3000sf House Off Grid Sol-Ark/EG4 build with "Power Shed"

[Robert Vinson]

Hi everyone!

Just figured I would post some info on my system I am putting together along with the house build. I've only seen a couple systems like this but none that are building the house at the same time so figured I would post some info with pix.

The house is a 3000sf "modern farmhouse" style house that is about 1/2 mile back from the main road. The electrical company wanted 45k to just run the power so I decided to just run solar and skip the electricity bill. Everything will be inspected so it will be up to code.

Solar equipment:
60 450w (bifacial) Canadian solar panels which will be mounted on 2 30 panel Sinclair ground mount arrays.
18 EG4 Lifepower batteries...so far.
2- 15kw Sol-Ark inverters
2- Victron lynx distributors to easily add more battery racks or inverters.
TBD generator


House design elements specifically to help with being off grid:
Bryant Evolution Extreme 24 seer HVAC system with 13 HSPF. Variable compressor runs more like a mini split with no start up surge issues.
Accelerator wood burning fireplace with blower to help the heat pump on those really cold (for Alabama) nights
Spray foam insulation
Range/stove is propane

The house will have a pool with a 3hp variable speed pump.

The way I see it..based on my calculations I will have a lot of excess PV power on the sunny days especially with the bifacial panels. I know my battery bank is on the low side but I want to see where we are at first and use the generator when needed and then go from there. I will add as necessary.

I just completed the power shed and I am in the process of insulating it and then drywall. After that I will start mounting batteries and inverters in there. There is a bunch of rain in the forcast so whenever it clears I will be digging the 8 holes for the sinclair mount. This will be interesting because it is a 24" by 7' deep hole for each pole and about 1 yard of concrete each.

I will post progress as it goes. Wish me luck.

 

[Robert Vinson]

2 30 panel sinclair arrays all lined up and ready to pour concrete tomorrow. That was a pain to get lined up.

 

[50ShadesOfDirt]

Excellent! Nice system, design, and ongoing construction! This is, by far, the cleanest construction site I've ever seen. Love the "shed"!

I was in same situation in Colorado ... $30k for 10 poles to bring power to house location, so we just went off-grid ... built an 8 x 16 enclosed (heated) utility shed (water, solar gear), adjoining carport for panels, nearby open shed for gen backup. Even got a tax credit for a portion of it.

Don't know for sure, but it seems most utility operators in every state have this model of "X amount for Y poles", and then and only then, you too can start paying us for the rest of your life ... welcome to the grid! "Electrification of the country" has left the building ...

I wonder how many of us have gone off-grid in response now ... I wonder if reprisal is forthcoming in some way for us "rebels"?

Because for the first time in the past decade or so, we can now self-generate our power, and no longer need the grid ...

 

[SilverbackMP]

2 30 panel sinclair arrays all lined up and ready to pour concrete tomorrow. That was a pain to get lined up.

Pain? Lol. This was pain (on the side of a pond dam). We didn’t get ‘em quite right. The right one has a bit of a valley like a Japanese or Korean traditional building and the left one ended up with a peak at the center. Not really noticeable though unless you know to look for it.

 

[Robert Vinson]

Excellent! Nice system, design, and ongoing construction! This is, by far, the cleanest construction site I've ever seen. Love the "shed"!

I was in same situation in Colorado ... $30k for 10 poles to bring power to house location, so we just went off-grid ... built an 8 x 16 enclosed (heated) utility shed (water, solar gear), adjoining carport for panels, nearby open shed for gen backup. Even got a tax credit for a portion of it.

Don't know for sure, but it seems most utility operators in every state have this model of "X amount for Y poles", and then and only then, you too can start paying us for the rest of your life ... welcome to the grid! "Electrification of the country" has left the building ...

I wonder how many of us have gone off-grid in response now ... I wonder if reprisal is forthcoming in some way for us "rebels"?

Because for the first time in the past decade or so, we can now self-generate our power, and no longer need the grid ...

How do you like being off grid? I am still a little nervous since I really want this whole electrical thing to be completely transparent to the family. I know I am lacking on the battery storage right now and I still need to get a generator. I am not sure what I will do for a generator yet since I hear a lot of complaints about quality of power and battery charging.

 

[Robert Vinson]

Pain? Lol. This was pain (on the side of a pond dam). We didn’t get ‘em quite right. The right one has a bit of a valley like a Japanese or Korean traditional building and the left one ended up with a peak at the center.

I did it by myself.....so that made it more difficult. I got concrete poured and the front array is only 1/4" off over the 50' length. The second array is all kinds of messed up. The concrete kicked a couple of the posts so now I need to figure out how I am going to modify the purlins to make it work. They are both in a straight line and the tops are level within 1/2" though...so that is good at least.

 

[SilverbackMP]

I did it by myself.....so that made it more difficult. I got concrete poured and the front array is only 1/4" off over the 50' length. The second array is all kinds of messed up. The concrete kicked a couple of the posts so now I need to figure out how I am going to modify the purlins to make it work. They are both in a straight line and the tops are level within 1/2" though...so that is good at least.

