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My geothermal, solar PV, solar hot water journey: 2200sf (heated), well insulated, single story home. I installed my own geothermal system 13 years ago - a 2 ton ClimateMaster two stage compressor, ECM blower motor, with a hot water generator, heating an 80 SS gal tank, which preheated our 80...

Hey Matt, I can appreciate your outlook, but I agree with the OP. Paying less & getting less is more than just time between replacements. I don't want that son-of-a-bitch crapping out on me when I need it most. And, I don't want to be trying to find a replacement on a weekend, during the...

Installed my first solar system in 2011 - Grid Tied Schneider XW6048 w/ Midnite Solar E-Panel, roof monted 5.6kw LG panels, 2-Schneider MPPT60-150 solar charge controllers, 256ah Concorde AGM batteries, 14KW Genset backup power - absolutely no problems in all of that time! Will be adding a 4kw...

53kwh from 10.4kw arrays, with XW6848 inverter.

I too, don't really get all the "buy cheap & replace soon" mentality. Just what all does the average person need for his inverter/controllers? My old XW does its job & tells me via displays on the components, or the SCP screen, what I want to know. And, it will send that info to my computer...

Back in the day, I was working to repair a Yamaha XS1100 motorcycle. No ignition spark, & I traced the issue to a defective ECM. The unit was not repairable, and a new one was multiple hundreds of dollars. The customer did not have much money, so I went ahead & managed to disassemble the...

You may want to describe your system & components here so that someone with a similar setup would be more willing to help. Also, what difficulties you are having. Pictures would help immensly.

You did good, especially for a beginner. I am thinking of building two 'generators', one for each of my kids (40 years old). If you are looking to cook with your generator, take a look at the portable one 'burner' induction cook tops. I have a home size one for the house, and a small one for...

If you have not already, clean all that mess off of the circuit board. Toothbrush works really good.

Eleven years ago I installed a 2 array, 5.6kw grid tied system on my home. Since my home was not ideally situated, I ended up with SE and SW roof mounted arrays. The original system was close to net zero at the time, but as the years went by, my usage increased. Looking at either a ground...

I did my research & ended up purchasing batteries from trophybattery.com. Will had done a video review a while back, and some others have commented positively on their purchases as well. I found that my 48v 220ah batteries actually came in at 230ah, as Dan (the owner) had told me. If, after...

I have had an XW6048 for 12 years now with not a single issue. It had worked continuously, without being turned off, until a few months ago when I added another array/charge controller and swapped out the original AGM's to Trophy lithium batteries. I want reliability, and the EG4, from reading...

Regarding comments above about lightning rods (and associated grounding cables) on structures, it is my understanding that their purpose is to 'drain' the surrounding static electricity into the ground to prevent the large potential that can otherwise result in a large discharge of differential...

I sincerely hope this set up meets your expectatiions. We have all conveyed our skepticism about you plan. Don't you think there may be a reason why this is rarely, if ever done. Please post next year as to your experiences that may help others.

Take your time, research and read the posts - tons of valuable, free info. And folks that are willing to help you along the way.

Again, @SaveEnergy, listen to the folks here who have done this before and have experience. Your 'design' theories, to me, sound terrible. Sorry, but many here think that as well, but do as you like - it is your system. And, again, good luck, as you may need it.

Take a look at Trophy batteries. They have had some good reports. The owner, Dan, is very responsive and answered all my questions when I was trying to decide which lithiums to go with. I purchased two of the 48V 220ah ones back in February of this year, and they have been troublefree. Take...

It works just fine, but in an open loop. The older XW does not support closed communication with batteries. I can't say enough good about the Schneider - no issues at all. I am also very happy with my two Trophy batteries as well. I set up the charging parameters for the SCC's with input...

Yes, I have read every thread I could find relating to sell cycling on the Pro. This does not mean I fully understand all of them - there are a lot of very smart folks out there!

He sure does, read his posts as well.

Yeah, I think you both are right. To be safe & to have a lesser chance of any issues, I'll put a on/off switch on the 12v side and a momentary push switch on the 48v side. Thanks for giving me a little 'push'.

Maybe it is just me, but looking at 20 microinverters, over a 20 year span, how many will fail? I have no experience with these, but I damn sure know I would not want to get up on my roof, somehow pull out a panel located in the middle of my array, and change out the microinverter. My 12 year...

Nice, but I sure would reinforce that cross 'beam'. Gravity is relentless!

I guess trees (wood), could definitely be considered a solar power source, when burned. From a climate activist viewpoint trees absorb CO2 when growing, and release it when burned. And 'how' it is burned makes a difference. Having cleared (and burned) quite a bit of land over my lifetime, and...

I have a like new solar water heater for sale. It is an AET Thermomiser unit complete with a built in stainless heat exchanger coil and back up 4500 watt electric element. This unit has been used for storage only - the electric element has never even been wired up, and the HX heat exchanger...

