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  1. solarstuff

    Combining 100w panels (different makes)

    Hey guys, I can't find clear data for the brands of 100w solar panels I have. I would appreciate your help? How would you best mix up these safely without purchasing limiting diodes? I'm using 4x40A Renogy controllers. Thanks in advance. I don't want my maintenance and spring cleaning to blow...
  2. solarstuff

    24v parallel batts: 2" difference OK?

    Hi folks, I am adding a second 200a 24v battery in parallel to my 24v Growatt 3000 (also 200a, both lifepo4, both 200a BMS). My last two 2/0 cables in the house have just under 2" difference in length (12 and almost 14"). And no more lugs to cut and re-crimp. Will even this difference mess...
  3. solarstuff

    Combine LiTime/Redodo 24v clones

    I have two clone-brand batteries a LiTime and a Redodo, both with identical capacity. One is older, and one is within the last month. I understand the chemistries will mimic the lower performer of the two, but if the sum total is still a good percentage of the total amount available despite...
  4. solarstuff

    D+ ignition for DC charger (cigarette lighter?)

    Hey all, I'm adding a dc-to-dc charger to my portable solar box. Can I use the cigarette charger for a car inverter, plugged into an ignition-only cigarette lighter port? If so, is wiring the negative of the cigarette charger to the common negative bus of my fuse box, and the positive to the D+...
  5. solarstuff

    600w induction on 100ah?

    Can I build a camping system out of an Eco-worthy 100ah and Giandel 600w/1200w inverter, if all the wires are short and over-specced, fused for wire size, or will it kill the battery? For inductive loads like the nuwave induction cooktop on low at 600 W, on a 12 V inverter is going to pull...
  6. solarstuff

    Fuse size: 30ah lifepo4 <-> 600w 12v inverter

    Hi all, my eco-worthy lifepo4 30ah has a BMS with a max charge of 20A, discharge of 25. Does that mean I don't need to fuse to my Giandel 12v inverter? It's rated to 600w & Will says it's a 60A input.
  7. solarstuff

    My portable solar rig

    It's not milk-crate portable but it"s close! My fourth solar rig, built to be very portable, in a bulb crate: -100a lifepo4 -2200w inverter -USB fast charger -many zip ties :) ...now please, don't ever let me drop it :) I'm sticking with an ANL 150 fuse paired with a 100a bms... For now.
  8. solarstuff

    Add eyelets (M10) to Ampere Time charger?

    Add eyelets (M10) to Ampere Time charger? Can I cut alligator clips off and splice an SAE connector, then buy exisitng eyelet clips (or manufacture my own?) so long as I stick with same gauge of wire, or beefier? Thx
  9. solarstuff

    Minimal AGM swell...problem?

    Hey all, My oldest batteries, a 4-battery AGM bank (about 4 years old) were using the default Renogy Rover charging pattern and one of them swelled up. I took the bank apart, removed that battery and tested. All of them hold a full charge, as shown by multimeter testing, using an agm-rated...
  10. solarstuff

    Can I install this wall mount UPSIDE DOWN?

    Hi wise crowd! I want to buy this eco-worthy mount and install it upside down. My plan is to mount the bottom-facing struts against the wall to angle the panels out from my shed wall. Grabbing to compact design eco-worthy panels that are otherwise well withing specs for the weight and useof this...
  11. solarstuff

    Renogy MPPT-no load- LOSES volts?

