Jump to content

007 RED

Advanced Member
  • Posts

    923
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by 007 RED

  1. OP… from the picture that you posted earlier of the Immigration exit stamp in your friend’s passport, it is clear that he/she was removed (deported) from the Kingdom under Section 12.7 of the Immigration Act, as indicated on the 3rd line of the stamp e.g. 12 (7). As I indicated in my previous post, Section 12 of the Immigration Act gives Immigration the power to refuse entry and revoke permission to stay of if the alien falls into any of the categories specified. Section 12.7 basically states: - “Having behaviour which would indicate possible danger to the public or likelihood of being a nuisance or constituting any violence to the peace or safety of the public or to the security of the public or to the security of the nation or being under warrant of arrest by competent officials of foreign governments”. Your friend apparently fell within the above category having assaulted his girlfriend and subsequently served a custodial sentence for that offence. Regarding being banned from entering the Kingdom, given the reason for his/her deportation, I would say that a ban from entering the Kingdom is almost 100% certain. The big question being how long is the ban for? Immigration has what is known as a ‘tariff’, that is to say a maximum length of ban for a given type of crime. My understanding is that in the case of an assault conviction the duration of a ban could be as long as ‘life’. However, the actual length of the ban is left to the discretion of a Senior Immigration Officer (Senior Colonel or above) who authorised his/her deportation. The problem so far as your friend is concerned is that there is no mention of the length of any ban stamped into his/her passport (there never is). The details of the ban will only be recorded on his paper file(s) and on the Immigration computer system. If your friend is banned, and he/she tries to enter the Kingdom by air, it is unlikely that the airline will allow him/her to board the plane. This is because all international flight to Thailand are required to send passenger biographical details to Thai Authorities via a system known as Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), one hour before scheduled departure. The system (APIS) is linked to the Thai Immigration database of undesirable persons. If the system detects that your friend’s biographical information matches that on their database, the system automatically sends the airline a “Do Not Board” code. No reason is given to the airline. The airline would be heavily fined if they allowed your friend to fly having received a "Do Not Board" code, plus they would have to pick up the cost of flying him/her back to the departure country. A refusal to allow the person to board the aircraft will mean that the passenger will not be refunded for the loss of the flight (outward and return). If your friend is banned and was to travel to a neighbouring country and attempt to enter the Kingdom via a boarder land crossing, it is highly likely that the moment the Immigration Officer places the biographical (photo) page onto the desktop scanner, the system will flag a warning on the Officer’s screen. This will result in him/her being denied entry and he/she will be sent back to the country which they just left. I am given to understand that some lawyers, and agents, reportedly have connections within Immigration, and for a fee will establish if your friend is banned. If it is possible to have a ban overturned, is a matter of speculation. As has been suggested by several other members, his/her best solution to recovering money in his/her bank account(s) and selling off his/her condominium, would be to give a very trusted friend Power Of Attorney to act on his/her behalf to deal with the bank and sale of the condominium.
  2. Sorry, but your friend would most definitely have had an immigration stamp placed in his passport indicating that he had been deported from the Kingdom. It would be red, rectangular and take up almost half a page of his/her passport. The stamp would be in Thai and provide details under which section of the Immigration Act he/she was deplored. The deportation stamp will not indicate if he/she has been banned from entering the Kingdom. I suspect, given the information that you provided in your original post, he/she would have used Section 12.7 which basically states:- "Having behaviour which would indicated possible danger to the public or likelihood of being a nuisance or constituting any violence to the peace or safety of the public or to the security of the public or to the security of the nation , or being under warrant of arrest by competent officials of foreign governments". With regards to the question whether or not your friend is banned from entering the Kingdom, I would say that there is a very high probability that he/she is on a list of 'undesirable' persons. Again if he/she attempts to enter the Kingdom the Immigration Officer will most likely refuse entry based upon Section 12.11 which basically states:- "Being deported by either the Government of Thailand that of or other foreign countries ; or the right of stay in the Kingdom or in foreign countries having been revoked ; or having been sent out of the Kingdom by competent officials at the expense of the Government of Thailand unless the Minister shall consider exemption on an individual special case basis". The Immigration Officer can also refuse entry as per Section 12.7, as indicated above, given your friends past history. FYI... It is often suggested that persons' in similar situations to your friend should get a new passport, and if possible change their name. Sorry but the immigrations systems used throughout the world (including that used by Thai Immigration) are more than capable of matching up previous/current passports.
