INFLATED COST Of Our 100% DIY Off Grid SOLAR POWER SYSTEM 👍
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- čas přidán 8. 09. 2024
- Today we breakdown the cost of our complete solar system. We built our solar system 100% by ourselves, which saved us a ton of money but we didn't skimp on buying quality components. Our goal with our off grid solar system is to be completely independent when it comes to having power.
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We forgot to mention that the federal rebate is 30 percent, which brings the total cost down to $25,930. Kind of a big thing to leave out 😅. Hope this helps. We appreciate your comments and for taking the time to watch our videos.
do you need a contractor to get the rebate?
@Adam D No actually, we don't. Thanks for watching. 🙂
Adam, no - but the equipment has to be new. If you didn’t pay enough in taxes to take full advantage of the tax credit, you can roll the credit over to a subsequent year. Oh and any tools you buy to do the work are also eligible…
@@Poorehouse wow nice thanks for the details!
Great vid! Exactly what I wanted to see. Question though..does that make it so you are completely disconnected from power company?(im on California so pge for me and I know people that have gotten solar power but still have to be connected to them) looking to buy a piece of land and build a small cabin and that’s my main concern. Thanks
Cost of an awesome solar setup $37,043.
Cost of a supportive wife, PRICELESS!
I love her statement at the end about being COMPLETELY SELF-RELIANT and not having to depend on anyone.
Your breakdown helps all of us understand how to pay for and build a system which allows anyone to have independent power. Some may baulk about the price, but the freedom of such an electrical unit is an absolute investment and, when the electrical grid fails (notice I said when) the investment is priceless. No down time. No waiting on big electric to come to the rescue. The independence: how we love to live. Free.
Cheap cheap cheap! I am of course not talking about your incredible system, rather you cost! That amount of power for 37k is truly a testimony to your level of competence! Great job!
Nice! and Expensive! LOL! A suggestion and for your SAFETY add a Catastrophe fuse and disconnect at the battery box for redundancy! Don't just rely on the BMS system. And at the buss bars going to the batteries move your 4/0 wires from an end bolt to a center bolt on the buss bar to reduce further any chance of buss bar heating and even Amp draw during large voltage draws! Awesome system!
A very profound statement I heard that holds true in life : "How you do anything, is how you do everything."
The attention to detail and thorough research done commands respect. The future planning along with allowing for a system that will be outputting far below it's true abilities extends it's life expectancy as well. This was truly enjoyable to watch, and easily earned my "Like" and "Subscribe" . Great video !!!
It is kindof another way of saying "Whatsoever you do unto the least of these, so also you do unto me." I'm not religious, but grew up that way and your comment reminded me of that. I usually say "if its worth doing it is worth doing right".
Great video! I've had my Victron system for 4 years now. Mine consist of 4 - 3000VA Multiplus inverters and three MTTP 100 - 50 chg controllers, 12 - 320watt solar panels and 12 Battle Born 24V batteries giving me 600ah of storage. My house is under 1000 sq ft so it provides me with all the 240V power I need to run the house and power equipment. I do use propane for heating, but thinking of doing away with it... I had one inverter fail and Victron reacted immediately and got it to the repair facility in one day! Unfortunately the repair facility didn't provide very good customer service and took over two weeks to repair it. I'm just 50 miles from their facility... So I bought a spare inverter! I live in the Wet Mountain valley in Colorado at about 8000 ft so I get plenty of sunshine.. Keep up the great videos!
Steve
23:50 "Self Reliant" - This is my biggest reason for installing solar. Making your own power and not relying on the electric company. Love the channel
I built my system for about 30k. Consists of 11Kw panels, 56Kw of batteries, 8K sol-ark all in one. I built the batteries from raw cells. the mounting was unistrut and well pipe, 2 are set up to track 2 axis, 2 are seasonal tilt, nessassary in Minnesota. I have had no issues with the all in one inverter, but something to be said for separate components too.
Just finished our off grid solar, we did it ourselves. Did it for well under $3k . Be interesting to see how it goes. Got lithium batteries super cheap as the Government in Australia changed the contract on building electric buses. So was 1000 cheap batteries, we got our share. Solar panels (450 W ) for $25 each with all free railings, wire and clamps to join battery’s with a free case to house them in. Just got to meet people in the know.