If they created a peak you can do like we did and just start laying the panels at the either side of peak and work your way to either side. You’ll need a couple of extra end clamps (I had to use a center clamp temporarily). There’s 12-16 inches in either side of play (at least there were on mine which are 24 panel mounts).

Our concrete sucked. 20x 80lbs bag quickrete per hole. I asked the guys helping if they wanted to ferry over ready mix with a skid loader bucket or use bags. They opted for the bags. Wouldn’t have been my choice if I was doing it solo lol.

 

[SilverbackMP]

Also, don’t over torque those clamps…bad things happen with temperature changes. As you can tell from my missing panel.

 

[50ShadesOfDirt]

We love being off-grid, and would never go back! No more utility bills with endless "fees" for this and that. No more "we're coming on your property, and there isn't really anything you can do about it", and so on. The whole thing *IS* transparent to my family, other than the fact that my daughters run the system as well as I do ...

There is no "quality of power" (Magnum 4024) for our 120/240v AC house wiring, or battery charging issues (since the switch to LFP), or any of that ... it just all works. When a friend tells you they've been w/o power for a week now, waiting for the grid to come back online ... you won't have known a thing about it, because you are off-grid and it just works!

If solar isn't pumping in power, then for us a simple Westinghouse wgen9500df generator ($1k, auto-choke, remote start, smart port, etc.) makes up the power, and propane is our site fuel of choice.

For nearly a decade now, we've been doing it this way. THD has never been an issue for any device in our household. We did add surge protection devices, as from all my research, I've determined that it is surges that kill things, not THD.

Hope this helps!

 

[Robert Vinson]

Getting closer. Kind of slow moving doing it myself.

 

[Oldphile]

Very impressive. I don't know what generators have the cleanest power, but I've had a Generac for 12 years. If I had to replace it, I'd look at Cummins. However, I'm in NH and cold weather has been a problem with the Generac. I hope to be able to connect my Generac to my Sol-Ark when I add batteries. I'm grid tied, but planning for extended power outages.

 

[Robert Vinson]

Exhausting day but one step closer. Started getting panels up on the mounts. I finally have all 3 battery banks up and running as well. I am using a chargeverter to charge up the banks. That allows me to provide power to the main panel while I work on the solar array.

 

[dmkjr]

Working on my home install now. Will NOT have anything remotely this size, but look forward to seeing your progress. I will not be 100% completely off-grid. Just looking to reduce grid usage by about 50% which is what the average is for my at-home DC.

 

[TOU47]

Solar equipment:
60 450w (bifacial) Canadian solar panels which will be mounted on 2 30 panel Sinclair ground mount arrays.
18 EG4 Lifepower batteries...so far.

Wow...and DOUBLE WOW! I have 54 CS 390w (bifacial) panels & thought that was a few. BTW, they also quoted me over $45k for hookup. I thought about it for about 2 seconds & then decided to fully go off grid.

Everything else sounds really amazing.

I know my battery bank is on the low side but I want to see where we are at first and use the generator when needed and then go from there. I will add as necessary.

Ok... this is the part I'm struggling with. 18 of these batteries is not enough?!?

I'm building a 3,200 home. I currently have 4-EG4 Lifepower4 batteries too, while I'm building, with 3.2kw of panels with an EG4 6500EX. I will add 2 more inverters & the rest of the panels upon completion... with 6-8 more batteries.

Just wondering...

Again, looks great!

 

[TOU47]

We love being off-grid, and would never go back! No more utility bills with endless "fees" for this and that. No more "we're coming on your property, and there isn't really anything you can do about it", and so on.

?% agreed!

... it just all works.

Its do dang cool.

When a friend tells you they've been w/o power for a week now, waiting for the grid to come back online ... you won't have known a thing about it, because you are off-grid and it just works!

Funny story...apparently a semi hit a power pole not far from us. Days later somone asked how I was doing with out power. I had no clue what he was talking about. ?

If solar isn't pumping in power, then for us a simple Westinghouse wgen9500df generator ($1k, auto-choke, remote start, smart port, etc.) makes up the power, and propane is our site fuel of choice.

Very interesting. How long have you owned this & how much have you used it? I have a Champion 7,800w dual fuel but haven't used it much yet... wished it had a remote though. Thx

 

[TK1979]

Exhausting day but one step closer. Started getting panels up on the mounts. I finally have all 3 battery banks up and running as well. I am using a chargeverter to charge up the banks. That allows me to provide power to the main panel while I work on the solar array.

@Robert Vinson How's your set up coming among? Would love to see more pics!

 

[Robert Vinson]

@Robert Vinson How's your set up coming among? Would love to see more pics!

Finally done.... working great. I could power 2 of these houses right now but we will see how winter goes.

 

[kromc5]

Great build, definitely keep the thread updated on how well the system does during the winter. Were installing pellet stove this winter and very interested to see how much it helps.

 

[hellosf]

Awesome project! What is your system producing daily? And what part of the country are you located ( sorry if I missed this) ?

 

[kennyb]

Awesome build! Congratulations on finishing enjoy the fruits of your labour.

With any luck I'll be in a similar position this time next year. Starting on our pump/power shed next month.