  3. I went to the hospital last week for a follow up check up. Must have had about 20 x-rays on my ankle and chest. God, its a wonder that I'm not glowing in the dark. Saying that, maybe a new topic - Alternative Energy = Nuclear Power Thankfully the ankle is on the mend. They've taken the cast off and given me a 'Beckham Boot' as shown below. The joy is that I can take it off to have a shower, and also at night to sleep, but I must wear it whenever I need to put weight on that leg. The consultant said that I need to keep wearing the boot for at least another month until the ankle bones have fully knitted. He advised that if they become displaced, I will likely need surgery to have metal plates and screws inserted to hold the bones in place. More expense that I will definitely try and avoid. The collapsed lung appears to be functioning OK now and my blood oxygen saturation levels are almost back to normal levels. The fractured ribs are still giving me a lot of grief. The Doc said that given my age (77) they may well take several months to heal because they are continuously flexing every time I breath in/out. In the mean time its a case of popping the meds to keep the 'discomfort' under control. I'm still uncertain as to exactly what happened. All I can recall was that having made sure all the cables were tucked well under the solar panels, I was making my way back to the ladder to come down when my foot slipped. The next thing that I remember was laying on the carport floor, unable to move, feeling totally numb and having difficulty breathing. My better half, who was in the house, heard the crash and ran out to the carport to see what had happened and phoned for the ambulance. The next thing I remember was being strapped onto a backboard and transported to hospital. The rest is history. I just thank my lucky stars that I didn't land head first. From that height the outcome would most likely have been fatal. A sobering safety lesson learned and I'm extremely grateful to my wonderful wife for taking so much care of me. I like to think that my better half doesn't think of me as being a 24 x 7 ATM
  4. I've just discovered that the local handyman who repaired the 'ventilation hole' in the carport roof appears to have spilt some silicon sealant onto the glass of 2 of the solar panels. I assume that he had to remove the mounting screws which hold the panel bridge mounts in order to fit the replacement cement tiles and was using the silicon under the 'feet' of the solar panel mounting bridges to prevent water ingress under the feet. I've not been up onto the carport roof to take a closer look, as I'm currently banned from undertaking such exploits by my better half, but from what I can see from the 2nd floor balcony which overlooks the carport roof, there are an number of largish globules and smears on the panel's glass. According to the system's monitoring facility the panels appear to be working OK with no noticeable degradation in power production. My question: Once I'm allowed to get up onto the carport roof, is it safe to remove the silicon from the glass using a non-metallic scraper?
  5. When I designed the system, I contacted the panel manufacturer (also a Tier 1 company) about drilling holes in the aluminium frame and whether that would affect their warranty. They responded very quickly and confirmed that provided that the screws, or bolts, which I was proposing to secure the panel to my 'mounting bridges' did not touch, or damage, the under side surface of the white board on which the photo cells are mounted there would not be any problem with them honouring the warranty should a problem be cause by other matters. Obviously, I have kept that email just in case.
  6. The tiles were new when we had the carport constructed in 2018, so 6 years old. Not sure about thickness. Sorry but I'm not able to get up there to measure them at the moment. At a rough guess I would say about 1/4 inch thick.
  7. @ThaiFig... Sorry I didn't mean to side track your topic with my stupidity. Looking at the photos taken by my neighbours after the accident, and before the ambulance arrived, I landed just behind the rear of the car. However, something did hit the car. I suspect part of the roof tile which shattered the rear n/s window, as seen below. It cost 5,000 THB to have replaced. Luckily no damage to the paint work.
  8. Yes... Local handyman did the repair for a couple of beers. No way could l do it with a cast on my leg. Apart from that, my better half has banned me from going up there until l get a walkway put up there.
