diy solar

diy solar

100% off grid modern home?

You are in the ball park. We are thinking 25Kw array and 50Kw batt bank. The well pump will be on its own array and bank, but we are using a Grundfos SQFlex pump. It is both AC or DC powered. I have it hooked up for DC off Solar, and then a gas powered generator as backup for AC power. The plan is to also have a 1,000 gallon water tank as a reserve to pull from. So the well pump can fill it all day long on solar at 11GPM.

I would love to run a geothermal heat pump and then we might need 1-2 strategically placed split phase AC, or maybe just some of the Midea-U window units.

Propane will be the cooking and hot water fuel. But i also saw someone's setup that "dumps" the excess solar power when the batteries are full into a traditional hot water tank. Might see what can be done there. But primary would be a propane fired on-demand hot water system.

Dryer is already gas. but yeah, I am trying to figure out how to used other options and less load on the electric. For heat we plan to build a large masonry oven in the middle of the house. If that works out as planned, I might skip the geothermal heat pump (unless I use it as AC too).

So many ideas and plans.
We have a Grundfos SQE pump although we are unsure which one because it was already installed.
With a CU301 controller it can only be a few.
The pump has never been a source of large power usage.
Not sure what others are using or why they have so many issues with them.
I run dual Sol-Ark 12ks because the 15ks weren’t out yet.
 
Went around the back of my major Samsung importer. His yard was littered with dead invertor fridges
Yes Samsung and LG should be avoided if possible.
They have some basic failure points but getting factory service and parts is difficult at best hence most people junk them.
Shame as they are usually good appliances when running properly.
 
I have a Maytag PTB1954GR 18.5 ft^3 that uses about 1.2 kWh/day and is still going strong after 15+ years.
 
So, we live in East TN and want to build a new home on our land. There is no electric service, so we want to be 100% off grid on Solar with a generator backup. We are a family of 5, and want to be sure to have all of the normal modern day amenities. My guess is if we build it big enough, we can do this? Planning for a ground based array and then basement located batteries. About a 3000-3500 sq ft home, Heat Pump (Geothermal). Maybe the Split Phase ACs, or do we go full central AC?
I have just built a new timber low energy house and have installed a full off grid system . It was worth the effort !
I have 28x 400 watt panels, 2x growattSPF TL inverters@ 48 v ,3x 200 amp Li batteries . I can run the house with all the usual equipment, induction hob water immersion heater 2x fridges, but oven is gas. During summer months 3x A/C units and pool pump run 5/ 8 hours a day . I can run only half , 14 panels so lots of power to spare . All house is 220v with led lighting , no DC at all .No complicated solar thermal water heaters . Ground mounted panels on a galvanised tube/ bar frame . All self built and installed . No more bills ?. I have been reading forums for a lot of info it's a gold mine for this . At the outset I wanted to keep the system with more power than necessary and as simple as possible . Glad I did , the locals are in awe of it , on this Greek island ?
 
We have a 19 Cu ft double door, bottom drawer freezer LG inverter fridge with ice maker. It has been flawless off grid for the 4 years we've had it (doesn't care about power interruptions) and has little power draw (significantly less than it's rated 1 kWhr/day). Advantages of the design of the LG inverter fridges include: Compressor and coil/ducts in compartment at bottom back, meaning that this allows you to add insulation to the skin - I added 1" expanded foam to improve efficiency. Fridges with coils in the skin don't allow adding insulation. Having the coil with separate inlet and outlet openings at the back allows ducting exterior air in and out and adding a chimney to boost coil flow tby convection, again improving efficiency (especially if you live in an area where exterior T < T interior).
 
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