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Almost time to expand to 100kWh :)

You joke, but having 100kWh at home even just 10 years ago was almost unimaginable...

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We have users from China that contribute. Blocking IP ranges on an international site is counterproductive. Never mind that most of these bots spamming the site don't even originate from a certain country anyway. The last bots banned for example came from Montréal, California, and Germany among...

You know my thing with building a cheap 10kW system, right? Guess what I never, ever cheap out on: Class T fuses. I've witnessed tons of LiFePO4 shorts, and frankly, they're scary. I've also seen ANL fuses just sit there in a short, arcing, heating up and melting the plastic holder they're in...

I'm probably one of the few on the opposite side. I blog about it, and I invite people over (that are local to me anyway) to have an idea what it takes and what's possible. Solar wasn't a thing here before I started; I'd like to think I helped at least a few look into it seriously.

YouTube is full of those fake scam accounts. I don't get how people fall for it... Basic security practices 101.

As I commented on that video: - Test should be done at 25C, not 11C or whatever it was. This accounts for at least 2% - Battery cells are 4 years old, count calendar aging for this especially since they're used in a warm environment. He didn't get 280Ah when he just got them either. -...

Please don't give users an idea by stating that you 'doubt' it will be an issue when in reality it is an issue - even in jest. You don't back-feed into the grid when the grid is down, ever. My dad knew people that died because of fuck-ups like this, and no I'm not going to spend time writing...

Ever consider it's because of the policies of your government that your grid has issues and prices are going up? Here in Finland, electricity prices have been going down - and that's because of renewables (especially wind and hydro) and nuclear. We're already seeing spot prices that are close to...

I'm posting this as a response to a comment from Paul F. Note: mR == milliOhm. Hypotheses I proposed: MG Chemicals 847 can lower the resistance in a connection between bus bar and battery terminal, especially in cases where limited torque can be exerted, or where the two connections are not...

Let me categorically restate what was said in previous posts: no one makes any money off of this forum. There are no ads, no affiliate links. Will pays for the hosting and the site software, I pay for the search server (Elastic search) and paid for the Wiki plug-in. No one gets paid.

Indefinitely. I've got spare parts for everything, run multiple inverters and charge controllers (so even if one goes down, it won't bring the system down) and can do component level repair on everything. That said, I can also keep the place running without power at all even in dead of...

Yeah, about that... https://diysolarforum.com/threads/sunfunkits-show-their-true-color.44653/

You know, I don't get this. First of all, I don't know why a first offence (like shoplifting as you mentioned in the video) leads to a record, let alone at 17. Even if there was legal action there where I live and not just a stern talking to, it sure as heck wouldn't be available online for...

You could go with braided bus bars. I make mine myself, but you should be able to find them off-the-shelf. If you're in a high vibration environment, these large cells do have the potential to translate a lot of the vibration to the terminals when you have rigid bus bars. My personal opinion is...

Storm came and is still ongoing. Several trees down, no damage to the buildings. No problems with the ground mount and panels are perfectly fine. Power outages everywhere, except at my place :) It has been an exceptionally strong storm and much earlier in the year than usual, so birch trees...

There are only a few reputable sources for cells here in Europe. One of them is GWL - cost of a 135Ah LifePO4 cell (their Elerix brand): 105$, without VAT nor shipping. They also have Winston cells: 260Ah, 334$ without VAT nor shipping. EVEurope has Sinopoly and CALB cells - 200Ah for 295€...

Cells in their box with compression frame, before final assembly (just for documentation). The space around and double bottom allows for insulation from the cold. The top part is the frame for the lid before it was completed. Ignore the mess.

I posted a picture some time ago of a quick and dirty concept since I did not have time to make them before. Below are the actual flexible bus bars as I make them. These three actually go to a member of this forum who expressed interest.

You're going to miss it. Be patient, wait for the BMS.

Alcohol is an option.

Wait till I tell you about how I went camping over the weekend. Also, nothing better than overlooking the meadow from my house, all snowed in, fireplace going, and a good book in the evenings...

In my opinion too many people try to get 100% of the capacity out of their cells by playing with cell voltages that are on or very near to the edge and where issues with cells such as bloating can arise very quickly when not paying attention. Everyone should look at this curve and think: is it...

There are too many people asking general questions in the profile posts. Please don't! Just write them in the forum and you'll likely get answers from multiple people. Asking @Will Prowse or others in their profile won't get you any response. Maybe we should make this a sticky, or add it to the...

I've asked Will earlier today to make me a moderator (and now I am). I hope I can take some workload away from Will and co.

The exact opposite here. The law basically says: "if you don't bother your neighbors or significantly alter the landscape, just let the municipality know you're putting it up and you're good. No permit needed." It only becomes paperwork intensive once you go over 100kW.

If you ask me, leave it disabled. You're not running lab tests, you're using a production system. Stay within 3.0V and 3.5V per cell. Stop charging at 3.5V (no tail current, no absorption) and stop discharging at 3.0V per cell. Put float at 3.375V or below. Go enjoy the nice weather after that.

I guess part of it is also that it's financially and technically a lot more feasible to do today than it was four years ago.

Since I don't believe I ever shared a picture of the battery with compression fixture and (flexible, nickel plated) bus bars installed, here goes. Note that this was taken somewhere in the assembly process and is thus not complete. Additionally, this entire set-up fits in an insulated box with...