salam12:


So far you've given out following info:

1) Number of batteries
2) Number of panels

Please shed more lights on this:

1) Type of inverter and voltage setting
2) Wiring arrangement for your panels
3) Wiring arrangement of your batteries
4) Estimated load - your daily total energy requirement
5) Pictures of panel installation and orientation
6) Pictures for your inverter and controller

I have a 5KVa inverter and I believe it is a 48V inverter
Wiring arrangement of panels - I don't know how to go about this
Wiring arrangement of Batteries - I think it is connected in series something like that
Pictures - I cannot provide pictures because I am not at home.

Thanks

Boss13:


I have a 5KVa inverter and I believe it is a 48V inverter
Wiring arrangement of panels - I don't know how to go about this
Wiring arrangement of Batteries - I think it is connected in series something like that
Pictures - I cannot provide pictures because I am not at home.

Thanks

We need to have an idea of how the panels r wired to be sure they are wired properly...or at least a picture of ur charge controller in action...showing the solar harvest.
ur inverter being 48v, and ur charge controller being pwm , this implies that ur panels will be connected in series/parallel to still give 48v ~`60v output
since you cant provide any/all of this info...ur best option is to take a professional to ur home to inspect and advice you on next step

Boss13:


You sound like a professional. Because of the stress and the money I have invested, I decided to go online to study. I noticed that some guys connect only the solar panel to the inverter via solar charge controller and they only have power when there is sunshine.

Anyways I have a 12v batteries 150amp. I screamed to my installer that I need mppt and they said mppt will cause overheating/overcharging or something else but they discouraged me. My Solar panel charges at 66volts but according to my installer, whose judgement I now doubt, said the controller regulates the charge to the volt of the batteries. Now my 150amp batteries seems to operate at 50v. I also have an external charger that tries to boost the batteries but immediately I load, it drops to 50v.

I am tired and frustrated. I currently used less than 10 percent of my inverter load and doing my calculation that is 500watts I believe

connecting just the solar to inverter, and not having batteries means that you dont store the solar harvest...once the sun goes down..then ur system will flat line......u already hv batteries so ur system shud be hooked to the panels tru the charge controller.

mppt doesnt cause any overcharging...its just that its more expensive, so if the installer is fraudulent...he will collect money for mppt usually 100k n above for 60amp mppt n then buy 60amp pwm..wch wud be around 40k or so.

u said ur solar panel charges at 66v?...this i assume is the output from the panels wch it sends to the charge controller...wch might be 24v panels hooked up in series...cos even though the panel is written 24v..it usually produces upto 36v in bright sunlight n maybe 30v on a normal day

your issue is complex, u dont seem to hv much idea abt the connections, so trying to troubleshoot the fault from the internet is mission impossible,,,,,,,i blv you hv spent a lot of money already..and its still not working...this is the time to invite a profesional to go tru ur setup..
pbsolar /richmond are proffesional installers...contact them, they would help you correct ur setup and enjoy maximum satisfaction for ur money

Where can I get a desulphator?

I also need an affordable panel that can put out more than 24V on average to push charge through to a 24v battery setup.

abunafiu:


@ saipro, this is exactly what I told u during my last visit to your house.

I remember saying he definately intends to maintain 50% dod at every point in town. And if by chance the bank is drained above 50% then... the xantrex has a super charger that can do the corrections in few hours with a generator and this is only needed only once in a while.

Indeed, you did mention him having a backup plan for charging the baterries. That quells my fear on the three-day cloudy spells that love to hit without warning. Kudos!

He however has been evasive on load estimates. I guess he has his reason(s). Cheers!

Boss13:


I have a 5kva inverter, 8 units of 150amp batteries, 60amp PWM solar control charger, 2050Watts Solar panel (8 solar panels 250W but one 300W) and honestly I am not enjoying 24 hours uninterrupted power supply and true, I am 1.2million naira deducted. I only discovered that my batteries were refurbished and sold to me as new. My mistake was to send someone to Alaba.

