Small DIY or plug n play ( Australia)

[50ShadesOfDirt]

More importantly, get pics of the panel's INFO label, on the back. Same for any other component. Sooner/later you'll need model numbers, vendors, etc. to figure out what you inherited.

If panels are hard-mounted, either peel one loose enough to tip it up and see, or find some way to get at the info; do this for each different "type" of panel. Don't know exactly what you're looking at on panels ... everything else should be easier to get at vendors/models.

 

[Iristocratmusic]

More importantly, get pics of the panel's INFO label, on the back. Same for any other component. Sooner/later you'll need model numbers, vendors, etc. to figure out what you inherited.

If panels are hard-mounted, either peel one loose enough to tip it up and see, or find some way to get at the info; do this for each different "type" of panel. Don't know exactly what you're looking at on panels ... everything else should be easier to get at vendors/models.

Good info..,will do.
there’s 3 types of panels
Thanks again.
I’m also looking at thoughts on the solar generator plug play … like bluetti 200 max.
Any opinion/ experience?

 

[Iristocratmusic]

For me (depending on budget).... I would size a solar system for your smaller loads, lights, phone chargers, modem, tv ect . And then when you want the hoover/washing machine run your generator


The difference in price between a system for your small loads , and a system that can handle everything is going to be huge




What kind of space have you got for solar panels, is it good south facing , no shade ?

Hi sam
I am of like mind… just a simple small system..
That’s why I’m tossing up a diy or bluetti solar box eg 200max.
We can get bluetti here and ecoflow but not many others … with decent service back up.
Any thoughts on those style of machine?

Panel area is really good … see pics in post below…about 6 full sun hours .

Thanks
Luke

 

[SamDeleted]

Hi sam
I am of like mind… just a simple small system..
That’s why I’m tossing up a diy or bluetti solar box eg 200max.
We can get bluetti here and ecoflow but not many others … with decent service back up.
Any thoughts on those style of machine?

Panel area is really good … see pics in post below…about 6 full sun hours .

Thanks
Luke

Hi luke I haven't actually had my hands on either of them sorry , but should be some info in the search on here

 

[50ShadesOfDirt]

Solar generators (bluetti, etc) are nice-looking little boxes ... some are even very expandable. The trade-off seems to be capacity. Personally, I couldn't spend that kind of money for the little amount of capacity inside them.

It is just too easy to build your own "solar generator", with way more capacity, for way less cost. Will's own vids, plenty of youtube vids, the details and ease of diy is there ...

They are also irresistable from a "flashing leds & multitudes of plugs" in a tiny little package ... who can resist the nuclear control panel aspect of some of these?

if you absolutely don't want to DIY, then by all means get a bluetti. If you were mostly using for camping, & capacity wasn't a big deal, and no desire for DIY, then also get them.

Hope this helps ...

 

[pollenface]

It would be good to know the specs of the panels then you will know how to configure them to a charge controller.

If they are all about 20-22v open circuit, you could connect them in parallel and charge a 12v battery, 40-45v for a 24v battery.

 

[JHovel]

I'd say you have a perfectly serviceable setup there - bar the batteries of course. The unpredictable bit are the solar panels. A volt meter gives you just an indication of their open circuit voltage. What you really need is a cheap MPPT meter (look at Andy's Off-Grid Garage website - link in YouTube page) or someone here will give you a recommendation. That will tell you the electrical condition of your inherited panels.
Decide from that data if you actually need new ones, or just a battery.
You can add new PV panels to that system without messing anything up by connecting the new panels to their own charge controller. Old and new charge controllers play nicely together.
LiFePo4 batteries with built-in BMS are currently quite affordable, e.g. 200Ah for under AUS$1000 on specials in 4WD and camping suppliers.
You will need to ensure you can adjust/program the charging voltages on your old charge controller to match the new batteries of course. If it's old enough not to be adjustable, just replace that with a modern MPPT charge controller (you probably should anyway).
No point throwing functioning gear out just because it is old.
Once you have the photos of all the relevant labels (PV, charge controller, inverter) put them here and we'll critique then for you.
I'm still using some 15 year old PV panels, a 20 year old QLD/Australian made 1kW inverter (amongst others) and 15 year old 635Ah batteries (still 30kWh!) that have another 20 year life span as far as I'm concerned.... I'll just keep checking them all every year or so.

