kiekie1:
Always count on us for fast waybills and supplies within Lagos state. Due to current dollar rate issue, i havnt posted prices for a while but will update everyone soon....Feel free to call me for now and make your order, Thanks.

zeestone99:
Hello we have sharp and solar world solar panels at very affordable prices, call 08117398294, 08033913155 or email Info@monzpowersolutions.com

pdozie:


Sent you both PM and SMS yet no replies

Need info on Trojan batteries and other items - patdozie@yahoo. com

durodee:

Battery Desulfation
Find out how to desulfate/desulphate and rejuvenate lead acid batteries
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Lead plates in a lead acid battery - battery desulfation

A Lead Acid Battery is made up of plates of lead in a case filled with an electrolyte (dilute sulphuric acid). When the battery discharges, some of the lead from the plates combines with the electrolyte to make lead sulfate (PbSO4) which builds up on the surface of the plates as crystals (as electrons leave the battery as electricity). This is called sulfation.

When the battery is next charged this process is reversed with the lead sulfate crystals breaking down - returning the lead to the plates and restoring the electrolyte to its original composition. BUT, each time a battery goes through this discharge/charge cycle some of the lead sulfate crystals remain and over time harden, thicken, and grow over the surface of the lead plates. This is a particular problem when batteries are left discharged for long periods of time and when they are deeply discharged.

Lead sulfate on the plates of a battery acts like an insulator reducing the plate area in contact with electrolyte. Over time this build up of lead sulfate crystals will result in a battery which cannot hold much charge - i.e. effectively a dead battery which needs to be replaced.

Reconditioning a Lead Acid Battery
Desulfation (also know as Reconditioning or electrolyte stratification) offers a way for dead batteries to be brought back to life and for tired batteries to be rejuvenated. It can also be used every few months to keep batteries in the best possible condition all the time. Desulfation will not bring batteries with a shorted cell or worn out plates back to their former glory, but it is a valuable tool for anyone depending on battery storage for power who cannot afford to buy new batteries.

When lead sulphate crystals build up on the lead plates, it is not an easy task to remove them and thereby recondition the battery. Breaking down hardened crystal build up and dissolving cystals back into the electrolyte requires a charging voltage much higher than would ever be used to actually charge the battery. But, if you were to put this constant high voltage through the battery it would overheat, release gas, and could potentially explode. Therefore pulse conditioning is used to give very short blasts of high voltage sufficient to shift the lead sulphate crystals without overly raising the temperature of the battery as a whole.

Desulfation pulses shown on a scope

Every lead acid battery has a resonant frequency at around 2 to 6 megahertz. If pulses of electricity (high frequency, high voltage, but low power) are sent into the battery, rhythmic beating (resonance) of the plates causes the crystalline deposits to break up and the sulphate returns to the electrolyte solution.

This process takes three to four weeks typically during which time the battery must be trickle charged (in parallel with the desulphator) so that the battery ends up reconditioned and fully charged. Below is a video showing the lead plates inside two identical batteries - one which has been desulphating for three weeks, and one which has been left in its original sulfated condition.



Note that the voltage measured across the battery terminals will drop as the desulphation takes place as the internal resistance of the cells is reduced by the clearing of the crystals on the lead plates. At the same time, the amount of charge that the battery can hold will be increasing.

Build a Battery Desulfator
Circuit diagram for a low power 12V lead acid battery desulfator

A DIY battery desulfator circuit originally published in the US-based Home Power magazine has been successfully made for many years all over the world. Here are links to the instructions to build the Low Power (circuit design above, and finished example circuit pictured below) and the High Power versions of the circuit. These links are to be found together with a lot of other useful information here.
(http://www.reuk.co.uk/Battery-Desulfation.htm)

durodee:
Tech gurus should visit the site and mass produce for us in Naija now!

JUO:
I saw this and decided to share http://solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-angle-calculator.html
does this mean solar panel shouldn't be permanent? ( installation)

hisenjos:

Update!
My Saga continues
We were immediately able to a replacement equipment -Sunny Minicentral from another source for the project.
Now the problem is that Richmond has refused to refund my excess funds over 150k with him.
Says he has to sell the equipment first -the one he refused to release to me or that he may refund my money on "humanitarian grounds"
It has been 30 days now and counting.
He is not responding to my messages either.
Like I said, one of my worst business experiences.

hisenjos:
Update
4 months and counting. Still waiting for a refund.
16m plus of business and get treated this way?
Still dumbfounded and shaking my head.
See last communication with Richmond.