Please guys, would my problem be resolved if I change my batteries to 200amp batteries? It was extremely painful to sleep with generator yesterday especially when you have solar panels on your roof.

Before you change your batteries, monitor your harvest and consumption. You have 300 AH in batteries which should take you through the night with the refrigerator and freezer switched off. You can power a few fans and a few lights through the night. Your panels add up to 2300 I am sure there is a reason for using the 300 W panel. At 50 V your batteries are not really fully charged. They should float between 52 and 54. During the bulk and absorb phase they should see between 58 and 60 Volts. Check the settings on your controller and make sure they match the battery type. I use MPPT chargers, and for the amount of money you spent on the panels and batteries you should have sprung for a really good one. It is the difference between getting your batteries to last a long time and replacing them in a very short period of time. I have had enough issues with cheap controllers and failed batteries that is makes economic sense to buy better controllers

I'm really jealous of you guys men!

I've been thinking this up for like 2 years now, but it's time to act.

Tony Stark mode activated

earthrealm:


connecting just the solar to inverter, and not having batteries means that you dont store the solar harvest...once the sun goes down..then ur system will flat line......u already hv batteries so ur system shud be hooked to the panels tru the charge controller.

mppt doesnt cause any overcharging...its just that its more expensive, so if the installer is fraudulent...he will collect money for mppt usually 100k n above for 60amp mppt n then buy 60amp pwm..wch wud be around 40k or so.

u said ur solar panel charges at 66v?...this i assume is the output from the panels wch it sends to the charge controller...wch might be 24v panels hooked up in series...cos even though the panel is written 24v..it usually produces upto 36v in bright sunlight n maybe 30v on a normal day

your issue is complex, u dont seem to hv much idea abt the connections, so trying to troubleshoot the fault from the internet is mission impossible,,,,,,,i blv you hv spent a lot of money already..and its still not working...this is the time to invite a profesional to go tru ur setup..
pbsolar /richmond are proffesional installers...contact them, they would help you correct ur setup and enjoy maximum satisfaction for ur money

I gave the installer N80,000 for the solar controller, actually it is the third controller I am buying and I specifically told him MPPT and he told me MPPT causes overcharging.

How can I reach richmond or pbsolar?

chris81964:


Before you change your batteries, monitor your harvest and consumption. You have 300 AH in batteries which should take you through the night with the refrigerator and freezer switched off. You can power a few fans and a few lights through the night. Your panels add up to 2300 I am sure there is a reason for using the 300 W panel. At 50 V your batteries are not really fully charged. They should float between 52 and 54. During the bulk and absorb phase they should see between 58 and 60 Volts. Check the settings on your controller and make sure they match the battery type. I use MPPT chargers, and for the amount of money you spent on the panels and batteries you should have sprung for a really good one. It is the difference between getting your batteries to last a long time and replacing them in a very short period of time. I have had enough issues with cheap controllers and failed batteries that is makes economic sense to buy better controllers

Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

"BEEN TRYING TO POST THIS SINCE LAST W...SPAM BOT WAHALA, HAD to use pictures"

@earth realm, thanks a bunch bro. Your help is much appreciated. Will give feedback as soon as we make d suggested corrections. Thanks again.

Boss13:


Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

If your batteries are flooded wet cell baterries, all might not be lost yet. A desulphator could still glean some meaningful life from those batteries. I've done lots of reviving of flooded and even VRLA batteries. Gel batteries aren't so responsive to attempts at reviving.

Boss13:


Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

Next time make sure d voltage and current rating of d ba3 is tested wit a meter 4 u 2 c

Boss13:


Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

All hope not yet lost.
As previously stated in one of the posts, charging 48V system with 50V is total waste of time and your external charger barely putting out 54V to the batteries will never get the batteries fully charged. The more reason battery voltage dropped to 50V moment the system is loaded.
Search for pbase solar on facebook, you will get his contact details there.

Saipro:


If your batteries are flooded wet cell baterries, all might not be lost yet. A desulphator could still glean some meaningful life from those batteries. I've done lots of reviving of flooded and even VRLA batteries. Gel batteries aren't so responsive to attempts at reviving.

