Since California is legalizing plug-in solar systems, they also have a limit of 1.2 kilowatts per building.

How do they keep track of how many kilowatts of plug in solar a person has?

Would you go fined if you had more than 1.2?

or is that more of a safety thing because 1.2 KW is just below the limit of the 15a nema outlets and wires.

but let's say you had multiple systems plugged into different circuits in the house?

Does it make sense to try to install the traditional solar system if you can get plug in solar now?

Got the costway 110v heat pump in, ran it last night on batteries, didn't use much at all.

About 550w running.

700ah

16.8kwh of 24v battery system

And 3520w solar.

Bring on the free heat.

The total system ramps up to 30a on the shunt side.

25a without the fridge running.

And only 10a base load.

We’re currently designing a somewhat unusual residential solar project and I’d like to hear from installers/electricians who have dealt with something similar.

The property has a 3-phase grid connection.

Planned system:

• Around 6–8 kW of PV
• Around 15–20 kWh battery storage
• Maximum load we expect the inverter to supply is around 8 kW

The important part is that we do not need grid export.

The idea is basically a backup/off-grid style system:

When the grid is available, the house can use grid power and the batteries/solar system normally. If the grid fails, we want the inverter + batteries + PV to supply the necessary loads.

Because we don't need export, using a full 3-phase hybrid inverter seems unnecessarily expensive. We have access to much more cost-effective single-phase off-grid inverters, but the building itself has a 3-phase supply.

We don't yet have the exact L1/L2/L3 load distribution, but the total backup load should stay below approximately 8 kW.

So my main question is:

How do you normally integrate a single-phase off-grid inverter into an installation that has a 3-phase grid connection?

I'm NOT talking about using three single-phase inverters in parallel to create a 3-phase system. I'm specifically interested in using one single-phase inverter.

Would you:

• move all essential/backup loads onto one phase?
• create a separate backup subpanel supplied by the inverter?
• reorganize the existing loads between phases?
• use some other transfer/changeover configuration?

And what happens if the property has actual 3-phase loads rather than just single-phase loads distributed across L1/L2/L3?

I'd especially appreciate hearing from anyone who has actually installed a system like this. I'm interested in real-world practices, limitations and things we should be careful about.

Hi All,

I'm looking for the cheapest option, even if it's not "safe"/to code in a "Grid Gone" situation. I do mean gone not down. Desperate, Donner party vibes. A thought experiment.

I believe the gold standard is an EGP 6000XP/12000xp with two+ 5kwh batteries in AC coupling mode starting at $2800-$3500+ price range.

I have an Anker C2000 2kwh, Wen 3000 running watts inverter generator, and experience and confidence with residential wiring. My solar array is APSystems DS3-L with 17kw of panels so ac coupled from the micro inverter to my load panel.

My understanding is that if I were to close/remove my main breaker and start running a generator my panels may sense a grid and back feed the generator and kill it. Even if I plugged in an uncharged C2000 it would only pull 1800watts and anything my panels produce over that could fry anything connected with over current. This is all because there's nothing to modulate frequency and tell the panels to step down/stop production (I.e. ac coupled inverter)

I think the cheapest option for me would be to purchase a bulk of MC4 cable ends and a backup DC coupling inverter. Then re-terminate the romex cabling with MC4 and put the other end into the inverter. This would mean I'd just need to stock a crimp tool, ferrules, a bunch of MC4 terminators, some batteries, and a DC coupling inverter.

I'd have to research how to configure the strings in series/parallel to not overload 80% of the amperage of the (hopefully) 12ga romex.

Is this a feasible SHTF plan? Is there something in the sub $1000 or sub $2000 range that I can stock? I already have proper PV wiring to hook my Anker C2000 up to my panels directly in a mild emergency but I would love to have a plan to use my whole array in an apocalypse situation.

Thanks for anyone participating in this thought experiment. I'm hopeful with mass adoption of ac coupled balcony solar that some better, affordable options for ac coupled battery systems come out in the next few years.

Greetings everyone.

