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  1. M

    Magic Smoke came out......... ##it happens

    On the 14AWG wire rated at 105C: The wire may be rated at 105C but I can guarantee you the terminals are not. The terminals will overheat and fail if not eventually catch fire. A lot of people on the forum miss that ultimately, the termination temperature rating determines the legal ampacity...
  2. M

    Battery placement check

    I wouldn't worry so much about a hydrogen buildup as I would corrosive gasses , mainly sulfuric and sulfurous acids dissolved in the air's humidity being in close proximity to your inverter and charge controller. Also, if I understand your description, small parts/tools/etc can be dropped from...
  3. M

    QO vs Homeline

    QO breakers are listed for 48VDC service, homeline are not.
  4. M

    southern California flat panel performance in Winter

    If familiar with PVWatts or SAM Advisor, you can just model your situation and get a reasonable estimate.
  5. M

    Battery fuse AIC calculations

    LiPO4 cells have an internal resistance on the order of 500uOhm, so Ohm's law would predict a fault current on the order of 48/.5 kA or about 96kA. That is really large, so large in fact, that there isn't a lot of equipment out there with that high of a SCC rating. Another issue is that it is...
  6. M

    Anyone using EG4 18kpv completely off grid?

    How heavily is the unit loaded? Also are your fans small HP or part of a large ventilation system?
  7. M

    Anyone using EG4 18kpv completely off grid?

    I have one providing full off grid power to my house. It replaced two 6500s. I guess I'm still enjoying the honeymoon because the 18k's performance is such an incredible improvement over the 6500s! I don't notice any flickering but do notice my fireplace insert blower motor slows slightly when...
  8. M

    Solar panel selection help

    First a disclaimer: I am not familiar with Bluetti's inverters. SO looking at the specs and your description, It looks like each inverter can accommodate a maximum of 2.4kW of PV power with the PV voltage running anywhere between 12-150VDC with a maximum current of 12A. Your system description...
  9. M

    Choosing Splicing Hardware in J-Box

    I don't know of any documentation, just my personal experience in using them. I don't know of anything in the NEC prohibiting use of a listed DIN terminal block either. Don't think I don't like DIN rail terminals - I use at least 10000 of them a year. I just don't use them on DC PV...
  10. M

    Wooden battery rack and temperatures

    I have 12 batteries, arranged in 2 rows of six. I typically see a 8 degree F difference in battery temperature between the 2 rows with the upper being warmer.
  11. M

    Choosing Splicing Hardware in J-Box

    Sounds like you are splicing AC since you mention the two branches. If so, DIN rail terminals are OK, but I would prefer insulated compression butt splices. Those that are insulated with heat shrink are my preference. Morris and Apollo make some nice insulated splices with multiple conductor...
  12. M

    Battery Cables math check

    Wire sizes are a little small given that NEC requires a 1.25% adjustment - but if you don't care about code compliance and or won't be inspected, the 2/0 "should" be OK. I'm assuming wire in conduit, not free air. All but 1 installation I've seen in the last 20 years or so wouldn't be...
  13. M

    Capacity Factor?

    It is really more of a utilization figure of merit that it is efficiency.
  14. M

    Capacity Factor?

    No, it is more of an efficiency calculation. Say you have a grid-tied system with no storage, a 10kW inverter, and 10kW of panels. The inverter would generate 87600 kWh if it ran 24/7/365. However, after a year, the system generated 20150 kWh. The capacity factor would be 20150/87600 = 0.23...
  15. M

    NEC compliance, permitting, and inspection required?

    I wouldn't chance it on the 150V max input voltage. Your Voc will increase well above that with cold weather! Something tells me Renogy will just say your exceeded the voltage specification (if and when the charge controller smokes!). I'll bet they won't mention any safety factor then. BTW...
  16. M

    Capacity Factor?

    Why are you worried about giving them a wrong number? Just calculate it with whatever PVWatts predicts and you have a defensible result. It will be as correct as anything else (and still be around 25%)! It is really kinda assinine!
  17. M

    Capacity Factor?

    The capacity factor is the ratio of energy generated over a period of time to the energy that would have been generated if the generator were run 24/7 over the same period of time. For solar energy, the CF is usually around 25%
  18. M

    How easily will this pull be in 1" conduit

    That should be an easy pull. Just be careful to notice any mud on the existing conductors when you pull them out. If you encounter mud and it seems difficult to pull out a couple of the existing conductors, your conduit has either separated or failed (you didn't mention if it is rigid metal or...
  19. M

    Terminology.. phased power, apparent power, active power?