 

[Iristocratmusic]

I'd say you have a perfectly serviceable setup there - bar the batteries of course. The unpredictable bit are the solar panels. A volt meter gives you just an indication of their open circuit voltage. What you really need is a cheap MPPT meter (look at Andy's Off-Grid Garage website - link in YouTube page) or someone here will give you a recommendation. That will tell you the electrical condition of your inherited panels.
Decide from that data if you actually need new ones, or just a battery.
You can add new PV panels to that system without messing anything up by connecting the new panels to their own charge controller. Old and new charge controllers play nicely together.
LiFePo4 batteries with built-in BMS are currently quite affordable, e.g. 200Ah for under AUS$1000 on specials in 4WD and camping suppliers.
You will need to ensure you can adjust/program the charging voltages on your old charge controller to match the new batteries of course. If it's old enough not to be adjustable, just replace that with a modern MPPT charge controller (you probably should anyway).
No point throwing functioning gear out just because it is old.
Once you have the photos of all the relevant labels (PV, charge controller, inverter) put them here and we'll critique then for you.
I'm still using some 15 year old PV panels, a 20 year old QLD/Australian made 1kW inverter (amongst others) and 15 year old 635Ah batteries (still 30kWh!) that have another 20 year life span as far as I'm concerned.... I'll just keep checking them all every year or so.

Hi,
Thanks …re mppt unit
I did just look at one of wills videos and one of the victron models. There’s a small screenshot of it here.
I would like you be able to re use what is there..
So i will
Start w checking the panels…is a mppt meter the same as an mppt charge controller?
I like the idea of the lifepo4… 200ah
As I’m away a bit I need something that I can leave for a couple of months at a time.
Thanks for your support.

 

[JHovel]

This is the meter I have: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002381940978.html
No, they are not a charge controller, they actually check the panel output directly. Do these tests with a clear sky and the panel facing the sun as close to perpendicular as you can.

 

[Tim Tim]

Hi Luke,
I’m up at Nelson Bay. I read a lot of Wattsmatter’s posts as he has a fantastic setup.

You have a number of options but to be honest I wouldn’t bother with the Bluetti. As pointed out you can buy a 200Ah battery from a 4WD store, which wouldn’t be my first choice
, but Aussiebatteries have a a good reputation for AGM or LiFePO4.

https://www.aussiebatteries.com.au/

The other option is to buy LiFePO4 cells and a BMS from China and build your own 280Ah or 310Ah for around $1100.

People go to a 24V system depending on the size of the inverter they are using as the advantages are lower current and therefore thinner cables and smaller fuses.

For the appliances that you are using, although I have no idea of your amplifier power usage, you could probably get away with a 12v system but you just have to be mindful of the power that you draw. For a 24v system you would need two batteries.

I run my caravan on a 12v system with a Giandel 3000W inverter, although the maximum appliance I use at any one time is 2400W. I recently ran my caravan AC as a test from 9.00am till 5pm and only used 3% of my 560Ah batteries but I do have 500W of solar panels flat on the roof. provided you run your washing machine 700W to 1400W whilst the sun is shining you should be able to manage.

Giandel inverters can be purchased here.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/231856179554?

Good luck
Tim

 

[Iristocratmusic]

That makes life a bit challenging. That will barely cover a battery with the sort of discharge current capacity you are looking at.

Yes… I’ll do number crunching on my expected load …

 

[Iristocratmusic]

Hi Luke,
I’m up at Nelson Bay. I read a lot of Wattsmatter’s posts as he has a fantastic setup.