    Has anyone come across this before? My renogy rover li 40a charged my renogy smart lithium 170ah batts to 13.3. I've been waiting to see this because I've been stuck at 13.2 for a couple days and sonput no load on it to see how long it would take. At the end of a couple days waiting, still...
  12. solarstuff

    Making 4/0 cable with loose strands

    Maybe 8 or 10 of the hundreds of fine strands in one cable didn't play nice. How much heat will that generate? Too much? Is it ok to use a cable if I spudged the dirty (almost) dozen tight around the base of the lug and covered it all with heat shrink? EDIT: Found a good read on crimping on...
  13. solarstuff

    Making r/0 cable with loose strands

    Maybe 8 or 10 of the hundreds of fine strands in one cable didn't play nice. How much heat will that generate? Is it ok to use a cable if I spudged then tight around the base of the lug and covered with heat shrink?
  14. solarstuff

    2 wires in PV+? (Renogy rover li MPPT)

    Any reason I can't combine 2 positive wires from 2 arrays into one renogy rover li 40a so long as I keep to under 40a? It seems simple enough and the plates and screw that hold the pv cables are rates up to 6awg... So can I put 2x10awg into my PV+ & pv- or is this a no-no, and why? Thanks for...
  15. solarstuff

    Where attach my mppt

    Silly (maybe?) question: I'm upgrading my cables from my 2 renogy rover li MPPTs (each has a separate 300watt panel array) to my battery ( to avoid voltage irregularities with mppt attached to inverter posts). I have 2 renogy lifepo4 12v batts wired together. Any reason I can't attach my mppt...
  16. solarstuff

    Renogy Rover Lithium settings

    Hey folks, are Renogy's default Li settings anything I need to worry about? My battery suddenly undervolts quite a lot during routine loads when the sun goes down.
  17. solarstuff

    PSA report: I'm Steering Clear of Giandel

    Last year I bought the new and improved, black-shelled Giandel 2200w with 3 year warranty. This year, a few months back, it died. Giandel sent me a replacement, good to their word. But the bearings in the replacement's fans are already grinding louder than a coffee grinder after a few months...
  18. solarstuff

    Tell Growatt not to use utility for all output?

    I've asked to his Q a few different ways but I'm still not getting an answer that makes sense to me: With a full 200a battery bank, my Growatt AC/INV light instantly stops flashing (battery mode) & goes solid (utility mode) when I start my 1100w microwave. The battery bank is full so what...
  19. solarstuff

    Connect Growatt with Ethernet not wifi?

    Can't tell from the manual: can I plug it into my router or do I need the wifi dongle for that?
  20. solarstuff

    Growatt 24v Low DC cut-off at 21v????

    Why is my Growatt 24v SPF 3000 TL using a Low DC cut-off of 21v? And why can't I change the setting! Shouldn't it be, at lowest, in the 24.5v range to avoid over-discharging? What can I do?
  21. solarstuff

    Cross-Post: Growatt settings advice

    My Growatt SPF 3000TL LVM is a tad obscure to set up (48 settings). I'm using AGM batts.Please tell me if you catch any mistakes in how I set a few of them? Basic Settings 05 USE 05 (to let me alter 11, 12, 13) 11 10a (only trickle charges by AC) 12 at 24.6v tops up on AC 13 at 24.7v switches...
  22. solarstuff

    Growatt Settings Advice

    My Growatt SPF 3000TL LVM is a tad obscure to set up (48 settings). I'm using AGM batts.Please tell me if you catch any mistakes in how I set a few of them? Basic Settings 05 USE 05 (to let me alter 11, 12, 13) 11 10a (only trickle charges by AC) 12 at 24.6v tops up on AC 13 at 24.7v...
  23. solarstuff

    Midnite Solar Combiner driving me NUTS

    Okay this is crazy...I'm doing something wrong or are all my circuit breakers stupidly designed. When I screw my 6 awg PV positive cables in to the Midnite Solar mnpv-6 THEY FALL OUT! The top of the circuit breaker has a bus bar that fits inside the steel ring when you tighten the screw to...
  24. solarstuff

    New Renogy 170ah bottoming out

    I hooked up 2x new renogy 170ah 12v batts up to my renogy rover li 30a controller fed by 300w of 12v panels. This morning the bank was sitting at 80+% until I turned the air fryer on. After 4 or 5 minutes of 1500w the battery read 11% ?! I turned the load off and the battery immediately...
  25. solarstuff

    4/0 cables & 250ANL fuse heating

    On my 2200w inverter both the 4/0 cables & 250ANL fuse heat up when the air fryer (rated 1500w) does it's thing. How hot is too hot? Last summer I ran my 1500w toaster over 35-45 mins at a time roasting tomaotes so for 15 mins in the air fryer to see that heat... I checked the tightness of...
  26. solarstuff

    Growatt DOA?