I have two of the Victron 200ah batteries. They have performed just fine for the last several years, and the bluetooth connection has also worked perfectly everytime I have used it to check on the batteries.

I don't think I want to be anywhere near you in a storm!

Your inverter size would determine this to a large extent. If you could not utilize all of your expected PV panel production at peak times, due to an 'undersized' inverter, then it would be beneficial to place a portion of your panels facing east & west. This would give you a flatter inverter...

I am a very DIY guy, but in '21 when building out my van, I installed all Victron products, including 2 of their 200ah batteries. There are just too many folks here with issues with their DIY batteries - BMS, compression, bus bars, balancing issues, etc. Now, of course there are many DIY...

@SaveEnergy, it seems by your posts that you are bound and determined to do your system as cheaply as possible. Please listen to the folks here and heed their advice. Wind forces on large, flat panels can be much, much more than you realize. Your install won't be cheap if you have to do it...

If you plan to stay in your home for a while, or pass it down to your kids, I think using a metal roof is a great decision. If your son and his buddy are up to it, have the ability, and if they use one of the residential 'snap together' standing seam roofs that are available, they could do it...

There are two Discovery models listed as compatible in Insight Home. Those models are: AES 44-48-3000 and AES 42-48-6650. Should you like a different Discovery model, give them a call. Probably a good chance that a different model would work the same as one of the two models listed on...

Same here.

I recently changed out my 12 year old Concorde AGM's for lithium, in my home system. The battery bank was located in an inside, partially conditioned space. Against my past experiences, at the time of original connections, I did not apply any type of protectant to the battery terminals. When I...

My grid connected XW6048 has been very reliable. Twelve years old, with never having been turned off - no issues. Swapped out original AGM's with Lithium this year. Had to turn off unit for that, restarted after, and no problems. Would buy another in a heartbeat. Seems like the Schneider...

Not sure what you are asking. Lead acid to lithium maybe? Or solar panels to charge your existing batteries? More info please - probably someone out there has done whatever is you are contemplating.

@kelving , I was not able to copy the battery choices listed in the Insight Home, but at least here are the manufacturers: Deka Duration, EGL, Homegrid, BYD, Pylontech, Kiovault, Fortress, Blue Ion, and Discover. Hopefully, someone here can copy for you the list from Insight Home that lists...

One suggestion I would also add, is to not go with a dark metal roof. The darker the colors (red especially), the quicker they will fade, and to a greater extent. I do think the green panels shown above, match my wooded surroundings, but if I could do it over again, I would go with simply the...

Maybe some, but I don't think unsurmountable. I had the original XW6048, with AGM's, then lithium 2 years ago. No problems whatsoever with the change. Now, the newer 6848 that I hung on the wall last Sunday has given me sell cycling issues. I have been reading EVERYTHING I can find on this...

No, my XW will not support closed loop with the Trophy batteries. The older, original XW's were not designed to be controlled externally (except from the SCP), as far as I know. I've got to say that the XW has been bulletproof so far. Once I commissioned the system in 2011, it was not...

If you can get free, or nearly free firewood, definitely go with one of the newer wood heaters. We purchased a Silent Flame woodheater, with catalytic secondary re-heat back in 1985. The newest heaters don't use the catalytic system any more, and are just as efficient with their re-burn...

My 10 year old 2 1/2 ton geothermal unit, pulls right at 2300 watts (on stage 1). Very hard to imagine a 4T unit pulling only 2K watts, even on stage 1 (if it is a 2 speed compressor). Does the data include the outside condenser unit draw as well? Something doesn't look right.

The S-5 mounts do a great job. Thirteen years ago I installed 2 arrays of 12 230 watt panels direct mount onto my modified standing seam roof panels. They did great then and continue to do the job now. Two years ago I added another array of 12 400 watt panels, again direct mount onto the roof...

We have had a couple of rare sunny days here, and I have continued to try different settings on my XWpro, trying to stop the battery/grid sell cycling during the day. Looking at what @romangeek posted, as well as what I have tried over the last week, I have gotten the cycling reduced, but not...

Nice to be prepared! Where are you located - would help if you put your location in your 'signature'.?

Yes, as @Madcodger said above, give them a call, or via email with your photos above. I have used S-5 on 3 different arrays and have found them to be well made & secure.

Thanks @BentleyJ, I have been reading some of those threads you alluded to above. From what I have seen, the Pro has SO many features/options/settings, that it can be very confusing to set up properly for ones needs. But, as you say, it is still the same solid/reliable basic product as the...

Hello Bud, and welcome to the forum! There is so much info & good advice here, and with your background, you should not have any problem installing your own system. I installed mine 12 years ago, and without the wealth of info that is presented here. As far as your desire to plug & play...