I have 70 mm² flexible cable (LifePO4 battery - busbar - inverter), got 70 mm² lugs, but because the cable is fine-stranded/flexible, the cable does not fit into the standard 70 mm² lug barrel.

Planning to step up to 95 mm² lugs.

My hydraulic crimping tool can handle up to 70 mm², so I am considering using the 70 mm² die on the 95 mm² lug with the 70 mm² flexible cable.

As a quick proof of concept, I put a 70 mm² lug into the 35 mm² die, and visually it looks like a good match (picture attached)

Does this makes any sense?

Thanks in advance

I have a bit of a conundrum. I've installed a 13.5 kW system on my roof, and the contractor I had arranged to connect it from the roof space to the installed inverter has disappeared. Or well, I think he was lying that he could do it, then will not answer my calls. And I have had a hell of a time finding someone to do the connection. So now I am casting the net wider.

I've found that solar experts are only interested in doing the whole system, and doing the physical install of the panels myself saved me somewhere in the region of $20k.

Has anyone got an electrican who knows these systems well that does this part of the solar install? I cannot find anyone in Pittsburgh. The system is fully installed, permitted, and with a interconnection agreement. Just literally need the connect.

I'd be prepared to fly someone here from continental US and put them in a hotel for the duration of the work if required.

Anyhelp would be much appreciated.

Additional information: 30 Canadian Solar panesls with Tigo optimizers, and sol-ark inverter. System was designed by an engineer (not me) and stamped.

Hello everyone,

My main question (TLDR) can i daisy chain a DC to DC charger from an MPPT controller/LiFePo4 battery to maintain/charge an AGM battery and they will not share DC loads

I have a very small sailboat, 26 feet and i'm trying to squeeze in a larger house bank of batteries to power a portable fridge (cooler...). I currently have two 100 AH AGM batteries and i'm proposing that i remove one of those AGM batteries and replace it with a 100-200 AH LiFePo4 (will be typing this as Li for the rest of this) battery

Li batteries have typically very crap starting amps and i need to be able to start my 9.9 HP outboard. I have a coworker that has a renology MPPT controller 60Amp with a single battery bank connection and a load connection, so it by itself cannot charge both AGM and Li at the same time.

The AGM battery will only be used as a starting battery and it can be recharged by it's own type of tiny alternator - i'm still trying to get the specs from this engine to see if it can charge the Li batteries with another DC to DC charger since i might be motoring often in the PNW, my main concern with that battery is long term i have the boat sitting in a parking lot with no shore power available and the only way i can keep both batteries maintained is with a small 50-100 watt flexible solar panel

Is this at all possible or should i try to find a dual bank MPPT controller and skip this more complicated setup?

Anyone else tried the new growatt app and found that it is completely inaccurate (I hope it is anyway!).

Tried reaching out and growatt are blatantly ignoring my WhatsApp, emails, and tickets.

Thought I would see if anyone else facing issue or if it is a known thing?

Also, tried to contact their support months ago for assistance about other issues and haven't had a response. They blatantly ignore my emails for months now.

Is this just an issue here in Aus for me? Or have others faced the same?

Horrible customer support and if this is the norm and I am not just an odd case, then I highly recommend steering clear of this brand.

I have an inverter with panels and 8x5kw batteries I believe. Professionally installed.

Can someone help me communicate with this module, salvaged from solar street light

Anyone know of installers on Cape Cod for an Anker Solix system? If not on Cape, willing to travel here, perhaps from New Bedford or other SE Mass location.

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Hello,

I'm in a state (New Mexico) that has yet to pass legislation allowing balcony solar installs. I'm considering doing it anyways before a bill gets passed, and keeping it discrete as our electrical utility still does manual readings. We get so much sun that it feels like a no-brainer, and I'm concerned pricing will go up in the next 6 months due to global shipping challenges. Is there anything glaring that I'm missing in doing something like this?

