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  • Help. New to solar

    Hi I just purchased a off grid home. My system seems to be draining very quickly for the power that I am using. I did some renovations in the house before moving in and the system worked flawlessly running saws compressors and all my tools. Now that I am moved in it just seems to be draining very fast and not charging up like it was. I am only running a electric fridge the rest of my appliances are propane and only running some lights and TVs and a few other small items. I have 4 240 watt panels running to 8 12volt 100ah batteries a solar80 controller and a aimcorp 6000watt inverter. Should I think about adding more panels? And if i do that do in need to add more batteries to the bank?

  • #2
    Please check that all the panels are operating correctly. Are they wired in series or parallel via a combiner box ?
    Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
    || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
    || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

    solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
    gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

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    • #3
      The panels seem to be working correctly and they are wired series. I’m thinking maybe the batteries may be no good. The people i purchased the home from were only here a couple times a year. Could the batteries have gone bad from only getting use a few times a year?

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      • #4
        Originally posted by Joetrem621 View Post
        The panels seem to be working correctly and they are wired series. I’m thinking maybe the batteries may be no good. The people i purchased the home from were only here a couple times a year. Could the batteries have gone bad from only getting use a few times a year?
        Batteries need to be babied to last as long as they can. If they are wired in parallel or do not get a proper charge (between C/8 and C/12) they will fail due to uneven charging and discharging or sulfate due to too slow a charge rate.

        Also a very big inverter will be a drain on the batteries just being turned on without a load. That is because most inverters use up to 10% of their watt nameplate rating which would be 600watts per hour your inverter is turned on.

        Before you purchase anything else you will need to determine your daily watt hour usage and design your system from there.

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        • #5
          Okay thank you very much . I will start by checking the batteries and then go from there.

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          • #6
            I’m building my first system for my RV. I will have 400 ah of batteries wired to 12 volts, with 600 watts of panels to charge them. My calculations show that I will be able to run a 1000 watt inverter safely, and if I went to 24 VDC with 1200 watts of panels, I would be bale to run a 2000 watt inverter.

            So it seems your panels and batteries may be either under powering Your inverter, or I was way to conservative with my calculations.

            Could also be that if the inverter is plugged in, even not providing power, their could be much more draw then a 1000 watt inverter. Was recently told a 1500 watt inverter draws 30 watts an hour, so doing math in my head, If the 6000 watt invert daws 100 watts an hour just to be turned on, that would be 2400 watt hours a day, or 2 full batteries of power or 4 half batteries of power. So if my math is close to being right, which it easily could be wrong, I can see how the batteries could have been drained below 50% pretty easily, which will start to kill them quickly. Especially with an electric fridge, which who knows how long the fridge is actually running every day. Also, SunEagle who is loads smarter and experienced than me, says the inverter power draw could be 6 times what I stated.

            Once my 12 VDC, 600 watt panels, and 400 AH lead acid battery pack is built, I expect to be able to run LED lights, TV, DVD player, charge phones, and for higher draw, perhaps a single brew coffee maker. Any more power than that, I will be powering up my 2200 watt gas generator.

            So if my conservative calculations were done correctly, which they could be wrong, I think whoever put the system in could have done some better calculations.

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            • #7
              Refrigerators tend to be battery killers. I have a dedicated inverter for my fridge and the temperature control turns it on. To me you are short on panels and long term panels are cheaper than batteries. Remember you not only have to run everything but be able to recharge the battery. As an example of what can be done, I run my camp on only one battery and have PV hot water, refrigeration, and even a dishwasher with heated dry. I'm a controls guy so that comes easy. You just can't battery yourself out of problems. Panels are cheap.

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              • #8
                Okay so I have enough battery to hook up more panels without upping my bank?

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Joetrem621 View Post
                  Okay so I have enough battery to hook up more panels without upping my bank?
                  IMO, yes more panels can be added, but not nearly enough for a 6000 watt inverter and an electric fridge, I really recommend you get into the stickies and figure out what your power consumption is, and then if that is what you want get a battery bank about four times your daily need to get through one day, and another cloudy day.

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                  • #10
                    One thing I have noticed since spending more time at my cabin. Just about anything plugged in, even tho not turned on causes a parasitic drain on your system. Same like your inverter being too large for the system you have. I have only a 1500 watt inverter on a 48 volt sys. It draws 12-13 watts continuously. Most all modern appliances are this way. If your fridge has a defrost, there is one huge drain.

                    You mentioned during renovation it was not so much a problem. Now you are there with a lot of things plugged in and most will pull a little bit. This may be all the problem is if batteries check out. Being there all the time also means demand is constant instead of intermittent.

                    How are the batteries wired. Are they in series for 24 or 48 volt?

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Joetrem621 View Post
                      Okay so I have enough battery to hook up more panels without upping my bank?
                      To my understanding yes you have more than enough battery to add additional panels. You should be able to double your panels and still be good. Your charge controller should also be more than enough too. Like mentioned the inverter is too much load for your current supply.

                      You mention TV as plural and lights. Your lights need to be on a minimum at best and all low watt led. Tv's can draw up to 200 watts at 110 volts, so do the math there. Small full size fridge is also around 180-200 watts. not considering start up load. If it is opened a lot it runs a lot. All bets are off if a defrost model. At night there is nothing to replace what is used. So morning your batteries are starving for more juice and fridge is still taking. But wait your tv is on watching what the weather will be for the day. It adds up quick.

                      One more thing I noticed, unless conditions are 100% perfect, you will be lucky to get half the amount of watts from panels. Having 4 240 watt panels does not mean you have over 900 watts of power available. If you are using 200-400 watts at 110 volts, you are way short on panels for your needs. You may have slightly better results on the equator.
                      Last edited by Fordtrucksforever; 07-01-2020, 09:09 PM.

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                      • #12
                        They are wired in series for 24v

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                        • #13
                          Cared for batteries have a lifetime from 2-10 years, depending on brand. Box store Golf cart batteries minimum of 2 years, top of the line flooded batteries (HUP) are 10+ years
                          Just 1 deep discharge event can cut that in half
                          Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
                          || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
                          || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

                          solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
                          gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Today I got the chance to turn things on and find out how much load was put on my solar array. With just the inverter, it was consuming about 13 watts at 75 volts. Then I plugged in a cord with an LED tv and desktop pc that are NOT turned on. The usage jumped up to 45 watts. So I turn the tv on and usage increased to 115 watts. Add the pc and jumped to 240 watts. Since you are on a 24 volt setup consider doubling these numbers to get an idea of where your power is going.

                            With 8) 12 volt batteries, I am curious why the system is wired for 24 volts. You might check your charge controller to see if will work for 48 volts. Get a smaller inverter and double your panels. From what short amount of time I have been working with my system this is similar to what I figured out to work the best. Did you find out what condition your batteries are in?

                            If you find that consumption is heavy after the sun goes down then this is another problem. If you watch tv at night, with fridge also cycling, and anything that might draw heavy load even for a few minutes, that is a hard drain on your batteries without getting replaced immediately. If you can top off your batteries and then run everything you normally use for the night without much voltage drop, then your solar panels are lacking.

                            Today I at my cabin. Will be future residence when finished. Everything is on solar but a/c. As I am typing this it is very cloudy with no sun visible. My consumption is about 250 watts at 75 volts. But enough power is coming from panels to cover the consumption so no drain on the battereis. This means I dont have to worry later at night. I will cut way back by sunset. Then minimum usage until tomorrow.
                            Last edited by Fordtrucksforever; 07-04-2020, 02:53 PM.

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