₦airaland Forum

I have....new...whatsapp me(see my signature)

earthrealm:
on another note, who has 40/45amp charge controller for sale?..new or used with waranty?

5days? You try . Anyways tell us the make of the inverter so we can know if the self consumption of the inverter is consuming most of the power

earthrealm:
so my 4 units of 200ah flooded batts are not performing well...after 2 days of just led tv, energy saving bulbs and 2 ceiling fans used intermittently..the voltage will drip to 48.8v, when fully charged, hygrometer reading shows electrolyte status is ok, and meter readings show similar voltage +/- 0.2, apart from a load tester...is there any way i can resolve this issue?

when hooked to the inverter and using normally, individual voltages are almost same with just 1 unit being 0.2v lower
they are lumionous flooded 200AH bought from a dealer here last year, i am expecting it shud last upto 5 days, hr after phcn goes..voltage quickly drops to 50.4v and then later settles at 50v after about 4hrs...with a load of abt 180 to 320w

Ferdiwar:
Same here I saw the same thing on pics but when I made enquires I was told it only comes in 1.2v

http://nickelironbatteries.tictail.com/product/us-nife-battery-12v-100ah
http://encell.com/fused-iron-batteries/

Even for lead acid there are 2v 500AH people buy 12pcs to give 24v

Nope...there are compact 12v units from what i have seen in pictures.

Ferdiwar:
Thank you so much for your response I appreciate it.
I did a little research on my own and find out that it only comes in 1.2v and requires a large number of units to make up system voltage, like 10 units to make 12v and that's a great deal of space consumption ooo.

These Nickel iron batteries popularly called iron edison after the inventor Thomas Edison has the capacity to last 40 years or more without appreciable depreciation. They require some level of maintenance usually water replacement however the recent ones have integrated automatic watering system. They are very expensive, ofcourse, with such longevity they ought to be.

Ferdiwar:
Please anybody with knowledge or ideas about Ni-Fe batteries should kindly share.

Thanks

You are right. its 3.2V based on the manufacturer info, my miss. Its LiFeO4

dapsyra:
If the nominal voltage of each cell is 3.7v, then the cells are not LiFePO4. They are likely Lithium Cobalt Oxide (LiCoO2) or Lithium Manganese Oxide (LiMn2O4). LiFePO4 cells have nominal voltage of 3.2v.

You are right. its 3.2V based on the manufacturer info

jazzman2:
3.7v per cell is not LifePO4. It's probably LiMnCoO2 or LiCoO2. The cycle life of these cells are less than 500. Pls verify with the seller that you have the right product. LifePo4 should have a nominal cell voltage of 3.2v

loading 2

LiFeO4: The Review

As promised, here is the product review for the lithium iron phosphate (LiFeO4) battery I imported from China.

LiFeO4 batteries are among the newest technology which offers longer lifetimes, better power density (the rate that energy can be drawn from them) and are inherently safer than other lithium based batteries. LiFePO4 is finding a number of roles in vehicle use and backup power especially in home solar/inverter applications. It is said to deliver over 2000cycles (5.5yrs if used every day) at 80% DOD and about 5000 cycles if used btw 30%-50% DOD(13yrs!!!) hence my attraction to this technology.

Packaging
The battery is house in a plastic container formed into a briefcase style design. I will rate the casing fair but will expect improvement in its structural integrity as time goes on.

It weighs about 13kg for 12V, 100AH battery and this weight is consistent with Lithium iron phosphate due to the presence of iron which is quite a heavy element unlike lithium polymer that is lighter(lithium polymer[phone batteries] are not as long lasting as lithium iron phosphate).

Internal Construction
As a DIY guy, I needed to see what’s inside this expensive box, so I opened it up. I wasn’t impressed. The cells were crudely put together, poor wiring with electrical tapes/foam packing holding wires/cells together…I was like what the hell!

The epever 40A? no, just the controller. which cable are u asking off?

iykmon:
Please is there any cable that comes along with this controller.

Go with series

babaegun:
Hello guys,

Been thinking of the best and most efficient 4 Battery setup. Can you guys assist me in choosing a good connection out of the 2 options and the reason. Thanks.