You have a number of options but to be honest I wouldn’t bother with the Bluetti. As pointed out you can buy a 200Ah battery from a 4WD store, which wouldn’t be my first choice
, but Aussiebatteries have a a good reputation for AGM or LiFePO4.

https://www.aussiebatteries.com.au/

The other option is to buy LiFePO4 cells and a BMS from China and build your own 280Ah or 310Ah for around $1100.

People go to a 24V system depending on the size of the inverter they are using as the advantages are lower current and therefore thinner cables and smaller fuses.

For the appliances that you are using, although I have no idea of your amplifier power usage, you could probably get away with a 12v system but you just have to be mindful of the power that you draw. For a 24v system you would need two batteries.

I run my caravan on a 12v system with a Giandel 3000W inverter, although the maximum appliance I use at any one time is 2400W. I recently ran my caravan AC as a test from 9.00am till 5pm and only used 3% of my 560Ah batteries but I do have 500W of solar panels flat on the roof. provided you run your washing machine 700W to 1400W whilst the sun is shining you should be able to manage.

Giandel inverters can be purchased here.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/231856179554?

Good luck
Tim

Tim
Thanks … I’ll look into the giandel
How about the lifepo4 batteries… if I got one 200ah … where do you suggest in aust?
I’m thinking to go w the smaller system and use the generator when running the larger loads..washing machine , vacuum etc.
The generator will need the occasional once a week run anyway
So you’d suggest just go 12v into a good inverter. (3000w)?

 

[Iristocratmusic]

Tim
Thanks … I’ll look into the giandel
How about the lifepo4 batteries… if I got one 200ah … where do you suggest in aust?
I’m thinking to go w the smaller system and use the generator when running the larger loads..washing machine , vacuum etc.
The generator will need the occasional once a week run anyway
So you’d suggest just go 12v into a good inverter. (3000w)?

Saw the Aussie battery link… re 200ah lifepo4…
What batteries do you have n your van?

 

[Iristocratmusic]

Solar generators (bluetti, etc) are nice-looking little boxes ... some are even very expandable. The trade-off seems to be capacity. Personally, I couldn't spend that kind of money for the little amount of capacity inside them.

It is just too easy to build your own "solar generator", with way more capacity, for way less cost. Will's own vids, plenty of youtube vids, the details and ease of diy is there ...

They are also irresistable from a "flashing leds & multitudes of plugs" in a tiny little package ... who can resist the nuclear control panel aspect of some of these?

if you absolutely don't want to DIY, then by all means get a bluetti. If you were mostly using for camping, & capacity wasn't a big deal, and no desire for DIY, then also get them.

Hope this helps ...

Yes, thanks for the discussion.., I do have desire for DIY…so definitely leaning that ways. Appreciate the forum!

 

[Iristocratmusic]

It would be good to know the specs of the panels then you will know how to configure them to a charge controller.

If they are all about 20-22v open circuit, you could connect them in parallel and charge a 12v battery, 40-45v for a 24v battery.

Thanks … I need to get the right meter to test them…

 

[Iristocratmusic]

It would be good to know the specs of the panels then you will know how to configure them to a charge controller.

If they are all about 20-22v open circuit, you could connect them in parallel and charge a 12v battery, 40-45v for a 24v battery.

Would suggest getting a Pv multimeter?

 

[Iristocratmusic]

A battery needs to meet two two requirements:

- energy capacity (how long it will last)
- discharge capacity (how much power it can deliver)

The former depends on what your expected average power draw will be and for how long you need to keep stuff running from the battery.

With the latter, if you expect your battery to support loads up to 3 kW (or brief surges beyond that), then it better have the ability to deliver enough current.

Adding say 10% for DC->AC losses, that's 3.3 kW on the DC side. At a "nominal" 24 V, that's 137.5 amps. So you'll need a battery with a BMS rated to supply at least that much current. Generally the higher current rated batteries are also bigger capacity batteries, which are more expensive. I'd expect a 200 Ah 24 V battery would be the minimum.

