Solar install progression

[Striider]

I am starting a diary for this project since it appears this will be an ongoing string of things to do.  My original thread is here:

http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2009/1/23/163227/642

I got the Deka forklift battery and wrestled it into the cabin this weekend.  $9.99 mini furniture dolly from HF was extremely handy for this!  Left the battery on it so I can easily move it around the cabin as needed, assuming the wheels don't go flat on one side.  I also hooked the inverter up to it and into the wiring of the cabin.  It is a bit messy at the moment, but it works well.  Being a former forklift battery, it had 2AWG wires hardwired onto the terminals.  These have been spliced onto the 4AWG cables that lead to my Xantrex 1800 inverter.  I also learned that my Honda EU2000i generator pulls 2 amps just sitting there even while off, but plugged into an outlet.  Go figure.  So, I installed the generator on it's own breaker and just switch that off or on when I need to use it.  Once I get the solar panels installed, I will not need it very often, so that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

One thing that is quite odd that I noticed is that this battery seems to gas constantly.  By constantly, I mean even when the inverter is totally shut off and it has been sitting idle overnight with no current use whatsoever.  The first day, I had the generator running to power a charger I had hooked to it.  This charger puts out a max of 8 amps, then tapered off to about 4 amps after a few hours of charging.  I then used the battery for power after dark to run a laptop and some computer speakers and a couple of lightbulbs.  The next morning when I checked on the battery, it was still bubbling slightly.  Any ideas if this is normal?  Thinking maybe it has to do with the change in altitude it has been through this weekend.  It went from 5280ish ft to 9500 ft.  

The replacement solar panels are in transit, and will hopefully be installed this weekend.  I am trying to figure out what gauge wire to take up with me, then I should be in good shape.

[Airstream]

Great to see the continuing story, thanks for posting! ((Pictures we want pictures))

Batteries bubbling away merrily long after charging is not altitude related, the electrolyte continues to circulate seeking density and temperature equilibrium and dissolved and microscopic trapped gas pockets combine and work their way out of the separator plates for days or even weeks.

If you want to consider altitude think about de-rating the inverter and battery charger electronics since the cooling air at 9500 feet is about 74% the density of sea level. We won't mention your water boils at 194~ F (91% of sea level heat) since any battery seeing anything near that is toast though adding maintaining water levels gets more important.

If you haven't already thought of it the Honda Eu2000 can be re-jetted for use at up to 15,000 feet elevation, 4-7k, 6-10k, 9-15k elevation jets are available here Plano Power Equipment and about now is the best economical thing you can do for saving $$$ on fuel and getting 1000's of hours service from that Honda.

[Striider]

Cool, I won't worry about my battery bubbling too much then.  I kept looking for dummy loads and such in my search for a reason.  Here are pictures of the battery install and the panels that showed up today.  I should be installing them this weekend.

http://www.fieldlines.com/comments/2009/2/26/15750/7221/10?mode=alone;showrate=1#10

This will also give you an idea of the type of cabin I am working with.  Got alot done this weekend, including moving the wood stove insert into the fireplace where it belonged, extending the stovepipe chimney to make that happen, setting up the battery, and putting up lots of sheetrock.  Man am I sore!  I am the skinny fella in the fireplace FYI.  Boy do I need to clean that lens...

[Striider]

Not sure why this didn't post before, but here are the photos.

http://picasaweb.google.com/striider/31309#

[jimjjnn]

Where on the roof are you goimg to mount those panels or are they going to be ground mounted?

If mounted on the roof, you will have shading from that fireplace chimeny.

Not a good idea.

[Striider]

Good thought.  I am planning up near the apex of the roof on the east side (right in the pictures).  Since I am not there all the time, I would much rather mount them on the roof high up to help with theft deterrence.  With the short chimney, it never hit the top of the roof at all.  I will check it again now that the chimney is taller, but the shade should be for a matter of 10-20 minutes from the 6" part of the chimney only RIGHT before the sun goes over the mountains and is long in the sky.  I doubt I will be making much power that late in the day but definitely a consideration.

[dnix71]

That's a nasty roof slope. I guess you get lots of snow. How will you keep them clear in the winter? If you fall from the roof trying to clean them it would ruin your day.

[jimjjnn]

With that steep of slope, I would assume tha there would be very little accunulation on the roof let alone the panels at the same angle.

