Recent content by JMc

My experience is that low-cost 5-20A chargers (even the ones that claim LFP capable) cannot deal with the low internal resistance of a fully-discharged 100AH LFP battery, especially if the BMS has entered a low-voltage cutoff state. The charger will either blow an internal fuse of just give up...

That’s a nice use of available space on the Pleasure Way. Do you have separate charge controllers for the roof and side-mounted panels?

The issue with many of these “energy efficient” appliances is service after the warranty expires. Non-standard/proprietary repair parts are crazy-expensive and some manufacturers only sell them through authorized distributors making if difficult or impossible for DIY work. I learned my lesson 20...

We made a radar reflector product that used conductive epoxy to bond large pieces of aluminum. The machined aluminum parts were first “plated” with a chromate-conversion film that made them more conductive, then a 3-5 mil thickness of epoxy was applied between the parts to bond them. There are...

Check the owners manual, maybe the Tristar has a setting for lithium batteries.

To clean up a modified-sine output you’d need a band pass filter (60 Hz) than can handle heavy loads (1500W). If such a beast exits it’ll probably cost more than a pure sine inverter.

That would be soldering, not welding. There are aluminum-zinc alloys that can be used to join aluminum parts, but heat is the issue. Aluminum conducts heat very well and by the time the terminal is hot enough to accept the solder, the battery electrolytes underneath are way past their intended...

Spot welding even .062 aluminum sheet is tricky. We tried this some years ago using a standard Miller 240V clamp spot welder and quickly learned that getting reliable connections by manually pulsing the welder was impossible. Sometimes we’d get a strong weld and then there would be pieces that...

The problem with current driver assist “AI” is that it still doesn’t work as well as a typical moron. We pat ourselves on the back and claim miraculous progress in various technologies, but the truth is we are often just confusing consumer availability and lower prices for actual progress.

Their advice about laser welding the terminals is correct. If the aluminum is only 5mm thick, tapping for a M6 bolt is going to be sketchy because even with a bottoming tap you will only have 2-3 threads. Good luck applying torque to that tiny mechanical connection in aluminum.

Wait until they unveil their bro-tastic setup for heating…?

Isn’t it wonderful to see our Congress developing legislation via the Twitterverse? After all, who needs hearings, testimony and written documents that citizens might read and revue, and why even worry about the final cost? We’re so goddamned lucky…

Never sign for or accept freight with obvious damage. Once it’s off the truck your recourse is limited. Lawyers? BBB? IMO a waste of time at this point, you’ll just be throwing good money after bad.

240AH became 420AH, an obvious typo, because to believe otherwise at that price/cell is wishful thinking. It was too good to be true so deal with the reality of the situation and move forward. Unless some payment processor will take your side, your money is gone.

Have you tried cutting and drilling copper? It’s not a friendly material for DIY tools.