Canadian living in Brazil in 3deg North region

[Riverdweller4]

I need some wiring recommendations/fuses on the following system I bought b/c I am planning to move to our off-grid property next month.
I am intending to buy more batteries & solar panels in the future when needed.
Here is the list of what I bought;
- JNGE POWER 70A MPPT Charge Controller (Model JN-MPPT-BL) and 24v/2000w Pure sine wave Inverter (Model JN-H-2000w)
- 2 x 250AmpHour off-grid/NoBreak stationary batteries (12volts )
- 2 x 330w Telesun Solar panel (Model TP672P-330)
Thanks

 

[Sparky]

How far are these things going to be from each other? When you choose wire, distance is a big part of calculating your voltage drop.

Wire Loss Table for 12 and 24 Volt Systems | MWandS.com

 

[Riverdweller4]

How far are these things going to be from each other? When you choose wire, distance is a big part of calculating your voltage drop.

Wire Loss Table for 12 and 24 Volt Systems | MWandS.com

My plans are to put the solar panels permanently above the water tower, which is about the same height as the peak of the house - 4metres. So, I assume I would need 3.5metre wiring from the solar panel to the control panel room below the tower, which will hold most of all electrical components. (the size of the water tower is 3mW x 6mL x4mH - the tower is 2m from the house)

 

[Sparky]

So work out the amperage you'll have (and intend to have) going through your wires.

Watts/Volts/Amps/Ohms Calculator

Watts (W) / volts (V) / amps (A) / ohms (Ω) calculator.

www.rapidtables.com

And use the calculator I linked above to estimate your wire loss.

Will 600 watts be enough for your near-term needs?

Also, how windy will it be on the top of your water tower? Is it a cylindrical cistern, or balloon shaped? How will they be braced? The solar panels can experience a lot of lift, even on flat surfaces.

 

[Riverdweller4]

So work out the amperage you'll have (and intend to have) going through your wires.

Watts/Volts/Amps/Ohms Calculator

Watts (W) / volts (V) / amps (A) / ohms (Ω) calculator.

www.rapidtables.com

And use the calculator I linked above to estimate your wire loss.

Will 600 watts be enough for your near-term needs?

Also, how windy will it be on the top of your water tower? Is it a cylindrical cistern, or balloon shaped? How will they be braced? The solar panels can experience a lot of lift, even on flat surfaces.

Thanks Sparky for the two links - they were helpful. As in regards to the 600watts to charge my batteries, it is what I will start with until this summer.
Thanks about the reminder about the metal braces I would need on the panels. The winds do become strong in this region, especially in the spring.

 

[Riverdweller4]

So work out the amperage you'll have (and intend to have) going through your wires.

Watts/Volts/Amps/Ohms Calculator

Watts (W) / volts (V) / amps (A) / ohms (Ω) calculator.

www.rapidtables.com

And use the calculator I linked above to estimate your wire loss.

Will 600 watts be enough for your near-term needs?

Also, how windy will it be on the top of your water tower? Is it a cylindrical cistern, or balloon shaped? How will they be braced? The solar panels can experience a lot of lift, even on flat surfaces.

Hi Sparky, here is an Excel file of my 1st phase of my electrical load. I am not sure if I did this right b/c it was my first time using the link you mentioned to calculate the values. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Riverdweller4]

Hi Sparky, here is an Excel file of my 1st phase of my electrical load. I am not sure if I did this right b/c it was my first time using the link you mentioned to calculate the values. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Riverdweller4]

When you are looking at my Excel file list, please remember that I will not be running all the items at once. For example, when I run the washing machine, I will not be running the Spinner/Dryer. Also, I will be using ONLY 1 Fan instead of 2. And in regards to the freezer, it will be used only for half the day.

 

[Riverdweller4]

On another note, I am thinking of purchasing a solar water pump to pump the water to the water tower during the day. I am not sure how to connect this directly to the solar panel. Attached is a picture of the pump.

 

[Gumby2]

When you are looking at my Excel file list, please remember that I will not be running all the items at once. For example, when I run the washing machine, I will not be running the Spinner/Dryer. Also, I will be using ONLY 1 Fan instead of 2. And in regards to the freezer, it will be used only for half the day.

How in the world do you use a freezer for only half the day?

 

[Riverdweller4]

How in the world do you use a freezer for only half the day?

Actually, two of my neighbours who live off-grid and use a diesel generator to power their household, power up their freezer from supper time to around midnight (5-6hours), and rarely open their freezer. However, my freezer is smaller & newer than theirs.

 

[Sparky]

I don't see your excel sheet, but it's yours to do the math and settle on numbers for charging, and battery, and load. There's your everyday expectation.

Now, decide which of your (load) appliances you can live without over a stretch of cloudy days.

