I have a lot to learn

[CanadianNewbie]

Hi all, so longtime YouTube watcher / fan. I finally moved into my dream home .. and I want to start converting it over to green.

My wants:
1) whole home battery backup (similar to Tesla powerwall function)
2) solar if possible. I have a good southwest facing roof but I’m 43.5° lat (Canada) does it make sense to do that here.

And I would really like to dive right in and DIY this entire thing (on a shoestring budget).

I am currently using “sense” while home electricity monitoring.

My thoughts are, start with battery backup & use it to “time shift” TOU pricing here.

Anyway, really excited to be part of this community and even more excited to learn / grow!!

 

[Bubba1]

Do you get sun in the winter or is it cloudy often.

 

[CanadianNewbie]

Do you get sun in the winter or is it cloudy often.

Totally depends on the day, very similar weather to NYC if that helps ? ( im in the Toronto area)

My main goal to begin with (I think) is backup battery & have it setup so I can offset TOU (so charge it @ night when cheap, use charged batteries during day when expensive

 

[RV10flyer]

I’m in Kentucky. Solar is doable in Toronto area too. My 20.6 kw array is angled 45 deg up from horizon for better winter performance. 53 deg was recommended, but 45 deg kept the rear of my array under 13’ and it is built on a 36 deg slope. Incrementally building a system may make it difficult to find matching or compatible equipment at the future construction steps and you’ll spend a lot of time redoing and upgrading things along the way. Either way, buy quality charge controllers, inverters and panels. Build a little more every year. Good luck.

 

[CanadianNewbie]

I’m in Kentucky. Solar is doable in Toronto area too. My 20.6 kw array is angled 45 deg up from horizon for better winter performance. 53 deg was recommended, but 45 deg kept the rear of my array under 13’ and it is built on a 36 deg slope. Incrementally building a system may make it difficult to find matching or compatible equipment at the future construction steps and you’ll spend a lot of time redoing and upgrading things along the way. Either way, buy quality charge controllers, inverters and panels. Build a little more every year. Good luck.

Thanks man!!

I think my first step is always going to be battery no?

 

[Bud Martin]

Hi all, so longtime YouTube watcher / fan. I finally moved into my dream home .. and I want to start converting it over to green.

My wants:
1) whole home battery backup (similar to Tesla powerwall function)
2) solar if possible. I have a good southwest facing roof but I’m 43.5° lat (Canada) does it make sense to do that here.

And I would really like to dive right in and DIY this entire thing (on a shoestring budget).

I am currently using “sense” while home electricity monitoring.

My thoughts are, start with battery backup & use it to “time shift” TOU pricing here.

Anyway, really excited to be part of this community and even more excited to learn / grow!!

Start by doing energy audit of what you want to run and for how many hours each day, that will be a good start, also you should get Kill-A-Watt, it is a good tools to have beside digital meter.

 

[Supervstech]

I have a lot to learn…

Truer words have never been spoken.

F.y.I…
I have been trained in electricity and mechanical systems since I was 16Years old… (a long time ago)I have several state licenses…
I have read, and studied, and watched videos, and I soak up training and knowledge like a sponge…

I have a LOT to learn, as has been said… the more I learn, the more I realize I still need to learn.

 

[CanadianNewbie]

Start by doing energy audit of what you want to run and for how many hours each day, that will be a good start, also you should get Kill-A-Watt, it is a good tools to have beside digital meter.

I have a kill-a-watt! I also have some energy monitoring plugs. According my my sense whole home monitor: I’m averaging about 30-40kwh per day.

So if I want 24hr backup I need at least 40kwh backup battery?

Im thinking 60kwh backup at the moment.

 

[CanadianNewbie]

I have a lot to learn…

Truer words have never been spoken.

F.y.I…
I have been trained in electricity and mechanical systems since I was 16Years old… (a long time ago)I have several state licenses…
I have read, and studied, and watched videos, and I soak up training and knowledge like a sponge…

I have a LOT to learn, as has been said… the more I learn, the more I realize I still need to learn.

Amen!! I love learning!! I also like to use my brain like a sponge! I don’t mind taking the time and learning if I come away with a new skill / knowledge/ perspective!

 

[Supervstech]

I have a kill-a-watt! I also have some energy monitoring plugs. According my my sense whole home monitor: I’m averaging about 30-40kwh per day.

So if I want 24hr backup I need at least 40kwh backup battery?

Im thinking 60kwh backup at the moment.

Remember… it is far less expensive to reduce usage, than to build capacity!

 

[CanadianNewbie]

Remember… it is far less expensive to reduce usage, than to build capacity!

