John Hutch
New Member
It is much better not to have a problem than to make a mistake reading the data.
What is the "normal" average output from a 2.2kw array in November?
- Thread starter Dadoftheturkeykids
- Start date
sunshine_eggo
Victron's little biatch
Don't sweat it. You learned a couple things:
1) don't rely on a "summary" value when troubleshooting an issue that is comprised of multiple components.
2) PV production in overcast/partially overcast or shaded/partially shaded conditions is butt.
No shame ever in asking anything
.What state are you in (what's temp there today)?
Where did you get those current (Amperage) readings from?
I suspect those are going to batteries @ 12.8V and not from your solar modules.
Numbers below are what I think you are getting. The Module numbers should be a bit higher since it 98-99% efficient, but kept same to compare easily.
Mppt 1 and 3 are the shaded ones? The module V of these also gives a hint how long they were/still are in full/partial shade.
Mppt#1 12.5a@12.8v = 160W
Mppt#2 19.5a@12.8v = 250W
Mppt#3 10.6a@12.8v = 136W
Mppt#4 23.4a@12.8v = 299W
Module#1 4.7a@34.0v = 160W
Module#2 7.7a@32.4v = 250W
Module#3 4.2a@32.7v = 136W
Module#4 10.0a@29.8v = 299W
Mppt#2 19.5a@32.4v = 632W
Mppt#3 10.6a@32.7v = 346W
Mppt#4 23.4a@29.8v = 697W
teal95
Solar Wizard
November is bad. December is worse. It starts to get better in January with fewer overcast days.
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
Thank you everyone! Always so helpful here!
Probably about time to go around with a wrench and screwdriver to ensure everything is nice and tight still.
Thank you all for the real world examples of what yall are getting in November, I think things are working as expected, I just jumped the gun thinking something was up.
By the way, my morning shadow should be on panels 1,2, and 3 and recedes in order of
3-2-1. I'm not sure why 1 and 3 were showing lower numbers. I checked on them with my drone last week, but probably time to put up a ladder, and make sure I'm all good up there as well.
Again, thanks everyone
This about sums it up, I got so used to everything just working in unison as a whole. It's easy to forget that I set all this up and should have known to check individual components.
Probably about time to go around with a wrench and screwdriver to ensure everything is nice and tight still.
Thank you all for the real world examples of what yall are getting in November, I think things are working as expected, I just jumped the gun thinking something was up.
By the way, my morning shadow should be on panels 1,2, and 3 and recedes in order of
3-2-1. I'm not sure why 1 and 3 were showing lower numbers. I checked on them with my drone last week, but probably time to put up a ladder, and make sure I'm all good up there as well.
Again, thanks everyone
Numbers in November can be impressive. Yesterday my #1 array achieved 7.1kWh from 1600W worth of panels. I saw a couple of times it was peaking at 1400W. Sunny and cold is just about ideal. It helped that my batteries were down to 20% and had plenty of room to accept power.
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
After I posted them cc numbers I did see a couple spikes that were peaking around 1.9kw. Maybe she just wanted a little attention after all
By the way I'm in Michigan, not the most ideal location for solar but I'm working with what I have
sunshine_eggo
Victron's little biatch
What shunt (sorry if I missed it)?
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
teal95
Solar Wizard
For the vast majority of MI Lake Michigan also throws a wrench in things with generating cloud cover. We frequently only get a few sunny days in November, December and into January. Things usually start to clear up towards the end of January when the lake finally gets cold enough and freezes over enough to quit throwing so much moisture into the air.
sunshine_eggo
Victron's little biatch
Just checking. Was hoping it was a Victron Smartshunt. One of the benefits of the Smartshunt is it logs the last 46 days of data, which gives you a more accurate history of performance.
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
Not to mention the intentional spraying out artificial clouds from airplanes that creates a thick cloud cover quite a few times a month
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
That sounds very useful, does it work independently? Meaning I don't need to go buy more blue things to get them readings?
sunshine_eggo
Victron's little biatch
The smartshunt is a standalone device that tracks your battery's voltage, current and state of charge. When accessed through the bluetooth interface on your phone/tablet, it will report the last 46 days of values it tracks.
The smartshunt bluetooth range is not great - 10-15'.
ReddyKilowatt
New Member
This site has what you need. Set up your system and then play with the loss factor. It will match up nicely.
PVWatts
Estimates the energy production and cost of energy of grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) energy systems throughout the world. It allows homeowners, small building owners, installers and manufacturers to easily develop estimates of the performance of potential PV installations
Then, you can go here to get specific forecasts and nowcasts on actual production in your local weather.
Solar API and Weather Forecasting Tool | Solcast™
Created using a global fleet of weather satellites. Independently validated. Free to try. Access our data in just a few minutes with the Solcast API Toolkit.
www.solcast.com
ReddyKilowatt
New Member
I'm getting 2050 right now from a nominal 6 kw. It should peak at about 2500 watts. These panels are laying flat and a little dirty.
The sites I posted are extremely useful when you are trying to check or forecast production.
Dadoftheturkeykids
Arc Angel
Thank you, so 40% can be expected.
Thank you!
I wanna get one of these shunty mcshunts now!
ricardocello
Watching and Learning
You've got to love Eggo recruiting new Smurfs by showing off Victron capabilities.Thank you!
I wanna get one of these shunty mcshunts now!
But seriously, these shunts are very useful devices.
Suijkerbuijk
I cannot be held responsible for this information.
Jip.
800 watts here and just have total 150watts hour on a day
Lol.
Winter always sucks
And no use to set some small windturbines.
Thare is no wind lol.
ReddyKilowatt
New Member
Please do not draw that conclusion. You have to calculate this based on
- angles of your panels
- latitude and longitude
- date and time of day
- cloud and haze cover
- temperature of the panels
- dirtiness of the panels
- load (do you have sufficient load to maximize energy transfer out of the panels)
- a fudge factor to cover panel age, wiring loss, conversion loss, all other loss
Do this the very hard way, or fill in your info on the two sites I gave you. They are a real gift to us.
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