diy solar

diy solar

Sanity check before ordering panels for van. 5x190w with GroWatt 3000?

bri2k

New Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2020
Messages
31
Hi,
Like so many others I'm building out a camper van and adding solar. I'm ready to pull the trigger on the solar panels but I'd like to make sure I'm not missing something obvious.

I have my eye on the Rich Solar 190w panels since I can just barely fit five panels on my Promaster's roof. My current plan is to go with an all-in-one charger/inverter/mppt unit like the Growatt 3000. If I go with the odd number of panels (5) I'm pretty sure I'll have to do them all in series, right?. That puts the open circuit (121.5v) and max power voltages (102v) pretty close to the Growatt's limits (145v/115v). If I go with only 4 panels I can do 2s2p and pick up some resistance to shading, but then I lose a 190w of potential power. I figure if I have the roof space why not fill it up. Thoughts? Thanks for your help.
 
I’d check on the fan noise level of an all in one because it could be on all the time and there is no where to hide from it in a van

What voltage system are you using and what voltage are your panels. You could put all 5 in parallel. I’ve only recently found out that lower voltages are slightly more efficient for mppts but you need to be careful with your PC calcs and correctly spec wiring
 
I'm shooting for a 2kw-3kw inverter so I'm planning on building a diy 24v lifepo4 pack of at least 4kw. Panels are 12v so I'll need at least 2s.

I've heard about the fan noise issue with the MPP brand AIO units. I was under the impression that the Growatt might be quieter. It'll be under the bed in a sealed "garage" so hopefully that'll keep it quiet enough. I'd love to hear from anyone with first hand experience. Also looking at the
.
 
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