Look into adding the Victron smart shunt. It will monitor and report battery utilization and SOC to the Cerbo GX so it can control the entire Victron entire ecosystem based off of the battery data. Just a couple hundred more bux, but will prove very useful for you. Great work!
I'll have to look into that thank you.
I second this suggestion
This will be the best to help in monitoring your battery power. Victron shunt
THIS 100%!!! Install a smart shunt between the two bus bars. It will keep track of the state of charge and perfectly report it to the Cerbo.
@@aboulderlifeoffgrid did you check out the smart shunt from victron? I use a couple of them, for monitoring solar production (non victron charge controllers), and for battery levels. The built in relays are an integral part of my system too, shutting down various components when levels get too high etc.
I know as I go through and make videos for my own system, I'm constantly reminded of the cost of my own system. It's hard to believe how much little pieces of metal and wire cost, but it's so gratifying to know that you're making your own power!
In regards to knowing the state of charge of your batteries, one option would be to put a Victron SmartShunt in place which would give you the ability to monitor the state of charge of your entire pack of batteries. Voltage doesn't mean much in regards to LifePo4 batteries, but the smart shunt does a really good job of letting you know where you're at power wise.
Good to know! We'll look into one of those. Thank you!
Yes your correct my. Battery are diy sow I use renogy shunt I have 3840ah on a12v and 960ah on a 24v have you look into a raspberry it made work for you
I would love to see an entire parts list so I can start picking and choosing once I get my house purchased. I fully intend to do something just like this and I'm big on lists and comparing costs of parts in a deep dive. Love to see this kind of video so thank you for all the current info
It's a great tim to start a christmas list
Thanks for a great video overview of your really nice solar system. The $37K was a fraction of what it would have cost if you hired professional installers to give you that MUCH POWER. You chose top-of-the-line equipment and really laid it out superbly. You can now enjoy it for many years to come. Bravo!
Great video! I am also on a DIY fully off-grid system and have upgraded all of my electric appliances and even have full AC and heat running off of my system. I will be adding videos soon but have not had time as of yet. Our system has 800ah of batteries and 13kw of inverters and runs our entire house with zero issues including electric range, oven, washer/dryer, 5x mini spit AC/heaters, etc.
Thank you for sharing!
To run an electric line 1 mile is $75000 or more. Solar is coming down quickly, and is a great option for off grid country living .
Yea i only have a small bit of land but to put power all the way to where my house is going to be would cost 12-15k,
So i am going to do a small solar system for 8-10k that will meet my needs and ill never have to pay a power bill..
I am living in australia and If I had to buy that capacity in rack mounted LiFePO4 batteries (including JK inverter BMS) as of August 2024 would be about AUD$7600 or US$5000. Prices are coming down. Good job on your power independence.
Your explanation was very informative. Thanks for taking the time to make the video. In my lifetime (74 years) I’ve found that quality equipment is worth the $$$.
I installed an Eg4 solar system for myself with 5,740W of panels and 15kw of lithium battery storage with 13,000W grid tie inverters for around $10,000. I'm not off-grid during cloudy weather, but am off-grid on sunny days including the night. All my appliances and heating is electric. I definitely recommend the Eg4 inverters and batteries!
My 17,000 watt system is right at $52,500 with SolArk 15K & 44,300 WH battery bank. I never put a dime out I figured on getting back. Instead I rest easy knowing I am invested in a Electrical Insurance Policy. Grid down I never noticed until my neighbor calls.
You guys are way ahead of the curve by the way you planned this solar array. Well done. So much work, you have to feel proud. You guys are so sweet together
How long can it last
Includes the cost of the sheet rink, haha, love it. Great vid.
I have schnieder SW+ dual and 4 victron 150V/ 100, battery bank is are tesla car batteries , 8 modules total storage so 43,152 watt hours, we plan to add 2 more batteries and expand to 10,000Kilowatt. So far price is right around $40,000. we have hurricanes to duck here..
The video was awesome. The power it puts out is sick. Loved all of it except for the cost. Dear God man are you going to energize a small town? And there are some things you could have made....like the bus bars. But as long as you're happy with the performance I'm happy for yall.
I'm surprised you didn't go for the lynx distributor.. no off grid system is complete without EMP shield. Nice touch! Love it!!
That is amazing! Just think, you never have to make another electric payment.