  9. <Crossy> posts split from the Solar Doghouse thread as off-topic but posted here to serve as a timely warning. A serious word of caution. Those fabricated cement can be fragile. So extreme care is required when working on the panels, as I found out recently to my cost. In my case it was 3 plus meters from roof to floor. Gravity can take over in a split second and its not the fall that hurts, it’s the sudden stop at the bottom. Concrete is very unforgiving. Result was, 5 fractured ribs, collapsed lung, fractured ankle, 16 stitches in various cuts, 2 nights in ICU and a further 2 on a general ward and a massive hospital bill. All good fun. On a good note: the upgrade is working as anticipated and producing sufficient power to meet our needs during daylight hours. Good luck with your project.
  10. For your information: The femur (the large bone in the upper leg (between the pelvis and knee) if fractured (broken) can damage major blood vessels within the upper leg, such as the femoral artery which carried blood from the heart to the lower limb, or the femoral vein which carried blood from the lower limb back towards the heart. If either of these major blood vessels are damaged, they can bleed profusely inside the upper leg, often with little or no outward signs of blood. If the bleeding is not controlled very quickly, the amount of blood within the circulatory system rapidly decreases. This in turn causes the heart to try and pump faster to ensure that there is a sufficient blood supply to the vital organs (brain, liver, kidneys etc). As more blood is lost, it quickly becomes a ‘vicious circle’, the heart will try to beat faster and faster to compensate for the increasing blood loss. Unfortunately, the heart can only beat so fast for a relatively short period of time before it goes into cardiac arrest (stops working). If the bleeding is not controlled, and CPR administered quickly, brain cells will be irreversible damaged, and death will occur. In the case of a bullet wound (depending upon the size of the bullet), the entry wound is often relatively small, with minimal external bleeding. The real damage is done when the bullet hits the bone and the bullet and often the bone fragment. It is these fragments that then damage the major blood vessels (femoral artery and vein) and rapid bleeding then occurs inside the leg and is only noticeable by the rapid swelling of the thigh. Regrettably, Thai rescue personnel are, in the main, only trained in very basic first aid procedure (scope and run) and not equipped to undertake advanced life support procedures which would be needed in this case.
  11. Upgrade Update Up at the crack of dawn yesterday morning to turn off the inverter and the system’s AC and DC breakers before starting work to connect the two new panels to the existing panels on the carport roof. I managed to complete the connection and securing the panels onto their mounts before the sun became to strong to continue working on the carport roof. Back on terra firma, I did a quick check to ensure that the input polarity to the DC breaker was correct before switching everything back on. Thankfully the needle on the AVO meter swung in the correct direction and showed a reading of 240V (DC), which with the 6 panels, and moderate sunlight, was about what I was expecting. With fingers crossed, I turned on both of the system breakers and then switched the inverter on. The inverter went into its start up check sequence and a few moments later the system showed “Normal operation”. Fortunately no ‘flash bang’ or ‘magic smoke’ thank goodness. A quick look at meter on the pole outside the house showed that it was merrily spinning backwards at a ‘rapid rate of knots’. Upon checking the system’s monitoring facility (on my PC), the system showed a marked increase in power produced (e.g. about 40% plus) when compared against the same time the day before. After a full day of operation the system monitoring facility shows about 45% increase in production, as can be seen from the graphs blow. Given that there were a few intermittent clouds shading the sun during the day, the increase power production was as I was expecting. So now having spent an additional 8,000 THB on the 2 extra panel, I hope that they quickly repay my moderate investment. The only problem that I envisage is that with the added potential production there is a risk that my small scale system may well start pushing the spinning meter into negative territory, so this is something that I will need to monitor in the coming weeks as I certainly don't want the when the meter reader comes next month. All good fun.
