diy solar

diy solar

The "Meg" Build

The one by the container, at least, you might be able to secure better with pipe as struts from container corners.
I'd expect if wind came at the wrong angle it would turn that array into a sail, no matter how many sandbags you tried to hold it down with.
The canopy over our company's outdoor dining area is strapped down to many 50 gallon drums.
 
@Lt.Dan just finished reading the entire thread, and plan to copy it for the most part, amazing build! thoughts on the 12v side, why not just run a standard 30 amp (110v AC) lithium convertor and a BB? your already loosing the efficiency via the 48/12 dc-dc converter. The lower voltage from the DC-DC means higher amp draw on the hydraulic motor.
 
@Lt.Dan just finished reading the entire thread, and plan to copy it for the most part, amazing build! thoughts on the 12v side, why not just run a standard 30 amp (110v AC) lithium convertor and a BB? your already loosing the efficiency via the 48/12 dc-dc converter. The lower voltage from the DC-DC means higher amp draw on the hydraulic motor.
Hey Smokey, thanks for reading everything!

I originally did have that, and I used a 60a Progressive Dynamics lithium converter/charger with 2x battleborns. Only problem is the converters hold the battery at a very high state of charge (14.6v) and BattleBorn did not recommend it long term. Also, the efficiency of the converter/charger is terrible at 75-80%, whereas my 48v->12v converter is 93-96% efficient.

I agree I should have gotten the 13.8v 48->12v converter, and sometime in the future I will probably purchase Daygreens 13.8v 150a model, and it in combination with the capacitor, should handle it fine. I'm just trying to stay away from another battery/maintenance item.
 
Hey Smokey, thanks for reading everything!

I originally did have that, and I used a 60a Progressive Dynamics lithium converter/charger with 2x battleborns. Only problem is the converters hold the battery at a very high state of charge (14.6v) and BattleBorn did not recommend it long term. Also, the efficiency of the converter/charger is terrible at 75-80%, whereas my 48v->12v converter is 93-96% efficient.

I agree I should have gotten the 13.8v 48->12v converter, and sometime in the future I will probably purchase Daygreens 13.8v 150a model, and it in combination with the capacitor, should handle it fine. I'm just trying to stay away from another battery/maintenance item.
Defiantly makes sense, I like PD converters but, not a fan on the lithium profile for that reason. been toying with an IOTA DLS-75 and the 2 stage with 14.4 absorption and 13.5 float on a 280ah 4s pack.

Also with Victron, you can set up "island mode" to prioritize solar and battery with requirements to be met (load, temp, SOC) for it to connect and disconnect from the grid. I remember that being discussed early on
 
Whole system has been working very well lately. I've been doing some little things to tidy up my work over the last few weeks, nothing major. I did mount 12x of the SanTan snail trail panels up on top of the shipping container. It was a breezy 70* day and I had some extra energy so I decided to go for it. I did not end up using magnets like I previously intended, and instead put 6x holes in the square tube that runs length wise of the top corners of the container, and used a 5/16" "NutZert" (or RivNut, whatever you want to call them), to hold it down. God seemed to want to test me with 60 mph winds the next day, directly into the back of the panels, making them want to "parachute" away, but they stayed put nicely with little to no movement. Hopefully someday soon I will get bored and do the same with the other 12 panels that sit on the ground next to it. Unfortunately the run from the panels to the SCC input is just under 200 feet now! I hate buying PV wire.... lol

Unfortunately no pics, I'll get more tomorrow in the daytime.

I haven't had to switch to the grid for quite some time, and I have even disconnected from the grid and rolled up and put away our big 50 amp cord. We tend to use less than 12KWh a day now with no A/C usage, and almost 4-5KWh of that is from idle consumption of the inverters, and small parasitic draws like the router etc. Even with the temps in the high 30's at night, the heat pump uses the most of that at 6-7KWh, and we have it set to a toasty 68-70* inside. When in the mid 40's, the heat pump maybe runs for 30 min overall throughout the night. The RV is pretty well insulated, but I have not tried staying anywhere colder than 30*. I would be interested in seeing how it does though, as Grand Design claims very high insulation values all around (for an RV atleast).

Since we have a surplus of PV, I have turned to mining cryptocurrency on a pretty small scale. Just 4 GPU's consuming a total of 750watts, I also only run it during the day to ensure we do not run out of battery in the middle of the night. It makes a few bucks for me, and I feel good with nothing going to waste lol.

