Deciding to DIY my solar battery was one of my worst mistakes ever

[Brucey]

Four 12s isn't ideal, I would have gone with multiple DC house/ecoworthy 48V 50Ah from eBay with 20% off coupon bringing them down to $400 each but there's a limit of two uses. They were down to $360s a few weeks ago.

 

[Gromike2]

I foresee a time in the future when a hobbyist's battery build will be considered as dangerous as singing in a church choir once was.

Are not those power storage batteries required to be inspected and UL listed?

 

[hwy17]

Four 12s isn't ideal, I would have gone with multiple DC house/ecoworthy 48V 50Ah from eBay with 20% off coupon bringing them down to $400 each but there's a limit of two uses. They were down to $360s a few weeks ago.

It would be good to have user reports about that battery. I considered it a year ago myself.

 

[Brucey]

It will be good to have user reports about that battery. I considered it a year ago myself.

I have one of the ecoworthys, only a couple weeks old no problems so far, a bunch of others here recently got one or more due to the sales.

 

[rhino]

Man, I was just planning on using no compression and laying the cells out on a HD rack (like that dewalt one). It's gonna look ugly af, but I know I am no carpenter.

There's nothing wrong with that. The only reason why I have mine somewhat compressed is because it takes up less space.

 

[Mattb4]

Hmmm... thinking back on some of my worse mistakes ever. Nope can't do it. Too gruesome.

Maybe a Thread idea. "The worse DIY solar mistake you ever made."

 

[timselectric]

I was intimidated at first. Even as a 40 year electrician. (To many scary stories on the internet)
But I couldn't pass up on the savings, so I researched it and gained confidence.
I will never buy another pre-built battery.
My time is very valuable. But I don't normally make $500 an hour. And that's what it saves me by building my own.

 

[kram]

if you manage to break even it should be an investment, else it is a hobby

 

[timselectric]

If I were only going to break even. I wouldn't waste my time.
I only spend my time on 3 things.
1. Making money.
2. Saving money.
3. Personal pleasure.

Building my system (or any part of it) isn't for pleasure.
Although I do take pleasure in the fact that it's Saving me money.

 

[Brucey]

If I were only going to break even. I wouldn't waste my time.
I only spend my time on 3 things.
1. Making money.
2. Saving money.
3. Personal pleasure.

Building my system (or any part of it) isn't for pleasure.
Although I do take pleasure in the fact that it's Saving me money.

The blue will give you the pleasure you seek..

 

[timselectric]

The blue will give you the pleasure you seek..

Yes, my cells are blue. lol

 

[SilverbackMP]

Are not those power storage batteries required to be inspected and UL listed?

Not for me. Zero permits, zero inspections, and no legal duty to even follow the NEC.

New Hampshire can go suck one. Missouri is the real “live free or die” state.

 

[NIFE]

I am posting this for humor and not with the intention to ridicule anyone. It is based on my own experience.

View attachment 202232

I recently completed my first battery build using nylon case CALB cells. I used a MRBF terminal fuse and corrugated plastic separators.
Do I qualify for "CHAD" status? Please note it is only a 12 volt system.

 

[kolek]

Do I qualify for "CHAD" status? Please note it is only a 12 volt system.

Anyone with a Dalmatian automatically qualifies for CHAD status in my book.

 

[kolek]

I was intimidated at first. Even as a 40 year electrician. (To many scary stories on the internet)
But I couldn't pass up on the savings, so I researched it and gained confidence.
I will never buy another pre-built battery.
My time is very valuable. But I don't normally make $500 an hour. And that's what it saves me by building my own.

@timselectric I'm just curious, what size battery and how many hours are you roughly spending to build it to get that $500/hour figure? By the way, thanks again for helping me so much here on the forum.

 

[timselectric]

@timselectric I'm just curious, what size battery and how many hours are you roughly spending to build it to get that $500/hour figure? By the way, thanks again for helping me so much here on the forum.

My batteries are 16 x 280ah cells. 2 hours after they show up in my driveway, they are part of my system.
Building them myself saves me $1k per battery.

 

[ChrisG]

I recently completed my first battery build using nylon case CALB cells. I used a MRBF terminal fuse and corrugated plastic separators.
Do I qualify for "CHAD" status? Please note it is only a 12 volt system.

@NIFE Like those bus bars, clean build. Aluminum?

 

[NIFE]

@NIFE Like those bus bars, clean build. Aluminum?

Aluminum 1 X 1/8. Probably not rated for the battery size but I have it fused at 75 amps.

 

[toms]

DIY isn’t for everyone. I see some people building their own inverters / charge controllers / BMS from discrete components. That is over my head.

Assembling a battery is within my capabilities, and the savings are huge. People forget that commercially available batteries typically have a much shorter lifespan than correctly built batteries.

 

[SparkyJJO]

My batteries are 16 x 280ah cells. 2 hours after they show up in my driveway, they are part of my system.
Building them myself saves me $1k per battery.

I wish I had that kind of time.