Hmmmm...i yam not understanding

Chuckdee:
Thanks for the nice words @ Bigrovar, Yes, the echo/echo dot works very well for home automation and other things, however Since the Echo is officially only supported in the US (and lately UK), naturally, it only accepts timezones and locations that are inside the US. If you want to use the device outside the US, you can use it without changing the timezone, but with the caveat that it will tell incorrect time, and your alarms and reminders will not go off on time but there are still some workarounds on the net to put in your own time zone. Yes, you need an always on Internet to get the best out of it...

My Media server is a Late 2012 MacMini ( late 2012 cuz its the last mini you can easily upgrade the ram, came with 4gb, i upgraded it to 16Gb) with 2X 5TB WD external USB3 HDD plugged into the usb ports, then running the server/client ends of plex off the machine. I had initally planned to go the NAS route but some factors made me think twice, for one, I would still need to point the NAS to a system that will be able to handle multiple, on the fly trans-coding as most midrange NAS cant do that on their own. 2, Power comsumption, My Mini takes 8W idle, 24-28W heavy load and about 2W when sleeping, this isnt too bad compared to a NAS power consumption to power all those drives! 3. the cost of buying up plenty HDD's for a NAS! The only thing I miss is the redundancy you will hv in your Raid 5, but i have used those my WD drives going to 3 years now no issues plus i have a couple of friends that i have cloned my drive's content for, so na dem be my redundancy

Kodi is an awesome media player, however, I prefer PLEX for the beautiful layout/organization. I use Kodi only for Live streaming using some awesome add-ons.

With your solar setup and considering night time loads are usually small I'd day those batteries are not under stress hence their longevity. Kudos to the solar setup more. And that's one of the reason I encourage people to add solar not matter how small, ensures battery life longevity and prevents sulphation.

GeorgeD1:
nisol,
thanks for the insight. however, the point is that the discharge or whatever it is called
didn't seem to have any significant impact on battery cell condition. and for a battery
pushing juice almost 24hrs a day and seven days a week for over 4yrs and counting,
that is quite a remarkable feat.

l

Based

How is it possible to test a battery capacity without discharging it and noting d rate of voltage drop?

nisol:
Those are called "dummy loads" they are used to discharge your batteries while the tester
works out the discharge rate.... Higher end testers try to test battery capacity without discharging it

....cheers man.

alexistaiwo:
Thank God that you made mention of the fact that if he had known her from childhood she would be close to being indispensable.
I rest my case

The world is about 7billion! What makes you think that person is the best life can offer you out of these 7 billion? Find more and you'll definitely meet better people. He meet her online and he like some of her personalities and he just discovered the one he doesn't like. If they were childhood friends and he had known her for ages and he says she's irreplaceable, I'd have understood. Mind you I used the would irreplaceable cos only God is indispensable!

alexistaiwo:
What about when you get to know them nko?

I repeat nobody is indispensable. You meeting anybody in life is by time and chance. If you did not meet at all will you die?

alexistaiwo:
Of course nobody is indispensable but you will agree with me that each and every one of us is unique in our own special ways.
So yes some people are actually indispensable.

Nobody is indispensable! There are a lot of beautiful women out there, y die cos of one?

alexistaiwo:
Ask my girlfriend and my exes, the higher my love for my partner the harder it is for me to forgive when things goes south.
I am presently working on myself because I noticed that I don't have a forgiving spirit. It is as a result of my childhood experiences so before you judge her. Try to know her story.
Nobody wishes to have a stony heart we are shaped by what life throws at us.

If only you had stayed a little longer she would have come around.

Gaston is gel. I don't like gel...they are too sensitive and prone to failure if abused or if charging system is not right!

Ferdiwar:
Please what of Gaston and Gacia batteries?

If u've d funds...go for iron edison, LiFeO4, deka, quanta, UK zenith,Fullriver,sulkam in this order

davodyguy:
Thanks, just that most fat heavy ones are from China and the slim batteries are US.

I was offered slim batteries at the rate of 110k each and the fat heavy ones at 90k each, so I'm wondering which is more durable, owing to the price difference?