This is yesterdays energy graph for the day. For most of the day, my grid sell was running around 6kw, with max at 6.3kw, with 10.4kw panel arrays. Total grid sell for the day was 30.1kwh. I am getting good results - seems like the same as my older XW was getting just prior to XW exchange a...

Be careful mounting to a block wall, unless it is solid filled with concrete. The typical 'cinder block' is very brittle and not suitable for hanging this much weight, unless using a couple unistruts or similar, from the floor, to up above the battery, mounting with multiple fasteners into the...

Just an FYI, I have an older XW6048 (grid tied), and after 11 years, I changed out my 4 Concorde 12v 256ah AGM's to 2 - 48v 230ah Trophy batteries. It was a simple plug & play, just some different settings on the SCP. It has been about 4 months now, and all is great.

Maybe they need to install a lightning protection system with aerials and proper grounding techniques.

I did actually watch a couple of his videos, including the Insight Home video. Yeah, I do like his 'real' presentations.

I don't disagree with anything posted above, but I have seen, with scattered clouds, a large jump in solar production when the sun is partially obscured by clouds. This is called "edge of cloud effect". "Cloud edge effect is a common phenomenon in PV power generation. This effect is caused by...

Yep, they really are - and you should know, you bought a bunch! Just finished the roof metal today - yay! But still need some other work done before mounting the 3rd array panels.

Cheapest may or may not be the best. I have installed many electrical items - only want to do it once. Reliability and peace of mind is priceless.

So sad, and infuriating!! Some governmental policies are justified, and some government employees are knowledgeable & polite. But, sadly, in both cases, many are not.

Pictures and details of your system would be most helpful. There are many types of solar hot water systems. I installed a drainback system 13 years ago, with an 80 gallon SS tank with electric backup. I found out real quick that the two 3 x 10 roof mounted solar collectors could bring the...

@markpj23, I think you are off on your expected kwh per day calculations. I live in north Louisiana which does not have the sunshine potential you do, and I get considerably better production than you are estimating. I have 10.4 kw of solar, in three arrays, facing SE, SW & South. I can get...

Midnite Solar has several models. I have one each on my 3 arrays - combiner disconnects.

Sounds like a DC-DC charger would get you where you want to be. Easy to install, and not dependent upon the sun.

@YurtSolar, that 75/15 Victron is for 12 or 24 volt only. You would need a 48v MPPT. Good news is you would only need one. You could wire the 3 panels together in series (as long as the voltage of the panels did not exceed the MPPT rating). The wattage of the three panels really would not...

Maybe some lightning wise person can comment on something I read years ago. That the lightning protection aerials and the system in general is not to get hit by lightning to protect the house, but rather to 'drain' off the electrical potential in the air surrounding a structure so that...

@mwk1000, very nice landscaping/waterfall!

I have had 2 roof mounted arrays, and have cleaned them twice during the 13 years they have been up on the roof. When I did the original install, I screwed down, under the peak metal trim, several stainless tie downs, with a ring at one end. This way I can quick attach a safety harness when I...

Yep, you are on your way to quite a journey. Good Luck!

You'll be glad you did!

Doing a little more research, it seems that lightning (energy transfer from sky to ground), is not as well understood as I had thought. This is from Wikipedia: "The charge transfer theory states that a lightning strike to a protected structure can be prevented by reducing the electrical...

Maybe not exactly what y'all are thinking about, but here is how I handled two Trophy 230ah batteries. Vertical installation was approved, and I thought this orientation would be easier to view the screens, in the spot that I had available for the batteries. Made a simple frame which secures...

I think that is a good idea, but I don't know if that will power up the Pro. You might want to give Schneider support a call, I know they don't know that much, but they should be able to give you an answer on this. I also recently purchased the discounted Pro as well. I still had the...

My older (original), grid tied XW6048 has always done this. There are times during good PV production, and with a full charge, the batteries will show a few amps in and out. I always thought this was 'normal'.

Yeah, I know what you mean. Before starting on my home grid tied system back 12 years ago, or so, I had no forums to help (at least that I knew of), and no 'kits' as such, as far as I knew as well. So, it was just study, research and study some more. I had done a solar/inverter-charger...

@barthold, This is a very well organized, and super clean installation. This year I plan to add another array to my grid connected set up, as well as replacing the 11 year old, 48v 256ah Concorde battery bank. Have not yet decided upon which Lithium batteries to replace them with, but like the...

With my utility, the sell back metering agreement gives me a 1:1 net 'buy back' from the utility. They have since changed that to 1:.6 for new solar installs. I am grandfathered into the original agreement, but ANY 'Substantial' changes to that original agreement causes me to be under the NEW...

I looked at it again, and forgot to remove another load. It pulls right at 2K watts, and that includes the air handler blower - like most geo units, everything is in one 'box' inside the house. And yes, I have the desuperheater running, providing hot water support to a separate pre tank for my...

