tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post5680452398304731866..comments2024-03-27T07:59:25.142+02:00Comments on Eco Footprint ~ South Africa: Ramblings on our solar powerDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-9979776465245663152014-12-31T13:08:18.712+02:002014-12-31T13:08:18.712+02:00JD - You're welcome :)JD - You're welcome :)Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-71108798206203275672014-12-31T10:20:35.271+02:002014-12-31T10:20:35.271+02:00Fantastic!
Thank you for the quick reply.Fantastic!<br />Thank you for the quick reply.John Zeemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08094957244871319018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-15854292606929452712014-12-29T15:00:37.905+02:002014-12-29T15:00:37.905+02:00JD Zeeman - Thanks for taking the time to leave a ...JD Zeeman - Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.<br /><br />JD, the difference between 12 volt 1060 Ah deep cycle batteries and 2 volt 1660 Ah batteries is that the 2 volt have a far greater storage ability and are more heavy duty. Far more suitable for an off-grid situation than the smaller 12 volt deep cycle batteries - irrespective of their Ah capacity. The batteries are from a Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-73889634229270517192014-12-29T14:05:59.029+02:002014-12-29T14:05:59.029+02:00Fantastic article. Thank you. I am interested in g...Fantastic article. Thank you. I am interested in going of the grid as well and ended up here. We have irregular power cuts scheduled here in sunny South Africa yet again due to lack of planning and maintenance and therefore the power demand being more than can be delivered. So we are getting 'load shedded' for the next 2 to 3 years in order for ESKOM to catch up with maintenance.<br />I John Zeemanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08094957244871319018noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-29653399125387820542014-04-10T20:13:33.927+02:002014-04-10T20:13:33.927+02:00Rosemary - Welcome, and thank you for taking the t...Rosemary - Welcome, and thank you for taking the time to leave a comment.<br /><br />Rosemary, there are various ins and outs regarding solar power - may I suggest that you read all the posts on my blog on that topic. It was only when we acually depended on solar power that we learnt what the suppliers didn't tell us... :)<br /><br />Please - also don't make the mistake we did - if you Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-76447832431981409922014-04-10T18:54:22.641+02:002014-04-10T18:54:22.641+02:00Thank you for this information. We are still in t...Thank you for this information. We are still in the very early planning stages i.e. still looking for the perfect piece of ground in the Western Cape :) But I am trying to find out what we will need to live off grid, and how much it will cost. Scary stuff ...... we really can't afford to make mistakes at this stage so any information we can get is a bonus. I have spent a lot of time Rosemaryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16200994134592104945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-57140433224998180362013-10-09T13:39:50.039+02:002013-10-09T13:39:50.039+02:00Leigh - A follower of mine posted a link to this p...Leigh - A follower of mine posted a link to this posting, and he got a reply from an "anonymous" that all we are powering is one big room - and only a fridge.<br /><br />We are actually living on the solar power that is generated by our panels and stored by our batteries. Be that power for our fridge, TV, cable box, , internet connection, wi-fi, lights, chargers, PC, printer, laptop, Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-89282140825978951392013-10-09T13:33:23.844+02:002013-10-09T13:33:23.844+02:00Such an interesting post Dani. Indeed helpful. Our...Such an interesting post Dani. Indeed helpful. Our first winter here we had no sun for 2 or 3 months. It was terribly cold and I missed even the passive solar warmth through the windows! That experience really put a damper on solar plans for us. This summer has been the same. Lots of rain and very little sun. <br /><br />Real life experiences like yours are so much more valuable than a Leighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435811789823712254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-4383747378802955202013-10-02T22:34:20.664+02:002013-10-02T22:34:20.664+02:00Jane : Does your system have lightning arrestors? ...Jane : Does your system have lightning arrestors? That is, wired by the panels, and then perhaps another closer to the main equipment? <br /><br />Up here in Colorado, the lightning is intense. I gather the reason Tesla came out to do all his experiments. The Stay @ Home-Gardenerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06102175625149771801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-49316329511605430202013-09-21T03:33:40.014+02:002013-09-21T03:33:40.014+02:00That's very well grounded indeed, Dani. Thank...That's very well grounded indeed, Dani. Thank you for your answer.JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-90506045541046537792013-09-20T09:15:04.106+02:002013-09-20T09:15:04.106+02:00Jane - Lightning is not that great a problem here,...Jane - Lightning is not that great a problem here, but we do have our system wired to earth via a copper wire which is buried underground and runs for roughly 35 mtrs.<br /><br />Plus, we have a number of fuses on the system (from the panels to the Outback and from the Outback to the batteries).Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-61981624186021374202013-09-19T23:49:33.923+02:002013-09-19T23:49:33.923+02:00Dani, Very impressive ! Tell me, we have very...Dani, Very impressive ! Tell me, we have very bad lightning here which took out our original whole house inverter which could power our house off an array of marine batteries. We now have lightning rods and multiple lightning arrestors which makes strikes less likely though not impossible. We still have a dead Outback inverter ! How is the lightning there ? Is this a problem at all in JaneofVirginiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15320442534060401465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-74184695025699876212013-09-19T14:30:42.645+02:002013-09-19T14:30:42.645+02:00Bill - You're very welcome :)