I think my batteries are gel batteries

salam12:


All hope not yet lost.
As previously stated in one of the posts, charging 48V system with 50V is total waste of time and your external charger barely putting out 54V to the batteries will never get the batteries fully charged. The more reason battery voltage dropped to 50V moment the system is loaded.
Search for pbase solar on facebook, you will get his contact details there.

Ok thanks off to Facebook

Thanks guys PBase Solar has been to my place. I think my installation is pretty messed up. I have to revamp it entirely

Trippledots:
I enjoy this thread alot....just reading n looking at pixs is exciting. anyway let me drop some quick hints about circuitry


1. d farther your battery is from ur panels and d higher d current in ur cables, the more losses you get from ur panels

2. mppt is best suited for cold/temperate regions n high capacity setups. pwm charge controllers are not so bad either n are better suited for warmer regions.(personally I have a very small, in fact micro setup iv been using for ab0ut 2years now n still running. I built my charge controller myself n as basic as it is in operation, my not-so fairly used batteries lasted a year plus before I replaced dem.)

3. d higher your panel volt difference from ur battery bank voltage, the less the amount of power harvested from your panels.

4. lastly, for really large capacity and longer usage you can look into gravity operated hydro systems. This system uses potential energy of water instead of battery to store energy, and is touted to last longer than batteries would.

weldone guys!

well-done bro, can u please expatiate on ur number four point. Thanks

Penuelseun:
well-done bro, can u please expatiate on ur number four point. Thanks

Thanks. 'Another type of hydropower technology is called pumped storage. In a pumped storage plant, water is pumped from a lower reservoir to a higher reservoir during off-peak times when electricity is relatively cheap, using electricity generated from other types of energy sources. Pumping the water uphill creates the potential to generate hydropower later on. When the hydropower power is needed, it is released back into the lower reservoir through turbines. Inevitably, some power is lost, but pumped storage systems can be up to 80 percent efficient. There is currently more than 90 GW of pumped storage capacity worldwide, with about 20 percent of that in the United States. ' -culled from http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/our-energy-choices/renewable-energy/how-hydroelectric-energy.html#.VW_A9HAo8b0

Trippledots:




Thanks. 'Another type of hydropower technology is called pumped storage. In a pumped storage plant, water is pumped from a lower reservoir to a higher reservoir during off-peak times when electricity is relatively cheap, using electricity generated from other types of energy sources. Pumping the water uphill creates the potential to generate hydropower later on. When the hydropower power is needed, it is released back into the lower reservoir through turbines. Inevitably, some power is lost, but pumped storage systems can be up to 80 percent efficient. There is currently more than 90 GW of pumped storage capacity worldwide, with about 20 percent of that in the United States. ' -culled from http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/our-energy-choices/renewable-energy/how-hydroelectric-energy.html#.VW_A9HAo8b0

IS THIS REALLY FEASIBLE IN PRESENT day nigeria/UR HOME?....lets try to keep it simple -- KISS

i1:
Thanks in advance.
Please I want to know how much it will costs to setup a solar Inverter system to power the following
1. My television and dvd/home theatre
2. About 8 bulbs.
3. 3 standing fans for night use.
4. Charging laptops and phones.
This fuel scarcity chai...

House please answer me. I need an idea. Thanks

earthrealm:


IS THIS REALLY FEASIBLE IN PRESENT day nigeria/UR HOME?....lets try to keep it simple -- KISS

Was sharing a thought. that's all

i1:

House please answer me. I need an idea. Thanks

I need to knw d wattage of each of ur appliances n d hours u want dem ON and also ur state of location all dis wil help me in my design

earthrealm:
what is ur location?..how much are you willing to pay?....a pal in ph has the digital timer sockets for sale...only 2 units remaining now

pls hw much per unit

Pls guys which of dis is correct. Array peak amp hr= total wat-hr/eff. Of ba3/sun shine hr
Or Array peak amp hr = average amp hr per day/eff. Of ba3/ sun shine hr
Urgent pls

i1:

House please answer me. I need an idea. Thanks

this issue has been discussed extensively...read through especially the last 4 pages.....nobody gets any kobo for the advice we take time to write here.....and i just posted something very similar to your query again, just in the last page or so


for some1 to even want to attemp to answer ur questions again.....then you need to state the wattage of all those ur equipment, state how many hours u want to run them etc...divide them into day and night loads

[quote author=GeorgeD1 post=7591960]litaninja,
sorry for replying so late. your problem is a simple one.

since you already carried out an inventory of your estimated power consumption, your already on the right track to solving things.

now here we go:

1) total (it equipment) power consumption = 2000w

2) total expected run time/day = 14hrs

3) watt/hours per day  (2000*14) = 28,000watthours

4) assuming your using a 48v battery bank system voltage,

you will need a 28,000/48 = 584ah battery bank

if your using a 200ah battery, you need 4 batteries in series and
at least 3 battery banks wired in parallel, i.e 12pcs 200ah batteries
for your equipment to run without interuption.

5) you will need a minmum 3.5kv inverter to carry your load.

for recommendations, make sure you buy original zenith 200ah batteries.
personally that's what i use and i been using them close to 4yrs now without
fail. also, buy either nexus, sukam or cyberpower 3.5kva inverter for reliability.

also, you will no longer need those apc backup ups anymore. your inverter system
acts as a better and more robust ups system with longer storage.
To me I will recommend, 10units of 48v200Ah battery connected in parallel and 3.5KVA inverter if u are 2 run ur system 4 14hrs. I put dis in2 consideration in my calculation. 1.25 tolerance, ba3 efficiency 80%,dod 50%

There can be a series of things going on.
1. Your controller should be able to charge to the higher voltage that I mentioned. When the batteries are bad, they do't really resist a charge. Inability to get to 58 or 59 V is a function of the charger not the batteries. Do you have the right voltage from your PV? What type of charge controller do you have and how many amps is it?
2. What type of an external charger are you using and for how long do you charge the batteries?

Boss13:


Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

There can be a series of things going on.
1. Your controller should be able to charge to the higher voltage that I mentioned. When the batteries are bad, they do't really resist a charge. Inability to get to 58 or 59 V is a function of the charger not the batteries. Do you have the right voltage from your PV? Check the harvest from the panels. That will give you a clue.
2. What type of an external charger are you using and for how long do you charge the batteries?

Boss13:


Thank you so much. I made a terrible mistake. I contacted dubious and incompetent installers. The batteries I have now cannot charge more than 50V through solar and sometimes I use external charger which charges it to 53.7v. However, immediately I put on my load, it drops instantly to 50V. I have been told the batteries are fairly used and sold to me as new ones by wicked Alaba traders. The trader has promised me new ones tomorrow.

I have spent so much and I cannot concentrate any longer. My inverter went off this morning by 6:01am . I need assistance

chris81964:
There can be a series of things going on.
1. Your controller should be able to charge to the higher voltage that I mentioned. When the batteries are bad, they do't really resist a charge. Inability to get to 58 or 59 V is a function of the charger not the batteries. Do you have the right voltage from your PV? Check the harvest from the panels. That will give you a clue.
2. What type of an external charger are you using and for how long do you charge the batteries?

Actually, bad batteries will resist a charge. It depends on the cause of the "badness". Damaged cells are certain to cause a flat voltage despite high charging current/voltage.

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I stand corrected. In my experience with bad batteries they will charge very quickly and discharge as quickly. Does the cell have physical damage to cause what you describe?

Saipro:


Actually, bad batteries will resist a charge. It depends on the cause of the "badness". Damaged cells are certain to cause a flat voltage despite high charging current/voltage.

chris81964:
I stand corrected. In my experience with bad batteries they will charge very quickly and discharge as quickly. Does the cell have physical damage to cause what you describe?

Specifically, I'm referring to sulphated batteries (a consequence of persistent under-charging). That would be flooded, VRLA and AGM batteries (the most common types in RE). You're however correct too as that's one form of failure.