It should. I don't have a Deye, but my grid connected hybrid Schneider XW6048 inverter will detect those low line voltages and will disconnect from the grid & power up through the batteries to my loads. These settings for the XW are adjustable to some extent as to when it will shift from grid...

It's better, but I still have some variables to try. The weather has not been cooperative for repeatable verification of setting changes. I am keeping a manual spread spread with settings, sun/clouds condition, tabulations of energy/grid/sell consumed & produced....well you get the idea. So...

What @Brucey said above.

Oh, here is a screen shot of PV production today when I actually had a clear sky. Nothing to do with cycling, just wanted to clarify my botched picture in post #44 above.

Regarding AIO's vs individual pieces, no one has mentioned the heat factor. My system is an older XW with separate Schneider components. There is a lot more surface area in a component system for heat to dissapate. To some this may seem a minor issue, but heat is the #1 enemy of all...

Maybe start with a new split phase, more efficient heat pump? That would ditch your 3 phase service & would probably make installing a residential solar system a bit easier. That 3 phase service may cause more problems than it's worth. Disclaimer: I am not an electrician

I did use the Midnite E-Panel on the original install 12-13 years ago. Don't remember my rationale back then for choosing that panel over the Schneider one. For sure, all of the solar equipment (info) was not nearly as easily available on the internet then. And, I did not even have internet...

Had to get a permit because utility company required it, grid connected. Local inspector was very nice & accomodating - he had just completed his own DIY solar install & wanted to talk all about his system. Also, the utility company sent out 3 guys to inspect before connecting. One was an...

As I have said in previous posts, I was continuing to work on my 'Pro' settings to reduce sell cycling & such. Unfortunately, I have had very few sunny days where I could get repetitive results from my settings. I really appreciate everyone's input in this and other similar threads, but I...

I don't know about SOK, but the Vatrer 48 volt golf cart battery price has remained the same for several months. They have had the same "sale" price for quite a while.

The most efficient and cheapest heat would be a wood heater. These newer units with the 'reburn' feature heats up fast and uses little firewood, and costs around a thousand for a small good one. Ten years ago I installed 2 3'x10' solar hot heaters on my roof. In conjunction with an 80 gallon...

Thanks @n2aws for your information & the Schneider enhanced GSV publication. I have an older XW and used the enhanced GSV on my original Concorde AGM's for eleven years. They were beginning to show their age, and I recently replaced them with two 230ah Trophy lithiums, when I added another PV...

My Trophy batteries are indeed dumb. Called the owner & he said they had not worked on matching up with the Schneider hardware. When I purchased the batteries several years ago I had no need for communication between components. SOC control never entered my mind, as my existing XW had no...

Thanks @AlyGreen, that is a very comprehensive write up on your new Geo system. The costs do blow me away, but you are in PA, and you had it professionally done. The information given will undoubtedly help many folks. Twelve years ago I did a renovation on a 22 year old lake house camp. We...

Hello Anthony, my best suggestion would be to spend many hours reading this forum, and focus on those manufacturers that you DON'T see mentioned very often, meaning they do not have as many problems. Don't cheap out on buying components for a solar system. This system will be powered up...

@Horsefly, agree with you on the Victron stuff. A couple years ago I installed an all Victron component system in my Sprinter, including 2 of their 200ah batteries. Although I have not used the van extensively, all has performed very well.

Not a scientific result, but my 12 year old panels put out the same now as they did when new - no obvious degradation at all. I keep a monthly/yearly tabulation for each array. One factor may be the relative low outputs of the arrays as to the max panel rating - because my roof planes do not...

Welcome John! You can certainly learn volumes here, and maybe a forum member local to you, can show you their set up. If you were near me, I would be glad to show you a working system. Good luck!

Thanks. By looking at each days readings for the past week, including what I have been adjusting each day, I was beginning to believe that some of these fluctuations may, in fact be normal. I have a manual spread sheet that I am recording each days 'results' as well as settings adjustments that...

Hey Zapper, I am not an astronomer by any means, just going by what the local media folks were saying. I believe they said the next one was 2046 - probably referring to the next one visible in our area.

As Bluedog said above, run unistruts or similar from the floor up the wall, fastening in several locations & mount the batteries to that. I would not want to hang that much weight on a hollow cinder block wall. Now, if they were filled with concrete, that's a different story.

I am hoping to get 20 years out of my newly purchased Trophy batteries. I am still running my 11 year old Concorde Lifeline AGM batteries, but they are showing signs of age. I am grid tied and don't abuse the batteries. Hoping to get my new batteries installed soon - have some remodeling to...

You might call Dan (the owner), at the phone number given on the site. You'll most likely get a quicker response by calling, rather than an email. I have found him to be easy to reach, knowledable and helpful, with suggestions on setting up my inverter to work well with his batteries. I...