"We like power". Brilliant!! Nuff said!!
Agreed, contractors are very very expensive, and tend to cut as many corners as they can. It's really a question on how much they can rip you off without you knowing better.
They know you get a rebate back. So they charge like a wounded bull.😑
Well done on doing your own rack for solar panels. I am just about finished with my 19kw off grid system, for the materials of a good metal solar rack it was going to cost $14,000. I decided to just build them out of pressure treated wood for less than $3k, this also gives me the flexibility to move each rack of 5 panels slightly to the east or west for testing which way is the most efficient for providing power throughout the day.
Wow!! You two are amazing!! Yes it did cost a lot but worth every penny. And the amount you saved on all the hard, hard work you put in is incredible. Not to mention the knowledge you have. Great job!!
The knowledge is key, because systems break. When they do, they won't have to be paying someone an arm and a leg to come out and fix it for them. They know how to do it themselves.
Wow that's a lot of power! Our inverter is 6,000 watts, and it does everything we need to live off grid, and to run all of the power tools to build our house. The propane for our gas stove will cost us less than $200 a year, and we can take the tanks in ourselves to have them filled.
You can change the BMS’s in those batteries to something like JK BMS’s and then the will talk to your Victron Cerbos GX 9 (whatever its called).
Just add in a suitable Victron SmartShunt. You already have a nice split between the battery storage and charge/consume. It will fit in really easy and tells you the state of charge of your batteries accurately enough.
As a late comer to the go solar world I am so great-full to the CZcams community of DIY ers. I have learned so much from people and like you when I contacted an install company to do the job the sticker shock of a $70K system almost ended my dream of going solar. But I kept coming back to CZcams seeing people like you who made it work successfully for them. People who shared their mistakes and their victories with us all to make it work. My system is being bought over time paid for as my budget allows but when it's finished I own it not the power company.
That is so awesome to hear. It is humbling to know that our videos can be a good source of information to help others in their DIY solar systems. Thank you for your comment. Good luck and take care. 🙂
I agree with this comment. My 19kw system with 30kwh battery bank that I'm about 2 weeks from being completed on was going to cost $100k if a professional did the install. I did everything myself and I'm getting it done for about $35k. I just got a loan for it that is costing $356 / month.
you can buy almost a system likes this way less ..my friend buy solar panel local
I fully get the cost of this set. We have a family house in AZ off grid ,we use 24 volt and we use split systems to spred the amp loading. Good video on what it truely costs. I would reccomenda shield on the battery buss bars to avoid a accidental arc from somethng crossing them.
my current estimate of a 10kw panel system with 20KWH at 51v (4p4s of 200ah 12v lifepo4) with 2x all in one hybrid inverters that are daisy chained together for 16kw is just under 20k usd (DIY) in NC, i save a bit by roof mounting.. since the house is in the open and facing north.. giving me a solid EAST / WEST sun exposure, I do appreciate your video, i have been checking the solar diy market on and off for a decade.. and with lifep04 prices dropping like a rock, and solar panels 300-330 range prices at 150ish new .. its seems to be a pretty optimal time to get in.
with the hope of getting ROI in 8 or so years after the rebate ( basically assuming i save 1800 / year on utility, using my current monthly consumption as a guide, but 10 would still be fine, as the lifespan on these things should be 20+ years)
I have a very similar system. Same inverters, but 41x 455W panels, 70kWh of battery bank, 3x victron rs450/100 charge controllers, 2x victron power-ins, 2x victron lynx distributors, lynx shunt, cerbo-gx and sceen, etc. I DIY'd the batteries with EVE cells and Seplos kits (communicates with Victron fine). All-in I spent about $50k before tax rebate. The same system installed by a company here in Maine would have been $150k.
So helpful! Thank you so so much for giving me some kind of idea of what goes into such a beautiful long lasting system. A+x 5!!!!! Just fantastic
Price does not meter if wife helps to build it :) God bless you
And you placed smile on my face :)
As Bones says below get a SmartShunt you won't regret it. As for the batteries, I DIY'd mine, and, couldn't be happier, even after re-buying BMS's, 36 304ah cells - 4 8s 24v = ~29kwh + 1 4s 12v = 3.6kwh under $8k.... You're doing great, keep at it.... Congrats..!!!!.... FYI... My sys is 2.4k panels, 24/100w 6s4p - 150/85 CC - 24/3000/70 Inv - 4 batts, + 320w panels, 2/160w panels 2s1p - 100/50 CC - 12v Batt ALL .. Victron... this is in/on a 30' TT... There is no such thing as "TOO Big"........... Oh..... And, ... I'm adding more panels..........