Yet the north is impoverished! Isn't this ironic?

Abagworo:
The truth is that Jonathan is not a respected leader despite being ex-President. What actually killed PDP was Jonathan's insistence on contesting 2015 elections when PDP stakeholders and all of Nigeria knew power must go North after 14 years in South.

If PDP rightly fielded a Northerner in 2015 and lost there wouldn't be crisis in the party today. Wike and others thinking they can make any impact in 2019 don't know nothing about our politics. The North is majority and backed by US and England decides our political directions. 2019 Buhari continues and if Igbos keep themselves in order 2023 Igbo gets Presidency backed by the North otherwise Southwest or South-south gets it again backed by the North.

Those slim battery are like a beautiful girl without substance. They looks fine and nothing more! Go for the fat heavy ones

davodyguy:
Please Need advise on slim batteries.

Are they better than the 'fat' ones?

Why do we intellectualize everything? He has said that underage girls should not be raped. You can also speak for the overage girls without bothering him!

SmartBug:
His post gives off the idea that it's only wrong to rape underage girls. That is why it is demeaning to women.

Go for Quanta. Luminous is just a regular battery

babaegun:
Dear Solar Gurus,

Please can somebody help me choose between a Luminous & Quanta Batteries.

Which brand should i pick?

Thanks guys.

30 million for solar setup even for 120yrs? 3million will give you solar setup for 30yrs. Contact me for guaranteed installation

tivta:
If he is a land lord then he messed up, unfortunately most lagosians believe in packaging than investing. N30million will give him a very good solar setup for at least 25 years

Thanks madam for the patronage and the confidence to choose me...much appreciated

obiageIi:
DMerciful, even though i didn't get to meet you in person, I saw your work today, good job sire.

Chuckdee, when I grow up, I hope to be like you. Amazing setup.

This is inspiring! I nor fit shout! kudos(hmmm, making our system look like child's play,looool)

Chuckdee:
Hi all,

I want to share my setup with the house so as to serve as a source of motivation to new DIYers that would come across this thread because it's the same way i got the needed info to do mine. I have read, watched and studied so much in the past years as regards to solar and renewable energy that I was able to design, procure and deploy my setup all by myself and with help of a couple of friends. I did make use of some carpenter guy to help mount the panels on the roof following my instructions through, and also got my electrician to run load separation cables for me. However, there are members of this forum who have been immensely helpful to me by answering my plenty questions and worries, I am very grateful to Mr. Chris of AWPS Renewable Energy, your love n passion for the job is unquestionable!, Dunka, your motivation is next to none, Frankie the able supplier and a brother, George_D da boss!, thanks for the emails! and all the contributing members here, y'all are the best. it has been a very wonderful experience and I thank God for the opportunity.

My rig consists of:

15 X 300W yahSun Mono Panels (4,500W)
8 X USL16EXC2 6V L16 360AH USA Flooded Batteries
1 X Midnight Solar Classic 150 96A MPPT Charge Controller
1 X Magnum Magnasine 4300W Pure sinewave Inverter
1 X Magnum MERC Advanced Remote
1 X Trimetric 2030A + 500 Mv Shunt
1 X 48V BLS Desulphator
1 X 6Ft Earthing Rod
2 X Midnightsolar MNSPD Surge protector (1 for AC side, 1 for DC side)
1 X 10KVA Servo Stabilizer ( Pre-owned for about 4 years now)
4 x Complete galvanized aluminium Roof Mount
Various quality Breakers, Fuses and Accessories.

EXTRAS:

1 X TP-Link AC750 Dual Band WiFi Range Extender, Extends WiFi to Smart Home & Alexa Devices (RE200)
2 X TP-Link Smart Plug w/ Energy Monitoring, No Hub Required, Wi-Fi, Works with Alexa, Control your Devices from Anywhere (HS110)
1 X TP-Link Smart Wi-Fi Light Switch, No Hub Required, Single Pole, Control Your Fixtures From Anywhere, Works with Amazon Alexa (HS200)
1 X Amazon Echo dot 2nd gen.
.....More on those later.

