Ian

2 days later and the reverse happened - a new instance appeared, with the correct reporting of both mppts. What the heck? 
Ah, well, all's well that ends well:)

Thanks BRG!
Confirms my suspicion. 
Cheers

For the record, they replaced the display unit, and all's well
Ian

For the record, they replaced the display unit, and all's well
Ian

Hi DIY, they generally draw a lot more than their rating, so it's probably normal.
That's from my experience.
Ian

Hi Wesley
I recently disposed of Gel batteries at SA Metal Group in CT, but they have branches all over. Decent price/kg, just have ID and get your cash.
Cheers
Ian

Got an email from Stellensolar.co.za today.
Nice website, bit light on physical address details:)
So I ordered a 39kWh Li ion battery pack for Rk60 - what a bargain!
I'll only get it once the money is in their acc - only direct EFT's.
Wonder how many will fall for this.

Are you referring to the current displayed by the app? If so I have also noticed the fluctuations, which don't corresponding to the real values. Fortunately I don't reply on them.
Cheers
Ian

Hi Odii
Lbsa used to supply cells, but no longer, unfortunately. 
I can help you with the bus bars...just get copper water pipe and hammer it flat, then drill out the holes. Can be done with hand tools, and a bit of effort. 
What I used for my 3 diy builds - it's handy that you can size them to any number of cells if paralleling.
Cheers
Ian
 
 
 
 

Hi Odii
Lbsa used to supply cells, but no longer, unfortunately. 
I can help you with the bus bars...just get copper water pipe and hammer it flat, then drill out the holes. Can be done with hand tools, and a bit of effort. 
What I used for my 3 diy builds - it's handy that you can size them to any number of cells if paralleling.
Cheers
Ian
 
 
 
 

Hi Odii
Lbsa used to supply cells, but no longer, unfortunately. 
I can help you with the bus bars...just get copper water pipe and hammer it flat, then drill out the holes. Can be done with hand tools, and a bit of effort. 
What I used for my 3 diy builds - it's handy that you can size them to any number of cells if paralleling.
Cheers
Ian
 
 
 
 

Hi Odii
Lbsa used to supply cells, but no longer, unfortunately. 
I can help you with the bus bars...just get copper water pipe and hammer it flat, then drill out the holes. Can be done with hand tools, and a bit of effort. 
What I used for my 3 diy builds - it's handy that you can size them to any number of cells if paralleling.
Cheers
Ian
 
 
 
 

Hi Odii
Lbsa used to supply cells, but no longer, unfortunately. 
I can help you with the bus bars...just get copper water pipe and hammer it flat, then drill out the holes. Can be done with hand tools, and a bit of effort. 
What I used for my 3 diy builds - it's handy that you can size them to any number of cells if paralleling.
Cheers
Ian
 
 
 
 

As several posters have mentioned, things are very interrelated. Batteries can usually only supply a certain amount of peak power, so that might determine the size you need.
We're completely off grid on a farm and I run borehole pumps, tools etc of a small Victron 3000VA inverter (2.4kW), 12kWh of DIY lifepo4 batteries and 4kW of panels. And a 2kW genny for the odd rainy days.
It requires a bit of management, but with smart switching I can control all the large loads from a phone or PC or Google hub.
The Victron kit kan handle high startup surges and >3kW loads for a small period, which is handy. We use gas for some cooking and water heating, but most times I cook with a 2kW airfryer off batteries in the evening and we use a electric kettle now as we've got excess capacity ( PV and Solar).
This runs our household of 2 (normally), and my caretaker and wife's cottage as well. The nighttime idle draw of the houses is about ~300W. 
Ian

As several posters have mentioned, things are very interrelated. Batteries can usually only supply a certain amount of peak power, so that might determine the size you need.
We're completely off grid on a farm and I run borehole pumps, tools etc of a small Victron 3000VA inverter (2.4kW), 12kWh of DIY lifepo4 batteries and 4kW of panels. And a 2kW genny for the odd rainy days.
It requires a bit of management, but with smart switching I can control all the large loads from a phone or PC or Google hub.
The Victron kit kan handle high startup surges and >3kW loads for a small period, which is handy. We use gas for some cooking and water heating, but most times I cook with a 2kW airfryer off batteries in the evening and we use a electric kettle now as we've got excess capacity ( PV and Solar).
This runs our household of 2 (normally), and my caretaker and wife's cottage as well. The nighttime idle draw of the houses is about ~300W. 
Ian

I've toyed with the idea of moving to a 5kW inverter, but honestly it's not difficult to plan around. And I'm a miser:)

As several posters have mentioned, things are very interrelated. Batteries can usually only supply a certain amount of peak power, so that might determine the size you need.
We're completely off grid on a farm and I run borehole pumps, tools etc of a small Victron 3000VA inverter (2.4kW), 12kWh of DIY lifepo4 batteries and 4kW of panels. And a 2kW genny for the odd rainy days.
It requires a bit of management, but with smart switching I can control all the large loads from a phone or PC or Google hub.
The Victron kit kan handle high startup surges and >3kW loads for a small period, which is handy. We use gas for some cooking and water heating, but most times I cook with a 2kW airfryer off batteries in the evening and we use a electric kettle now as we've got excess capacity ( PV and Solar).
This runs our household of 2 (normally), and my caretaker and wife's cottage as well. The nighttime idle draw of the houses is about ~300W. 
Ian

Got an email from Stellensolar.co.za today.
Nice website, bit light on physical address details:)
So I ordered a 39kWh Li ion battery pack for Rk60 - what a bargain!
I'll only get it once the money is in their acc - only direct EFT's.
Wonder how many will fall for this.

Got an email from Stellensolar.co.za today.
Nice website, bit light on physical address details:)
So I ordered a 39kWh Li ion battery pack for Rk60 - what a bargain!
I'll only get it once the money is in their acc - only direct EFT's.
Wonder how many will fall for this.

Got an email from Stellensolar.co.za today.
Nice website, bit light on physical address details:)
So I ordered a 39kWh Li ion battery pack for Rk60 - what a bargain!
I'll only get it once the money is in their acc - only direct EFT's.
Wonder how many will fall for this.

I see that new 280Ah LifePO4 cells are available on Ali for R1400/kWh. And the prices will just keep coming down - residential storage to go off grid is going to be a no brainier...

I see that new 280Ah LifePO4 cells are available on Ali for R1400/kWh. And the prices will just keep coming down - residential storage to go off grid is going to be a no brainier...

I see that new 280Ah LifePO4 cells are available on Ali for R1400/kWh. And the prices will just keep coming down - residential storage to go off grid is going to be a no brainier...

All I can see is this accelerating migration to off-grid, which will just make their situation worse.
They are in such a mess:(

All I can see is this accelerating migration to off-grid, which will just make their situation worse.
They are in such a mess:(