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Going with Offgrid Solar

I was just reading about the 18KW inverter. It reads that it has a solar charge controller incorporated in it. use that or since you stated earlier in the post I would need four controllers, get an external one? Is so, which controller do you suggest?

Where do you think the best place to buy the best Monocrystalline 440 watt panels from? I read that those were more efficient than the Poly.
 
cage2592 said:
I was just reading about the 18KW inverter. It reads that it has a solar charge controller incorporated in it. use that or since you stated earlier in the post I would need four controllers, get an external one? Is so, which controller do you suggest?

Where do you think the best place to buy the best Monocrystalline 440 watt panels from? I read that those were more efficient than the Poly.
Click to expand...

I'm of the mindset that I don't like to have all the features in single device as in if one function fails you're pretty much screwed and will have to buy a replacement. I myself use Midnite Solar Classic 150 charge controllers (two of them), and they are the most configurable on the market. They also have built in GFI. I'd recommend using them myself.

As for the solar panels, there are a number of places, but lately I've been using Signature Solar out of Texas and even their shipping is reasonable. Here's a link to the 445 watt panels. I'll be buying more shortly.
 
Just heard that Midnite Solar has a new 6.8KW inverter coming out, the "Rosie"

diysolarforum.com

Midnite Solar Rosie HF Inverter 27kW Surge Test

Disclaimer: I'm not employed by nor compensated by Midnite Solar. I happen to be located near their factories in Arlington, WA and take advantage of the open door policy. I stop in several times a week and try to break stuff! If you stop in and ask if you can attempt to break stuff, they most...
diysolarforum.com diysolarforum.com
 

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  • new_products_MidniteSolar.pdf
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Nashville Cat said:
Just heard that Midnite Solar has a new 6.8KW inverter coming out, the "Rosie"

diysolarforum.com

Midnite Solar Rosie HF Inverter 27kW Surge Test

Disclaimer: I'm not employed by nor compensated by Midnite Solar. I happen to be located near their factories in Arlington, WA and take advantage of the open door policy. I stop in several times a week and try to break stuff! If you stop in and ask if you can attempt to break stuff, they most...
diysolarforum.com diysolarforum.com
Click to expand...

Impressive. Looks like I may do some upgrades in the future. I really like Midnite Solar products, and their support is top notch (I know first hand from calling them a number of times).
 
kmakar said:
Impressive. Looks like I may do some upgrades in the future. I really like Midnite Solar products, and their support is top notch (I know first hand from calling them a number of times).
Click to expand...
I hope they can keep it close to $3000 ! I'll get two if they do :)
 
kmakar said:
It'd be nice, but Midnite Solar isn't known for being cheap (because their products are that good).
Click to expand...
Well the Outback 8kw is $4000 so they'd better be under that ! :)
I think I will need 2 each of either the Outback or Rosie. Hoping Rosie will come in the mid-to-low $3k
 
Nashville Cat said:
Well the Outback 8kw is $4000 so they'd better be under that ! :)
I think I will need 2 each of either the Outback or Rosie. Hoping Rosie will come in the mid-to-low $3k
Click to expand...

The Outback doesn't have that same level of surge capability that the Rosie has, so there is a major difference there.
 
The price of steel is obnoxiously high right now. I ordered (6) 20' lengths of 2" schedule 40 steel pipe and (2) 20' lengths of 1" angle and it cost $1,013.21.

This is all for the new solar array going above Lisa's she shed.

Before Biden's stupidity, it would have been half (or less) that cost.

IMG_20211210_115811267_HDR.jpg
 
kmakar said:
The price of steel is obnoxiously high right now. I ordered (6) 20' lengths of 2" schedule 40 steel pipe and (2) 20' lengths of 1" angle and it cost $1,013.21.

This is all for the new solar array going above Lisa's she shed.

Before Biden's stupidity, it would have been half (or less) that cost.

------------
Click to expand...
Good grief. I might have to shop for used pipe.
Don't under-estimate the surge capability of the Outback. It's a very heavy unit; supposed to be capable of 3X the rating.
I bet your SunGold is capable too. It's one heavy piece of equipment - over 200 lbs.
I get suspicious of these lightweight inverters claiming high surge capability (like Sol-Ark). Not sure what Rosie will weigh ?
 
Nashville Cat said:
Good grief. I might have to shop for used pipe.
Don't under-estimate the surge capability of the Outback. It's a very heavy unit; supposed to be capable of 3X the rating.
I bet your SunGold is capable too. It's one heavy piece of equipment - over 200 lbs.
I get suspicious of these lightweight inverters claiming high surge capability (like Sol-Ark). Not sure what Rosie will weigh ?
Click to expand...

I couldn't find any used pipe, so I bought new.

If you're referring to the Outback 8048, it only has 2 x (to 16,970 watts) the surge for 100ms (or 0.1 of 1 second), and surge to 12kw for 5 seconds.

radian8048.png

The Sungold I bought has 3 x the surge capability (45,000 watts) for 20 seconds, and it actually weighed 225lbs. Had to use the engine hoist to lift it while my son held it to the wall and I drilled into the concrete block and secured it.

I would be leery too if it didn't have a transformer.
 
kmakar said:
I couldn't find any used pipe, so I bought new.

If you're referring to the Outback 8048, it only has 2 x (to 16,970 watts) the surge for 100ms (or 0.1 of 1 second), and surge to 12kw for 5 seconds.

