diy solar

diy solar

Recent content by JRUD

  1. J

    Re-starting a Growatt that just ran too low. OOPs!

    Let's say I mess up a bit and draw down my batteries to the Growatt's shutoff voltage overnight. Battery is not "dead" just resting. Everything would be working as it should but I just have no power. How do I get it turned back on the next (sunny) day? I do carry a 12v charger but would...
  2. J

    My Settings for MPP Solar PIP-2024LV-MK 24V System

    That sounds perfect. Have you actually used one?
  3. J

    Why cant I run more than 4 lifepo4 batteries in parallel?

    Simple. Depends on how much voltage the BMS can handle. The better ones will do 48v. The cheap ones will fry.
  4. J

    My Settings for MPP Solar PIP-2024LV-MK 24V System

    Thanx. The batteries are SOK. A quality brand, fairly new. They say the battery is operating normally. The batteries started out fully charged and balanced. Since they are connected in series to get 24v it is impractical to check individual voltages regularly I got PVKeeper (then 2.0) with my...
  5. J

    My Settings for MPP Solar PIP-2024LV-MK 24V System

    Assuming MPP Solar is basically the same as my GROWATT (2x100aH batteries, 800w solar). Thanx guys for posting so many answers to what has been puzzling me. SOME QUESTIONS: (#1) If I accidentally run down my batteries at night when unplugged from utility one battery shuts down on low voltage...
  6. J

    SOK Battery 112v on a 12V battery?????

    AGREED. My recommendation would be to buy lots of long sleeve shirts to cover that bad, prison tat.
  7. J

    Charging issues - Growatt

    I doubt you have 80Amps AC available . Page 9 of manual recommends a 40 amp breaker. That's a big one. House breakers are typically 15-20A . An electric clothes dryer is 30A. The biggest campground plug is 50A. If you are running off a 15A house circuit that's what the unit will use. The 80A...
  8. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    Thank you. Your response makes the most sense. I'm thinking people just want to avoid the "Big Spark" when they make that connection. (Can't blame them, It is scary) The YouTube experts use the resister the first time they hook up but I've never seen a dedicated charging circuit on the...
  9. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    thanx. That works but I want to minimize the need to unbolt cables. I have an Anderson quick disconnect. I guess I could stick a pencil in there and use a wire on the other side before I push it back together..
  10. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    Good idea. My little trailer will be loaned out to relatives and friends so I will be writing lots of signs and even a user's manual. But... Was it Henry Ford who said there was no such thing as foolproof because fools can be so ingenious?
  11. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    Thanx. I think your suggestion is the winner. Easiest fix for me is to run a couple leads from the battery terminals to the bus with everything turned off. I store my resistor in a Ziploc bag taped to the side of my batteries. I'll just add some wire to the bag to keep everything handy.
  12. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    Thanx all. Lots of good ideas which makes me curious why I've never heard of these things before. Never seen these extra reisitor circuits on any of the schematics Seems like a nice solution. Does it come in 4ga?. All I see online is 10ga.
  13. J

    Pre-charge resistor seems crazy

    Months ago I used a pre-charge resistor as recommended by Will Prowse and others . Worked fine. No spark. My question is .... If i ever disconnect or even switch off my batteries for any period of time would I have to use that resistor again because the capacitors have slowly discharged...
  14. J

    What ohm resistor to charge capacitor & max voltage for pannels with Growats 3K system.

    Months ago I used a pre-charge resistor as recommended by Will Prowse and others . Worked fine. No spark. My question is .... If i ever disconnect or even switch off my batteries for any period of time would I have to use that resistor again because the capacitors have slowly discharged...
  15. J

    Panel tilt

    To summarize: -Depends on what you are going to need power for. (winter vs. summer things). Optimize for that season. I use the NREL PV watts calculator. SImple, flexible and NOBODY WILL CALL TO SELL YOU STUFF. My latitude is 40 (Philly).Rule of Thumb would dictate a 40 degree angle year round...
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