Great Video!! I have not built mine yet, but will do so as soon as we move to the property, and this video is a fantastic guide! I want to make a suggestion.
If you accidentally dropped a wrench down behind the battery case, you would have a nice firework show if it landed on those buss bars. It might add some safety if you put a wood or plastic cover above the buss bars to avoid a falling object shorting out your batteries.
You are the King and Queen of "Off Grid"...best I have seen.
Well done.
I think it’s worth mentioning that the prices have gone down drastically since this video was published. EG4 and SOK server rack 48V 100Ah batteries now retail for $1300 which is substantially cheaper than the $2200 spent here
Yea its crazy, most of the things in this video are half the cost now.
I am purchasing 5 to 10 acres of Land 1 hour outside of Las Vegas in Amarogosa Valley and I want to install a over the top solar system. I’m having a 40x60 barn to create my own music recording studio and I will create a living space too
Plus after I am done build separate house with a garage on my own property!
I’ve got a lot work ahead thanks for your channel
That's a wonderful thing. You'll love it. Thanks. 🙂
@@aboulderlifeoffgrid Could you provide an itemized breakdown of where what websites post their products you used?
Solar Panels; Batteries for $500.00 or was it $2,000.00 per battery? I want more than power to power my recording gear and home appliances thank you so very much!
@raymondharrisoncomposer Unfortunately, we don't have a list of all the parts and pieces. Most everything came through a local solar distributor in our area. They were very helpful to us, as diyers, in piecing our system together. I would look for someone in your area that can help you along in the build process. It's always good to have someone to talk to face to face when you're diying your own solar system. Sorry if this doesn't help.
I talked to Jackery on Cyber Monday, & was super disappointed. I believe all these new pop-up solar generator companies are running off of false hopes.
I completely understand why you did this as separate components.
Also I recommend building your own batteries if you build more. A seplos 280Ah mason kit with grade A Eve cells runs about $3400 ($237/kWh) and they have communication and can automatically control battery heaters.
The knowledge you gained will save you money should components need repair or replacement. I don't have solar but need generator power often. We have LP for stove, dryer, and hot water and 9000 watt generator for the whole house. Unless you need 20KW for backup or have one big house you could have when smaller. But, now you have enjoy.
I was surprised that you didn't mention a shunt, which would allow you to see all the voltage in the batteries, in and out, etc. Victron makes a proprietary one and a generic one that would work for your setup. Very cool setup and I am envious! The other advantage of DIY is that you saved money but also understand your system completely. Well done!
Solar will be the way to go and it will eventually be cost effective. I keep up with the tech and just do small 100 watt panels for lighting and greenhouse fans. I will be prepared for when the tech price gets reasonable. But 25K put into Vanguard VTI one year ago when this came out would be worth 32K today, so I can’t see the savings yet, but it’s coming. Thanks for the vids and updates.
you need to install a shunt from Victron on the Negative main lead. this will allow you to program the total sizing of your battery bank and the Victron system will monitor the real battery power used verses power remaining. I was very surprised you did not install a shunt. the rest of your install is GREAT. you can never have enough electrical power
We have 40, 325 watt panels and all the goodies like you do. It sounds like a lot of money to invest however, energy costs continue to climb. We have had our system for 4 years and still owe $30K, we have a low cost home improvement loan at 1.9%. Out system will be paid off in five years and then we will never have another energy bill. We have friends with $1000 monthly electric bills and 10 years of inflation from now those bills will be $1500+. Plus if the grid goes down it never goes down for us. We live in Nevada and have sunshine nearly every day of the year.
Love it! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
For battery monitoring of knowing how much power is left, Put in a Victron Shunt and call it done! I love mine!!!!
6:55 You really should protect that busbar, even though its behind that cabinet if you had a short there it would blow your whole battery bank.