  12. UPDATE - ROI After 2.25 Years Well, as predicted in my original post (above), my small scale grid tied system has really earnt its money over the past 2.25 years. The system was a DIY install with the hardware costing 28,000THB (give or take a few THB). According to the systems monitoring facility (as of this morning), the system has produced a grand total of 6,670 units, which at 4.2THB/unit (the total cost per unit on the day the system was activated), has resulted in a saving of 28,020THB on our electricity bills, as per screen shot below. I appreciate that this is relatively small compared to the ‘big boys’, but it has proved a really worthwhile investment. Each unit the system produces from now on is ‘profit’ . In my original post I mentioned that the day may well come when the local PEA come and replace our lovely spinning disc meter with a shinny new electronic one. Ironically, since I posted that remark, my better half received 2 phone calls from people purporting to be from the PEA and advising her that they (PEA) were coming the following day to install a digital meter. On both occasions nobody from the PEA turned up and we still have our spinning disc meter. It turned out that these were scam calls trying to get my wife to disclose her bank details on the pretext that they (PEA) would transfer a refund for the original meter into her account. Thankfully she never disclosed any details to the callers. As a result of those 2 calls, and the need to turn the system into NO EXPORT mode for a week (or so) after each call as a ‘safety’ precaution, I decided that I would upgrade my system by installing an additional 2 x 415W panels. This upgrade would hopefully mean that even with the NO EXPORT mode activated, the system should be able to still meet approximately 75% of our day time needs without feeding back to the grid if required. Luckily, I managed to get the additional panels from my original supplier (wow, still trading after 2 plus years). Same make, with free delivery, and only a small increase in the costs of the panels. The biggest task was getting the panels up onto the carport roof. Unfortunately, this time there was no large crane available to lift them up there (for a moderate backhander). It was shear man power, and a good deal of determination, but they are in place and they'll be connected tomorrow before sun rise, with everything being turned off to start with. So looking forward to seeing a potential 50% increase in output tomorrow, with no 'magic smoke', fingers crossed. All good fun.
  13. @siwiek I’m not sure why you are being so reluctant to post a photo of either a) your DENIED entry stamp from Phuket or b) the Entry stamp which you claim was stamped into your passport by Nong Kai Immigration and subsequently cancelled. If you do have these stamps in your passport, I respectfully suggest that you take a close look at them, and then tell us what personal data is included within these stamps that can identify you. The simple answer is there is none. I appreciate that you may be reluctant to expose your identity but as has already been said, on more than one occasion, posting a photo of either stamp will put an end to all the speculation. It’s nothing to do with "speculation on a board full of trolls" as you put it, its more to do with your veracity. Just in case you are having difficulty in finding the above mentioned stamps in your passport, I have attached below sample photos of a) a Denied Entry stamp, and b) an Entry stamp. As you will see there is no personal data inscribed on either stamp which can identify the holder of these stamps.
  14. Well blow me down. Yesterday at around 6:30pm my better half received a phone call from a woman who introduced herself as being from the local PEA. She asked my wife if she lived at number XX. My wife replied yes. The woman then said that they (the PEA) were going to replace the meter tomorrow and would my wife be at home at 10 am. Strange that this was exactly the same time as mentioned by the caller the last time in November. My wife again replied that she would be at home in the morning. The woman then asked my wife if she had claimed a rebate from her original meter. This obviously rang a bell with my better half as it was the same question that the man had asked the previous time, but my wife had to terminate the call as she was being called in to see the doctor at hospital. So my wife decided to play along and indicated that she had not. The woman then said that she would send my wife an SMS and instructed her to click on the link and complete the questions so that a refund could be transferred to her account. This really stunk of being a scam to get her bank details. It was also very obvious that the woman was reading from the same script as the previous caller from the PEA in November. Bless her, my wife really had her head screwed on. She asked the woman why it was necessary to change the meter again as it had only just been replaced in November. The phone suddenly went dead. My wife tried to call the number back but there was no reply. As my wife said, the PEA don't make appointments to change the meter. They just turn up and change it. Apart from that she's cute enough to realise that the SMS link was highly likely to contain a bug which would hack her phone and any bank details she had on it. Today just as a precaution I put my small scale GTI system into NO EXPORT mode. Dam, it was a nice sunny day and the system should have produced 7 or 8 units. Like the last time in November there was no sign of anyone from the PEA and thankfully we still have our nice spinning meter, so tomorrow were going back to Export mode. I have already obtained a couple more 415W mono half cut solar panels (same make and nearly the same price that I apaid 2 years ago) and started installing the mounts on the car port roof. The next job is to get the panels up there and installed. Hopefully this additional capacity will allow us to go full time on NO EXPORT if required and produce sufficient power to meet our day time needs whilst keeping our PEA bill down. All good fun.
