New here but been lurking for sometime. Critique needed

[freepower]

Hi all, been hanging around here and other places for sometime now. I hope this is not to long.

I have a 1 1/2 car garage with and unfinished area above, few wall but all open.
It has a 1 1/2 hp door opener and other than that there are a few lights that will all be LED, and an outlet or two mainly for charging batteries for the tools, and possibly a small dorm type fridge . These are the current needs, there are other things i'm sure will be added but that is sometime down the road, year or more.

Local power company wants $1100.00 to run the power and I need to cover the mast and the wire from the mast head inside. That is right at my current budget, but why? and then pay a bill wether I use any electricity or not.

So here's my plan, using renogy

Renogy 400 Watt 12 Volt Premium 4 Pcs 100W Panel+40A MPPT Charge Controller+ Bluetooth Module Fuse+ Mounting Z Brackets+Adaptor Kit +Tray Cables Set, 400W, Grid 12V Solar Power System​

and adding

Renogy 3000W Pure Sine Wave Inverter 12V DC to 120V ​

I know that most here use and reccomend lifepo4 batteries but the are out of my range now, so i'm planning to use AGM, 4 100ah batteries. also there is a new 200amp square D breaker panel and i'm going to wire it into that .​

I have and excellent clear view of the southern sky year round and plan the mount the panels on the front of the garage with an adjustable angle, and ground the whole system. I'm sure I have forgotten some things but any thoughts? Should I scrap this and start over?

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[MisterSandals]

Instead of using expensive 100W panels, you should look for big cheap panels on craigslist or on local marketplaces.

If you post your general area someone here can point you to sources for big cheap panels, often in the $.50/watt or better range.

Have you done an energy audit to understand how much power you expect your system to provide?

 

[rodrick]

You might consider going 24 or 48 volt due to no 12 volt needs it’s more suitable for the 3000w inverter

 

[freepower]

Instead of using expensive 100W panels, you should look for big cheap panels on craigslist or on local marketplaces.

If you post your general area someone here can point you to sources for big cheap panels, often in the $.50/watt or better range.

Have you done an energy audit to understand how much power you expect your system to provide?

Sort of. I know with these batteries I cant expect much, but the needs are minimal. Also virtually nothing will be done after dark. I have been watching the local and even craigslist but nothing so far

 

[freepower]

You might consider going 24 or 48 volt due to no 12 volt needs it’s more suitable for the 3000w inverter

Thanks, ill look into it

 

[Delmar]

The Renogy inverter might struggle with the garage door opener motor. If you have a choice I recommend an opener with battery backup, then power with DC. Home Depot listings. EDIT: plus you can have the inverter off when you are not working in the garage (except need for the dorm fridge).

 

[Supervstech]

Please post your location, so if members are local, they can offer suggestions.

 

[Supervstech]

400Ah of AGM will only get you 200Ah of energy… and cost about the same as 200Ah of LFP…

If it were me, I’d start with a 100Ah 24V bank, and a 2500W pure sine inverter. Or a all in one. Far more affordable, and more forgiving of overuse than AGM will be.

 

[freepower]

Please post your location, so if members are local, they can offer suggestions.

Southern WV

 

[Rednecktek]

Just a quick jump in:

Usable watt per dollar AGM and LFP are pretty break even since you can only use half what an AGM is labeled at. Go LFP.

At least a 24v system, 48 if budget allows for future expansion as 3kw is about as big as you want to go on 24v.

More panels, look for used. There are regularly posts on my local CL here in Seattle for 250w panels for $100 each, that's 250% more watts per dollar.

Consider building your own batteries, it's not as scary as you think and you can get LOTS more capacity per dollar.

AIO's are pretty cost effective and really simplify things. If you're saving money on larger panels you can offset the higher power draw pretty easily.

Pre-made "kits" like that are a great way for companies to sell you $600 worth of parts for $800 and "convienence", so not a great deal.

There are lots of little things you can do to maximize your budget AND get a more capable system.

 

[freepower]

If my understanding is correct ( hardly is ) but when the batterie(s) are fully charged and you use power while in full sun, the power you use just flows through similar to your cars system

 

[Rednecktek]

If my understanding is correct ( hardly is ) but when the batterie(s) are fully charged and you use power while in full sun, the power you use just flows through similar to your cars system

Yes, the power would go directly from the panels to the loads effectively and your battery would make up for any losses if a cloud were to pass over or the like.

Something to understand is that panels don't PUSH power into a system, the system does the work and ASKS the panels to make up for it. If your batteries are full and there's nothing running the panels will just sit there collecting dust.

 

[freepower]

The Renogy inverter might struggle with the garage door opener motor. If you have a choice I recommend an opener with battery backup, then power with DC. Home Depot listings. EDIT: plus you can have the inverter off when you are not working in the garage (except need for the dorm fridge).

I put that it is a 1 1/2 hp, it is only a 1/2 hp

 

[Delmar]

I have a 2700W low-frequency UPSverter and 2500W high-frequency inverter (similar to but cheaper than Renogy).

The UPSverter will start my ½HP garbage disposal or garage door opener without blinking. The inverter will struggle and brownout the entire house while attempting to start. You should check with Renogy.

 

[freepower]

I have a 2700W low-frequency UPSverter and 2500W high-frequency inverter (similar to but cheaper than Renogy).

The UPSverter will start my ½HP garbage disposal or garage door opener without blinking. The inverter will struggle and brownout the entire house while attempting to start. You should check with Renogy.

Thanks. Another ? to add to the list