Solar info
I'm intending to add solar to our rig when I get it figured out. Looking to do more than trickle charge my chassis battery. Looking to go off grid completely (and off generator too) for boondocking. A...
Forum Discussion
The voltage from each of the 3 x 235 W panels in series is around 100 V to minimize voltage drop. This goes through a Morningstar charge controller which reduces voltage to whatever the battery suite (peak power tracking)requires (45 to 60 V).
The panels do have bypass diodes but older son Cary (who I am asking questions of at this time and who 6 years of research at NMSU alternative energy labs and 22 years of design/fabrication experience) says their main purpose is to prevent over-charging.
The voltage to the Magnum inverter is 48 V nominal.
A second controller might improve slightly but the expense probably is not efficacious.
We just had 3 days of snow and temperatures down to -4 F (-19 C). Gosh, solar doesn't work that well with 6" of snow on the panels. However, the 9.7 kW-hours of LFP was only down by 30% (Elaine left the inverter on overnight twice and that takes almost 60 W (5 amps at 12 V or 1.1 amp at 54 V). The forced-air heater uses about 1 amp of 54 V (5 amps) so we have well over 100 hours of run time on the forced air-heater. We did use the Olympian Wave 8 to help heat but kept the forced air heater on high at night to keep the basement warm and the pipes from freezing. We usually set the heater at 45 to 50 at night if the temperature is above freezing (we used to set it at 38 but we are now 73 and getting a bit more woosy). The interior was kept around 65 for this purpose (keeping basement warm) and I much prefer 45 or so for sleeping.
Sun came out today and we charged over 2500 W and voltage is at 53.8 V.
We are flying to Guatemala tomorrow out of Santa Fe, NM for 8 to 10 weeks of Spanish lessons and travel.
Figured it was time to learn to speak the language after one winter in Baja and three in Yucatan and Guatemela (don't need it in Belize). There are just to many great places in the Americas where the populace is not expertly conversant in English.
Our lack of Spanish was noted in particular after the wreck just west of Orizaba in March. Elaine broke 3 ribs and 8 bones in right wrist (compound fracture - bones were sticking out 2" or so). The only damage I had was bruised right lower leg (whipped up against dash boarding). Elaine was operated immediately upon reaching hospital in Orizaba (wonderful hospital) and I was examined in a green robe. I thought the nurse asked me "Tiene dolares?" Do you have dollars? What he had asked of course was "Tiene dolores?" Do you have pain. We had good friends in Orizaba who visited each day. I told them this story and they had to sit down laughing. Son Cary and grand-daughter drove down 1700 miles to carry our possessions from the wrecking yard and we visited with the family of a friend of hers in Puebla. I told the story to Dr. Cuatamazo (radiologist) and he fell on the table laughing - and he was not laughing with me.
We will be traveling to southern Arizona when we return and then through Mid-West and across Trans-Labrador Highway and hopefully 4 to 8 weeks on Newfoundland.
I generally learn a lot from these fora.
Reed and Elaine Cundiff
The panels do have bypass diodes but older son Cary (who I am asking questions of at this time and who 6 years of research at NMSU alternative energy labs and 22 years of design/fabrication experience) says their main purpose is to prevent over-charging.
The voltage to the Magnum inverter is 48 V nominal.
A second controller might improve slightly but the expense probably is not efficacious.
We just had 3 days of snow and temperatures down to -4 F (-19 C). Gosh, solar doesn't work that well with 6" of snow on the panels. However, the 9.7 kW-hours of LFP was only down by 30% (Elaine left the inverter on overnight twice and that takes almost 60 W (5 amps at 12 V or 1.1 amp at 54 V). The forced-air heater uses about 1 amp of 54 V (5 amps) so we have well over 100 hours of run time on the forced air-heater. We did use the Olympian Wave 8 to help heat but kept the forced air heater on high at night to keep the basement warm and the pipes from freezing. We usually set the heater at 45 to 50 at night if the temperature is above freezing (we used to set it at 38 but we are now 73 and getting a bit more woosy). The interior was kept around 65 for this purpose (keeping basement warm) and I much prefer 45 or so for sleeping.
Sun came out today and we charged over 2500 W and voltage is at 53.8 V.
We are flying to Guatemala tomorrow out of Santa Fe, NM for 8 to 10 weeks of Spanish lessons and travel.
Figured it was time to learn to speak the language after one winter in Baja and three in Yucatan and Guatemela (don't need it in Belize). There are just to many great places in the Americas where the populace is not expertly conversant in English.
Our lack of Spanish was noted in particular after the wreck just west of Orizaba in March. Elaine broke 3 ribs and 8 bones in right wrist (compound fracture - bones were sticking out 2" or so). The only damage I had was bruised right lower leg (whipped up against dash boarding). Elaine was operated immediately upon reaching hospital in Orizaba (wonderful hospital) and I was examined in a green robe. I thought the nurse asked me "Tiene dolares?" Do you have dollars? What he had asked of course was "Tiene dolores?" Do you have pain. We had good friends in Orizaba who visited each day. I told them this story and they had to sit down laughing. Son Cary and grand-daughter drove down 1700 miles to carry our possessions from the wrecking yard and we visited with the family of a friend of hers in Puebla. I told the story to Dr. Cuatamazo (radiologist) and he fell on the table laughing - and he was not laughing with me.
We will be traveling to southern Arizona when we return and then through Mid-West and across Trans-Labrador Highway and hopefully 4 to 8 weeks on Newfoundland.
I generally learn a lot from these fora.
Reed and Elaine Cundiff