Yes of course!! But .. where’s the fun in that lol

 

[WYtreasure]

Welcome to the party

System Energy Audit and Sizing Spread Sheet

To get the spreadsheet, click on the orange Button in the upper right of this page. This sheet is intended to help you plan your system. Fill it out down to the last decimal place, look at the results..... and then make your best guess;)...

diysolarforum.com

Maybe it will help with the details.

 

[RV10flyer]

I have a kill-a-watt! I also have some energy monitoring plugs. According my my sense whole home monitor: I’m averaging about 30-40kwh per day.

So if I want 24hr backup I need at least 40kwh backup battery?

Im thinking 60kwh backup at the moment.

That’s half of my DIY battery bank. Using 80 ea 280 aH cells and 5 ea individual BMS’s will cost you about $15,000 USD. $3K per battery. Just to give you a ballpark number. If you want to backup the whole house at 40 kWh, sounds like you’re going to need the new Sol-Ark 15K or similar.

 

[Supervstech]

Be sure and shop around… if you set goals for your design, save up and buy what your goal is all at once. Don’t get a little, thinking you will add to it as you grow. Technology and pricing change too rapidly. You won’t have a match in the future when you are more ready.

If you start small, be prepared to discard the small and start again for bigger.

Starting small is fine when you plan this way.

 

[MrM1]

48v dc from the start everything else will fall into place from there.

 

[Rednecktek]

Well, I'll start the default answer to these questions and we can work from there. Here's you To-Do list:

1: Power audit! This will give you some important information on how big your inverter needs to be as well as how much battery capacity you'll need. There is a link in the FAQ section (I think, or someone here will post it shortly) so fill in the blanks and see what it comes up with. You'll probably need some sort of Kill-A-Watt to get accurate measurements. Are you going to be running a 12v system? 24v system? 48v system? What are the specs on your solar panels? VoC? Vmp? Being as this is a new build, throw together a wish list of what you want and estimate on the high side.

1a: Where do you live? Speccing out a system for Scotland is a LOT different numbers than Arizona due to the amount of light you actually get. Someone here can post the link to the Uber-Sun-Hours calculator site to help figure out how much you'll have to work with. That will be a box in the Power Audit form.

2: Parts list: You don't need a make & model list, just a parts list to start from for reference. You'll need an inverter, a MPPT charge controller, fuses, shunt, buck converter, batteries, wire, etc. Once you have a basic list it can be fine tuned to make & models after that.

3: Budget!: Steak is great but doesn't mean anything if your wallet says hamburger. Figure out what you're able to spend now vs what you'll have to cheap out on now and upgrade later.

4: Tape measure! Figure out where you're going to stick all the stuff you'll need. A dozen 3000AH batteries sounds great until you're sleeping on the floor because there's no room left for a bed. Is there a compartment that can house all this stuff? Will the server rack batteries fit? Are you going to have to make space? Physics can be pretty unforgiving.

5: Pencil out what you think you need and throw it at us so we can tell you what you've missed (because we ALL miss stuff the first go-round ) and help figure out which parts and pieces you're going to want to get.

 

[Steve_S]

Conservation is Far Cheaper than Generation & Storage.
Time to dump the fridge you inherited from Grandma and buy a small dorm fridge for your damned beer !
Dryers, Electric Stoves (Conventional), Big AC Units, Fridges/Freezers are the monsters to seriously look at.

House Backup should be 48V Battery Banked system.
We generally recommend not to pull over 250A from battery bank to single inverter.
48V@250A can deliver 12,000W, or 240VAC/50A (uncorrected & excluding surge capacity).
Many AIO's (All in ones) can be linked to increase the available wattage.
Be AWARE of Toronto Hydro ! They do not play nice. Ontario Hydro is better but not by much IF your outside of metro Hogtown. IF thinking of Grid Connected with FIT... oivey ! THAT becomes an entangled mess very fast. Ford, ... ruckus, stuckus, frickus, frukus.... him and his love for Nukes.

MOST IMPORTANTLY !
DO NOT BUY A SINGLE SOLITARY THING !
Figure out what you NEED, then what you WANT and then what you would LIKE !
When you know that and have your energy audit in hand, devise a PLAN, then bounce it through here for a Sanity & Reality Check !
Once the plan is READY & Understood then and ONLY then do you start buying things.
There are NO ONCE IN A LIFETIME DEALS ! They pop up weekly, do NOT get Suckered !

There are quite a few of us Canadians on this site, fair number offgridders like me. There are indeed good vendors & suppliers which we know of locally (such as it is) and places to get certain goodies as well.

 

[RV10flyer]

Now you can enjoy these cold winter days planning instead of building like me. I started planning last February after our ice storm. I’ve been very busy with my business and finally got a little slow down. This site and many of members were and still are very helpful. Have fun!