JUO:
I saw this and decided to share http://solarelectricityhandbook.com/solar-angle-calculator.html
does this mean solar panel shouldn't be permanent? ( installation)

netotse:
My Chairmen...maximum hailings,

I need a bit of advice, I am thinking of getting an inverter in the next couple of weeks, something in the range of 3-4KW, solar panels might come later.

I'm worried about the inability of most of the chargers in the market to charge the batteries properly(float charge vs bulk charge),
apart from the high end inverters, is there any other solution anyone can recommend?

Does it make sense to connect a charge controller (without the solar panels) just to make sure the inverter batteries are charged properly?
I will want to get at least 400AH of power and it would be a waste if the inverter can't charge the batteries properly.

pdozie:
My Learned people, please help me out with this (CC: Chris, Saipro, Abinafu, Rich etc)

My 2.5KW panels runs off a 45A controller. With a 2x5 configuration (2 in series and five parallel strings). Each Panel has approx of 8.6A which is 43A for the 5 strings. Rated 24v.
I plan adding about 2 more panels. If I add the string to the existing ones, it will take the Current to 51.6A. That means the 45A controller will leave some juice to waste right?

Option one is to upgrade to 60Amp controller

Option two is to get another 45A controller, connect the new panels to it and parallel the output of the controllers

Option three is to change the strings configuration 3 x 4 (3 in series & 4 parallel strings). This will maintain a current of 34.4A which the existing controller can handle. But the voltage from the 3 strings could rise as much as 123v.

Option 3 is more economical but is there Any implications or trade-off in terms of efficiency? The Controller can handle max of 150v though.

I saw the The following attached diagrams in the controller manual. (Battery Current Vs Array Voltage) and (Tristar MPPT 48v Efficiency). One is showing that Current to the battery starts reducing at 140v, which seems OK for my option 3. The other is showing efficiency is higher at lower voltage.

Please advice

pdozie:
My Learned people, please help me out with this (CC: Chris, Saipro, Abinafu, Rich etc)

My 2.5KW panels runs off a 45A controller. With a 2x5 configuration (2 in series and five parallel strings). Each Panel has approx of 8.6A which is 43A for the 5 strings. Rated 24v.
I plan adding about 2 more panels. If I add the string to the existing ones, it will take the Current to 51.6A. That means the 45A controller will leave some juice to waste right?

Option one is to upgrade to 60Amp controller

Option two is to get another 45A controller, connect the new panels to it and parallel the output of the controllers

Option three is to change the strings configuration 3 x 4 (3 in series & 4 parallel strings). This will maintain a current of 34.4A which the existing controller can handle. But the voltage from the 3 strings could rise as much as 123v.

Option 3 is more economical but is there Any implications or trade-off in terms of efficiency? The Controller can handle max of 150v though.

I saw the The following attached diagrams in the controller manual. (Battery Current Vs Array Voltage) and (Tristar MPPT 48v Efficiency). One is showing that Current to the battery starts reducing at 140v, which seems OK for my option 3. The other is showing efficiency is higher at lower voltage.

Please advice

netotse:
My Chairmen...maximum hailings,

I need a bit of advice, I am thinking of getting an inverter in the next couple of weeks, something in the range of 3-4KW, solar panels might come later.

I'm worried about the inability of most of the chargers in the market to charge the batteries properly(float charge vs bulk charge),
apart from the high end inverters, is there any other solution anyone can recommend?

Does it make sense to connect a charge controller (without the solar panels) just to make sure the inverter batteries are charged properly?
I will want to get at least 400AH of power and it would be a waste if the inverter can't charge the batteries properly.

Falcon + like all Su-Kam's products, uses DT-6S Six Stage Charging technology for efficient charging and longer battery life. Su-Kam is the only company in the world to use this advanced charging technology in its inverters
Desulphation: This stage breaks down the release of buildup of sulphate
Soft start Charging: The vitals of battery are checked and gives a low voltage, low current charge to charge the battery 15-20%
Bulk Charging: Here, maximum charge is given to the battery and battery is charged 80%
Absorption: This stage takes the battery's charge to 100 percent by slowing down the charging
Equalization: Then comes the equalization stage where high voltage is given to shake the electrolyte of the battery and make the electrolyte more efficient for charging to make sure the battery can hold the charge
Float: Here, the battery is 100% charged and the charge is kept constant and maintained for a long period of time.

Im2Busy2Bother:



My friend used this type of flexible cable. He bought 16mm ( @ the rate of N350 per yard) You may buy lesser size.

Find attached picture

pdozie:
My Learned people, please help me out with this (CC: Chris, Saipro, Abinafu, Rich etc)

My 2.5KW panels runs off a 45A controller. With a 2x5 configuration (2 in series and five parallel strings). Each Panel has approx of 8.6A which is 43A for the 5 strings. Rated 24v.
I plan adding about 2 more panels. If I add the string to the existing ones, it will take the Current to 51.6A. That means the 45A controller will leave some juice to waste right?

