Solar Shed Ideas?

[JBoffgrid2022]

Hello All!
Looking for suggestions on a small (8x8) shed to house battery banks and inverters for off grid solar.

1. Regarding heating and cooling.... Any suggestions on installing an electric heater or should I go propane with a thermostat? Should I be concerned with excessive heat in the summer?
2. Ideally I would like to place the building about 50-100 feet away from our house and have it partially in the ground to allow the earth to help with temps. (I'm worried about ground water entering the building though if it's below grade!)
3. Insulation in the building should help with keeping the building at a safe temperature, any suggestions on best insulation methods? It will most likely be a 2x4 stud wall.

 

[SolarSamAK]

Hello JBoffgrid2022,
I have a solar shed, 10 by 20 feet and muni approved. I did have to ground the shed x 3 and have DC shut off at the shed and back at the house, (inverter). I used super strut and bonded them to the copper grounding rods. I also ran 10g copper wiring underground back to the house, main inverter. I also have a tigo emergency shut down tied into my entire system, roof based house panels plus solar shed. I do not have batteries in the shed. Total of 12 Canadian solar panels on a single mmpt plus 3 more for local power to the shed not tied into my main inverter. I dreamed of a ground mount but the grid tie agreement limited me a bit. The entire process was a challenge not so much with the muni codes but with my local power company who is somewhat stuck on micro inverter solar systems.
Happy to share my designs and ideas with yah. I learned a lot in the process and thought my kids a lot as well.

Sam

 

[JBoffgrid2022]

Hello JBoffgrid2022,
I have a solar shed, 10 by 20 feet and muni approved. I did have to ground the shed x 3 and have DC shut off at the shed and back at the house, (inverter). I used super strut and bonded them to the copper grounding rods. I also ran 10g copper wiring underground back to the house, main inverter. I also have a tigo emergency shut down tied into my entire system, roof based house panels plus solar shed. I do not have batteries in the shed. Total of 12 Canadian solar panels on a single mmpt plus 3 more for local power to the shed not tied into my main inverter. I dreamed of a ground mount but the grid tie agreement limited me a bit. The entire process was a challenge not so much with the muni codes but with my local power company who is somewhat stuck on micro inverter solar systems.
Happy to share my designs and ideas with yah. I learned a lot in the process and thought my kids a lot as well.

SamView attachment 220344View attachment 220345

Hey there @SolarSamAK !
Thanks for the reply and sending photos!
I plan to do a similar setup, just bigger! I'm still looking at options for the Tigo auto shut off and what will work best for my particular setup. I believe the EG4 6k has tigo integration which is awesome but the panels will be over 100 feet away from the inverter... Are you in the US or Canada?

 

[DIYrich]

Hello All!
Looking for suggestions on a small (8x8) shed to house battery banks and inverters for off grid solar.

1. Regarding heating and cooling.... Any suggestions on installing an electric heater or should I go propane with a thermostat? Should I be concerned with excessive heat in the summer?

Regarding cooling: What area are you in? Make a fully insulated room, and a separate roof cavity.

If the room gets too hot, put in fans, but design in a way it doesn't leak heat in winter.

2. Ideally I would like to place the building about 50-100 feet away from our house and have it partially in the ground to allow the earth to help with temps. (I'm worried about ground water entering the building though if it's below grade!)
3. Insulation in the building should help with keeping the building at a safe temperature, any suggestions on best insulation methods? It will most likely be a 2x4 stud wall.

2x6 walls. R-60 insulation. Capture the heat of the inverter.