Accessories

I can get both these products at about the same price for the monitoring of 2x Schneider RL5000's. Both seem to do about the same thing. The second is a Schneider product and the first is a 3rd party product. Does anybody have an opinion on which product to select. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Any opinions on this monitoring product? Seems as if one can connect the Quattro and the BMV 700/2 and the charge controller to this one unit for monitoring purposes. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Yay, bought it, installed it and turned invertor back on... But now what??? I have absolutely no idea what the Victron settings should be and I can't make head/tail out of some of them - HALP! So, On a single Axpert with 2 banks of 48V Calcium/Calciums (yes, still those monsters, but I am treating them as standard lead acid). Connected the midpoints (24V) to B2 of the Victron, and B1 to 48V as per the install diagram (and obviously connected the shunt on Ground)... But seriously, I have no idea what settings to configure yet on the 702... Do I just leave it alone, or do I need to make some changes? Read the manual, but am still a bit lost.

Hi All I'm looking for a extractor fan for the place I'm storing my batteries. Room size 40m3 I know the fan needs to be able to work in a lead acid environment just not where to get them and what price I can expect to pay. Thanks Thys

So I've followed youtube videos and looked at threads on here relating to setting up the BMV, and while it seems to work great, it's not behaving when within 3% of 100% SOC. Basically as the day goes by, the SOC rises and as it approaches 100% it gradually slows down. The volts go from bulk to float and then after a few hours at float, the SOC jumps from about 98.6% to 100% like it's been at 100% for a while but not realised it and suddenly jumps. Any idea what settings I should change to resolve this?

I am planning an installation with 12 panels (3KWatt) in a 4*3 arrangement with a Vmp of 92.1 volts and an Imp of 32.6 amps. Using 16mm2 cable I determine that on a 50M length my voltage drop will be 3.3429 OR 3.6297% and the power dissipation will be 108.9 Watts. Based on my research I feel confident that the voltage drop to the MPPT controller is acceptable but I have no idea on whether the 108 watts is OK or not. Can anyone give me some feedback on how serious or not 108 watts of dissipated power is.

I am planning an installation with 12 panels (3KWatt) in a 4*3 arrangement with a Vmp of 92.1 volts and an Imp of 32.6 amps. Using 16mm2 cable I determine that on a 50M length my voltage drop will be 3.3429 OR 3.6297% and the power dissipation will be 108.9 Watts. Based on my research I feel confident that the voltage drop to the MPPT controller is acceptable but I have no idea on whether the 108 watts is OK or not. Can anyone give me some feedback on how serious or not 108 watts of dissipated power is.

I'm in the process of moving my Inverters, and want to relook at the AC cables I have. Currently I have 8mm solid core copper cable (I hope that's the correct teminology) Looks like the image below. The cable is perfectly suitable, but an utter pain in the ass to manipulate, and is bulky considering I have 2 inverters with inputs and outputs, which means man-handling 12 cables. Are there other options available locally which are suitable for my needs? I'd prefer something more flexible, and ideally with all three cables housed in the same sheath. Please let me know whats available locally and where I can purchase. Much appreciated.

Hi I have just moved to a new house, with lots of North Facing Roof Space for more panels Previously I have used 4mm "Solar Cable" from ACDC to wire up my panels to the MPPT and 25mm Welding Cable between the MPPT and Batteries. Do you actually need to use Solar Cable (I am aware of the UV protection) between the panels and MPPT? Or can you use Single Core/Normal House wire? Plan is to use the Solar Cable outside but convert to normal cable as soon as it is inside the roof. I have also seen discussion on using Speaker Cable? Any comments on this? 4mm Solar Cable (Single is around R1,360/100m at ACDC) vs 4mm Speaker Cable (Double at around R1,200/100m at B…

Hi I am looking for adaptors that will allow me to remotely switch on and off an appliance plugged into it. I looked on eBay and there are quite a lot of WiFi remote control plugs available but I'm not sure which ones work well. Anybody on here use them? Can anyone recommend a brand/model? One of the issues I see is that the South African 3-pronged plugs are not supported but this can probably be overcome by using the European plug with adaptors. Any comments on this? Cobus

Hi Guys What would be the best way to accomplish this. 2x 16mm cables into the CBI main breaker. The breaker will easily take 1 cable but no way of getting 2 in there. Thanks Thys

So on Saturday we had a bit of unexpected rain, and my home-made irrigation pump triac switch wasn't installed (yet) out of harms way. So even though it was mostly water tight, it drew enough moisture that two mains-carrying points arced over. Check out the result. This was mostly caused because there just wasn't enough distance between the two points. Thankfully it wasn't directly across the mains, it had the 850W pump motor to sink the energy into :-)

Hi All What place would be best to buy cables at for the best price. Looking for 16mm panel flex at the moment in the Pretoria/Centurion area. 40m black and 40m red, no 100m rolls. Thanks Thys

Hi I am looking into buying a Victron BMV700. Currently the best quotes I can get is around R2,109 to R2,173.13. Does anyone know of a better deal out there?

Hi Guys Are analog eletricity meters still availble? L

I should have asked this a long time ago. My installation is done, but one thing surely got the better of me. Some terminal lugs fit onto the cable like a glove, like they're made for each other. Others are a very different story. No matter how good your intentions are, you're in for a battle. I've tried cutting the cable with a fine toothed hacksaw, tin snips, a thin bladed angle grinder, I even tried a knife of sorts. You look at a 35mm cable and you sommer know: there's no way how that cable will go into that 35mm lug. I've tried only stripping like 3mm initially to make it less likely to separate at the end, I've tried holding the hairs together with a cable tie, …

Hi Guys Need some help. I want to put a safety device in-between my battery and Solar Charger The Battery In (+) and (-) are installed pretty close to each other on the controller. What can I use on my battery for just encase the the two terminals connect either by failing out the charger or accidentally touching? Thanks! L

I cannot believe that when I ask an Electrical Wholesaler for a DC isolator switch and they send me a stove switch.

My local electrical supplier told me one cannot get mini contactors rated above 9A. Is this true? I need two rated at 20A. I see e-bay has got but worry about quality.

As per the topic title I'm searching for these items for another installation. Since I'm not in a big city my supplier choices are limited and I prefer online shopping, but seems that not many of the online shops keep these things in stock. For my own installation I bought 100A fuseholders (which can be used for isolation as well) and fuses from RS - it was about 30% more expensive compared to my other option, the ACDC equivalent, but at that stage ACDC did not have stock and had no idea when they will have stock again. I used 25mm2 house wire as battery cables, but it is not a pleasure working with those. Locally I can only get 25mm2 welding cable, but welding ca…

Hi Everyone What are your favorite cable sizing methods? I know there are a few online calculators , but really keen to hear what methods you guys favor when it comes to sizing cables for solar etc. Regards E

Hi Guys, How is the alternative power indicator for an db board done? Do you get something in a circuit breaker format that have some form of light? Do you just take an AC indicator light and wire it in and mount it on a blank in the db? My Google foo is not good enough to find the answer. John

Hi everyone. Wondering if you can help. We live on a farm, i would like to install a smart meter to mesure reverse current pushed back into the grid. Are there any cost effective options for meters out there? Thnx P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtAaZ2hFYTA&feature=c4-overview-vl&list=PLyIRlFM-c3bjz7G3HLVPTG0XBAtLaafEK