Btw, I agree with you on the freezer. As long as i can get a good freeze during the day and keep it shut at night, i'm reasonably certain I could really unplug it at night safely - I'd just forget to plug it back in in the morning! If you can spare some of the room you'd use for food, keep some frozen thermal mass (water, or fancy high endurance ice blocks) to even out the freeze / thaw cycle.


That pump is half your load though. It's stating a 260w requirement. You're pulling in 600 watts (optimally) - I'd expect half that or less anyway, so you'll probably want more power sooner than later.

 

[Riverdweller4]

I don't see your excel sheet, but it's yours to do the math and settle on numbers for charging, and battery, and load. There's your everyday expectation.

Now, decide which of your (load) appliances you can live without over a stretch of cloudy days.

Btw, I agree with you on the freezer. As long as i can get a good freeze during the day and keep it shut at night, i'm reasonably certain I could really unplug it at night safely - I'd just forget to plug it back in in the morning! If you can spare some of the room you'd use for food, keep some frozen thermal mass (water, or fancy high endurance ice blocks) to even out the freeze / thaw cycle.


That pump is half your load though. It's stating a 260w requirement. You're pulling in 600 watts (optimally) - I'd expect half that or less anyway, so you'll probably want more power sooner than later.

Hi Sparky - sorry about the excel sheet, I had to attach it into a PDF format. Just a reminder that I will not be running the washing machine and the spinner/dryer at the same time.
In regards to the pump, it seems that I would need to wait for my next set of solar panels in another 3-4months from now.

 

[Sparky]

Hi Sparky - sorry about the excel sheet, I had to attach it into a PDF format. Just a reminder that I will not be running the washing machine and the spinner/dryer at the same time.
In regards to the pump, it seems that I would need to wait for my next set of solar panels in another 3-4months from now.

No worries.

Are you planning to run the wire twice (meaning once initially, and again when you get more panels), or just once, to accommodate for higher capacity? Repeat that question for the fuses & breakers.

What wattage do you intend to use in the medium to long-term?

Keep Playing with that wire size chart, and the voltage loss chart. You may find that (come upgrade time) you can hook more panels in series without stressing the wires, or the charge controller, but you need to understand why this is, and that it introduces disadvantages irt shading.

Also, are you upgrading the batteries in the future? In that case (though i usually recommend lithium) you might want to go with cheap batteries and plan to replace the set as you upgrade. Mixing old & new batteries tends to wear them both down quicker.

 

[Riverdweller4]

No worries.

Are you planning to run the wire twice (meaning once initially, and again when you get more panels), or just once, to accommodate for higher capacity? Repeat that question for the fuses & breakers.

What wattage do you intend to use in the medium to long-term?

Keep Playing with that wire size chart, and the voltage loss chart. You may find that (come upgrade time) you can hook more panels in series without stressing the wires, or the charge controller, but you need to understand why this is, and that it introduces disadvantages irt shading.

Also, are you upgrading the batteries in the future? In that case (though i usually recommend lithium) you might want to go with cheap batteries and plan to replace the set as you upgrade. Mixing old & new batteries tends to wear them both down quicker.

Hi again.
1st - I assume it will be easier to plan into running the wiring once and to accommodate for higher capacity, and to do the same for the fuses and breakers. "In the installations of fuses and breakers, I am almost clueless in this area - any suggestions or resources would be helpful, especially on the fuses connected to my NoBreak Solar battery or to the Solar Panels.
2nd - I am intending to use double the wattage from what is shown in the chart (2,000w).
3rd - In another 4months from now, I am planning to buy another 4sets of Solar Panel & Batteries which will all be in series along with my Water Pump. However, what do you mean by the comment "it introduces disadvantages in shading"?
4th - In the long term, I am planning to buy better & more efficient batteries b/c Lithium batteries are hard to buy here.

 

[Sparky]

3rd - the disadvantage in wiring panels in series is that shading over ONE panel will limit the output of ALL panels in the series. Bypass diodes can help with that, but I'm not well enough informed to educate you about those & other options, hence my statement, "you need to understand why this is."

I'm actually disappointed that no one else as jumped in to offer advice - breakers is my weak area of knowledge.

 

[Riverdweller4]

3rd - the disadvantage in wiring panels in series is that shading over ONE panel will limit the output of ALL panels in the series. Bypass diodes can help with that, but I'm not well enough informed to educate you about those & other options, hence my statement, "you need to understand why this is."

I'm actually disappointed that no one else as jumped in to offer advice - breakers is my weak area of knowledge.

Thank you for all the help you gave me and for guiding me through the brainstorming process. I see that my next step is to post my specific question on a new thread in the forum - again, thank you for all your help through this process.

 

[Sparky]

You are welcome! If you haven't already, look at my posts on a pc (my sig doesn't seem to show up on phones) - there are some FAQ and video links. Very good intro material.