Agree, I've used & found a Busbar Metal box is better...esp. since u spent ~$700+ on those 'busTbars' * alone! The large metal Box with busbars inside is same cost, Eliminates dual cable sets, & removes all those 'stapeled' wire runs also🌻🌅🗽
I think you’ll be glad you put in good equipment in the long run. That’s always the best.
Like your solar layout split….to capture early and late sun angles….a schematic showing series and parallel panel connection….?
You can make buss bars from scrap yard copper bars….
I don't have a schematic, but maybe I can explain. On one side of the array, there are 3 strings of 5 panels each wired in series. Those 3 strings go to the combiner box where they connect in parallel and go to the shed as 1 string. On the other side of the array, it's the same. So it ends up being a total of 2 strings back to the shed. The problem with making my own busbars is that it would not be UL listed, and I would have no idea what kind of rating (in amps/volts) it would have. Appreciate the comment. Thanks 🙂
This might be a repeat
What was your voltage sweet spot goal…?
I’m not constrained to U L
Or inspections
I just over build …my wires are usually double the potential current ratings
In my set up I’m running two parallel solar fences and two gas trackers
My excess panels are being dug up by my two dogs looking for squirrels
So they are being contained by a 20kv solar electric fence….@@aboulderlifeoffgrid
Wow!! Well done.. "eesh", the price though is Mega! I'm sure though that you are very proud of undertaking the project yourselves & the system's capabilities. Literally a Power plant.
Here's a tip. In South africa we depend on renewable energy because we have daily power cuts. Therfore our prices on inverters and solar stuff is waaay cheaper. He paid 10k just for the inverter and charge controllers. In South africa you can build that exact same system for less than half the price. You can get a 3 phase 220v 50kw sunsynk inverter which has 50 and 60 hertz capabilities and 120 volt and 220 volt for 3000 dollars...
A 555w tier 1 solar panel sells for 100 dollars this side. If you guys would purchase over here and then ship it over you'll save so much money
Nice work on the video. Someone else may have mentioned it above. But those inverters are technically 10k va. That isn’t the same as wattage. Technically they are around 8kw inverters. Which definitely isn’t a low amount of power. I just figured I’d point that out. Victron for some reason rates all their inverters in VA. Again, great job.
Victron Lynx Shunt 1000 for battery monitoring or the Victron BMV-712 (this is what I have) with a 500A capacity. This takes away the need for the batteries to play nice with the Cerbo. And for the bus bars, Victron Lynx Power In or Distributor if you want to fuse each item. Each of these handle 1000A in total and you can combine them for extra connectivity. This is an awesome video and it looks like you have gone to a lot of trouble to get this up and going and it looks fantastic. Totally enjoyed watching this and viewed to the very end including bloopers! Warm greetings from Melbourne in Australia!!!
Great information. Thank you Adam!
Wasn't the Lynx causing a bit of a rumble as most people found it should have only been rated for 500A?
This is more expensive than I thought it would be, but I've only been looking at smaller systems. Wow! That markup for installation / labor was huge. Good on you guys for doing it yourself
The markup for off-grid is very high due to the lack of knowledgeable companies willing to do it. These systems are very complex compared to grid tie/back feed systems.
@@jasonhensley947no they aren’t, he did it in a complicated way. It can be done for half the price he paid
@@vandalorian8777 Can you explain more? I'm new to the solar game and trying to educate myself. How could they have done it in a less complicated, less expensive way?
I saved a lot on mine by going with used panels from SanTan Solar. I got 40 used Kyocera 265W panels for $4,001.65 after shipping. they've been working great, they look great too.
The price of those bus bars though. Victron has the Lynx Power In rated at 1000 amps and they go for like $160 and that includes the positive and negative bars and 4 fuse spaces.
I spent about 4K over a few years to build my modest system. The one thing that came as the best investment so far was a lithium battery (24volt 150 amp). It has performed amazingly well..
As for a electric stove and dryer I don't get the logic.. Propane would be far cheaper over the years...