    Nothing like waiting a few weeks for all the parts to set something up and then....nothing happens. Multimeter reads 2 24v battery banks, each reading 24v connected to Growatt positive (through a 300a fuse) & negative terminals. Flip the power switch and... Nothing. Is this growatt a dud...
  27. solarstuff

    Adding a 2/0 to a bank with 1's?

    I'm out of cable and connector options in my small town. Will I throw off my batter chemistry by combining my 2 24v pairs together with a 2/0awg? I'm connecting 4x12v agm's in series parallel for 2x24v. All my bank connectors & in/out to Growatt 3000w are 1awg. I'm one short! What is the...
  28. solarstuff

    What do you out Under your batteries?

    Hey folks, I'm building my second solar zetup now and I'm wondering what you chose to put beneath your batteries. Mine sit on wood with slats for ventilation. Should I put rockwool or something else beneath for fire safety? Thoughts? I'm back and forth.
  29. solarstuff

    Converting 24v Growatt to 12v battery bank?

    I'm putting together a second solar array. Can someone tell me if I've got the right idea for step down? Can a Victron Energy Orion IP20 24/12v *70A* DC converter safely step down a Growatt 24V 3000W Split Phase Solar Inverter Growatt with 80A MPPT (into 2x 170Ah Renogy *12v*) LifeP04's? I'm...
  30. solarstuff

    Giandel Warranty Update

    If you have or were considering a Giandel Inverter, I thought I'd share how interacting with them was going. I took a video of the faulty inverter wired into my setup. I showed the sound the 2200W unit made when I turned it on, and the following audible alarm and 'OL' message. They asked me to...
  31. solarstuff

    Inverter overload? Why? (Giandel 2200W)

    [cross-post with off-grid inverters] Happy Friday folks. So... My Giandel 2200W buzzed, read OL (overload) and shut off. I disconnected all outputs, waited half an hour, tried again: it buzzed, read OL and shut off. Slight buzz inside inverter second before audible alert buzz. It's a really...
  32. solarstuff

    Can 13.8v on panels overload 12v inverter?

    My Giandel 2200W buzzed, read OL (overload) and shut off. I disconnected all outputs, waited half an hour, tired again: it buzzed, read OL and shut off. Slight buzz inside inverter second before audible alert buzz. It's a really sunny day, my 400ah battery bank is near/full. 600w panels...
  33. solarstuff

    Standby & Cyclic=Float & Absorption?

    My 4-battery bank of 100Ah AGM batteries list a constant voltage chage for 'standby use' is 13.6-13.8V, and cyclic use is 14.5-14.9V. Am I right in assuing my 'standby use' is my float & 'cyclic' is absorption? I want to set custom values for my Renogy Li MPPT to stop it from trying to...
  34. solarstuff

    ASTM-B418 zinc wire

    I can't google a stright answer, and I'm wary of cable that's not pure copper thanks to the wisdom of this crowd. Is ASTM B418 12 gauge wire a good solution for use in wiring solar panels? My father has some and offered it to me for another solar panel. All I can figure is the zinc makes it...
  35. solarstuff

    What makes an MPPT 'take a break'?

    This weekend my Renogy Rover Li 30a MPPT decided it no longer accepted solar charge from my panels. When I swapped it with the Rover Li on my other array of panels (both 3x100watt), it still wouldn't work. I figured I'd blown something inside or it had otherwise malfunctioned...but today I...
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