  15. @bradiston As you have probably realised by now, the so called Smart Watches are extremely limited when it comes to producing anything near a true ECG wave form which can be analysed to provide an accurate picture of your hearts functions. As an alternative to the Smart Watch idea, perhaps consider a portable heart monitor, like the one shown in the picture below. As you can see this has 3 monitoring pads and can provide a very accurate wave form. The device can be used to monitor for short or continuous time periods, and is capable of holding up to 22 hours of data. The wave form data can be uploaded to a PC and printed out, or sent to your doctor via email etc. Cost about 3,000 THB via AliExpress. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006233999253.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.77.11a64e05hm7QQY&algo_pvid=e80e2613-930d-47fb-bc14-1b4ee97aa9b5&algo_exp_id=e80e2613-930d-47fb-bc14-1b4ee97aa9b5-38&pdp_npi=4%40dis!GBP!143.42!68.84!!!1262.52!!%40210318ec17041946083043462ea42a!12000036396762881!sea!UK!793418811!&curPageLogUid=q845CPdBK9ZW#nav-description The device screen is fairly small and therefore does not give a very good wave form picture. However, when the data is uploaded it provides a very accurate picture. I think with this particular device it is possible to download an app onto the PC to interpret the data for you. I have a similar device which I use for a slightly different reason. As a EMS Paramedic, I need to prove that a person has no heart beat for a period of 15 minutes in order to certify that life is extinct, even when their brains are splattered all over the road. My device loads via Bluetooth to my Android phone which enables me to send the trace to the local ER doctor for second opinion if required. Hope this helps.
  16. Back to the original post = PEA found out meter running backwards. Back in October I posted (ROI After 2 Years) that my small scall GTI system had been operational for 2 years, and that during that time it had produced nearly 6,000 units, which had knocked almost 25,000 THB off our electricity bills. At the end of my post, I indicated that I would not do anything more with the system unless our local PEA decided to swap the lovely spinning disc meter for a new shinny digital one. Well, that end thought almost came true recently. About 6 weeks ago, my wife was at a hospital in BKK for a routine medical check up and was just about to be called in to see the doctor when she received a phone call. The caller stated that he was from the PEA and that he was coming to the house the following day to fit a digital meter. He asked if she would be home around 10am. He then asked if she had claimed a refund on the original meter installation. My wife advised the caller that she would be at home but that she couldn't remember if she had claimed the refund. Because she was being called into see the doctor, she had to end the call. After seeing the doctor, she called me to advise me about the phone call. You can image what was went through my mind, namely, how the heck did the PEA find out that we had solar? The system can’t be seen from the roadway outside the house/car port. Did they see the meter spinning backwards whilst we were not at home? Had someone ‘grassed’ on us? When my wife got home, she spoke to several of the neighbours whose meters share the pole outside our house, and none had received a call from the PEA. So, were we the only one to have our meter changed? So, with the possibility of the PEA turning up next day to replace our spinning disc meter, I decided to play safe and turn the solar system completely off. The following day we waited patiently for the PEA to arrive. 10am came and went. 12 noon passed. 5pm elapsed and still no sign of anyone from the PEA. So, my wife called the mobile number that had rung her the previous day to try and find out what was happening. Despite several attempts to call the number there was no reply. As we were usure as to when the PEA might turn up, I decided to leave the system turned off until they had been. A week passed and still no sign of the PEA. After another week I turned the system back on in ON EXPORT mode, so that at least we would get some power produced by the system, but the meter should not spin backwards. After a further week, and still no sign of the PEA, or further phone calls, I turned the system back on into EXPORT mode. To date, other than the normal meter reader, there has been no sign of any PEA, thankfully. Perhaps I should not speak to soon. In hindsight, I now believe that this may have been some sort of scam call that did not play out because: a) my wife needed to end because she had been called to see the doctor; b) my wife is certain that the caller did not mention the house number during their brief conversation; c) why did the caller not answer the phone (it was a mobile number); and d) if he was from the PEA as he said, he should have been able to look up on their computer system if my wife had claimed/received a refund for the original meter. Because of this event, I’ve decided to upgrade my small system, as @Crossy suggested in my ROI post, by initially adding a few extra panels and possibly running the system in NO EXPORT mode to just cover day time needs. Thinking longer term, a hybrid inverter with more panels is a possibility, but without being attached to any ESS. Given my age (77), with the probability that I will fall off my perch at some time, my darling wife has indicated that she does not feel confident enough to look after a battery system. Moral of the story.... Spinning the disc backwards has its rewards, but also its downside.