Yes sir, I don't think you went too big! I also am 100% electric - including heat-pumps for heat/cool. I'm up to 51 panels (14.5kw PV array) and find that at my location that in winter I only get 25% of what I get in summer so 'big' is good :) I've been operating for 4 years and averaged that 25% in December but last year only got 10% in December due to unusual year of day after day of clouds/rain!. I'll be interested to follow along and see what you think in a year or 2. But again, many congratulations, you've got yourself a real solid system!!! P.S. Busbars are just a hunk of metal (I flatten copper pipe and use my own bolts) but you got such nice plastic covers to protect against shorts and my covers definately look home-made :)
You have a nice system by the sounds of it. Yes busbars are ridiculous. Thanks for the comment. Take care. 👍
I caught up to this by watching prior videos and re-watched this one again. At $37,000 and 9000watts of panel, that is $4.1 per installed watt and WITH batteries - that is a sweet good price. AC Coupled systems with net metering and NO BATTERIES run $3 to $4 per installed watt by pros, here in Utah. you got great deals and DIY labor. I have 7.3kw of panels, 60kwh of tesla batteries, Conext XW Pro inverter and Conext charge controllers and other Conext parts. This is my 3rd inverter over time. My parts cost is around $29,000 over 22 years. You did good
That's a good amount of batteries. Love it. Thanks for the comment. 🙂
i personally have a 5k panel, 4k inverter, 9k batt (walmart deepcycle) / (propane), got lot my stuff second hand and build as i go (seen deals) spent overall 6k, my problem was i bitcoin mine, weld, and electric heater, i would need upwards 30k hr so i put upgrading on hold, but form you system you coulda definitely saved 10k $ from misc items
Great work!! That $80k contractor cost sounds legit. Think about home contractors like a carpenter or AC installer. They normally charge labor rates at 100% of material costs.
KK, Very nice vid. Thank you. My new install is going to be 1/4 your size. I just need power for 2 freezers and 2 fridges, few lights and small power for laptop or radio if trees take out power lines/ black out conditions. All other stuff in my house is giant tank of propane for water heater, and cooking. Wood burning stove for house heat in winter. Nice vid...thank you again for current prices.
You could install a Victron shunt to monitor battery status.
The base bars lol that’s just nuts. Y’all did a really good job 👍🏻
V. GOOD Analysis of MATERIAL costs... THANKS for sharing🌻🌻 Please share ALL of your TIME to : 1. Plan 2. Design 3. Order// acquire/ recieve. 4. Build 5. Tes/Commission/ Program...+ 🗽🌅
We have a playlist of our entire solar build. Check it out. Thanks for watching. 🙂
Thanks Boulder life ! Don't have time to watch all..I know ...been installing all types PV sys. for decades😇. Was interested so u could share Your total time /Labor costs to ur viewrs🌻🗽🌅
@SOLAR TIME It took 2 and a half months to complete. Labor cost was zero. We built it ourselves.
@@aboulderlifeoffgridTks🌻 I know it's a DIY! I asked what was ur total estimate labor TIME ?
@@aboulderlifeoffgrid Ok if use 2.5 months @8 hours/ day x 6 day week(? outside of 'hands on time' add planning design & just thinking / Researching of all tasks before & after actual work) ~50 hours x 10 weeks= ~ 500 hours (minimum) x $__.00/hour rate* = $_,___.00. ? *avg. hourly rate for Pro local installer
I've got a similar DIY system solar myself. Instead of two Victron inverters. I went with a large 15K single phase 240v inverter. I'm able to produce 240V split phase with the use of an autotransformer. For your batteries I'd ditch the wood box and go with a server rack. You can buy them with bus bars from signature solar out of Texas.
The active component in your EMP Shield is a MOV that cost between $1.00 - $5.00
What is the purpose of a Metal Oxide Varistor in a power protection device? It sacrifices it self at the point of a surge.
Allows normal current to pass through the device, while diverting any surges/spikes through the ground circuit, to safeguard connected electronics and the surge protector. I used to install them in delicate telemetry equipment for lightning protection.
if i was ready for such system i would go for a slightly smaller about 6kw one with tracking platform!!!! . i mean you still can try and upgrade or add some tracking tricks . you cant be sure about tracking but for sure you can make an automation for every 3 months 4 daily cycle programs in total if its online it can change on its own!!! . !!! and even ad some tiny changes every 45 days to maximize production!!!!
It not sticker shock, it’s the investment to go DIY. Totally worth it for sure. What would you do different? Great looking system. Way to go! Thanks for sharing
It's a pretty good price when you compare it to what an installer would charge. What I would do differently is make the panels at a 40ﾟ angle instead of a 36ﾟ angle. Also I think we would get a different brand of batteries that would communicate with the Victron equipment. But overall very satisfied with our system. Thanks for the comment.
