New to solar

Wattsup

Wattsup

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Joined
Feb 19, 2017
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512
Hi guys,
Wondered if I could get some schooling /advice on solar please?

I live in Victoria Australia.

Should I be concerned with the brand and type of panels or are they all fairly equal?

I will eventually build and connect a powewall, so should I be looking at a hybrid inverter?

I will leave it there for now. All advice appreciated.
Thanks
 
What is your application - if grid-tied system talk to an expert local CEC approved installer will point you in the right direction. If it's for kicking around playing/learning grab a cheap one of Gumtree and start there. How will you be using it ?
 
hbpowerwall said:
What is your application - if grid-tied system talk to an expert local CEC approved installer will point you in the right direction. If it's for kicking around playing/learning grab a cheap one of Gumtree and start there. How will you be using it ?
Click to expand...

I have a 40 watt panel currently on the shed with a pwm charging my 12 volt pack.

Just ordered a 100 watt panel sothe 40 watter will go on the Jayco camper

Wanting to get a grid tied system for the house to reduce power bills and just be a bit more green.

Once i have enough cells will build a powerwall to store energy for when the sun aint shinin.

Was just looking for some general information and recommendations from those who are already going down this track :)
 
I'm not goin quite down the solar electric panels quite yet. but that's partially because I'm going to build the panels myself.

I'm going to start with solar heating; and if that gets hot enough to make steam, then use a steam turbine to charge with. Also, after that, will be wind turbine. We get plenty of wind in the evening and first thing in the morning. Which, even the wind turbine I'm gonna build, too :)
 
I have 6KW of panels ... I bought first 1KW, then 3 years latter bought another 5KW , this time through Alibaba .... delivered to a port near me (Bangkok) ..... the price has dropped a lot ... now less than $US 0.5/Watt from Alibaba ... you will probably pay double if bought from an outlet in Australia ...

They are basically all the same , go for cheapest price per Watt. Some are slightly more efficient (more W/sq.meter) but the extra price is not worth it ...

Remember they need cleaning every year or so .... best to put them on the ground , unless you like climbing on your roof!

You need to be clear what type of set-up you wan't ...grid tie inverters are expensive (for feeding power to the grid) ...and probably involves lots of red tape and inspections ... If you are building your own powerwall that's the biggest expense dealt with ... maybe cut off from the grid and just get a normal inverter....

Korishan said:
I'm going to build the panels myself.
I'm going to start with solar heating; and if that gets hot enough to make steam, then use a steam turbine to charge with. Also, after that, will be wind turbine. We get plenty of wind in the evening and first thing in the morning. Which, even the wind turbine I'm gonna build, too :)
Click to expand...

I can tell you all about that , korishan .... spent some time at making PV panels ... you will pay more if you try to make them yourself ... the drastic drop in prices of panels has destroyed all competition .... forget wind ... forget making steam .... you will get a good education , spend a lot of time and money, but not get much power .... just buy plenty of panels ... they just make power ... no noise ... no breakdowns ... in 25 years they'll still put out 75% they did when new!
 
Its not always alibaba is cheaper either. Not where i live atleast. From store i pay 0.6SUD/W from the cheapest place and all the way to 2USD/W.

Alibaba including shipping and vat/tax i cannot get it below 0.9USD/W.

So my tip is to look around alot!
 
daromer said:
. From store i pay 0.6USD/W from the cheapest place

That's a very good price from a store for a standard panel , my bet is for most of the western world it's double that price ... no import taxes where I am for panels ... many factors to consider ....
Click to expand...
 
I have actually had friends in other countries getting panels for <0.5USD/W. Though mono is a bit more expensive and i just went for cheapest per W.
 
Hi guys,
I have a couple more questions if I may.

1. I'm wanting to buy 4 x 270 watt panels now to get things started. Can I buy say 250 or 300 watt later to add, or do they need to be same as existing?

2. I notice there are 12 v 24v and open voltage panels, should this be considered when buying panels?


I will be buying used panels.

Thanks
 
You can also add to your string of panels later. The only thing you really need worry about is maxing out the voltage "input" of your MPPT or charger controller. Some of the can only handle a certain max of voltage and current. So double check these numbers.
Now, I think, you can put charge controllers in parallel and share the input. but I'm not sure of that. I would recommend a higher capacity unit if possible.

I'm not sure of the #2 question. Are you meaning that the panel is rated at 12V/24V, or that they can be used in either voltage? If the former, then you need to make sure that all your panels that are connected directly together are the same voltage. You do not want to mix a 12V panel with a 24V panel. bad things could happen; other than just shortening the life of the 12V panel.
 
hbpowerwall said:
What is your application - if grid-tied system talk to an expert local CEC approved installer will point you in the right direction. If it's for kicking around playing/learning grab a cheap one of Gumtree and start there. How will you be using it ?
Click to expand...

