Recent content by hubieg

I just wanted to add this about "alternator charging". I built and tested a motor powered alternator setup. In said setup I started with a 24vdc alternator. I stripped out the regulator and the diode pack. In its place I set up a potentiometer for the field (with a little engineering and...

For what its worth, when I decided to replace my AGM's with LiFePo4 I was told by EP Solar the BN was not suitable for lithiums. I was advised to replace it with their XTRA series MPPT which I did. One other thing of note, the settings they give for lithiums do not play well with Overkill BMS'.

Seeking advice concerning EP Solars Tracer series of MPPT's. I posted my system in another section here if you want some background. Being winter in Ohio, I did a full overnight charge with the "welder" a couple days ago. The BMS' seemed to do their protection job properly and saved the...

Thank you, its been a long road and I can say the experience has NOT given me a lot of newfound hope for the solar future of the country :-D . All I m trying to do is run a normal sized refrigerator 100% of the time on 900 watts of solar. So far though looking at what was accomplished I think I...

Greetings all, It seems I had been here quite a while ago but recently refound this site. I figured Id take a moment to share my system that is finally basically working. Ill also share my finding what went right and what went wrong. Since I knew it would be an ongoing project with many mistakes...

I ordered RS485 (or UART, whichever comes) as i need to integrate it with a PLC. Bluetooth communication is rare in the industrial controls world. I would rather order it from him. I know his markup is for "handling" but im also sure its to "eat" bad units and service as well. Im not so...

https://overkillsolar.com/2021/04/08/an-apology-from-steve-at-overkill-solar/ What I found.... https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000465072475.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.5fcb4c4dzDSBRG

Well, i tried them. I guess it will be quite a while until they can deliver. They are not even taking orders at this time. On the positive side, their pictures had the part number and I was able to order direct via Aliexpress. Roll the dice and take my chances again.

Thank you! I have contacted them. I sure hope this works. this should NOT be this difficult!

I cant put the packs in parallel and then add 4 BMS's on top of that. Kinda defeats the purpose of the BMS

Thanks all. Just to clarify, I must have a 24 volt system overall (8 cells in series). I already have the batteries.

Thanks for the words of encouragement (and the time to "sleep on it") ? I know this should be a very simple thing. As someone here pointed out its "just" a standard 4 pack of 8 cells tied parallel configuration, it shouldnt be this hard! Primarily it seems to boil down to the BMS. I have lost...

Well, im done. Completely and utterly failed. Im at a loss how to proceed from here.

I assume others have mentioned this but let me add this. I ran the life cycle costs on LiFePo4 versus AGM batteries. The LiFePo4's came out significantly ahead as being the overall cheaper option. They do require a higher up front cost however. They absorb and discharge more energy at any given...

OK, here is what I finally did. Based on my experience with this and that of others, 2 BMS's seem to work together ok in parallel. In light of this, I wired 2 cell in parallel, and then wired 8 of these pairs in series. I now have 2 packs like this. Final wiring will have to wait until I get...