I am wanting to add a wind turbine to my all in one system MPP 24v 2.4kW PIP Model.
however, I am not finding any instructions on how to do this? Do I hook it into the dry pot or add it to the solar panel hookup
You wont find any instructions, because there arent any.
Here is the deal.
a) Your Wind turbine needs to give DC output
b) Your wind turbine needs to output more than 30V DC before it can even start to charge the battery, and be less than 115V, to be within working voltage range.
c) If a) and b) above are satisfied, you can connect this directly into the SOLAR input terminals.
c) Dont expect miracles of watts to be pouring out of that turbine when it spins.
d) You need to have some method of loading that turbine when your battery is fully charged...
>>>>>because:
Using Solar, if the battery is fully charged, the inverter simply disconnects from it causing no harm to either
Using Wind, when that battery is fully charged and the Inverter Charger disconnects from the Turbine, it is allowing it to spin as much as it wants till it self destructs, Youtube Wind Turnines Self Destructing.
The Solution: The MPP PIP model has user progrmmable relay output, this is a tiny little relay, so it cant do big things by itself, but if you use that relay to drive a bigger relay (with a 12V DC source in series with the relay, to the coil of your bigger relay) then you can do some really big and cool things.
Program the PIP that when the battery voltage is near full, close the relay contact to power your larger relay to switch your wind turbine output into a big dummy load, such as a couple of 100W or 1000W resistors (these will need to be calculated using ohms law , based on your power rated output of your wind turbine / Turbine volts at this wattage output = amps. Those same Volts / amps you just calculated will give you Ohms (this is the minimum resistance required to keep that turbine under control), Lower ohms is better, because you want to load that turbine enough to slow it down, preferably to a "STOP".
Hot water elements in a tank of water work well, but you can buy dummy load resistors for this.
But I digress...
Secondly, program the MPP PIP that when the battery voltage is less than the fully charged battery voltage that the relay turns off, essentially removing the dummy load, allowing all that Wind juice to once again charge your batteries.
My personal experience.
if that wind turbine is rated at 1600W, its probably a hurricane force wind, regardless of what the manufacturer says. I have a load of all differnt types I have tried, and I am VERY disappointed in their outputs. I remember hearing the wind howling at night and running downstairs to see its power output, 50W, 100W and maybe even 150W for a split second, on a 1600W 8 fan blade turbine.
The total power i got from wind in one year was equivalent to the output of one 200W solar panel for the day.
Some lessons.
Just becuase its windy, does not mean its making energy.
Go outside with a 20ft pole, and a long streamer attached, if the streamer is flapping and curling in the wind, it means that the wind it turbulent, and this does not work.
Now go up a hill with that same pole, and watch that ribbon, there will be a place you'll find where that ribbon goes completely straight like an arrow, you may even have to add 10 or 20ft more height to see this, but its a beautiful sight , that is where you need to install a turbine, this wind is not turbulent at all.
On or around your house, in between trees etc, you are wasting your time.
Here is some quick common sense that the Turbine makes blow wind up your ..wallet.
Assuming the wind turbine is 100% efficient (which in reality its more like 20% if you have a darn good one)
I will speak in metric terms, 1 cu meter of air weights about 1kg (1 cu yard, about 2 lbs) (1.2 kg/cubic meter at sea level)
Energy = 1/2 m.v^2
so lets say your turbine surface area to the wind is 6 ft diameter (6/3.2808 = 1.8m) Pi x radius^2 = area , so 3.14 x .9m^2 = 2.4 sq meters.
So the force of wind at 30MPH (48km/h = 13.3 m/second) (or 13m of air weighing 1kg per cubic meter pushing against a 2.4 sq m surface, so effectively 2.4kg of air x 13.3 m / sec pushing against your fan blade)
e=1/2mv^2 = 2.4/2 x 13.3^2 = 210Watts of wind energy at 20% efficiency = 42 Watts
If that wind had to blow at 100 mph - 160km/h = 44m/sec (and the structure could support it, and your house didnt blow away with your MPP PIP)
e=2.4/2 x (44x44) = 2323 Watts of mechanical air movement at 20% turbine efficiency = 464W
So now we can see why my windy Aunty Cindy could do so much more than my wind turbine.
That also explains why those wind farms use huge diameter blades with surface areas of or hundreds of sq meters
I would like to your findings, as I have a few wind turbines to muster the energy to install at my new place
Ian
