nembudziya

Thanks Jason for making this forum. It's a treasure trove of priceless info and advice for newbies and pro's alike!

This the most helpful and best run forum I have ever been a part of. Thanks so much

Your forum is most valuable and has distinguished itself from others. The amount of toxic response is unusually limited but there must be a deterministic reason for it, and we thank you you and others for setting up a good culture here.  I have jumped into the deep end on solar, and with the help from human  resources here, i  am gratefull. 

Dear all. 
Firstly I would like to wish you all a safe and happy holiday break. I appreciate every single member and their contribution to making this a great, peaceful and happy platform to enrich each other with knowledge and advise. This was the goal when I started in 2013 with myself as 1 member.
As the aviation industry is a very uncertain career I started the powerforum store about 2 years ago. I don't and will never request any member of this forum to be obligated to purchase from the store. There are many other commercial suppliers that offer just as great service.
Since the beginning in 2013 , every member that has joined has been checked and manually been clicked on to be accepted to the community. There are so many spam individuals out there that want access to post unsavory topics. 
Some of these individuals sometimes get through as they have a perfectly looking Gmail email addresses and locations.
I have tried many different types of automatic spam filters but none are as good as checking with the human eye.
Okay to the point 🤣 : if any members notice a scam or spam member posting I ask you to make use of the report button. Please see the attached image. I require two members to report the post to be automatically hidden for moderation.
The members who have reported the post are also logged. So don't go reporting and hiding a freindly debate. ;D !
This will help me greatly as I constantly have my phone in my pocket checking for scammers to protect our community.
I would like to say thank you again for making this community great and also we nearly at 20 000 members!
Have a safe and restful holiday break.
Thank you all.
Sincerely
Jason Back
 
 

Are you happy with the trolley as such? Also are you CT based or elsewhere?
not sure if the s-200 has also moved to lifepo4 like the new am’s - if not i’d look for something that is… I could send you to somebody that manufactures these- but he’s CT based- might save you some cash.
also unsure if the mecer’s have perhaps changed to prismatic lifepo4 cells, maybe try and find out.
I’d wager all manufacturers are moving to it as the old pouch cells all fail after around 3 years…
 
Another option perhaps- look for somebody who has some 2nd hand ones and buy a couple on the cheap (around R1500 each)- stick 2x or even 4x together and at your modest 600W load they might be good for another few years.

Well I guess that's about to change...😁

I have the 5kwh version of this currently and so far very happy. Its only been a few weeks since my install so granted not enough time to properly review. What concerned me prior to accepting my quote is that these Greenrich batteries are not spoken about much on any of the forums...

We have used over 140 of these units, mostly the 5KWH.
They are solid and really well performing batteries. Love the 1.5C

Hi Guys so here is another GIVE AWAY!
We are busy with a test and review of the Greenrich 1.5C 3.686 kWh Lithium Battery 
Yes we will be giving one away to one lucky Power Forum Member in a Lucky Draw 
I will post details on how to qualify for this GIVE AWAY soon watch this space!
Sponsored by Elleyhill Power (PTY) LTD
So some information to wet your appetite about these batteries 
Greenrich batteries have been in the market for some time now and so far we have had mostly positive feedback from installer and end users alike.
What makes the battery desirable is the 1.5C Rating this means the battery can discharge at 1.5 times its capacity rating.
Why would that be so great?
Here is why if you have a 5KW inverter discharge the battery at 5kWh then this 3.686 kWh battery will be able to absorb a charge rate between 0.5C & 0.75C and a discharge rate at 1.5C without tripping the benefits of that is that when you start of on your solar journey you don't have to break the bank with just one 3.686kWh Greenrich Battery because your 5KW inverter can never reach the discharge rates of the battery. 
The 3.686 kWh is also inter compatible with the 4.95 kWh Greenrich Lithium if you require to expand to larger capacity.
This Lithium battery is the only Lithium battery in the market that offers true 1.5C discharge ratings. With 1.5C discharge rates, the Greenrich lithium battery has a much higher power output compared to other 0.5C or 1C lithium batteries. 
The cell technology in the battery is LFP cylindrical high density cells which can do up to 2C however for longevity the BMS limits the discharge  to 1.5C and charger rates to 0.5C continuous and boost charge rate for 5 minutes to 0.75C
Battery specifications:
Weight: 41.5kg
Battery Type: Lithium Ion
Nominal Energy: 3686 Wh
Depth of discharge: 95.00 %
Voltage: 51.2v
Continuous Discharge Rate (Normal Use): 5000 W
Maximum Discharge Rate (5 Minutes): 5500 W
Surge Discharge Rate (15 Seconds): 6144 W
Maximum Charge Rate (5 Minutes): 2560 W
Compatible with many of South Africa’s popular Hybrid inverters’ brands.
Built-in BMS that protects the cell from abnormal temperature, current, voltage, SoC, and SoH.
DATA SHEET
 