Other than that, its just about enjoying it, and living now. We have lots of trips planned throughout the next few months, and into the new year. Can't wait for it!
 
What the what? Really? I'm using 30-35kWh total with the heat pump with 25-30 degree overnight temps keeping the rig at 65-70 and it runs constantly overnight. Oh man. I wonder what's different!
 
What the what? Really? I'm using 30-35kWh total with the heat pump with 25-30 degree overnight temps keeping the rig at 65-70 and it runs constantly overnight. Oh man. I wonder what's different!
I'm not sure! Last night it was 41, and this was usage from 8pm to 8am:

Screenshot_20211017-091747_Samsung Internet.jpg
The little bumps are the refrigerator cycling on and off and 1x of the 2x peaks that are close together at around 5:30 is the water heater kicking on to maintain temp.

I won't be able to know about the sub 35* temps though, as my heat pump will just stop working and switch over to propane, which will use even less power.
 

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I'm not sure! Last night it was 41, and this was usage from 8pm to 8am:

View attachment 69186
The little bumps are the refrigerator cycling on and off and 1x of the 2x peaks that are close together at around 5:30 is the water heater kicking on to maintain temp.

I won't be able to know about the sub 35* temps though, as my heat pump will just stop working and switch over to propane, which will use even less power.
You need a new fridge. >1.5KW?
 
Last night got down to about 35. High eventually in the 60's. I turned off the heat at noon. Man, I feel like I need to come visit you and figure out what's different!

1634523049406.png
 
Last night got down to about 35. High eventually in the 60's. I turned off the heat at noon. Man, I feel like I need to come visit you and figure out what's different!

View attachment 69241
The weather has a lot to do with it i bet lol. It might be 40*ish at night, but it was a high of 82*, so the heat pump shuts off much earlier in the day than yours im sure.

Swing on by, id love to take a peek at your setup too ? lol
 
I agree I should have gotten the 13.8v 48->12v converter, and sometime in the future I will probably purchase Daygreens 13.8v 150a model, and it in combination with the capacitor, should handle it fine. I'm just trying to stay away from another battery/maintenance item.
Mine is mounted as the primary for the entire 12v system, and I should be turning it up in the next week. I'll post how things operate with it WITHOUT a capacitor. For me the steps and the smaller bedroom slide is the main load, I'm gonna wire the generator to pull off the new start battery just like the engine starter since it'd 850 cca and that's what it's good for.


.
 
I also did find a small electric motor shop that might be able to rewind my hydraulic pump motor to accept 48v. If thats the case, then I can get a much smaller converter and not need the capacitor.

Win-win, but we'll see how much they charge to rewind the motor.
 
Well I just had a pretty wild experience that may or may not be dangerous. While working on the trailer, I happened to have my right hand in the dirt amd my left hand on bare aluminum on the rv. I felt a slight tingling sensation and realized the trailer was shocking me! After getting out my multimeter I found this:

20211022_151636.jpg

A full 101v!

I know I unplugged from the 50 amp pedestal we parked next to, and im sure while connected to the pedestal, it also connected us to the grounding rod that the pedestal is connected to. But is this something to worry about? Or perhaps something i can prevent?
 
Well I just had a pretty wild experience that may or may not be dangerous. While working on the trailer, I happened to have my right hand in the dirt amd my left hand on bare aluminum on the rv. I felt a slight tingling sensation and realized the trailer was shocking me! After getting out my multimeter I found this:

View attachment 69818

A full 101v!

I know I unplugged from the 50 amp pedestal we parked next to, and im sure while connected to the pedestal, it also connected us to the grounding rod that the pedestal is connected to. But is this something to worry about? Or perhaps something i can prevent?
IMHO this is *Definitely* something to worry about.

The first thing to look at is your grounding scheme. Could you give us some kind of diagram of the system that includes grounding?
 
IMHO this is *Definitely* something to worry about.

The first thing to look at is your grounding scheme. Could you give us some kind of diagram of the system that includes grounding?
I tried to keep it as simple as possible, so essentially the 2x LV6548s connect directly to the stock RV Distribution Panel/Breaker Panel. I essentially removed the wiring that came from the grid and connected to the output on the inverter.

I'll see if I can jump on the computer and make a real diagram
 
I tried to keep it as simple as possible, so essentially the 2x LV6548s connect directly to the stock RV Distribution Panel/Breaker Panel. I essentially removed the wiring that came from the grid and connected to the output on the inverter.

I'll see if I can jump on the computer and make a real diagram
1634944305536.png
 
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