  17. Sorry but this is almost doomed to failure before it gets anywhere near the ‘drawing board’, it’s just a big dream that’s going nowhere. According to earlier reports the ‘Joly Green Giant,’ indicated that the overland bridge proposal will knock of 14 days sailing time around the Straits of Malacca and thus save both time and money for the shipping companies. I seriously question his previously reported 14 days sailing time around the Straits of Malacca. Sure, the Straits of Malacca is a busy shipping lane, but it only takes a couple of days to sail from say Chumpon to Singapore, and a further 2 days to get up to Phuket. A total of 4 days, and perhaps allowing another day for ‘traffic jams’ or slow movement through the Straits. The average SMALL container ship has a capacity of around 500 (40ft) containers. So, when the vessel docks at Chumpon the ‘Joly Green Giant’ is proposing that these 500 containers will be off loaded onto either trucks, or trains, and transported overland to Ranong, where they will have to be reloaded onto another vessel which will be waiting at that port for those containers. With one 40ft container per truck, that would mean having 500 trucks on standby at Chumpon. Oh, and then there is the little matter that some containers may well require refrigeration. Will there be enough trucks capable of providing such facilities? Can you imagine a convoy of 500 trucks ‘racing’ down the highway from Chumpon to Ranong. The return trip will likely feature on the next instalment of ‘Fast and Furious’. What could possibly go wrong? The alternative would be to transport the containers by train. Given that modern freight train can haul about of 50 (40ft) containers, that would mean having 10 trains on standby at Chumpon for this one vessel. Then you need more trains on standby for the next vessel etc. A possible safer and more environmental solution. It must also be remembered that the order in which the containers were originally loaded onto the vessel has been determined by their eventual destination. So, when the first container is off loaded at Chumpon, it is imperative that it must subsequently be the last container to be reloaded at Ranong. This will require good planning (again, what could possibly go wrong?) and necessitate sufficient storage area at Chumpon or Ranong to put the containers prior to being loaded onto truck/trains/vessel. Now consider the LARGE, or SUPER, container ships which can have a capacity of 20,000 plus (40ft) containers like the one on the photo above. These would be a complete nightmare. How much will the off-loading, overland transportation and subsequent re-loading cost the shipping company, plus the cost of having to have 2 vessels tied up? Will the off-loading, overland transportation and subsequent re-loading be quicker than the possible 5 days sailing around the Straits of Malacca? I personally doubt very much that investors, or shipping companies, will want to buy into this 'hair brain' scheme as the numbers just won’t add up for them. Now if the ‘Joly Green Giant’ was to suggest constructing a real canal, like the Suez or Panama canals, then that would be more likely to attract investors and shipping companies. Also, the cost of such a project would be considerably higher than the ‘land bridge’ proposal, thus there would be far more opportunities for ‘commissions’ to be had .
