Most reacted posts

Im building a freeware realtime software/hardware monitoring solution that provides intimate details and decision making information about a solar system. I intend to be fully off grid in the near future and want to be self sufficient for power. My goal is complete control over every aspect of...

I’ve been using Pi Zero micro computers to monitor all kinds of equipment over the years as they are low cost and incredibly flexible. Here is what I have just added to monitor my MPP 3048 pair 240v split phase system with BYD LifePO4 cells. Let me know if you are interested. Its all freeware...

The USA cannot be competitive for so many reasons. — lack of skilled personnel — no channels for parts —over bearing legislation The list is long, the same reason any smart phone is not made in the USA, Apple estimated the same phone would cost 10x more made in the USA if it was even possible.

Thanks for pointing this out to people, i was confused to see Will quote only USA sourced prices for cells, when hardly anyone pays twice the price to get them outside of China. He was also implying that all cells from China are grade B, used or a scam. I just purchased 16 of the new K series...

I'm having success reading the Chargery real-time data using a simple UBS interface with just RX/TX ports on a Pi 4 running Raspian. I just connect to the /dev/ttyUSB0 interface at 115200 baud and collect the stats as a datastream. I parse it using some basic Linux tools and feed it to a python...

Hi, Just received my new MPP 3048 LV MK combo pair from MPP Taiwan. I bought them on Ebay https://www.ebay.com/itm/LV-MK-split-phase-solar-inverter-6000w-48v-120v-230v-160A-mppt-solar-charger/133399295918?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649 They took a few weeks to arrive...

If you want a cheap monitoring solution, I can now get great stats from the Renogy Wanderer 10a Li using a Python script. The little Renogy is under $20. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NPDWZJ7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 You will need a $25 Pi Zero and make a special...

For the Pi4 I chose this model with 4GB. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VYC6S56/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Get a 32GB card (2 for $20), this makes for a fast development machine that can do anything. For deployment get the Pi Zero, way cheaper ...

No, its not necessary. Ask yourself how many people in the past capacity tested their car battery after they bought it from Sears? All these procedures are just a fun thing to do to kill time, and to justify spending your resources and money on a new toy. For sure, if you have problems, it...

After experimenting with 6 different LFP packs from 12v to 48v and accurately measuring cell voltages at every stage with all types of BMSs and balancers, I can confidently recommend avoiding the final top and bottom percentages of capacity. This is where all the problems occur with cell...

I just completed mine based on a similar system by a guy in the UK. Works great. Handles .15mm zinc no problem. I used this for the pen and switch ($22) Amazon.com This for a secondary switch that I prefer. ($7) Amazon.com This relay ($13) Amazon.com A small old 300a AGM battery from my...

This is great to see, all my hard work getting used and getting useful results. It's all I could have hoped for when I started this project many moons ago. Thanks to everyone for their feedback and suggestions. Joe.

A raspberry Pi zero ($25) Running Linux and 2 of these, connected to each side of your split phase 110 circuits on any standard main fuse box. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07S6SFKTK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 They just clamp on in minutes. A fun weekend project. I...

Just got my twin MPP 3048 split phase system hooked up to a Pi zero. Added cell monitoring with the new Chargery BMS16t.

While balancing or just in general use, I sometimes want to lower the voltage on a particular cell in my battery bank quickly and safely. After trying numerous methods, I found this approach to be quick and easy and it does not require any special equipment or tools. I used the household...

I've found you can test the Chargery in your lab using a standard laptop 12v DC charger I had lying around that had the correct size barrel connector. Plug it in and set the switch to battery. When the screen comes on change the cells to one and press start. It then boots up as normal. You can...

Jason at Chargery just shipped me one of the new 16P BMS units. The big changes are: 1amp Balancing (now the control unit is black (slightly larger) and has a fan inside Screen showing Internal resistance of the cells Balancing action is shown on the main screen using a yellow bar icon. More...

I live off-grid. I wanted to have a gas/propane generator backup for my battery/solar bank for when there is bad weather or I have some other problems with my electrical supply. It needed to be a powerful generator that I could use to quickly recharge my LifePO4 bank in under a few hours and...

As soon as I get some more spare time I will put up a website with the full instructions/howto. So far the solar equipment I have working has been using a mix of RS232 / TTL and RS485 modbus protocols. Then the data is loaded into a database so its easy to query and combine with other...

I just completed mine based on your example. Works great. Handles .15mm zinc no problem. I used this for the pen and switch from Amazon ($22) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B085FY4VHY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 This for a secondary switch that I prefer. ($7)...

Hi Craig, You will need some type of internet access if you want remote access. I push the data from my network out out the cloud (Google). Its just a small text file every 10 seconds. If you dont have wired internet, you can only view the data locally. If you have cellular, you need to make a...

I've been living off-grid for a long time, and up until now, I've always made my own batteries and systems. 10Kw of used solar panels 32 EVE Lifepo4 280ah batteries in Seplos battery boxes, giving 30KW of battery capacity. Growatt 6KW all in one split phase charger/inverter for when I'm there...

Hi, I have 4 BYD packs, this is what happens. Below is a chart of the individual cell voltages as the aggregate voltage limit is reached. You can see that the most worn cells start rapidly increasing their voltages, much faster than the healthy cells. At the graph midpoint, charging is stopped...

I like the Chargery units, the new 16s is much easier to configure and you can use a Raspberry Pi to get realtime info like this and email/text you when the battery is fully charged. Code at https://github.com/BarkinSpider/SolarShed

I'm doing exactly what you describe. I have 28kwh of eve lifepo4 52v batteries connected to my ecoflow Delta 2 DC charge port with the solar cable. The solar cable allows the power to charge at 500w instead of the 100w car charger cable. Your pro should charge at the full speed your solar port...

Great to hear you got grafana up and running on your pi, your 90% of the way there. Have you looked at the code on my github site for the Renogy wanderer? https://github.com/BarkinSpider/SolarShed/blob/master/RenogyWanderer.py Read thro the code introduction if you get stuck. Joe.

Before you size your off-grid system, look at your usage at home today. With less than $100 of equipment from Amazon you can get detailed reports. From this, I can see I needed a 22kw battery bank for my usage today, but that is mainly because the 240v dryer got heavily used. Normally its around...

My how-to documents and scripts for creating Grafana displays using raspberry pi are now located at GitHub at https://github.com/BarkinSpider/SolarShed

Recently added the MPP all—in—one units and their clones to the monitoring family.

I just hooked up my BMS8T. I used the connector on the original defunct BMS that came with the BYD. Cut the connector off the motherboard and soldered on the Chargery wire. Works great, no need to order any extra cables or connectors. Protect the delicate wires with a big blob from a glue gun.