Recent content by HarryN

Here is a section of the forum related to combiner boxes and similar in case that is helpful. https://diysolarforum.com/forums/wire-connectors-junction-boxes.59/

This is why people are starting to move their solar panels to face the sun during peak demand instead of the 1980s concept of max total production. In this area, peak demand / highest pricing is roughly August 2 pm - 8pm. The later in the day, the better. Go outside and look at how the...

If your concern is that a Li battery lifespan is reduced slightly from being kept absolutely full, 100% of the time, then the solution is easy. Just keep a small load on all of the time. Example, LED light, refrigerator, fan, inverter, etc. The solar might fully charge the battery, but it...

So would you also endorse the idea that if you go over 55 mph, the drivers around you should also turn you in and the city will just send you a fine for $100? Or perhaps a more similar version - your car is parked with the tires 7 inches away from the curb instead of 6 inches. Instead of...

There are surface mount raceways for wire management sold in many hardware stores and on line. They come in plastic and metallic versions. An example brand is legrand but there are others as well. Pretty easy to assemble and mount at various height levels on the wall. There are also surface...

Solar can work for you to wake it up if you have the right solar controller. For instance, a Bogart engineering PWM solar charge controller will do it. If you don't want to use a solar charge controller, try just attaching a small solar panel directly to the system ( through a fuse ). The...

As far as your air conditioners, they become massively inefficient when the sun is shining on them because modern refrigerants cannot condense when it is not, compared to less ozone friendly refrigerants used in the past. Refrigerants that can do this include R290 although it is not widely...

Sooner or later, your region will have power rates that look more or less like: - fixed price per month to be attached to the grid even with zero usage - Premium price for kW-hrs consumed during peak usage times of day - often ~ 2 - 8 pm. Many solar installs produce the most power from ~ 11 -...

I can assure you from personal experience - if a wire can be accessed by a rodent - they will find it and chew through it. No matter what anyone wants to believe, rodents can and do get literally anywhere and have a passion for chewing through wires. They also love to chew on roofing materials...

Perfect - I would also like one if you get that far. :)

Moving power between the tow vehicle and the trailer in significant amounts of low voltage DC can be tricky. One of the better ways to do it IMHO is to buy mid size inverter and feed it from the starter battery of your tow vehicle. Run 120 vac from the vehicle to the trailer and just charge...

Maybe the solution is to buy a navigator or Transit so that there is room for solar panels. :)

I can see it for large, stationary systems. I mostly work on mobile systems with 2 - 5 kW-hrs of storage, occasionally 10 kw-hrs and significant potential for vibration. For me, I have no interest in the liability that comes from a DIY battery pack or trying to re-purpose a battery designed...

I don't remember the exact number but IIRC ~ $1 - 2K. Basically a solar contractor doing a job on another roof turned him in and the city just sent out a fine. Would not give a discount for trying to fix it and be compliant. And this is in a state that is spending money on subsidizing solar...

Quick start guide https://outbackpower.com/downloads/documents/safety_compliance/flexmax100_rsd/flexmax100_rsd_qsg.pdf