Option one is to upgrade to 60Amp controller

Option two is to get another 45A controller, connect the new panels to it and parallel the output of the controllers

Option three is to change the strings configuration 3 x 4 (3 in series & 4 parallel strings). This will maintain a current of 34.4A which the existing controller can handle. But the voltage from the 3 strings could rise as much as 123v.

Option 3 is more economical but is there Any implications or trade-off in terms of efficiency? The Controller can handle max of 150v though.

I saw the The following attached diagrams in the controller manual. (Battery Current Vs Array Voltage) and (Tristar MPPT 48v Efficiency). One is showing that Current to the battery starts reducing at 140v, which seems OK for my option 3. The other is showing efficiency is higher at lower voltage.

Please advice

netotse:
My Chairmen...maximum hailings,

I need a bit of advice, I am thinking of getting an inverter in the next couple of weeks, something in the range of 3-4KW, solar panels might come later.

I'm worried about the inability of most of the chargers in the market to charge the batteries properly(float charge vs bulk charge),
apart from the high end inverters, is there any other solution anyone can recommend?

Does it make sense to connect a charge controller (without the solar panels) just to make sure the inverter batteries are charged properly?
I will want to get at least 400AH of power and it would be a waste if the inverter can't charge the batteries properly.

Optimixim:
Buy your US flooded battery at 75k each . Very rugged as trojan and hoppecke. Mind you I have worked with solarshop and other big solar companies in lagos. Kiekie1 and remond7... You know what I mean sir so kindly contact me for your US battery...
08167327440

Was doing some jobs with diamond bank and zenith recently . All tech masters are right with their deduction over how the solar system works. But here comes a talkless man optimixim from solarshop, have done projects including ghana and many other companies.

richmon74:


Oga

I suggest you do a detailed review of the battery itself and convinced us on why the battery is value for money rather than tell us your own credentials because we are not buying you but the battery.

bigrovar:


I had similar in mind when search for an inverter. I wanted something capable of intelligent charge without draining my pocket. In the end I settled for the su-kam falcon+ which is capable of different state of charge (They called it fuzzy charging) it also came with a temperature sensor for ATC (automatic tempreture compensation)


I got it for 33k (1050VA) For your use case you might want to look at their Fusion series which should have the capacity you seek.

GeorgeD1:
ugeh,
let me try and reply you again. hopefully this time the post stays:

never make the mistake of charging your battery bank directly from your solar panels. as you have already experienced, you risk losing your batteries to overcharging and overheating. besides it's very dangerous!
always connect your solar array to your battery bank through a charge controller.

now to your question: how will an mppt charge controller increase the output of your array?

to answer this question, you need to know how a solar charge controller works.

a normal charge controller charges your battery bank at battery voltage irrespective of its rated output. for example, a 200w panel rated at 32v, 6.25a charging a 24v battery bank, you will get

24v*6.25a = 150watts. but your panel is supposed to be 200w, so (200w-150w) you lose 50w! on any given day no matter how bright the sun is in the sky. it even gets worse if your battery voltage is low.

lets say you used your inverter heavily overnight and your battery bank voltage dropped to 18v. in the morning your panels will only be outputting:

18v*6.25a = 112.5watts. you lose about 87.5watts! suddenly your 200w panel is only as good as a 100w panel, half what you paid for!
now, with an mppt solar charge controller, the charge controller looks at the output of the panels, and compares it to the battery voltage. it then figures out what is the best power that the panel can put out to charge the battery. it takes this and converts it to best voltage to get the maximum current into the battery. most modern mppt's are around 93-97% efficient in the conversion. you typically get a 20 to 45% power gain in cloudy weather and 10-15% in bright sunlight.


first of all, what is an mppt controller?


an mppt, or maximum power point tracker is an electronic dc to dc converter that optimizes the match between the solar array (pv panels), and the battery bank. to put it simply, it converts a higher voltage dc output from your solar panels down to the lower voltage needed to charge your batteries.

for example using the same 200w solar panel above,

assuming your battery is low, at 24 volts. an mppt controller takes that 32volts at 6.25amps and converts it down, so that what the battery gets is now 8.33 amps at 24 volts. Now you still have almost 200 watts, your money's worth.

24v*8.33 = 199.92 approx 200w.

assume your battery bank voltage is low, it even gets better:

18v*11.1 = 199.8 approx 200w
where with a normal charge controller you lose power the lower you batter voltage,
with an mppt charge controller, you get more current and your panel's rated power
when you need it most.