  18. Congratulations on your DIY solar project. It looks a really good job and hopefully it will pay its way in a relatively short time frame. Regarding cleaning your panels: Its not really a good idea to use soap to clean them, for a couple of reasons: - Firstly, you never know what chemicals the manufacturer has put into the soap to give it that ‘extra’ cleaning boost. There is a danger that these chemicals may cause the seal between the glass and the frame to break down over time and allow water to get onto the photovoltaic cells, which will cause the panel to fail. Definitely do not use standard window cleaning solutions to clean your panels as these contain alcohol-based substances which will cause the panels seal to degrade fairly quickly. Secondly, even if you flush the panels off with water after soaping them, the soap will still leave a very fine film on the glass which tends to attract dust, so you will be back in the same situation of having to clean the panels again soon. The best solution for cleaning solar panels is rainwater, as opposed to tap water. Tap water inevitably contains calcium and when the panels dry off, the calcium sticks to the panel’s glass. Initially this will have little, or no, effect on your array’s output, however, each time you clean the panels this calcium film gradually builds up and will eventually reduce the amount of sun light that strikes the photovoltaic cells of your panels, hence, reduced output. The small-scale system on my carport roof (4 x 415W panels) tends to get dirty fairly quickly due to the fact that we live in an area where there are a several food producing factories nearby which are far from pollution free. See photo below of my panels after about a month during the ‘dry season’. The best solution for cleaning the panels is rainwater. During the ‘rainy season’ my panels get a good regular clean without any input from me, which is great, and there is always a noticeable slight increase in the array's output following a good shower. I collect rainwater in a 1k Liter tank (very basic filtering to eliminate any large particles) which I use specifically for cleaning the panels. Initially I used a hose and soft brush to clean the panels. This was followed by a squeegee to remove any surplus water, and then a cloth to dry them off. This was hard work, especially at my age. So, I decided to invest in a commercial solar panel cleaning brush. It was a bit expensive, and some would consider it ‘over the top’, but it has made cleaning the panels a lot easier. The brush cleaner comes with its own small pump, which is connected to the rainwater tank. Once the panels have been washed, I now use a small battery powered garden blower to remove any surplus water. It now only takes about 10 minutes to set up and clean my 4 panels. I’ve attached below some photos of the brush kit and a short video of me using it. 20230226_095040.mp4 FYI…. I’ve attached a PDF of the brush spec. Solar Panel Cleaning Brush Cleaning Equipment Solar Panel Cleaning Rotating Brush For Customized - Buy Solar Panel Cleaning Rotating Brush For Customized,Solar Panel Cleaning Brush,Solar Panel Cleaning Equipment Product on Alibaba.com.pdf Hope this helps and gives you some ideas.
  19. Up-Date: Many thanks to those AN members who have provided constructive comments. Much appreciated. Well, the jury is divided. 50% of AN members who responded indicated that I need to maintain 65K monthly international transfers until I go for my renewal in September next year, the other half say that there’s no need for the monthly transfers and I just have to show that 800K has been in the bank 2 months before going for my renewal. So, as I have mentioned in a couple of my previous posts, I decided to visit my local Immigration Office, which I did this afternoon (well not so local, it’s a 60km drive each way through heavy traffic) and have a chat with the senior there who has been very helpful in the past. Having explained my desire to transfer from the monthly international transfer method to money in the bank method at my next renewal in September 24, she confirmed the following: - 1. I must continue to transfer 65K from an international source to a Thai bank up until the date of submitting my renewal and provide the same proof of these transfers as I have in previous years e.g. 1 year bank statement showing international transfer of funds to Thailand; copy of my foreign account bank book; certified letter from bank confirming that I am the holder of the account and the amount of funds at that date. 2. I must also provide my bank book showing 800K in the account 2 months prior to submitting my renewal, plus a certified letter from the bank confirming that I am the holder of the account and the amount of funds at that date. Then came the shock! She indicated that as this was to be my first submission for the 800K method, I need to:- 1. Show proof of the origin of the funds in that account. 2. I also need to provide a letter from my Embassy confirming my pension and that the Embassy letter must by authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I explained to her that the funds in my savings account, which amount to several million THB have accumulated over the past 13 years by ‘drip feed’ transfers from my Foreign Currency Account. There is no way that I will be able to obtain any form of bank statements that will show these transfers dating back more that perhaps the past 12 months. Because recently these transfers were made via my mobile app, I have some copies of transfer receipts on my phone, which I showed her. Following my comment, she advised that the past 12 months would be acceptable and that I need to print them out and submit them when doing my renewal next year. I pointed out that my Embassy, like several other Embassies, stopped issuing letters confirming pensions several years ago, so there is no way that I can comply with that requirement. She advised that I need to obtain a letter from my pension provider(s) confirming the amount of my pension and that these must be submitted with my renewal application to confirm that I have sufficient funds to live on (God only knows why they need this). I decided to not ask to her questions as to the reason why I must prove where the funds of my 800K in my savings account have come from, or the reason for why I need a letter from my Embassy confirming my pension(s). I felt that such questions would lead to her ‘digging her heels in’ with a negative outcome. I left thanking her for her advice. So, in conclusion, I will have to continue transferring 65K (plus) per month from the UK bank account to my Thai Foreign Currency Account up until September next year and ensure that some THB funds are transferred each month to my savings account. Hopefully my P60s from my pension providers will satisfy her second requirement. All good fun?