If you want to monitor SoC then just buy a Victron Smart Shunt and install it between your 1000A neg buss bar and the Neg wire going to your battery. around a $100 or so and if monitors SoC Perfectly. Better then a battery BMS in my experience
We didn't know about that, very cool! We'll look into one of those. Thank you!
with kids and because i live in canada i would need 2 time the power storage. you guys have really nice power inverter.
We have 4 kids. And we do need more power storage as well. Thanks for watching. 🙂
A good BMS will help you to comunicate with Viktron. Good and honnest episode!
Thanks for the video. well done and edited. It confirmed that I will be able to do this same size considerable cheaper. Pressure treated for the array. Ive seen those same size/quality batteries for 1300-1500. I might even make my own which would shave more off. I think yall payed around .70 a watt for the panels which is ok but .50 and even lower is doable if you just dig more deals are always out there finding them is the task. I also think higher wattage panels means less panels which means less materials. Plus the more panels you have the more that could go wrong/get damaged etc. I see a lot of diyers that I guess just have plenty of money and go for the convenience of buying the easiest to obtain items. I see this time and time again. The frugal and deal diggers out there I know feel the same way. I kind find everything so discounted compared to a lot of people but I have a friend that is on another level and gets things for free all the time I have know idea how he does it but his house is full of materials, electronics, vehicles, etc that he gets from people just needing to get rid of it. Craigslist free is one of his sources he is on it non stop.
at 13:30 that piece of metal is probally quality copper thing is that having it exposed is not the best with humidity you can lose electricity unless you have the positive and negative at more than 1 m or 2 foot distance i know that sound crazy but i say about 4% power up to 7% outside where humidity is at max. for not saying that is better to protect them because someone can touch them. Just put some plastic sheet over at least. As about the battery i will monitorize more the temperature on those battery (take a loook at the hazard of lithium battery) . Nice setup cool vid.
Great video! I like people who are just fun like this.
Good tip on the batteries about their lack of communications.
THAT is a big deal.
One would want to be able to monitor each battery's condition at all times, so that if one or more start to degrade, it can be caught before some major, chain reaction failure happens.
As for propane, I suspect that where y'all are located, that having it delivered might be problematic. I don't know. Personally, if I were to do this again, I'd have a huge propane tank.
We love cooking with a gas stove as well as heating. In certain areas of North America, there can be times when a week or more goes by with no sun (or very little). During cold spells, I'd sure want propane heating for sure. This could be augmented with electric heat for days when there's a lot of sun and power production.
As I typed that, i thought, hmmm... I wonder if some stove manufacturer might design some sort of propane/electric hybrid stove. Now that would be cool.
It’s debatable if solar is worth it for you or not…. I recently bought into solar… three main reasons, reason one I am in houston tx and we are loosing power all the time…. Reason two I will be getting 30% back on my taxes of what I invested in total, yes I end up owing every year… thats almost 1/3 of my money back… I installed all my panels on ground mounts and installed my own equipment so I saved tons of money, lately I decided to invest into solar because the power company has increased the energy charge significantly ever year for the last few years….. yes I have a generator…. That’s for a major emergency but gas is pretty expensive but it’s always good to have a back up for your back up
20 kW-hr isn't very much storage capacity at all. One heat pump could drain that in less than 10 hours without any other loads.
I'm pretty confident you are going to at least double if not triple your battery capacity plus add a backup generator for extended cloudy periods during cold winter months.
Signature Solar has a better deal on busbars. 600A , 12 stud busbars for 80$ for a set of two black and red. 600A at 51 volts nominal for my batteries is 30.6 kW , far more than my inverters can handle. Your build is very well done.
Thank you. I'll have to check out signature solar sometime.
@@aboulderlifeoffgrid Look at their batteries and DC heat pumps while you are there. Cheers.
You guys should be super proud of yourselves you did an amazing job
Heat pumps are the way to go for water heater, clothes dryer, food dryer, and dehydrator, room warmer, keeping anything warm as for food staying warm, chicken egg incubator, and honey bees in the winter and super early spring time.
love it, it’s beautiful. I love Victron and only use them as much as possible.
Our off grid systems are completely self reliant. From Utah to Illinois.
