diy solar

diy solar

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  • Post in thread: 2 inverters with 1 pv array?

    Sorry to say you can't use one array for two separate MPPT chargers. About all you can do would be to split the array or get more panels. BTW those MC-4 harnesses are for combining (paralleling) PV, not splitting it.
  • Post in thread: Gas generators to be banned in USA

    How stupid have we become to need this?
  • Post in thread: Victron 100/20 Under Performing in a 6S Battery (24V)

    Seems like your pre conceived ideas are incorrect. If you don't open up and tell us what equipment you are using and all details, stats etc. you're just wasting everybody's time.
  • Post in thread: Thoughts on this article?

    They like the KY with the sparkles in it.
  • Post in thread: New Qishou 304 ah Lifepo4 batteries just arrived, i think i got scammed. Are these defects important?

    Really?! I didn't realize there was a BMS police force.
  • Post in thread: Lugs Electrical Contact Questions

    Just looking at your list of components including multiple SCC's is pretty much textbook for going with a higher voltage system.
  • Post in thread: Solar has been hijacked/co opted. A wakeup?

    They're not getting a red cent from me. Off grid in Mexico. Personally, I think everybody should be off grid. Screw those tax hungry a holes. :)
  • Post in thread: Top balancing question

    Happens every time. Not a bad idea to keep a few extra fuses handy.
  • Post in thread: Midnite Solar Announced their new 10kw AIO at Intersolar Today

    Couldn't you just run another -ive bus bar, even outside the Midnite enclosure if that modification won't fly inside the box?
  • Post in thread: My solar panels dont have bypass diodes!

    I would love to positively date these relics, especially hearing that Arco panel is from the 60"s' The 2nd and 3rd photos are an Arco panel and it is very crude. It is boxed as opposed to fully laminated as most panels are these days. The first photo is a Solar power Corp. panel, is pristine...
  • Post in thread: Results of 30 days “”off grid””, while on the grid.

    Every time I see that picture it gives me the willies.
  • Post in thread: Midnite Solar Announced their new 10kw AIO at Intersolar Today

    Gotta love the 10 year warranty.
  • Post in thread: How did this happen?

    Talk about sugar coating a turd......
  • Post in thread: Voc much higher than specified on the back

    Once your battery in the DVM is low and ready to replace you can get some wild readings.
  • Post in thread: Optimal winter angle for cloudy days without sun

    Voltage is meaningless. You can get full open circuit voltage indoors, under a lightbulb. It's the amount of current you can get flowing that matters.
  • Post in thread: First time DIY case

    I'd recommend you slide sone non metalic tubing over the exposed treads of the all thread.
  • Post in thread: MC4 alternatives

    You might have mismatched generic MC-4 connectors. The crimping tool shouldn't have anything to do with this. Wire nuts are the cheesiest possible way to make connections. There's lots of different splicing components on the market. Look for weatherproof types if you must.
  • Post in thread: Do You Ever Regret Going Off Grid?

    9 years off-grid in Baja. Been through 3 hurricanes and a number of high wind events. Never lost power. The grid ends 10 miles up the road. They lose power for multiple reasons, including Hurricanes. There is talk of running the grid power down this far. I doubt many of us would be interested...
  • Post in thread: Solar has been hijacked/co opted. A wakeup?

    Near the end of their publication years they gave online access to their entire archive with an annual subscription. Took a quite a number of hours to download all of it but I find myself referring to it often. It's really cool seeing how it evolved from a crude backroom publication to the...
  • Post in thread: Do I need a breaker between solar panels and AIO inverter?

    While not required if you series wire the 3 panels, it is desirable to have a breaker for system maintenance and shut down/startup . Be sure it is a DC rated breaker and also rated for switching under load. Midnite Solar make this type of breaker.
  • Post in thread: "All In One" systems << Are these the exact opposite of what it reads?

    I have helped a few very competent electricians who have gotten in trouble when it comes to DC wiring. Funny how somebody who can wire entire home 200 amp or 400 amp AC systems can stumble with DC power.
  • Post in thread: Will 100w Solar Panel Direct-Wired Run an 80w Cooling Fan "OK"?

    I mounted a couple of the same fans you mention in my battery room ceiling. When I first got the fans I was playing around with wiring methods. I was using a 65 watt 12 volt solar panel. When I direct wired a single 80 watt rated fan to the 65 watt panel, in full sun, the fan was spinning so...
  • Post in thread: How did this happen?

    Series wire all 4 12 volt panels into one string. Series wire 2 of the 24 volt panels at a time and create two strings Combine the three strings and input into the CC. Be sure you keep the polarity correct. You should fuse each individual string. Series fuse rating should be on the back of the...
  • Post in thread: I'm new here.

    ." Should I remove the 100watt panel?" With the charge controller you have you really should remove the 230 watt panels. They will work but you are taking a 50% hit in their output. What you should do, as previously suggested, is, Get a real MPPT controller, save the other controller for use...
  • Post in thread: Midnite Solar Announced their new 10kw AIO at Intersolar Today

    Call it a gimmick if you must (not you boB) but any other brand CC will release the smoke when you exceed the VOC. Hyper VOC is a buffer zone that protects your CC
  • Post in thread: Why does this inverter cost $3,300?

    Here's a snippet of their timeline. I have added a link to the full story here. Hope it is allowed. The main inverter sales in the early days of Trace went to the marijuana growers in Northern California. A young entrepreneur, David Katz was the owner of our main distributor, AEE Solar. They...
  • Post in thread: 12v or 24v

    Easy enough to pull the DIY battery and swap in a new cheap battery before it sells. .
  • Post in thread: Best crimper for 2/0 and 4/0 ?

    I got tired of the "wings" on my crimped lugs so I bought this Temco 32 set kit. It goes from 10 ga. to 600 MCM and has + sizes on some sets. I also like the way the dies are embossed. giving a raised lug size set in each crimped lug
  • Post in thread: I'm new here.

    Making heat with electricity is best left to a large system built with those large loads in mind. Anything that CAN be done with propane or natural gas should be. While you have shown you can operate a hot plate with a single 12 volt battery the load on that single battery will drain it very...
  • Post in thread: Keeping LiFePO4 Battery Banks cool in Australia

    I have a separate dedicated 12 volt panel and battery running this unit. The small end goes into the battery box, the large end hangs outside the box. It actually starts frosting up when the humidity is high. The frost ends up turning to water and I have cut a small chute under the unit which...
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