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    HIQ batteries from eBay store--With UPDATES*

    I've got a couple of these batteries that have been doing OK so far (about six months of intermittent use). They both tested to just a bit over 100Ah. I'll be curious to know how these work out for you long term in what is a more demanding duty than mine are used for.
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    need a second set of eyes

    Looks mostly good. A 1000w inverter might be a bit much for a single 100Ah LiFePo battery. Most will max out at 100 amps of current and a 1000w inverter can pull (1000w/12v/.85) = 92A so there is little safety factor. You might consider a slightly smaller inverter, say 700w if you don't to run...
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    Chinese diesel heater questions

    Have you tried running with the fuel cap slightly loose? I wonder if some vacuum in the tank draws the fuel back after the pump stops.
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    Vanagon Solar/DCDC - Double check

    Interesting. That would push this controller further into the "Don't want!" category for me, then.
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    Vanagon Solar/DCDC - Double check

    I'm not sure about your understanding on the alternator loads with solar present. The wording is not the clearest in that section of the manual. The installation manual does call for a 75 amp fuse on the alternator feed wire, so I tend to think it will pull more than 25 amps if the solar current...
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    Vanagon Solar/DCDC - Double check

    Love the tape idea for mocking up the layout!
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    Solar controller PWM to MPPT upgrade - Suggestions?

    Apparently, the PowMr is a cheap Chinese knockoff of another company's cheap Chinese charge controller... MakeSkyBlue. I see from their website that they have recently changed from a metal case to a plastic type. If I was going to use one of these I would try to stay well under the rated...
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    Can TWO MPPTs share the same Negative DC-IN conductor?

    Can you draw us a picture to show exactly what you mean?
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    May have wrecked a couple of Flooded, 100ah Batteries.

    For further understanding the what sunshine-eggo is explaining see this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peukert's_law
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    Can you run 12V system from 24V battery pack

    You can get 24v rated LED bulbs, too. I assume this is for an RV build? https://www.amazon.com/s?k=24V+LED+bulbs&crid=26N4N04XLA7C9&sprefix=24v+led+bulbs%2Caps%2C158&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
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    REC - Redneck Electrical Code

    A .22 cartridge should not be used to carry more than 22 amps. A .38 will carry 38 amps but rarely fit into common fuse holders. See special note about .357 cartridges.
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    Remove your rings or else this could happen! (GORE)

    One of my best friends (a mechanic) had that happen. Luckily for him, his injury was more like the first pic in the OP. I don't imagine that the second finger was saveable.
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    Chinese diesel heater questions

    Are you using the hard plastic fuel lines? If you're using soft rubber lines, then the pump can struggle to provide proper fuel flow. The exhaust pipe should have no more than 90 degrees of total bend in it. i.e. two 45 degree bends = 90 degrees. Also, there should be no upward slope at any...
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    Compact Car Alternator & PS Inverter

    Large interment loads aren't likely to harm the alternator, it's heavy continuous ones that will overheat things.
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    Compact Car Alternator & PS Inverter

    A 2008 Mazda 3 came with a 90 amp alternator, which would be around 1200 watts peak. To keep it from melting itself down you'll want to derate that by a lot. 400W would be on the upper end of what I'd be comfortable with. 200W would be better.
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    embarrassing newbie question re: charging battery via inverter/charger

    The documentation says it will charge a completely dead battery (down to 0 volts) so no need to trick it into charging really low batteries like some chargers require. Just make sure it has the charging profile selected that matches your battery chemistry.
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    Adding a new Lithium

    You are fine with adding a second LiFePo4 battery to form a bank with a 4 month old battery. It will not harm anything. They are not like lead-acid batteries where having as close to identical batteries is needed. The only thing you should do is make sure to fully charge them individually before...
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    Conflicted about exceeding wattage recs

    Seconded. (or thirded?) I have two 385 watt panels running into a 100 | 30 controller with no issues at all. My panels are in parallel as the voltage is too close to 100V for safety in series, but with the over panel, it will never make a bit of difference.
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    Newbie needs help replacing PWM with MPPT controller

    A picture is worth a thousand words. If you could draw a diagram of how your system is configured it would be a lot easier to give advice.
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    Chargery Inrush Problem

    Some electric motors have higher inrush current relative to running amps than others. I think Baldor has some specific lines of electric motors with low inrush requirements.
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    Cannot control SOC based on voltage

    Victron makes full featured, well regarded battery monitors. You program it with the capacity of your battery bank and it will track the watts in and out and calculate the SOC. The key is to start with a fully charged battery. I make do with a much cheaper AiLi brand monitor which works well...
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    Acquired Falling apart off-grid system, need advice

    Yep, all those cables with the green pus are corroded inside the crimps and under the insulation, too.
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    Acquired Falling apart off-grid system, need advice

    Just an FYI, but chicken poop is pretty corrosive. Uric acid and all that... That may be a big cause of a lot of that corrosion. Also, heavy positive post corrosion on a lead acid battery tends to indicate an over charging condition. Conversely, a lot of white powdery corrosion on the negative...
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    Any flat earthers out there?

    Isn't that an oxymoron? It kinda feels like one, anyway... ;)
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    Acquired Falling apart off-grid system, need advice

    If it was me, and I wanted to try to recondition these batteries I would follow Sunshine_eggos advice, but I would cart those batteries out of there and charge them on grid power with my old school 200 amp cart style charger. Going through all these batteries is going to be a chore. How old...
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    Californian Public Utilities Commission slashes solar buyback prices.

    No, I'm just thinking that the math will pencil out for a lot of homeowners to buy batteries and keep the power they generate instead selling it back to the utility at less than a third of what they were getting for their excess power.
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    Californian Public Utilities Commission slashes solar buyback prices.

    https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/12/15/california-pulls-the-plug-on-rooftop-solar/ Looks like California wants to encourage home owners to install a lot of batteries since they don't want to pay for any excess power home owners produce.
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    Proof my RV plans....

    You can probably cut that 4 gauge cable somewhere in the middle and add some connectors. Putting the DC-DC charger close to the batteries is preferred due to voltage drop. If you have a long cable between the charger and the battery, then your DC-DC charger might put out 14.4 volts, but you...
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    How many panels (Watts) to charge a 100AH server rack battery?

    Oops, sorry about that. https://pvwatts.nrel.gov/pvwatts.php
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    How many panels (Watts) to charge a 100AH server rack battery?

    Check out this site to see how much solar insolation (radiation) and power generation potential you can expect per month in your location. You can plug in various sizes for the solar array to get an estimate of how much power you'll make at different times of the year. In my location, I average...
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    New 24 volt system to run saws and such

    You might consider adding a large storage tank to your system so that you can use a lot smaller pump for daily water consumption and give a buffer against poor weather and lack of solar. You could also use your backup generator to run the well pump only periodically to fill the tank...
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    Need solar plan for small shop - needs to run 240v 3a compressor

    Assuming a "G" power factor for your 3HP 230V motor, a 45A startup surge is about what you should expect. Assuming a 24v system, you'll need an inverter and batteries that can provide ~500A of surge power. That's a heck of a lot of for a system that is normally only used to charge cordless tools...
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    What are the top 5 gotchas for going totally off grid

    A custom home in Costa Rica is probably going to be mostly steel framing and use different materials than we are used to in North America. Central America has termites like you wouldn't believe.
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    Proof my RV plans....

    The more revisions to the plan the better things turn out. Its the changes after it's done that turn into headaches.
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