Can someone double check my Chicken Coop plan?

[marj]

It's taken me a few months and hours of watching videos and note taking to wrap my head around this simple plan for two DC fans in my chicken coop. Please double check that my plan is solid and any suggestions are welcome! This is my first solar project. My background is in IT, so electrical is not my forte.

I'm going to do it in phases to spread the pain of cost out over a couple of months. I will be running the fans only during sunlight hours with the solar and using the battery packs that came with the fans to run them at night like I'm doing now. Next year I may add batteries to let them run longer at night. I live in Florida and it's hot in summer even at night.

I have two of the following DC fans:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CCL99M4X/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Specs: 30W, 24V, 1.25A

I have the following solar panel. (I know now I should have gotten a bigger solar panel, so I will have to get another one)

https://www.amazon.com/Newpowa-High-Efficiency-Monocrystalline-Designed-Battery/dp/B09W22RQGK?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1

Specs: 60W, 24V, 1.76A

I will be adding the following solar panel and it will be parallel connected to the 60W panel.

Amazon.com

Specs: 120W, 24V, 3.37A

Math for solar panels:
Parallel connection, 180W, 24V, 5.13A
Math for DC fans:
60W, 24V, 2.50A

Phase 1: I'm going to just hook up one fan and the 60W solar panel with a DC-DC Convertor. (See Phase 1 attached)

I need to purchase the following products. I appreciate any suggestions or corrections with these components.

Solar Extension cable: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01D7VBJN...NISU9LKIM&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1
10AWG 10ft

I will need to go from the 10AWG wire from the solar extension cable to the 14AWG to the DC-DC convertor. I was going to use the female and male spade connectors to connect the two different gauge wires?

Amazon.com

DC-DC converter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09KGCDDW...NISU9LKIM&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1
Specs: Input voltage: 36V/48V DC, Input range: 30-60V DC, Output voltage: 24V DC (non-adjustable), Output current: 20A, Output Rated Power: 480W
The solar panel's Voltage MPP Vmp(V): 34.74V. Is this going to work with this input range? Would the voltage go to low when it's cloudy? Should I look for a wider input range?

10AWG wire: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074S12G9...NISU9LKIM&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1
One fan will be 18ft(36ft round trip) from fuse block and the other fan will be 35ft(70ft round trip), so 10AWG should be fine?

Blue Sea Fuse Block: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000THQ0CQ/ref=twister_B0CNKXH8X2?_encoding=UTF8&th=1
Blue Sea 2A fuse: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000THQ0CQ/ref=twister_B0CNKXH8X2?_encoding=UTF8&th=1
(The fan's power block is rated for 24V/2A, so I figured I would be safe with 2A fuse)


In phase 2 (see attached phase 2): I would just be adding the 120W solar panel in parallel with the 60W panel using a branch connector and just add the fan to the fuse block and I think that should be complete.

Phase 3 which will likely be a year or two out. I'm thinking to swap out the DC-DC convertor for MTTP solar charge controller and add batteries in series to get 24V/36ah, so I can run the fans for 12 hours a day.

Any problems popping out at anyone or a better way of doing it?

Thank you in advance!
Marj

 

[Texas-Mark]

DC-DC converter: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09KGCDDW...NISU9LKIM&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

What do you need this for?

What voltage is needed to charge your fans (voltage output of charger). Seems like a lot of overkill for your project.

IF fan charger is 5V, you can get a charge controller with a USB port to charge it during the day. If 12v, you can get a small lifepo4 battery (or even a SLA) to charge the fan and a small charge controller to recharge the 12v battery.

 

[marj]

What do you need this for?

What voltage is needed to charge your fans (voltage output of charger). Seems like a lot of overkill for your project.

On the charger is 24V, 2A.
I was worried because the panel specs has: Open Circuit Voc(V): 40.07V, Vmp(V): 34.74V
Wouldn't that Voltage be too high for the fan? I don't want to ruin the fan, it wasn't cheap.
TIA

 

[Texas-Mark]

Maybe someone knows of a small 24V charge controller???

In any case, I don't think a panel connected directly to a DC-DC converter is going to work well.

 

[marj]

I was duplicating what Will was doing in this video????

Am I missing something?

 

[45North]

Why go a la carte?
Can't you just get kits that do that?
Fan on when sun shines, off at night.

 

[Texas-Mark]

Am I missing something?

Only that it works only when the sun is shining. I personally would not go that route because of the output fluctuations (as he showed when shading). But I suppose it would work in a pinch.

 

[Texas-Mark]

Fan on when sun shines, off at night.

I think he wants the fan on at night too, hence wanting to recharge the battery during the day.

 

[marj]

I think he wants the fan on at night too, hence wanting to recharge the battery during the day.

Actually I was thinking of not leaving the battery packs on, but connecting straight to the fan. However, that is idiotic. You are right I'm assume a MTTP solar charge controller would work with lithium power packs?

 

[marj]

Why go a la carte?
Can't you just get kits that do that?
Fan on when sun shines, off at night.

Not with a 16inch fan. The only one I know of is Western Harmonics and they only have pre-orderers right now.

 

[Texas-Mark]

Actually I was thinking of not leaving the battery packs on, but connecting straight to the fan.

If that is the case, it would be interesting to know what voltage the fan needs to run. 20V charger may mean 12V battery pack. If that were the case, then the simple small battery as noted earlier and small charge controller would work if bypassing the existing battery. Otherwise it would be good to know what the actual battery pack voltage is.

 

[marj]

The plug can be used directly to the fan or connected to the battery pack. The battery pack comes off of the fan. I have attached a pic of the power brick which works straight to the fan or to charge the power pack either on or off the fan. I have attached a pic of the battery pack too. Both have 24v.

 

[Texas-Mark]

It says there is a USB port? If so, then there is some sort of voltage regulation going on inside the fan unit. Not definative of the actual fan voltage. However, one would have to open it up to see. So best to just have a 24V solution.

 

[marj]

It says there is a USB port? If so, then there is some sort of voltage regulation going on inside the fan unit. Not definative of the actual fan voltage. However, one would have to open it up to see. So best to just have a 24V solution.

Yes there is a USB port on the battery pack to plug in phones or whatnot. I don't think connecting a solar charge controller to the battery pack while it's connected to the fan is going to work, becasue I don't think it can power the charge controller. I would have to get a separate battery to connect to the charge controller which I didn't want to buy right now. Eeks, I'm back where I started. I'm think there is no way around it without coughing up more money.

 

[45North]

Not with a 16inch fan. The only one I know of is Western Harmonics and they only have pre-orderers right now.

If you can't run a 16in fan then get several smaller ones.
Again, these are off-the-shelf. Why reinvent the wheel?

 

[marj]

If you can't run a 16in fan then get several smaller ones.
Again, these are off-the-shelf. Why reinvent the wheel?

This used to be a horse lean-to, it's 12ft x 24ft with 12ft roof. It's not an ordinary chicken coop. Smaller fans in the FL heat are not going to move the air I need, but thank you for trying to help.