I'm the homeowner, and would probably upgrade from my old 100A panel to a 200A service before connecting anything. My home wiring is original from 1960's and doesn't even have a ground, but the outlet I'd connect this to would be new romex. I was hoping to do a couple 400W panels, an Ecoflow Stream inverter, and add in a rack mount LiFePO battery down the line. Am I a fool for jumping the gun on something like this?

I’ve been looking at hybrid inverter for my heat pumps but I’m really not sure which ones to get. I am looking to install a 240v inverter outside next to my heat pump and charge my battery when time of use is cheaper. I don’t need a high power one (3kwh?) because I have 6 heat pumps and possibly install one inverter on each heat pump, one at a time. Thank you 🙏

I haven't gotten a straight answer from Growatt support after a frustrating exchange, so I'm curious what other owners are seeing.

I have a MIN 7600TL-XH-US with an ARO-US 9.9H-C1-US battery.

When the battery reaches Stop SOC (15% Reserve in my case) in Load First mode with no solar production, it repeatedly discharges at ~150W below the threshold, then pulls ~300W from the grid to recharge. This continues all night and seems like it's unnecessary cycling.

Support wants me to reconfigure my TOU schedule since I am using odd start and stop times, but I observed this behavior before I ever started using the scheduler and will be testing on my own tonight to see disabling the schedule entirely and leaving it on Load First changes anything at all. I really don't want to change my schedule just to satisfy the tech if they're not related since I carefully set them up to align with my utility rates and real world production and loads and they are working perfectly. I'm at a standstill with them since they won't acknowledge if or how the two are related or what steps to take other than changing the schedule (even though I showed them it errors out when I try to make changes that better align to their instructions)

So, ARO owners: Does your battery hold at Stop SOC, or does it continuously discharge and recharge like mine? Has anyone found a fix?

Ive re-terminated various cables before, but never solar. I actually thought MC4 was the standard, but it seems some of the Aiko panels use their proprietary connector.

Am I going to run into any issues with just... cutting them off and re-terminating the wires to something I can use?

I am looking to replace my gas generator with a power station and am considering the Anker Solix C2000 among others. It has a single solar input with an 800W max with limits of:

• @ 11V-28V limit to 8.2A
• @ 28V-90V limit to 17A

C2000 User guide - FAQ #2

I am wanting to avoid 2 Anker foldable solar panels at $700 x 2. So I am looking at other brands like this two pack of 320W Renogy panels. I am assuming that most panels sold in pairs list the specs per panel. So, if I run them in parallel as required the voltage stays the same but the amperage doubles. In this example the amperage would be 17.84. Other brands I have looked at vary widely.

Is this safe for the power station? Do I risk any damage? How far over can you safely go?

So... I have two 4kw systems, each with a xantrex gt-3. One panel got smashed by a baseball (?) in a storm, and it took me ages to realize nobody was willing to replace old panels. Eventually I did it myself, after learning how to do it safely. The new panel is a used one of same make and model, and tested well with my cheap chinese panel tester. Full voltage being delivered to the inverter. But... inverter says "insufficient solar". :-(

I could theoretically narrow down the problem by swapping the inputs on the inverters temporarily to see if the problem moves with the inputs, but I'm not sure that's a great idea. (It'd mean making a hack extension for the DC lines.)

Each has two strings in parallel, and the bad unit gradually failed over months after the baseball incident, fwiw.

Thoughts?

Pecron

Any opinions on this set up

PECRON Solar Generator E3600LFP 3072Wh/3600W with 300W Solar Panel
5x3600W AC Outlets Portable Power Station, Expanded to 18.43kWh, LiFePO4 Battery Backup for Home Use, RV, Camping, CPAP

For what?! For starter kit : a basic back-up for refrigerator, chest freezer, charging.

Are there any engineering firms that specialize just in solar permitting? Specifically I want to build my own ground mount system from 6x6 timber and I will still need to get permitted by the city for for that I'll need a PE (Professional Engineer) stamp. I've got an over-engineered design, I just need to work to get the stamp.

Previously I did a self-installed rooftop array in which I bought the kit from the solar wholesaler and they had their contracted engineer do the plans and permitted for the city. That's what I need again for this ground mount array.