Learning/Info Threads

[Rider]

Just an observation. We have a Learning and Help sub forum where one would expect all of the important basic information to be. But it seems the Beginner's Corner has more training threads than the Learning forum! If a thread is intended to provide documentation for help shouldn't they all be located in the same place? ie Learning and Help? Move all threads into Learning? Duplicate the threads in both locations? Put all threads in Learning and leave a link in Beginners?

Just fodder for thought.....

 

[svetz]

I'm all for anything that can be done to make things better/easier for members! Can't wait to see what people think!

TL;DR: History of the FAQ....

So, how did that come about and why is it in the beginner's corner?

Way back on the old forums @Craig & I started talking about repeat questions from members and wouldn't it be nice if there were some sort of Frequently Asked Questions so new members could use them as a reference rather than wait for a response. Having one huge FAQ post wasn't going to work, so we though of a hybrid FAQ that had links to answers that took more than a couple of lines. The beauty of using reference links is that as technology changes the source references can be changed, and all those old threads would still have the latest information in them.

I happened to have a lot of time back then (that is, was going stir crazy because of foot injury); so, went through all the duplicate questions on the old and new forums and built the FAQ. Naturally I'm not expert enough so Will and all the moderators reviewed/edited the posts to ensure the examples and math were correct and clear. Also, all of the members were invited to review them and a few brave souls took that on and provided some really great feedback which was all incorporated.

I suspect I'm not the only one that tweaks them from time to time as members ask interesting new questions that they didn't originally cover.

Some of the links in the FAQ are in other forums, or point to major sections... for example "I made this! Is it safe?" is a link to the safety forums.

 

[offgriddle]

~ THE MOST COMMON Question I see asked of the solar forum happens to be the best and most important question of all, with that question being, how large should I make my PV system? Of course, there is one answer to that question and it would be really helpful to easily direct others to one of Will's DIY videos, (unless he has not thoroughly addressed the question but I'm pretty sure he has). Oh yes, what is the answer to the question you may or may not be wondering? The answer is: 1) Add up the wattage hours, (aka current/amperage draw), of all of the appliances that you wish to operate, times the number of hours that you wish to operate each appliance each day. 2) Determine the average daily solar hours you can expect in your region and size your PV system to create the quantity of watts that you desire.
~ There is another approach to ponying up a huge pile of wampum to build a mega system or giving up and resigning one's self to feeding the greedy grid till death does us part in this particular realm. The other approach of which I speak is the one that I have taken of adjusting my daily power requirements to match my power generation capability along with continually educating myself on the subject of alternative energy generation and carefullly using what ever capital I can manage, to start my PV system and slowly grow it as the years go by. IE I recently upgraded to MPPT solar controlling, series wired to increase panel output to 24VDC and replaced lead acid with Lifepo. I also obtained an MPPT *wind charge controller, (haven't got a wind Jenny yet), because windy days happen and don't forget, *thermometric generation supplementation for those who operate wood stoves.
~ Note: *Off Subject Disclaimer: I hereby acknowledge that wind and thermoelectric generation do not precisely fall within the subject boundary of solar based electrical power generation but since the subject matter of the body of this article is overwhelmingly solar PV related, it is my sincere and humble desire that the censor guru's do not determine this article to be unworthy! (Joking, honestly I don't mind, do as you must)!
~ Respectfully suggesting a DIYSF gathering October of 2021 or 2022 out in the boondocks, BYOS.
Peace Out, OG.

 

[eddie1261]

That has to be THE most frustrating question, and just about every new user asks it. And the honest answer is always going to be "I don't know." How can WE know how you live your life to answer that question? Maybe you work nights and have no need for evening lights. That takes a chunk of it away. Maybe you are a Luddite and have no television or sources of entertainment. Maybe you only eat at home once a day so you don't cook or store food. Maybe you don't have a laundry room and use laundromats. We just don't know, and there is no "average".

That's like asking about gas mileage. We don't drive the same day. My gas mileage is moot as far as yours is concerned. You maybe have a 50 mile highway commute to your job where I have a 20 mile city street commute.

I do understand that people come here for information, but sign on and read a little bit first before asking things that have been addressed dozens of times already. It is really obvious and logical that it is based on consumption. AND, until you start getting specific, we don't even know if you are talking about a van, an RV, shed, a cabin, or a house. The FAQ and beginners sections cover all of this. Like I said, don't just hop on and ask. Read the FAQ, which leads you to the Beginner section. You can go from beginner to someone with a pretty good amount of knowledge quickly. I am living proof of that. I was a solar dummy before I stumbled upon Will's youtube and now his forum. With his sharing of knowledge, you can now remove the "solar" from that description of myself......

 

[CheezWiz]

I definitely think we need a set of FAQs that every member can point to and say "Hey! Welcome to the forum! I think the information you seek can be found in our FAQs. Have a look over at [insert link] and if you do not get your question answered, come back to this thread and let us know what's giving you trouble." That kind of interchange can help us refine them... There is a lot of work in building FAQs like that, my hats off to what has been accomplished to date.

 

[offgriddle]

That has to be THE most frustrating question, and just about every new user asks it. And the honest answer is always going to be "I don't know." How can WE know how you live your life to answer that question? Maybe you work nights and have no need for evening lights. That takes a chunk of it away. Maybe you are a Luddite and have no television or sources of entertainment. Maybe you only eat at home once a day so you don't cook or store food. Maybe you don't have a laundry room and use laundromats. We just don't know, and there is no "average".

That's like asking about gas mileage. We don't drive the same day. My gas mileage is moot as far as yours is concerned. You maybe have a 50 mile highway commute to your job where I have a 20 mile city street commute.

I do understand that people come here for information, but sign on and read a little bit first before asking things that have been addressed dozens of times already. It is really obvious and logical that it is based on consumption. AND, until you start getting specific, we don't even know if you are talking about a van, an RV, shed, a cabin, or a house. The FAQ and beginners sections cover all of this. Like I said, don't just hop on and ask. Read the FAQ, which leads you to the Beginner section. You can go from beginner to someone with a pretty good amount of knowledge quickly. I am living proof of that. I was a solar dummy before I stumbled upon Will's youtube and now his forum. With his sharing of knowledge, you can now remove the "solar" from that description of myself......

Well said Ed! FYI, I currently I pony up ten bucks at the laundromat or do my laundry with a bucket and plunger then hang it out on the solar dryer outdoors, or, when weather doesn't cooperate and it's cold enough outside for a fire inside, I hang it on a rack in front of the woodstove. There as are some great low energy washers out there that I recently discovered:

 

[offgriddle]

I definitely think we need a set of FAQs that every member can point to and say "Hey! Welcome to the forum! I think the information you seek can be found in our FAQs. Have a look over at [insert link] and if you do not get your question answered, come back to this thread and let us know what's giving you trouble." That kind of interchange can help us refine them... There is a lot of work in building FAQs like that, my hats off to what has been accomplished to date.

Excellent idea to point beginners in the right direction regarding the most commonly asked questions. And then for those incorrigible free agents who were brought up in the day when sovereign indivuality was en Vogue, we will endure the complexity of two dimensional social internUt interaction and remain patient, helpful and loving for as long as we are tolerated. Below Clip: The complexity of choosing the correct forum category: