diy solar

diy solar

Need advice on altering system after financial twist

Our well is 500ft deep, they didn't tell me what the static water level actually is (so we will have to find that out for ourselves), but they did suggest we set a pump at 300ft. 300ft up then about 80ft to the pressure tank is quite a ways to pump it seems with a 120V pump. It is also quite a ways to drop the pump in ourselves, I have a cousin who has installed many of my families pumps so I will probably ask for his assistance. Do you think 120v for this depth is reasonable or do I need to make a 240V work? The well guy is suggesting 240.
I wish we could afford for the well driller to come in and handle it all but we were quoted 5k for the well and it ended up costing 12k, which drained us of pretty much all our funds.
I would second the Grundfos pumps. alot of the SQ models run off of solar dc or AC gen. I was able to pump a 300' well with a 1000 watt honda generator with a sq pump. Most well pumps would laugh at 1000 watt generator. ALso stay away from pressure tanks if you can, best to pump to a water tank and gravity flow back to house. 2.3 ft vertical drop equals 1 psi.

I have installed several well pumps. If you can use poly pipe the installations are a breeze. (poly pipe max psi 200) 0r 460 ft vertical... If using pressure tank you must add in the psi of the tank.
 
Our well is 500ft deep, they didn't tell me what the static water level actually is (so we will have to find that out for ourselves), but they did suggest we set a pump at 300ft. 300ft up then about 80ft to the pressure tank is quite a ways to pump it seems with a 120V pump. It is also quite a ways to drop the pump in ourselves, I have a cousin who has installed many of my families pumps so I will probably ask for his assistance. Do you think 120v for this depth is reasonable or do I need to make a 240V work? The well guy is suggesting 240.
I wish we could afford for the well driller to come in and handle it all but we were quoted 5k for the well and it ended up costing 12k, which drained us of pretty much all our funds.
If your pump is down 300’ I would add a check valve on top of the pump , then at 150’ and one at the well head.
you could add a check valve at the pressure tank if you want .
Your pump Is 25lbs if you used sch120 pvc it weighs 150 and 100lbs of wire So 275ish
the pumps go down easy they have no water in them to start .
I think setting the pump is very doable , but taking it out is harder.
I can run my pump off my inverter , solar or generator .at 1500 watts @ 115v from 700 feet .
So you should have no problem .
I pump to a holding tank and use a RV park model ac pump to Pressurize the house plumbing .
KPW below my have the pump you need . He said it’s a sq pump 900 bucks or so , but they don’t run off solar
so I’m thing it’s a sqf series 2300 bucks maybe he will chim in .
Dose your growatt inverter have 240 volt ?
If it dosent you can use a power converter to make 240v
How about a holding tank ?
Well guy dont know any thing about off grid solar water pumping .
I would spend the money on a good pump .
I drilled my well in 2015 but don’t have the pump hooked up yet .
We use roof water in a 275gallon tank so I don’t really need the well ?


I would second the Grundfos pumps. alot of the SQ models run off of solar dc or AC gen. I was able to pump a 300' well with a 1000 watt honda generator with a sq pump. Most well pumps would laugh at 1000 watt generator. ALso stay away from pressure tanks if you can, best to pump to a water tank and gravity flow back to house. 2.3 ft vertical drop equals 1 psi.

I have installed several well pumps. If you can use poly pipe the installations are a breeze. (poly pipe max psi 200) 0r 460 ft vertical... If using pressure tank you must add in the psi of the tank.
Are you talking sq or sqf ? I use the sqf what sq pump are you using ?
 
If your pump is down 300’ I would add a check valve on top of the pump , then at 150’ and one at the well head.
you could add a check valve at the pressure tank if you want .
Your pump Is 25lbs if you used sch120 pvc it weighs 150 and 100lbs of wire So 275ish
the pumps go down easy they have no water in them to start .
I think setting the pump is very doable , but taking it out is harder.
I can run my pump off my inverter , solar or generator .at 1500 watts @ 115v from 700 feet .
So you should have no problem .
I pump to a holding tank and use a RV park model ac pump to Pressurize the house plumbing .
KPW below my have the pump you need . He said it’s a sq pump 900 bucks or so , but they don’t run off solar
so I’m thing it’s a sqf series 2300 bucks maybe he will chim in .
Dose your growatt inverter have 240 volt ?
If it dosent you can use a power converter to make 240v
How about a holding tank ?
Well guy dont know any thing about off grid solar water pumping .
I would spend the money on a good pump .
I drilled my well in 2015 but don’t have the pump hooked up yet .
We use roof water in a 275gallon tank so I don’t really need the well ?



Are you talking sq or sqf ? I use the sqf what sq pump are you using ?
SQ flex series

looks like the 6 SQF-3 with around 850 watts of solar (directly connected) would soot you best

 
If your pump is down 300’ I would add a check valve on top of the pump , then at 150’ and one at the well head.
you could add a check valve at the pressure tank if you want .
Your pump Is 25lbs if you used sch120 pvc it weighs 150 and 100lbs of wire So 275ish
the pumps go down easy they have no water in them to start .
I think setting the pump is very doable , but taking it out is harder.
I can run my pump off my inverter , solar or generator .at 1500 watts @ 115v from 700 feet .
So you should have no problem .
I pump to a holding tank and use a RV park model ac pump to Pressurize the house plumbing .
KPW below my have the pump you need . He said it’s a sq pump 900 bucks or so , but they don’t run off solar
so I’m thing it’s a sqf series 2300 bucks maybe he will chim in .
Dose your growatt inverter have 240 volt ?
If it dosent you can use a power converter to make 240v
How about a holding tank ?
Well guy dont know any thing about off grid solar water pumping .
I would spend the money on a good pump .
I drilled my well in 2015 but don’t have the pump hooked up yet .
We use roof water in a 275gallon tank so I don’t really need the well ?



Are you talking sq or sqf ? I use the sqf what sq pump are you using ?
my sqf pump has pumped 800 gal everyday for about 6 years, more in summer. couldn't be happier.
 
"A holding tank with a timer is a good idea. I was hoping to incorporate copper coil to heat my water with solar in the warmer season, and in winter rig something together with my rocket mass stove to heat water in some sort of holding tank. I'll have to get to work on figuring that out."

Using 100 feet of black poly pipe, a small 12v DC pump, small charger, battery, solar panel, and two cheap temp controlled relay boards, I made a small pool heater. The water in the pipe must be X degrees AND the water in the pool must be lower than Y degrees, then the pump will run until one of the values is not satisfied and the pump will shut off. Then the pump waits for the pool to cool and the pipe to get hot enough before pumping again. Works very well. The pipe is on a wood frame with come clear(ish) plastic film over it. Plexiglass or similar would be better but I haven't got around to doing that yet. Anyway, cheap water heater.
"A holding tank with a timer is a good idea. I was hoping to incorporate copper coil to heat my water with solar in the warmer season, and in winter rig something together with my rocket mass stove to heat water in some sort of holding tank. I'll have to get to work on figuring that out."

Using 100 feet of black poly pipe, a small 12v DC pump, small charger, battery, solar panel, and two cheap temp controlled relay boards, I made a small pool heater. The water in the pipe must be X degrees AND the water in the pool must be lower than Y degrees, then the pump will run until one of the values is not satisfied and the pump will shut off. Then the pump waits for the pool to cool and the pipe to get hot enough before pumping again. Works very well. The pipe is on a wood frame with come clear(ish) plastic film over it. Plexiglass or similar would be better but I haven't got around to doing that yet. Anyway, cheap water heater.
Do you have links to the materials you used for this pool heater? I’d love to do something similar!
 
my sqf pump has pumped 800 gal everyday for about 6 years, more in summer. couldn't be happier.
Are you running off solar or generator , inverter ?
The reason I’m asking is I have a sqf pump I bought it to run off solar panels but i just don’t need that much water every day , and it seams like a wast of power .
So now I’m thinking it would be better to just run the SQF pump off my inverter and add extra panels to my power system.
I have 3500 watts and a out back charge controler I was going to add to the system .
The pump uses 1500 watts and will pump about 5 gallons a minute so 150 gallon in 30 min
in the winter I can just pump water thru the inverter with the generator .
Your thoughts ?
 
Are you running off solar or generator , inverter ?
The reason I’m asking is I have a sqf pump I bought it to run off solar panels but i just don’t need that much water every day , and it seams like a wast of power .
So now I’m thinking it would be better to just run the SQF pump off my inverter and add extra panels to my power system.
I have 3500 watts and a out back charge controler I was going to add to the system .
The pump uses 1500 watts and will pump about 5 gallons a minute so 150 gallon in 30 min
in the winter I can just pump water thru the inverter with the generator .
Your thoughts ?
Direct solar around 800 watts no inverter. on a few occasions I have had to use a generator when the sun decides not to show its face for a week.

How far is the well from the inverter? My 900 ft from my inverter so made sense to just throw a few panels up down at the well head.
Line loss and inverter efficiency are things to think about but I personally like how everything is one system, usually you dont realize you have a water problem until you dont have any.

also I believe the SQF pumps run more efficiently on higher voltage, but i could be lying.

maybe add a timer on the well pump so it only turns on when the sun is out.
 
My well is close 40’ from the inverter but the pump is 700 feet down so 740’ish feet
I have 10g enclosed pump cable and 8 gage under ground burial cable from the well head to the inverter .
The manual states there is no loss of efficiency until I’m below 120 volts and 90 volts brings the rate down 5%
So not to bad .
I’m thinking about a pool pump timer , you turn the dial to set a time say 15mins and the pump will run for 15 mins .
I would just run the pump off panels but I don’t have any place to put them .
 
My well is close 40’ from the inverter but the pump is 700 feet down so 740’ish feet
I have 10g enclosed pump cable and 8 gage under ground burial cable from the well head to the inverter .
The manual states there is no loss of efficiency until I’m below 120 volts and 90 volts brings the rate down 5%
So not to bad .
I’m thinking about a pool pump timer , you turn the dial to set a time say 15mins and the pump will run for 15 mins .
I would just run the pump off panels but I don’t have any place to put them .
I belive the outback may also have a dump load you could also use aux ports to turn pump on when batteries are charged and have excess solar and use something like a atkison gen start dohickie to control pump time. pool timers may have high phantom loads, but not sure about that
 
Do you have links to the materials you used for this pool heater? I’d love to do something similar!
Hot water pump.
Temperature control, one for heater(have heat), one for pool(need heat). Connect the relay outputs as a logical AND in series with the battery and pump. You can buy longer temp sensor leads.
Pipe, you should get locally but like this.
Little charger board.
Little solar panel...might need larger size if pump runs a lot.
Rechargeable battery pack..DIY or maybe
Wire, tubing, pipe adapters, etc
 
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The land our well is on is relatively flat, the well is 60ft from the house and only about a foot higher elevation wise. The highest point is about 20ft higher in elevation than the house. I am very interesting in using a holding tank at a higher elevation then the house, or possibly just above the height of our appliances.
We had a soil survey done to be given plans for our greywater system. We had thought that we weren't going to be required to have a septic tank because we are using a composting toilet, I did not realize that having pressurized water would mean being required to have the tank. Would having a storage tank set at a certain height still be considered pressurized water? What level of pressure do you normally have from your storage tanks?
 
My tank is inside , it’s 250 gallons
It lives in my utility room
The tank is on the left
My radiant heat manifold in front
Hot water heater , pressure tank , water pump filters and solar stuff is to the right .
I Daisy chain 2 275 gallon totes one outside and one in the garage .
The pump ises 300watts when running a fills the pressure tank I’ve been using it 3 years now
It’s easy to add the pump I would just keep the tank next to the house and put the little under the house or inside .
It’s 2021 I think you will need a septic
Nomatter what , Unless you are hauling buckets . Tractor supply has big tanks for thin money but I get the totes for free most of the time just find some one that get them full of sugar

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The land our well is on is relatively flat, the well is 60ft from the house and only about a foot higher elevation wise. The highest point is about 20ft higher in elevation than the house. I am very interesting in using a holding tank at a higher elevation then the house, or possibly just above the height of our appliances.
We had a soil survey done to be given plans for our greywater system. We had thought that we weren't going to be required to have a septic tank because we are using a composting toilet, I did not realize that having pressurized water would mean being required to have the tank. Would having a storage tank set at a certain height still be considered pressurized water? What level of pressure do you normally have from your storage tanks?
depends on how much elevation drop 2.3 feet vertical is 1 psi. anything less then 15 psi is miserable but can be done, 30 psi is a good pressure all around. you could always build a stank for the tank to get a few more psi. 20 feet would be around 8.5 psi. more when the tank is full...
 
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