Perhaps you sho...Bill - You're very welcome :)<br /><br />Perhaps you should do what my son-in-law has done and that is to mount them at ground level in your sunniest spot. That way getting to the back of the panel is a breeze :)Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-83685397480305195392013-09-19T02:36:51.202+02:002013-09-19T02:36:51.202+02:00I really admire what y'all have done. Congrat...I really admire what y'all have done. Congrats for making it through your first winter off grid and I hope the upgrade goes well for you.<br /><br />When we transitioned to this life several years ago putting in solar panels was one of the things I intended to do. But I didn't make it a priority and now it's not in the budget. <br /><br />If we ever get it done, we'll put the Billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01640663629610290592noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-81642925480135826772013-09-16T15:27:41.259+02:002013-09-16T15:27:41.259+02:00Lloyd - Thanks - I think... LOL
The general gist ...Lloyd - Thanks - I think... LOL<br /><br />The general gist of what you wrote seems to imply we are OK providing we make that 99% adjustment?!?!?!Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-5326758375901288832013-09-16T15:25:44.757+02:002013-09-16T15:25:44.757+02:00Kris - My brain hurts too.......! Every time I th...Kris - My brain hurts too.......! Every time I think I'm understanding it more, the more I find I R-E-A-L-L-Y don't know.<br /><br />Nope - the win here is too gusty, and one of our neighbour's previous (small 500watt) wind turbine was destroyed within 6 months. Plus we'd need to purchase a separate charge controller.Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-1685598315354867492013-09-16T13:26:46.871+02:002013-09-16T13:26:46.871+02:00Oh my. Seems like the 'simple life' requi...Oh my. Seems like the 'simple life' requires an engineering/electrical degree these days. So much of our stuff requires electricity and we jump through hoops to get it. I doff my chapeau to you and Rman for taking on these challenges. When will the windmill go up? It doesn't need sunny days. *grin*Krishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17822528453563683772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-63249037394654781752013-09-16T13:02:11.391+02:002013-09-16T13:02:11.391+02:00The charging amps of a system is the output of the...The charging amps of a system is the output of the CC and the comment on the strings is the input. On the MPPT ability of the Outback Flexmax 80 the input voltage needs not to be directly related to the system output. On the output the total watts of the panels must be divided by the system voltage and that must not exceed the max amps of the CC. So a 80A CC at a system voltage of 12VDC must notAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-40296035345797504792013-09-16T12:24:56.337+02:002013-09-16T12:24:56.337+02:00Lloyd - Many thanks for taking the time to read my...Lloyd - Many thanks for taking the time to read my post and comment - really appreciate it.<br /><br />One last question - did I misunderstand what RMan relayed to me after one of your many conversations - CAN we string 4 panels in series and 4 panels in parallel (retaining the 12volt configuration) and then connect both to our 80Amp Outback CC?Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-59184954839456979152013-09-16T11:54:16.875+02:002013-09-16T11:54:16.875+02:00Some clarity on solar panels strings. These are fo...Some clarity on solar panels strings. These are for battery based systems. On the back of a solar panel you have two values to take note of. The Voc or open circuit voltage and the Vmp or Pmax value.<br />As panels do vary in voltage no blanket rule can be applied. A string is defined as the base electrical solar panel block and its panels are in series. The total combined Voc must be 15% or Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-38932657119127922952013-09-16T11:00:21.835+02:002013-09-16T11:00:21.835+02:00FCD - Thanks for your detailed reply. I am going ...FCD - Thanks for your detailed reply. I am going to check with Lloyd and will post a correction if I got his info wrong... ;)Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-23307109610807030352013-09-16T10:59:25.019+02:002013-09-16T10:59:25.019+02:00Harry - Thanks - appreciate it :)Harry - Thanks - appreciate it :)Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-44365573796724612822013-09-16T10:58:45.821+02:002013-09-16T10:58:45.821+02:00Shirley - Thanks for visiting and for taking the t...Shirley - Thanks for visiting and for taking the time to leave a comment.<br /><br />Sharing our experiences will, hopefully, assist someone else and prevent them from making the same mistake we did :)Danihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020970904311512357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-20331322241952907932013-09-16T08:51:33.828+02:002013-09-16T08:51:33.828+02:00Hello Dani. The solar systems can be a little tric...Hello Dani. The solar systems can be a little tricky to get them just right. I agree totally on not scrimping on batteries too much too. I feel I lucked out pretty good with my system here, as it all works good here, in the summer time especially, but for me winter is coming on soon, and I don't care how many solar panels I have, I'm still gonna be running my small gas generator for an Frugal Canadian Hermithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01177261116826690085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3375887793985280500.post-25815173374082977722013-09-16T04:48:12.259+02:002013-09-16T04:48:12.259+02:00Dani,that's a great, detailed post on somethin...Dani,that's a great, detailed post on something that a lot of people are very much interested in. I am going to link to it so people I know who are working on off grid can be benefit from your experience.Harry Flashmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05071021900005041592noreply@blogger.com