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https://fortune.com/2022/02/18/how-to-make-money-flipping-nfts-on-open-sea/ I’m posting this question here because a lot of intelligent people hang out on this forum. What do you think of NFT’s? I know I’m not an “early adopter”, but am I just an old fart, resistant to change? Or is there...

Tesla has already placed almost 2,000 Starlink satellites in low earth orbit. The FCC has, so far, permitted them to emplace 12,000 of the things. Starlink is seeking permits to launch another 30,000 satellites beyond those 12,000. Why is there no clamor of objection? Elon Musk’s hubris and...

In case anyone is interested in Home Automation: Several months ago I decided to dip into Home Automation in a bigger way. I was motivated by a desire to provide my wife with a “panic switch” that would turn on all outside lights and some interior lights. We live in the country, fairly...

I’m getting ready to ground-mount install a bunch of new 320-watt panels to expand our system. Is there any reason to think that edge clamps are a better way to secure panels than the less expensive approach of using machine screws/nuts through the rear frame holes to secure the panels to...

We all depend on a LOT of electrical connections. There are a many mentions here of ‘conductive grease‘ related to connections, especially high current battery terminal connections. Tom Rauch, ham call W8JI, is an RF engineer, and one of the most respected antenna experts in industry. He has...

I’ve been operating submersible well pumps for more than four decades. I’ve installed, repaired, and replaced many pumps. The reason for this post is to encourage anyone operating, or planning to operate a submersible pump on solar power, of the significant benefits of powering the pump with...

This is a modification to my solar charge controllers, for charging Lithium batteries, that I haven’t seen mentioned elsewhere. My SCC’s are Outback Solar FM80’s, but in reading the manuals for other similar charge controllers, such as the Victron “SmartSolar”, the Schneider “Context”, and the...

My system is not grid-tied, and I don’t have much experience with grid tie. My thoughts below are probably not applicable where batteries are not used for overnight or cloudy-weather energy storage. The solar equipment manufactures tout MPPT solar charge controllers as being 20% to 30% more...

A few months ago I put a large DIY lithium battery pack in service. The pack is big enough to allow me to, under normal circumstances, easily use 15% to 20% SOC as a lower limit, and 80% to 85% as an upper limit. After contemplating/trying different ways to manage SOC, I installed a Victron...

i have a question for those of you who have done a lot of coulomb-counting for SOC monitoring. If you let your battery pack rest overnight at about 50% SOC, is the resulting battery pack voltage that you see in the morning consistent enough that you can confirm whether or not your SOC monitor...

Is anyone using a programmable battery monitor that they can recommend for reliability and accuracy? By programmable, I mean: 1. AH indication is scalable to the Outback Power shunt that I already have in place. (50mv = 500 amps) 2. “Charged” and “Discharged” alarm relay trip points are...

I thought I would offer up my simple practice for insulating bus bars and battery terminals that I haven’t seen mentioned before. I use a small-diameter bicycle inner tube, cut into lengths a bit longer than the length of the bus bar. i cut back each end of The “under-side” of the rubber tube...

While the cost of brand new LiFePo4 batteries has been dropping, Tesla just announced a price increase for their 13.5 kWh Powerwall. This new cost will be $7500 for the Powerwall, plus $1,000 for the Gateway controller, plus $3500 for installation. Tesla is said to be selling all of these that...