  20. Many thanks for your response. I have a feeling that you are right in so far that I need to keep making the transfer of funds until my next renewal in September 2024, but as you suggest, I'm going to take a drive to my 'local' Immigration Office and have a chat with the Senior there to get her view on the matter. She's been very helpful in the past. The only problem is that if she says that its OK to reduce the amount of funds that I transfer monthly, and rely upon the money in the bank method for my next renewal, you can bet your bottom dollar that she gets transferred and the new boss has the opposite view. Then I'm up the creek without a paddle. Once again, Thanks.
  21. Many thanks. That is what I am expecting. May I ask, is your comment based upon personal experience? I am considering a trip to my local Immigration Office (not that local actually - 1 hour plus drive each way) and having a chat with the Senior there who has been very helpful in the past. The trouble is, when it comes to my renewal next September, she may have been transferred and the new incumbent may well have a different view.
  22. I, like many other expats here in Thailand are hoping that this is a 'storm in a teacup', and that it does not become a reality. Although Thailand has Tax Treaties with 60 plus countries which are intended to avoid the possibility of double taxation, knowing the Thai Government, they may well try to enforce the clause which requires that transfers come from savings accounts, where the funds have been for 12 months prior to being transferred. I'm not holding my breath, but just trying to think ahead for the worse case scenario.
  23. The 'story' as you put it is not complicated at all. As I mentioned in my original post, I been renewing my Non-O (Retirement) permission to stay for the past 13 years based upon transferring the equivalent of 65,000 THB (plus) per month to a Thai bank account from an overseas source. I also have savings account which hold substantially more than 800,000 THB for the past several years. To put it as simply as possible, I want to change from the monthly money transfer method to money in the bank method. What I'm asking is, is it OK to reduce the amount that I transfer so as to cover basic living expenses and when I go for my next renewal in September 2024 can I just present my updated savings account book (plus certified letter from the bank), or will Immigration expect to see me continuing money transfers up until my new submission. The problem is that with the money transfer method, the permission to stay is based upon retrospective transfers which have been made in the past year, not what you might transfer in the forthcoming year. For your information: With Non-O (Retirement) Permission to Stay there is no requirement to have compulsory health insurance thank goodness because at my age 77 such insurance is virtually unobtainable or so prohibitively expensive with so many exclusions. Hence the reason why I have a very healthy savings account for that 'rainy day'.
  24. Thanks for your response. Like you, I currently transfer more than the minimum 65K per month. However, we (my wife and I) are careful spenders and we never need all of the funds which I've transferred into my foreign currency account. This has allowed me over the years build up a very healthy savings account which is there for that 'rainy day'. I like your thinking regarding transferring 50% of your transferable funds to your wife. Yes, if the Revenue Department do enforce the tax rule of foreign transfers, your potential tax liability will be reduced. But, your wife may now have to pay tax if she is not already on the amount that you transfer to her. Obviously, if she is already paying tax (like my wife does), then her tax liability may well increase substantially. It will be a case of 'swings and roundabouts'.
  25. Sorry, but I would be interested to know on what factual basis do you suspect that the rules for Non-O Extension of permission to stay will change soon? There have been rumours for the past year that Immigration are re-writing the Immigration Act, but so far nothing has materialised from either Immigration HQ, or the Ministry of Interior, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As I asked in my original post, what are the procedures for changing from the monthly international transfers into a Thai bank account method to the 800K in a Thai bank savings account. The problem in simple terms is, do I need to maintain the monthly transfers until my next renewal (September 24), or is it OK for me to lower that amount to just cover basic life expenses and hope that my local Immigration Office will accept that the 800K (plus) in my Thai savings account has been there for several years, and grant me permission to stay for another year (Sept 24 to Sep25). I'm not sure that using a foreign credit card to pay for all and sundry, as you suggest, is going to be financially worthwhile bearing in mind that most credit card exchange rates are poor, plus may banks impose a surcharge. In addition, many Thai shops and service providers impose a 3% surcharge for use of credit cards. In a year, it may be better off paying the tax if it is enforced.
×
×
  • Create New...