It is important to state that these items were acquired over a long period of time, infact, it took me one year plus of self disciplined money management, savings and forfeiting so much to make this happen maybe because of my taste in quality but from experience, i have learnt to go hard and go once! at a point i was sending money monthly to Frankie so as to secure a price point on the panels when the dollar was climbing like crazy. The most expensive item to get were the batteries as you had to buy them once. My candid advice to anyone is to start small, make a checklist of needed items and bit by bit, you will be striking off the ones you get as time goes on.

Panels were run in series/parallel strings of 3X5 to a combiner box with 5 breakers. All panels, inverter, CC and Combiner box were Grounded. 6MM ammoured cables from panels to combiner box, 10MM from combiner box to CC. Battery interconnect cables, CC to battery bank, Inverter to battery bank all 50MM Extra fine stranded Welding cable. Although a little more expensive, these cables handle any load comfortably and have never felt a tad warm to the touch at all and trust me, i have pushed them to the max all in the name of testing.

Seeking to achieve an 'almost' off grid setup, I went for that much number in panels and the result of having an array sized to cover the worst time of year, is that you get quite a bit of spare power at peak sun times. Therefore it makes sense to divide your loads up into base loads and opportunity loads. My base loads are 1 large Refrigerator (on a timer running 7AM-5PM daily), 1 always-on 24/7 Freezer, water pumps, computer gear, chargers of all sorts, lighting, security lights consisting of 8 X 15W energy saving bulbs (looking to change them to LEDs of less than 10W if i find them), an always-on Apple MacMini I use as my media server running a PLEX server serving movies to all TVs and smart devices like Roku box, Amazon fire Tv stick, and one Xiami Mi Android TV in the house, 2 standing fans, as well as sundry occasional appliances,power tools and other usual stuff; washing machine, iron, juicer, blender, microwave and hair blowers.

Most mornings, I wake up to a battery bank that is between 68-75% except on days i play the PS4 pro or xbox1 all night, i have seen 66% in the mornings, still under 50% DOD so not too bad and I know that my batteries have not yet been broken into very well. By 1-2PM batteries are already in float so the excess power are dumped into opportunity loads like running ACs, boiling water and cooking using the Induction cooker running at max power till like 4PM. I have seen max PV output of 3600W+ and my area in Abuja is very dusty, so many untarred road around my hood, panels were covered in dust from the next day after installation! and we have not seen any rains yet so i believe there is tendency for better output when the rains come.On average i harvest around 14-18Kwh daily. I have been running the system TOTALLY off-grid since the 10th of March.

I used the Wifi extender to extend my WAN and use the Ethernet jack to plug in the Midnight Classic CC to my home network, so i can monitor from PC and phone w/out having to run a long lan cable to my router inside. Got for less than $20 on amazon and works like a charm.

I use The smart plug to plug in my fridge and set it on a timer so it automatically comes on @ 7am and shuts off by 5PM daily. I also use it to monitor energy consumption in real time or over a period of time, very helpful to calculate all your energy consumption.

The smart switch i use to automatically turn on the whole security lights @ 7pm and turn of @ 6:15 am daily. and just like the smart plug, they both can be controlled from anywhere in the world from the app as long as u have internet and i have tested this, it works perfectly.

I am a geeky kinda guy so I love me some home automation and i have had some Phillips Hue lighting in the house, all devices in my Home theater setup are controlled using just a single remote-- The Logitec Harmony elite and all these devices can be controlled via voice with Alexa on amazon echo dot, pretty neat and works for the TP link switch and smart plugs too. I hv 10 Terabytes of Movies, TV series and Anime all in HD and running perfectly on the media server 24/7 with the beautiful interface of PLEX (guys u need to check it out, its simply your own NETFLIX @ home) For internet i use the NTEL unlimited package so everything is always ONLINE... I share my home wifi for my neighbors and they can watch movies on their phones and tablets as the media server can comfortably handle multiple media streams at once without issues. All these are possible because the sun gives me free Energy!

I cannot state how lovely it is to have uninterrupted power supply, something people in other countries take for granted. I think going solar is the best way forward for us here.

Ok!Sorry guys for the long read , however, Your comments, criticism, corrections and questions are welcome..