Korishan said:
You can also add to your string of panels later. The only thing you really need worry about is maxing out the voltage "input" of your MPPT or charger controller. Some of the can only handle a certain max of voltage and current. So double check these numbers.
Now, I think, you can put charge controllers in parallel and share the input. but I'm not sure of that. I would recommend a higher capacity unit if possible.

I'm not sure of the #2 question. Are you meaning that the panel is rated at 12V/24V, or that they can be used in either voltage? If the former, then you need to make sure that all your panels that are connected directly together are the same voltage. You do not want to mix a 12V panel with a 24V panel. bad things could happen; other than just shortening the life of the 12V panel.
Click to expand...
To question 2,I was meaning the output of the panel.

I would not mix voltages of panels, I was more wodering which to go with.

The panels I am looking at say. Open circuit voltage 38.2.
Thanks
 
Ahhh, ok. If you can go with 24V, would be recommended if the panels are a bit away from the controllers. The higher the voltage, the smaller the wires and the less loss during transmission.
 
Look at your inverter. 12 and 24 panels are generally made to work with PWM controllers or just directly to such LA batteries.

Most charge controllers today is made to work with 60 or 72 pieces of panels. I would go with those. Most common is 60 in my area and fits most inverters. (Except some china ones where it just doesnt fit the range of voltage on the input of the MPPT.

And already said before make sure you have the voltage range between min and max of your panels to fit your inverter. A really cold day the initial voltage can be alot higher! If that goes to high it will trigger fault on your inverter/chargecontroller if you are unlucky.

38V (Uoc) is 60 cells panels.
 
daromer said:
Look at your inverter. 12 and 24 panels are generally made to work with PWM controllers or just directly to such LA batteries.

Most charge controllers today is made to work with 60 or 72 pieces of panels. I would go with those. Most common is 60 in my area and fits most inverters. (Except some china ones where it just doesnt fit the range of voltage on the input of the MPPT.

And already said before make sure you have the voltage range between min and max of your panels to fit your inverter. A really cold day the initial voltage can be alot higher! If that goes to high it will trigger fault on your inverter/chargecontroller if you are unlucky.

38V (Uoc) is 60 cells panels.
Click to expand...

I don't currently have an inverter. I have a basic setup with 2 x100w panels on shed roof with $20 ebay pwm charging my 60 cell 18650 pack.

The dream is to go off grid as much as possible. Initially I want to install an inverter and around 1 kw panels to power the shed as a starting point and to give me time to learn more..

This is why I want to get the first purchases with type of panels and inverter right.

I notice on here and other forums the mpp solar inverters such as 2424 MSE and 6PCM60X are popular.

Are you saying you wouldn't go 24 volt?
This system will be used with my Calb lifepo4 cells, so could setup for 12 volt

Just trying to gain an understanding of benefits of 24/48 volt.

On a steep learning curve right now, hopefully I'll be able to contribute something to the forum one day :D
 
I would go 48V.

Its generally a tad more expensive with 48v for equipment in some areas but on the other hand you dont have to have as thick cables and all that.

I think most people agree on that on smaller systems (Couple of 100w) a 12v would work fine. But as soon as you make it better its also better to go 24v. For houses and such and if you have the gear 48v is even better.
 
And smaller wires equals easier ability to move, bend, flex, install them ;) Plus, smaller wires are easier to solder to, and easier to crimp and replace. Initial costs may be a little higher for equipment, but maintenance costs and wiring costs will be smaller. So yeah, it does kinda balance out a little bit.
But I'd rather run 8Ga wire than 2Ga wire everywhere.
 
Hey all

Im looking at buying these used panels to get my array started.

8x190 watt. See photo below.

I have a couple of questions regarding these panels.


At the moment I have a Epever Tracer 12/24 volt 3210 30 amp mppt controller.

1. Is there any reason I couldn't use a couple of these panels with the tracer to charge my 12 volt battery?should be within voltage and current limit for controller.

2. Will these panels be suitable for the 48 volt system I am planning with the lifepo4 cells?. I would get a new 48 volt inverter for this setup.

Thanks


image_uivcdg.jpg
 
Panels can pretty much be installed in either arrangement. The only limitation is that you can't go over the amperage rating of the panels when installed in series.

The limitation of voltage is only the wiring and controller input voltage.

So, in a word, yes. You can use these for a 48V setup.
 
Korishan: Did you miss in writing? You said the only limitation is the current in series... ? Im not sure i follow this. Neven seen any current limit there. Since they are generators they decide what current goes out at most. If to much they lower the voltage.

On the other hand most panels are rated for a max voltage in the system. Like above panel is rated 1000V. that means the total voltage of that serie is not to go above 1000V.

Atleast that was what I was told when i started my journey (From people working with it for years)
 
Thanks guys

I bought the 1.5 kw for $600 off ebay, was only 2km from where I live.

8 x 190 watt panels, rails, mounting hardware, 20m of 4mm cable, dc/ ac breakers, it came with a grid tie inverter which I probably wont use.

I have mounted 2 of the panels, running through the tracer 3210A.

Good little starter system to gain some knowledge on :)
 
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