Watt matters,
Thanks again…the solar set up will be in a ‘power shed’ ( where the generator is kept).
This is about 15 Mtrs from the house.
Does this distance need to be considered when selecting a system? Dies it need more grunt to send power to the house circuit box?

 

[Iristocratmusic]

It costs you nothing to go ahead and run through the design steps ... a few calculations, power audit, and such will help you know what an "ideal" system is.

From there, you can do what-if's to keep parts of the old (possibly piece-meal?) system components, or choose to go with all new, all mostly trouble-free components.

The generator is a key backup component to your system, so that part is mostly done. Solar panels are there, but you'll need to poke around with them and get numbers off of each set, and figure out how they were layed out (how many "strings" of what kinds of panels). I'd investigate each existing component, and make a listing of it all ... post it back here if ok with sharing the info.

The design steps:

1. Go here, and enter in each appliance's values (watts, hours/day you want to run it, etc.):
https://unboundsolar.com/solar-information/offgrid-calculator

2. Go here, using numbers from above, and fiddle with various entries/components, and you'll see in real-time what your system component (inverter, mppt, panel) sizing is:
https://www.altestore.com/store/calculators/off_grid_calculator/

There are many similar website pages/calculators, but these two pages should help you get through most of the necessary calculations. This helps you quickly decide if you can do what you want to do, and you can vary component choices for what-if scenarios.

This is remote, off-grid, so a small, standalone system would likely consist of an AIO inverter, a battery-bank (even if just one battery for now), and solar panels, along with connecting bit & bobs (cables, fuses, etc.); generator would be a backup to recharge battery-bank if solar not cooperating, or if powering large occasional loads.

Reference voltage (as others have mentioned) is 12v, 24v, or 48v ... don't know what it's like sourcing components down under, but a 12v or 24v is easy to do, especially if power needs and distances are small. 48v is for larger needs & distances, at more cost.

See Will's videos & diagrams for example systems, under "DIY Solar ..." drop-down list at top of this forum.

Hope this helps ...

Good point re distance …
If I have the solar set up in a power shed…15 Mtr from the house ( connected via 240v electrical cable) will this impact my decision on 12 24 or 48v… or size of system?
Btw I do have the potential to position everything next to the house … where the old system was and use the power shed for the generator connection.
Any ideas welcome
Thx again

 

[wattmatters]

Does this distance need to be considered when selecting a system? Dies it need more grunt to send power to the house circuit box?

It's just a matter of ensuring your cable is of sufficient gauge.

Cable Size Calculator AS/NZS 3008

Cable size calculator for current rating, voltage drop, loop impedance, earth cable and short circuit, based on Australia and New Zealand standard AS/NZS 3008.

www.jcalc.net

You want to avoid too much voltage drop. With 230 V AC wire doesn't need to be super thick but it will depend on how much current you expect to pump through it.

And importantly, if you ever expect to upgrade the electrical current that cable may need to carry in future then keep that in mind.

Burying cable is a PITA, so better to get it capable of meeting current and future needs. And while you are at it, lay a data cable as well in the same trench (it can be at 200 mm while the power line needs to be at 600 mm deep).

With my system I started with a smaller inverter and my 20 A connections and wire were ample. But eventually I doubled the size of my system and needed to upgrade to 32 A. Fortunately no buried cable for me, but still, new wire and power inlets and outlets.

 

[Tim Tim]

Saw the Aussie battery link… re 200ah lifepo4…
What batteries do you have n your van?

If I were to be buying a LiFePO4 battery then Aussie batteries would be my choice but I have built my own by buying 280Ah cells and a BMS from from China.

Amy has a good reputation although you do pay a little more but you can also buy your BMS from her which saves on postage costs.

https://szluyuan.en.alibaba.com/pro...?spm=a2700.shop_index.111720.3.7db6273eOKcQh4

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...html?spm=a2700.shop_index.84.6.7db6273eOKcQh4

Good luck
Tim