The key for us is the winter, clouds and snow and sunny angle. we have to design for that. Then summer is easy. And for us that cold is a big deal to as you recognize having to keep the batteries warm.
Love all the details!!!! Awesome
You would have loved those panels that were basically advertised for 250W 90%+ efficiency for $50…. Used, a couple years ago, but WOW. I keep my eyes open now. I am building a system now with all-in-one units, server batteries, and solar PVs. Overall, $1,350 for two all-in-ones to handle 6,000 watts, (6) 5,000 wH batteries for $8,000, and the panels when I find them. So, basically $10,000 plus panels. All DIY. Great stuff. Rock and roll. I will love it when the power goes out, and I’m up and flying. peace love and light
Well…Victron is Victron. I’m doing a comparison video soon comparing a Victron 100/50, and a comparable Epever that I’ve been using for the last year and a half, and an $18 ebay PWM 60 amp controller. I also use used panels, so this can be done reasonably, if not actually cheap. Epever has almost all the monitoring features Victron does, at close to 1/2 the cost. My test results on our 1200 watt system show them to be nearly identical in output and charging. On a fuller sun day, the PWM controller was less than 15% behind.
For future builders , depends where you are and your propery types etc… think to implement panels structure into carpool
A Victron smart shut would give you that battery monitoring that you’re wanting through the Cerbo GX.
Thanks for the reply. I didn't think you could get to it, but you did, and I appreciate it. Good luck in all your future endevors.
Note Prices have come down a lot since this system was made. a 48v 100aH battery can be had for $1300 now,
So 70g if you had it installed, which is what I've heard other places. Have you figured out the lifetime kwh cost. I'm betting 10 to 15 cents the installer who quoted 60 to 80g for 10 kw, well, solar is a luxury market unless it's the most basic grid tie. Good luck moving that batter box when fully loaded. GREAT POST
It got cheaper a little bit. A 25kWh battery cost 7000$, including a metal cabinet on wheels, and the internal bus bar and the 4awg wire to connect the battery to the bus bar. A single all in one 220volt 12kW Inverter cost 5600$(EG4 18K). I think 12kW is enough for most use, and you could add a second unit to go to 24kW(then you would be more expensive). This include the cost of the charger and all the wirering since it all inside. You can forgo the bus bar until you want to have more than 1 battery cabinet(or 2 inverter). Also, with these all in one solar inverter, you can go up to 18kW charging from solar, if you put 2, go up to 36kW of solar panel... My personal setup is a single LV6548, which only give me 120volt, but I can put a second one to get 240volt at 12kW, and 2 of those unit cost 2100$ total. The reason not to go with the LV6548 is it noise level and higher idle draw. A single EG4 18K draw less idle power than a single LV6548. And the EG4 18K does have a few more features. Victron is nice, I think they have an even lower power draw at idle... But it more expensive.
I'll stay with Power from my PUD at 7.5 cents a Kwh. Actual usage of electricity about $ 15.00 a month + $ 32.00 Basic Charge.
OK Thanks for the breakdown, I too are fixing up my solar with Victron,,my system is half yours (multiplus 5000k) I bought a kit of victron stuff,it was cheaper then yours but I did not get the new Cera GX stuff,, I got the color control panel.. I have 12 times 375watt panels on my garage roof ,,,I lifted up myself and they weigh 40lLbs each (I,m 66,so not spring chicken like you two) I have two systems,first one is up and running ,its grid tei 5k with 10k battery ,, My second system is my victron system is also 5k with a 10k battery ,still a work in progress. Why so much power for little old me and my good lady,, I just love to keep the MAN off my back,(I,m sure you know who the man is)plus like you I love to use power,,I think electric is the best power in the world , All cost around £25000 (or around $32000)..I,m really surprised yours is so expensive,,I thought nowhere can be more expensive as the UK,, we are taxed until the pips squeak !!! To get more info from your batties get the Victron BYM 217(I cannot remember the number but it ends with 217) it may help and can be hookuped to the cera GX ,, ok cheers
Very cool! We love having solar power so we are in control and don't owe anyone. Hope you enjoy your system!
Thumbs up guys, like the I ❤ DC beanie. (Direct current right)....😊
You got it 😅
Very proud of what you are doing. The children are having the best life.
Guys did good I was looking at doing this and the batteries alone was 70k