View attachment 1018

The Sungold I bought has 3 x the surge capability (45,000 watts) for 20 seconds, and it actually weighed 225lbs. Had to use the engine hoist to lift it while my son held it to the wall and I drilled into the concrete block and secured it.

I would be leery too if it didn't have a transformer.
Click to expand...
Thanks for that info. I have never seen this spec sheet. Never trust what you are told LOL
 
Nashville Cat said:
The Sunny Island inverters have a great reputation, but they are like the Sol-Ark, they are a lightweight design.
This setup looks nice; pre-wired with 2 midnite solar 150's:

www.solar-electric.com

MidNite Solar MNSI6048D-2CL150 Pre-Wired 12,000 Watt Sunny Island Inverter System

MidNite Solar MNSI6048D-2CL150 Pre-Wired SMA Sunny Island Inverter System Rated For 12,000 Watts
www.solar-electric.com www.solar-electric.com
Click to expand...

Looks like that may do the trick for you..... they (SMA Sunny's together) are 12kw with surge to 24kw, and I already know Midnite Solar controllers are great.
 
kmakar said:
Looks like that may do the trick for you..... they (SMA Sunny's together) are 12kw with surge to 24kw, and I already know Midnite Solar controllers are great.
Click to expand...
If I do get this system, is it worth considering upgrading the Midnite Solar 150's to the 250's ?
kmakar said:
We've been running our house "part time" on my self designed offgrid solar setup for about 2 years now and it's worked out well. We used the solar power during the day, and at night it switched back to line power (automatically). We cut our electric bill in half and at the same time had had full time power in the event of a power outage from the power company without the need of a generator.

With the cost of LifePO4 batteries (lithium iron phosphate) dropping considerably (we had been using sealed lead acid deep cycle batteries), we decided it was time to make the jump to the new LifePO4 batteries. We also decided that the current setup of using 2 decent sized inverters (one was 6,600 watts, and the other 6,000 watts) introduced additional hurdles to overcome (by splitting out our electrical panel to use the power of each inverter to split the load), so we also got a much larger inverter (18kw with a 30ms surge rating to 54kw).

We are still waiting on 2 more LifePO4 batteries (we currently have 600 amp hours, but are adding 2 more for a total of 800 amp hours). I finished the upgrade yesterday and after the batteries get their first full solar charge today, we'll be going full time solar (flipping the transfer switch to full time solar).

I still have to design, build, and weld a steel rack to house and protect the batteries, but I just held it together with wood for now.

I did all the electrical work myself. I used to be a general contractor, so for me it's rather simple.

Here is what our setup looks like.... I was testing the loads on the new inverter last night and everything performed perfectly.

If you have questions regarding offgrid solar, I'll do my best to answer questions or help.

View attachment 171
Click to expand...

I think I've finally made my mind up. I'm going to order a 18kw SunGold and use two Midnite classics just like your setup.

The biggest criticism of the Sungold was it's "old school" ; requires a manual setup and doesn't have any communication with the internet.

It dawned on me today that it doesn't need those features if you use the Midnite Classic charge controllers. They supply those features.

My panels will be 50 volts each, so I should get the Classic 250's ? That way I can run more panels in series and save on wiring ?
 
Nashville Cat said:
If I do get this system, is it worth considering upgrading the Midnite Solar 150's to the 250's ?


I think I've finally made my mind up. I'm going to order a 18kw SunGold and use two Midnite classics just like your setup.

The biggest criticism of the Sungold was it's "old school" ; requires a manual setup and doesn't have any communication with the internet.

It dawned on me today that it doesn't need those features if you use the Midnite Classic charge controllers. They supply those features.

My panels will be 50 volts each, so I should get the Classic 250's ? That way I can run more panels in series and save on wiring ?
Click to expand...

Exactly right. Sungoldpower is the biggest I found and so far it's been flawless. Setup is nothing, just a couple of dip switches.

Remember I sent you the link for doing the Midnite Solar classic sizing? The 150 can handle the most amperage (96 amps if I remember correctly), whereas the 250 can't handle that kind of amperage.

If your panels are 50v, you'll likely set them up 2 in a series, then join each series into the larger series (exactly like I have mine).
 
Sungold was running a "Christmas Special" of $300 off, so the cost was $3668 including shipping (that thing is a monster -220 lbs?)
I wonder if Midnite is having a sale ? Better check.
 
Nashville Cat said:
Sungold was running a "Christmas Special" of $300 off, so the cost was $3668 including shipping (that thing is a monster -220 lbs?)
I wonder if Midnite is having a sale ? Better check.
Click to expand...

You got a great deal.... my Sungold cost $4,415 shipped. It is a monster and very heavy. Make sure you have an engine hoist with a strap to lift it and at least someone to steady it while you attach it to the wall. My son helped me.

The Midnite's are sold all over, you just have to find someone having a sale on them.
 
kmakar said:
You got a great deal.... my Sungold cost $4,415 shipped. It is a monster and very heavy. Make sure you have an engine hoist with a strap to lift it and at least someone to steady it while you attach it to the wall. My son helped me.

The Midnite's are sold all over, you just have to find someone having a sale on them.
Click to expand...
I have a 1/2 ton come-a-long and an engine hoist. I'll position the come-a-long directly over the mounting point.
Usually swap engines by myself so I'll be fine. :)
Plan on putting 3/4"plywood on the wall and then concrete backer-board.
 
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