I had an A-frame house a few years ago and the only accumulation I had was at the peak and edge of roof due to gutters at the edge. Lost a lot of gutters due to snow sliding off

[Striider]

Yeah, I need to measure it exactly, but I believe it's a 45 degree angle and we have had no snow accumulation at all except where the chimney meets the roof.  THe panels will shed the snow easier than the shingles, so that's no problem.  Also, I can make an extension for my truck's snow brush if it becomes a problem.

[Striider]

Partially due to tool mishaps and forgetfulness, it took a lot longer than I anticipated to actually install the panels, but I finally got them up late on Saturday.  The latest pictures are avaialable here:  

http://picasaweb.google.com/striider/32209#

Had a few challenges along the way, the least of which was wrangling them up a series of ladders by myself in the wind and getting the bolts lined up without dropping them or turning myself into a wind-powered human.  Ralph can attest to how strong the wind was Saturday, and at one point it chased me inside to take a break.  It was even stronger on Sunday, but on the bright side, these mounts appear very secure in strong wind.  

The panels seem to be putting the correct voltage and wattage, as I got up into the high 350 watt+ (28 amps or so) range on Sunday morning.

After I get my ground situation (or lack thereof) fixed up this weekend, I need to find DC breakers to install as well since it is all wired direct the the moment.  I also need some type of bus bars to get power over to the inverter now, as my battery cables go directly into the MX60.  Since this is a forklift battery, the terminals are permanently attached to the battery with no accessible bolts, so I have nowhere to hook the inverter to currently.

Thanks again for all the suggestions and help along the way, and please keep them coming.  I will update pictures with pictures of my ground spike install and the clean overall shot of the power area once I am closer to complete on the wiring.

[ghurd]

Nice.

Congrats!

G-

[luv2weld]

Eric,

Putting panels on a roof by yourself on a windy day

is a good way to learn Hang Gliding!!!!!

So you like the occasional adrenalin rush?!?!?!?

Ralph

[Striider]

Haha, yup!  I was leaning hard into the ladder, and kind of sliding the panel up in front of me hoping for no big gusts.  Was quite hair raising I tell you!  Looks like this weekend will be a good test of how much power I can get out them in overcast snowy conditions.

[luv2weld]

Unless you are already there, you may not get to your

place. We are getting hammered again with snow. Expecting

at least 8 to 12 inches. And probably drifting.

Ralph

[Striider]

Well, we are going to try.  Thanks for the warning, and I will keep you posted

[Striider]

Got there no problem last weekend. Snow was very light and we only got a couple of inches the whole weekend.  The panels were coated with a thin layer of ice on Saturday morning but no snow.  Seemed to affect output quite a bit until it melted off, then battery was full by 11 am.  Weather was semi-sunny with passing clouds.  

I think its time to consider a floor fan for summer use, and maybe a small refrigerator for the times we are there for week.  So far, 390 watts and this battery setup seems like plenty of power to run a drill, jigsaw intermittently on Saturday, charge cell phones, watch 2 movies on the 17" laptop at night and run 3 13 watt cfls for most of the dark hours before bed (3 hours).

One strange thing I noticed on Sunday morning though.  After the sun came up, the batteries ran up to 15 volts before the MX60 went into absorbing mode and told me battery full.  It leveled back out to 13 in 30 mins or so, but that was strange since I have it set to 14.4 volts max.

[Striider]

The system is running well.  I have yet to get lucky on a weekend and get 3 hours of strong sunlight to equalize the battery, but it seems to be holding up fine.  It is usually charged by late morning or early afternoon if I really am using alot of tools.  I am guilty of not measuring specific gravity yet, and notice a tendency for a random cell to get low on water from weekend to weekend.  I have no idea where to purchase a good hydrometer.

Also need a distribution block that accepts 2-4 gauge cables.  I purchased some DC breakers, but have no decent cable ends to put on my bare cables.  I need to find a decent electrical supply store in Denver.

I cleaned up the wiring a bit this weekend, and finally got a ground installed.  I had no idea a ground stake was 8 feet long!  Luckily I didn't hit any solid rock while pounding it in with a fence post hammer.

[luv2weld]

Forget the electric supply. They are too expensive.

Go to Layton Truck Equipment. That's where I got my cable ends.

They may even have distribution blocks.

Ref: a good hydrometer. Any auto parts store.

Ralph

[Striider]

Thanks Ralph