    Yea, it consumes 100w. The heat dissipation is interesting. My system has the batteries co-located with the inverters in a small 6'X8' shed, insulated to R11 in the walls, R32 "ish" in the ceiling, and no insulation in the floor. It sits on deck blocks, so it has around 12" of ground...
  20. M

    Terminology.. phased power, apparent power, active power?

    Good deal, glad I could help! With inverters, it's a crapshoot as to what happens with the reactive power. Ideally it would be returned to the battery but that depends on the circuit design. I have a feeling that with it is just dissipated as heat with most if not all of the less expensive units!
  21. M

    Terminology.. phased power, apparent power, active power?

    I'm not really sure what is going on with the SmartESS App, but a couple of things: 1. Voltage * Current does not equal energy. The product of voltage and current is power in DC and apparent power in AC. DC power is measured in watts and apparent power is measured in VA. There are three...
  22. M

    Got a mess

    It seems like there is an increasing number of cable overheating/insulation melting/wires smoking reports on the forum. The NEC ampacity charts may seem overly conservative, but it is all about safety. I've used them (been required to) for 30 years and have never had a conductor burn or catch...
  23. M

    Got a mess

    After rereading the post, it looks like it is 12V. A 1500W load at 12V would require inverter supply wire ampacity of 174A. That's calculated as 1500/12/inverter efficiency, so assuming 90%, 1500/12/.9 = 139A. NEC requires wire of 125% of that ampacity, so 139 * 1.25 = 174A. If a free air...
  24. M

    Got a mess

    What is your system voltage?
  25. M

    Conformance testing IEEE 1547

    Conducting that level of testing is far outside the ability of most if not nearly all people deploying this equipment. I bet you this is just a reference to the IEEE standard and is stated by the utilitly as a "scare tactic". I have never heard of anyone having to demonstrate anything other...
  26. M

    Please could smebody check my wiring diagram

    good deal! I'd be happy to review specs on what you are buying to be sure everything will happily integrate! Just let me know.
  27. M

    Please could smebody check my wiring diagram

    Yea, everything else looks fine. PM me when tou get closer to building it. There are a lot of "gotchas" that pop up and I will be happy to help out further.
  28. M

    Please could smebody check my wiring diagram

    The basic ampacity required for your inverter is going to be 1000W/12v = 83A. Assuming a 90% inverter efficiency, the ampacity goes to 83/.9 = 93A. Apllying the NEC 1.25 conductor amapcity adjustment brings you to 93*1.25 = 116A. If the inverter power wiring is to be in conduit, I would go with...
  29. M

    WZRELB split phase in parallel?

    There is very likely another problem with paralleling these guys. Their basic circuit is not all that great. You will smoke the inverter is you tie neutral and chassis ground together. I have a WZRE... and that us the case with mine.
  30. M

    Flat Roof High Wind Velocity Zone Advice

    Thanks, I'll check ot out. I will be designing a system in Puerto Rico in the next couple of months!!
  31. M

    Flat Roof High Wind Velocity Zone Advice

    https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/items/54895 I think this is the mitigation manual I'm remembering.
  32. M

    Flat Roof High Wind Velocity Zone Advice

    Any idea on a maximum design wind velocity? The devil is in the details! I would suspect that the roof will fail at the points of connection of the 3x8s and the top wall plate. Any additional lift from the desired increase in panel tilt will make those failure points more likely. It would be...
  33. M

    6500ex 2P1/2P2 L1/L2 Blk/Red?

    It doesn't matter at all, just keep it all consistent to help out with troubleshooting. In other words, don't mix black and red. Just adopt a standard, like L1 on the left/top and L2 on the right/bottom for lugs and breaker wiring. You can assign L1 the color black and L2 the color red, or the...
  34. M

    EMP shed

    Yea, if you put a faraday cage inside them! ?
  35. M

    EMP shed

    A simple way to test what you build is to just take a AM/FM portable radio with you into it. If you can still receive stations, you dont have sufficient attenuation. You can try it in a microwave oven which makes a pretty good cage for low frequency signals such as AM broadcast. Find a station...
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