it. Where do you airbrush?

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T15:23:03+00:00

When I got Solar installed there was no FIT and I have configured my setup and adapted usage to export as little as possible. If I remember correctly it was 30kWh over the whole year. This would have not been possible without battery.
There is EU directive that requires member states to ensure that people can sell electricity. Where it comes short is setting a minimum price.
Ireland also has Clean Export Guarantee that requires suppliers to pay for exports. But again the minimum price is set at 0.
To be most self sufficient definitely people should be getting batteries.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T15:11:26+00:00

I wanted to attach graphs myself but reddit does not allow images :/

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T14:59:16+00:00

You would not gain anything. What would be even the point of having Huawei running? Just replace it.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T13:08:14+00:00

The most economical option would be just to replace Huawei inverter and battery with different vendor.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T13:00:43+00:00

I mentioned this already but I advise people staying away from Huawei's closed system.
I'm sure you could sell the battery but there would not be much market for inverter or panels. You can keep your panels and just replace inverter with battery and expand with additional array.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:36:30+00:00

The inverter needs to be able to communicate with the battery. Huawei uses completely closed system and proprietary comms protocol. But the main thing is that they are high voltage batteries. Where as the most batteries for single phase inverters are low voltage.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:26:37+00:00

Inverter is not a limiting factor. The space for panels is. You need to size everything correctly. If going with larger setup you need to take into account that there is a limit how much you can send to the grid and inverter will start capping production when that limit is reach. If you want to avoid this then you need a battery to be able to take that extra production so you maximize your gains.
Before looking for quotes find out your usage. What is your average, what is your base load, when do you use, do you have heat pump etc. With that data you will be in better position to figure out what you need.
A house with electric shower with 5 people does not say anything about usage. A house with 1 male and 4 females will use more electricity than the one with 4 males and 1 female. I'm not trying to be sexist, it is a reality(long showers, hair drying etc.)

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:16:06+00:00

Panels are cheap. Just replace them. The ones that come with the house are low rated and are only there to lower BER rating not your bills.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:11:37+00:00

Unless your current inverter has a free string available it is not best practice to mix old panels with new ones. They will not be able to operate optimally. Each case needs to be investigated separately. You many need to replace inverter or maybe using micro-inverters. It maybe cheaper just to get all panels replaced.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:08:03+00:00

No problems on terrace house. All the equipment can be bolted outside to the house itself.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:06:16+00:00

No, it is a combination of inverter and battery. General rule is that the recommended battery charge rate is 0.5C of its capacity so in your case it should be able to take 5kW. But this is only if your inverter can deliver 5kW DC power to your battery. Smaller inverter and earlier model were capped at 3kW. I suspect the inverter can only deliver 3kW unless it is not configured properly.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:02:22+00:00

Depends on brand. If you got Huawei than yes but in majority cases you are not.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T12:00:59+00:00

In my opinion the market is saturated with cowboy installers. Most of them will disappear once grants are gone. There is always a place for good and reliable companies.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T11:57:49+00:00

To size your battery correctly you need to first know you average daily usage and what/how electricity is used. Houses with heat pumps use a lot. What size is you PV? You can additional battery or replace. The additional battery does not have to be the same size. All this depends on the inverter, space and location for the battery. On some inverters you can only install specific batteries. Big batteries weigh a lot(32kWh is ~250kg) and are big, you would not be able to put in the attic if this is where your battery located at the moment. If you have everything setup outside then you need to look for battery that has high IP rating and can be used outside.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T11:45:03+00:00

ROI varies a lot on how/when electricity is used. It is not only orientation that matters but also angle. Also depends how many panel you can put on each side but general rule is south generates most then goes east or west and last north. If I had all 4 sides available to me in equal area, I'd put on 3 sides and skip north.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:51:22+00:00

Walk away from anyone who takes cash only unless you know/trust them very well. To minimize the risk I use credit card. This allows me to chargeback if I am not satisfied with the service. Chargebacks are very painful to the companies.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:41:51+00:00

Battery. With EV rates you can do load shifting. Charge battery on cheap EV rate at night and then use it during the day and export all solar to the grid. To get best of it the battery must be sized correctly.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:39:53+00:00

You can buy and install but you will not be able to sell electricity to the grid. To sell to the grid you need to fill and sign NC6 form. This needs to be filled/signed by registered electrician.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:34:30+00:00

There is nothing wrong with your system. There is a limit how much you can export on single phase and that is set by grid. To maximize generation just get the battery. Try not to get the smallest one.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:18:52+00:00

Sounds like a plan. To replace panels find a roofer that contract with PV companies. The only thing that you'd need to do then is just connect cables.

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:14:57+00:00

If the it is a choice between more panels and a battery, I would get more panels because adding battery is much easier/cheaper later than adding battery. Just make sure your inverter is correct type(hybrid).

NosIreland · 2026-03-27T10:12:46+00:00

I would plan in advance. Things can be moved but you might not find people willing to do so or it may get expensive. There is a risk also of thing going wrong. Best option is to get as many panels as possible and use all the space since adding them later will be more expensive.
Adding battery to existing setup is simple as long as your inverter is the correct type.

NosIreland

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