 

Hello everyone just thought to post an update on the 3kVa/24V backup system that I've been working on.
Last week the power utility informed us that they would be working on our power line and we would be switched off the grid from 7am on Monday (24 May 2021) to Tuesday (25 May 2021) at 4pm.
They switched us off at about 11:40am on Monday and power was only restored for a few minutes this afternoon (Thursday 27 May 2021).
During that time, with regulated usage of our fridge and freezer, we were able to run our lights, power laptops and charge phones from 11:40am on Monday up to approximately 3pm on Wednesday. 
By regulated usage of our fridge and freezer I mean we ran them for about 4 hours on battery power on Monday and 5 hours on Tuesday (3 in the morning, 2 in the late afternoon).
As for the inverter settings, the cutoff voltage is 24V and following the advise of someone on this forum we used the following battery settings:
Battery type: USER
Settings 26: 27.6V
Setting 27: 26.8V
Hopefully I'll be able to add PV power soon and that should save us the frustrations of dealing with poor service from the utility.

This would be fun to see, I'm looking forward to this project. All the best!

Unfortunately not:(
cant find much detail on that device, but have a feeling it’s a RS485-serial/usb converter. So might “talk” to your axpert, but the intelligence comes from the bms side- and doubt the said bms will have the same level of detail to feed and control the inverter.
There is no quick fix or easy way to fake “can/rs485” comms unfortunately. It is Very complicated to get right- the reason so much money is spent on certification for any specific brand of battery to be compatibly with the different inverter brands. The guys building batteries will tell you the same- it’s months and months of work/coding/testing etc
If you want to future proof- get rid of the axpert, Buy something decent like a 5 or 8kW sunsynk/deye (full hybrid inverter) - and start with a battery like the am-2 hubble or similar..
efficiencies of hybrids vs - lets be honest and call the axperts what they are : “cheap and nasty” - is a long other topic….  Of course this all costs money- but if you look at backup power as a requirement for the next couple of years, rather invest in the correct kit now that will last 5-10years, have 5 & 10 Y guarantees- for  30% more upfront - or go as cheap as you can and in 2 years have to replace it all again…
Whats that saying “goedkoop koop
Is duur koop” - thats why these forums exist I suppose- for free advice from users who's already done it all (a few times)
 
 
 

When this thread started several moons ago who ever thought it would result in such enriching discussions. Thanks to @Igubu @JaseZA @Rooney Hat  @YellowTapemeasure and everyone else that's been contributing so much knowledge, sharing their experience, and providing wisdom.
Together we'll beat the power woes!

Hey @Rooney Hat thanks for chiming in. I got help from someone on this forum and I'm currently using the settings indicated in a previous post (quoted above)

When this thread started several moons ago who ever thought it would result in such enriching discussions. Thanks to @Igubu @JaseZA @Rooney Hat  @YellowTapemeasure and everyone else that's been contributing so much knowledge, sharing their experience, and providing wisdom.
Together we'll beat the power woes!

When this thread started several moons ago who ever thought it would result in such enriching discussions. Thanks to @Igubu @JaseZA @Rooney Hat  @YellowTapemeasure and everyone else that's been contributing so much knowledge, sharing their experience, and providing wisdom.
Together we'll beat the power woes!

I don't trust "Prismatic" in spec sheets as it seems some people use it to refer to hardcase cells while others use it to mean 'not cylindrical' but possibly still pouch. That might not be the case here though... Anyone want to buy one and open it up? 😂
 

When this thread started several moons ago who ever thought it would result in such enriching discussions. Thanks to @Igubu @JaseZA @Rooney Hat  @YellowTapemeasure and everyone else that's been contributing so much knowledge, sharing their experience, and providing wisdom.
Together we'll beat the power woes!

That's an old spec sheet, The older Hubble S-100 (with serial # prefixes starting with DS) can be configured in series or parallel, but not both. The newer Hubble S-100 batteries (with serial # prefixes starting with HL) can be configured up to 4 batteries in series with 4 batteries in parallel.
New spec sheet is here: https://www.hubblelithium.co.za/uploads/1/3/5/0/135079623/hubble_lithium_s-100_a4_pamphet_v2.2.pdf

So the only real danger I can see with paralleling with individual BMSes is the chance for measurement inaccuracies between them. So with two batteries in parallel, for example, one could decide that 98A is too much before it shuts down while the other measures slightly higher and shuts down at 100A. When the first shuts down early, suddenly the second sees the full 198A before it shuts down. Maybe the BMS won't like that and cause a failure? Same could go for pack voltage at low cut-off. These are fringe cases but still something a manufacturer has to be prepared for... These are my speculations at least.
The only way Hubble or Vision could get around this is to have very accurate measurements of current/cell voltage or to communicate between BMSes. I'm pretty sure none of them have some secret Comms protocol so it must be the accuracy? Either way, if you're just looking for more capacity then I see no issues in paralleling if you're staying away from low cut off. If you're wanting to parallel to draw more than 100A and closer to 200A then maybe think twice.

