diy solar

diy solar

Hello, newbie here! Need some guidance.

useless

New Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2023
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Location
Melbourne
Hey All,
I have just returned from my first road trip in and around Western Australia. And I am super excited about everything that I have learned about staying off the grid. Power backup is my biggest pain point. I want to buy Ecoflow River 2 but it's not yet available in Australia. So I thought why not do it myself until it's available? And I am massively impressed by the kind of DIY stuff that you all do. I can't stop myself from watching all these DIY videos on youtube. Decided to take baby steps.

Phase 1:

Get battery, inverter, and battery charger -- may be a shunt to monitor. I want to keep it compact and easy to carry as well. So thinking of something small as a 30AH Eco-worthy battery. It's small. And add connect an inverter to it. Suggest a good quality compact inverter with around 300-1000W. Right now my only need is to power MacBook pro and mobiles. Got questions about this.
- Is it safe to do so?
- What's the best way to carry them around? I could 3D print a box or buy a ready-made security box. Should I screw all components or is it okay if they are loose while traveling and when not in use?

Phase 2: Add solar charging functionality to it.

Thanks
 
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If you're just charging a laptop and some USB things, then a 1000w inverter is overkill. Look at the power brick on the laptop and double the watts, that should be plenty of power for your list.

30ah isn't much battery, how are you planning to charge it?

A cheap plastic tool box that fits everything would be the easiest option, and it's really easy to customize for USB ports or 12v sockets or the like. Later you could mount a basic PWM controller inside to add solar charging down the road. For as cheap as they are you might as well do it all at once.

Make sure everything is tight. Lock washers or Nylock nuts are the best option, thread locker is handy too.

Building your own battery is a fun project and suprisingly easy, and you can shape the cells into the box easier if needed. Saves some money AND is fun.
 
I agree with 1000w being over kill fory Macbook Pro (87 Watts Adaptor). But the minimum watts for a pure sine wave I have seen is 300w and the minimum one from Renogy is 1000w. Price difference is not much. 1000W would help me scale it in future. I know 30A is not much but it is very light to carry it in my backpack. I will definitely scale it up in future. For now I will charge it using a battery charger -- will be adding solar later.

Thanks for all the advise. I have seen people building batteries as well. Surely looks super fun. I might do a little battery and see how it goes. I not sure if I have skills to build a bigger one yet. It's been ages since last time I had touched any of these tools. That's back in my Uni days which was ages back.
 
I agree with 1000w being over kill fory Macbook Pro (87 Watts Adaptor). But the minimum watts for a pure sine wave I have seen is 300w and the minimum one from Renogy is 1000w. Price difference is not much. 1000W would help me scale it in future.
Fair enough, but a 1000w inverter is physically heavier, larger, and consumes more power to just exist than a 300w which was my thought.

I know 30A is not much but it is very light to carry it in my backpack. I will definitely scale it up in future. For now I will charge it using a battery charger -- will be adding solar later.
Oh, if you're looking for something backpack sized then it's really REALLY hard to build a system that is smaller than a pre-made unit. They have the advantages of custom PCB's that can be made a LOT smaller than what a DIY can be. You're probably going to want to avoid LFP and stick with a Lith Ion Cad (don't remember the exact terminology) battery setup (18650's and such) due to the significant weight savings.

Thanks for all the advise. I have seen people building batteries as well. Surely looks super fun. I might do a little battery and see how it goes. I not sure if I have skills to build a bigger one yet.
Once you've done the first one it gets a lot easier. The 18650 packs are a bit more complicated but can still be fun.

It's been ages since last time I had touched any of these tools. That's back in my Uni days which was ages back.
<GEEZER> Back in MY day we built batteries out of rocks and mammoth skins... and we LIKED IT! </GEEZER> :ROFLMAO:
 
Fair enough, but a 1000w inverter is physically heavier, larger, and consumes more power to just exist than a 300w which was my thought.

Hmmm. Thanks.


Oh, if you're looking for something backpack sized then it's really REALLY hard to build a system that is smaller than a pre-made unit. They have the advantages of custom PCB's that can be made a LOT smaller than what a DIY can be. You're probably going to want to avoid LFP and stick with a Lith Ion Cad (don't remember the exact terminology) battery setup (18650's and such) due to the significant weight savings.

Yeah. Makes sense. I am kind of aware of this. I myself won't be able to build something as compact as Ecoflow River 2 or other power stations will all that tech. I will check out this other battery tech as well. I think I might stick to a 50Ah OTS battery with a small inverter, to begin with, and start building a DIY project in parallel.
 
I have just returned from my first road trip in and around Western Australia.
Question. Was this "road trip" on a bicycle, hence the idea for a backpack power source? If so that may change some ideas/things as well. For instance they have generator wheel hubs for bicycles that provide charging with very little drag
 
That was in a rented van. I don't have a car/van yet. And need to have that flexibility to hire any car/van for short trips 3-4 days and take my power station along. Or even if I have to go to nearby place accessible using public transport to find some solitude. I will upgrade my custom build later for vans. May be I will have two separate builds - one for backpack and one for van. A lot of things to figure out but need to start somewhere :D
 
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