Hello,
I am very new and still learning. So here is my question.
Where I live in Ontario Canada winters provide very short days of sun ( 5-6 hours ) and those days are few and far between. Huge lengths of overcast / Snow. Night time usage is basically the forced air furnace (LP)
The Gennie will run every second day to provide a full battery charge.
Will more solar help to increase the charge for my batteries during these short days and overcast?
Thank you
Yes - in location like yours best is to oversize the PV as much as possible .
That way you can make some power even on overcast days. Plus if the sun is out for brief time it can put a lot of power in the batteries . Of course that is only more possible if you have lithium batteries , if you have lead acid then unless they are really low the voltage will come up quickly and go into absorb and cut the current down.
So solutions to cutting your generator run time down are lots of PV and lots of battery storage.
I got some lithiums this past year and it has cut down my generator run time considerably - only on the very long very overcast periods do I need to start the generator up here in Wisconsin.
Your forced air furnace might be a load to consider if there is alternative to cut down on load such as turning temp down and heating specific rooms with local gas heaters that don't use power ( like direct vent heaters).
Larry
Thank you,
Would more solar call for a different charge controller, we have the classic 150.
Yes we are lead acid here and the switch to Lithium is being considered once these have run their life cycle.
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Quote from: Corndog on January 15, 2023, 12:33:07 PMThank you,
Would more solar call for a different charge controller, we have the classic 150.
Yes we are lead acid here and the switch to Lithium is being considered once these have run their life cycle.
Thank you for taking the time to help.
Use the Midnite string calculator and it will tell you how much more power you can put on your Classic.
So if maxed out , you would either have to get a second Classic or consider upgrading to the new Midnite Hawkes Bay charge controllers that are being beta tested now and will be on the market in future. They do a lot more power and the input voltage on them is 600v compared to 150v . That means you can put the PV all on one string at higher voltage. The Barcelona is new controller that is like two Hawkes Bay in one - it will take two separate PV inputs . The decision on to add another controller depends some on what kind of new PV you would get and if they are same or matched well enough to your existing PV. There are some design considerations to consider.
Larry
Here is the Midnite Classic String Calculator
https://www.midnitesolar.com/sizingTool/index.php
Quote from: Corndog on January 15, 2023, 12:33:07 PMThank you,
Would more solar call for a different charge controller, we have the classic 150.
Yes we are lead acid here and the switch to Lithium is being considered once these have run their life cycle.
Thank you for taking the time to help.
From your posting, it looks like you have a rather impressive system. I'd suggest that you'll need another inverter for 14 more solar panels.
The Surrette batteries can take lots of current, although you need to make sure you don't try and force feed them when they're really cold.