From the hubble spec sheet:
prismatic
I cannot say this enough: dont buy a battery based on capacity on paper, with lithium especially- there are many more components that decide if its something that will last or a cheapie… capacity/ volts not everything- you can build 8-cell or 16-cell batteries, both seem “similar” but the latter a lot more actual capacity..
 

Honestly it is worth (for those who
have not purchased yet) buying something like this rather than the slightly cheaper variants- they are also local in Jhb and Ctn - so support is at hand- I have seen some
hubble talk on the forum as well- unsure if they are resellers - I only know of a CT based installer/reseller, perhaps you can buy rrp from the direct (no idea)?
 

I don't know but I suspect it might be something to do with the BMS board that they use. I was warned by a certain supplier to steer clear of a certain brand (I wish I could remember the name of the brand) because the BMS would only support parallel connections. Using the same logic (flawed as it might be) I could see a possibility for BMSes that would only support series connections 🤷‍♂️
Whatever the correct answer is, I suspect the BMS would be the key determinant. The Vision manual claims that the BMS allows both series and parallel connections up to a maximum of 6S6P (that's a lot of power)

For those interested- here a picture of a newer generation of this: (not my pic so apologies quality)

Little bit of info some might find surprising: the Pylons also have pouch cells  afain…
I wouldnt mix pouch and prismatics..
perhaps reach out to Hubble and ask them about their s-100 version - what’s inside.. 
 

So the opportunity finally came to test a theory - does the Mecer have pouch cells or hardcase cells and what exactly is inside?? I managed to get a set of 4 almost new ones for a good price off the forum - two went to my brother for his small home backup system and the other two were for me to look at and hopefully integrate into my DIY battery.
Getting the pack open isn't too hard but not particularly fun. Lots of prying with plastic trim removal tools and slowly pulling on the glued on lid eventually got it off. This is what it looks like inside:

Honestly, I was a bit disappointed as it was immediately obvious it was some form of pouch cell and not the hard cased prismatic cells I'd hoped for. But as I looked closer I was rather impressed with the build quality. Everything was well secured and held together. Good insulation used and decently beefy cables. I liked that the cells were away from all sides giving extra protection. Opening the top of the insulated inner box revealed the BMS:


Looking from the side I could now see how the battery was put together - 8 x 100ah pouch cells stacked on top of each other in pairs - each pair flipped to connect in series with the next pair. Nice strong connections between cells and proper balance leads to each pair. Even a temperature sensor!

I checked the balance between the cells and with this battery close to fully charged I had exactly 3.401V on each cell! Very impressive! BMS looks beefy as well with decent soldering and connections. I guess heat might be the only concern in a sealed battery like this but there's a decent bit of metal to dissipate it.
I'm now quite undecided on what I want to do with my setup. I'm much less keen on mixing my hard case 100ah cells with these pouch cells. So I could just put it back together and sell it on and stick with what I have. The other option is to try and find two more and create one big 48V 10kwh battery with new BMS and then retire my old bank... decisions decisions 😅
I haven't closed it up yet, if anyone has any requests or questions about it.

Hello everyone just thought to post an update on the 3kVa/24V backup system that I've been working on.
Last week the power utility informed us that they would be working on our power line and we would be switched off the grid from 7am on Monday (24 May 2021) to Tuesday (25 May 2021) at 4pm.
They switched us off at about 11:40am on Monday and power was only restored for a few minutes this afternoon (Thursday 27 May 2021).
During that time, with regulated usage of our fridge and freezer, we were able to run our lights, power laptops and charge phones from 11:40am on Monday up to approximately 3pm on Wednesday. 
By regulated usage of our fridge and freezer I mean we ran them for about 4 hours on battery power on Monday and 5 hours on Tuesday (3 in the morning, 2 in the late afternoon).
As for the inverter settings, the cutoff voltage is 24V and following the advise of someone on this forum we used the following battery settings:
Battery type: USER
Settings 26: 27.6V
Setting 27: 26.8V
Hopefully I'll be able to add PV power soon and that should save us the frustrations of dealing with poor service from the utility.