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We’re at 30.5 Campo San Carlos lot 11 next to Santa Maria. The 3000 watt pure sign wave inverter we got is great and the Outback 80 amp charge controller works well too.

Hi Scott, if you’d like you can buy 275 watt panels in town for $225 and my neighbor Bob just bought his new batteries in San Diego for half of what Randy charges. Steven

Are you suggesting a 2nd Outback controller or is my old Tristar ok? It worked fine, I think.

Hi Scott, great to hear from you. Which house are you in? I’ll be there for the race too. You’re welcome to come by and check out what we’ve done so far. I’m also searching for good internet options if you have any suggestions. For my first run I needed to replace my inverter and wanted to get...

Will do. There are a total of 7 panels. Here are some pics of the 2 types that still had stickers on them, of which there are 3 of each.

Welp, we just got back. When we left it was 75-80 each day but there‘s a cold snap of 60 right now. We left wearing shorts but by the time we drove through OK it was in the 30’s. As for the solar, what y’all recommended was perfect to the point where its a little more than I need right now, but...

I’m with you there.

Correct. The tanks are on the roof just above the loft area that has a 1/2 bath. My plan is to install 1 OD water heater for the right side of the house, which feeds 2 bathrooms and one on the left side for one bathroom. I only supply hot water to the showers, not the sinks. Thanks Steven

Thanks, I do have a multimeter, I’m just not in Mexico where the pump is but I found out it draws 5 amps. I’m wondering about the best option. I can run wire from the battery room or use a small inverter off the 110 plug that’s closer to the water tanks. Thoughts? If I go with a small inverter...

Thanks, like the other stuff down there I’m not sure about the amperage of the pump. I know it was for a motor home. It would be great to run wire to it versus a separate system.

Thanks to both of you. Unfortunately I’m not sure what’s there. I just want to be prepared. I may need to use a different power source for the 12v water pump if the run is too long to use the DC load port. I’m leaving next Tuesday and should be there by Saturday. Hopefully I’ll have a little 3G...

OK gents, here’s what I went with. With the bigger inverter do I need bigger cables? Also, how far can I run power to the 12v water pump I mentioned? Should I use the DC load port versus AC and an inverter? The water tanks on the roof are 50-60 ft from the inverter. This pump is needed for the...

The shrimp come in daily. They park and sleep right out from our house. Best I can tell they’re a few miles out. We’re on the western side of the sea of Cortez or the eastern side of BC. Bad storms last night and high tide. You’re right about the landlord. But we’ve had 30+ years at $1500 a year...

70 ft waves, nooooooooooo thanks. The 3 footers in BC are plenty. I don’t even like following a dang wake boat on our lake.

Sooooo now I need to find 2 panels. Dad was going to get them at Tesla in Fremont, CA, which is near his house, but can’t now. I see the Hanwha Q Cell is Tesla’s label, I think, but I only see 325 watt and 450 watt. I’m guessing that’s a bad idea with keeping our system 12v for now?

You’re making me hungry and thirsty. Shrimp festival November 4th

And for some reason the sun comes up over the Sea of Cortez at 5:00 AM every day.

Great rules to live by in Mexico. I’d add one more. It’s great to have friends that grew up in the area where you live.

Depends on where you are. In our area 150k can get you ocean front with electric and water.

So to wrap this up. First of all thank you all for the help. It’s been invaluable. I’m getting the Outback charge controller and the Giandel 3000 watt 12v inverter. It looks like they come with the wires needed to hook them up. What else should I take with me?

I hear ya. I switched to T Mobil this year bc calling and internet while out of the country is free. Usually I don’t have phone service and forget internet but now phone is great and I can get 3G if I stand in just the right spot. I’m looking for pay as you go satellite internet for the future.

Found this 80 amp controller not sure why the renogy showed up it’s an outback

That would be awesome but we don’t have internet. Though our place is listed as San Felipe we’re actually 25 miles out of town. No power, water, or sewer. Or is it no phones no lights no motor cars on Gilligans island.

It sounds like we may have fallen victim of a wive’s tale. Dad understood leaving something on was good for the system. If not we’ll turn it off when leaving. Thanks for the tip.

Shoot, Dad already has 2 of them down there that he got in the US.

Sorry, not sure what DIN style Siemens stuff is.

Great question. Our water is gravity fed from a tank on the roof. But that brings up an interesting point. We have 2 on-demand gas water heaters to install (been in the garage down there for years) and they require a pressurized system. The tanks are on the roof on the opposite side of the house...

Thanks for the confirmation. Do you have a charge controller you like?

What I’m thinking is converting to 48v in the near future so I’ll just have to get a new inverter. Anyone have a hood 80 amp controller they like?

OK gents, here’s a Giandel pure sine wave 3000 watt with no charge controller. Thought please…

How about this one? https://shopsolarkits.com/products/midnite-solar-mn3024-all-in-one-solar-inverter

Right you are. My understanding though is if I keep 12v until next year I need a 12v inverter and can’t get a 24 or 48 now. Is that right? The inverter has to match the panels. But, I can go with an 80 amp charge controller to use when I add more panels.

You are correct. The inverter is 30+ years old, and finally died. The charge controller was replaced after the hurricane in 1997. One thing I noticed in the picture from my battery room is the yellow light on the Morningstar unit. That light is what either makes Dad happy or not. With no one...

Something like this and a separate controller? This way if I go to a 48v system later I’ll just need a new inverter. https://www.renogy.com/2000w-12v-pure-sine-wave-inverter-charger-w-lcd-display/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwssyJBhDXARIsAK98ITS7bkm6yU-y9h3aEP536gwi6bRYqjYhBsvbk6go2eRy3_XkQmCHStUaAnJHEALw_wcB

Ok sounds like I need to stick with 12v on this trip considering the variables of breaker ratings, wire size, and reconfiguring the panels and/or the batteries. That being said, I’ll get a 2000 watt inverter and an 80 amp controller. If there’s a good AIO would you go that route? If not what...