✅ Parts List: ➜Renogy Batteries: www.renogy.com/ ➜RCD Tester: amzn.to/3C9KpqJ ➜Inverter 1500W Pure Sine Wave: amzn.to/3Gosgb6 ➜Epever 40A Solar Charge Controler: amzn.to/3FU9VRK ➜Battery Monitor: amzn.to/3GpPqh5 ➜MT 50 Monitor for MPPT: amzn.to/3ajeQQB ➜Hammer Crimper: amzn.to/3AwKc0J ➜50A Tocas Breaker: amzn.to/3AFoFTH (buy the yellow one, not the red one) ➜Fuse Holder: amzn.to/3alIx3c ➜Battery Switch (rated 12-48 Volt and 275 Ampere): amzn.to/3bUuZMC 🚨Important links to watch before starting your own project: 📺Proofwood RCD: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FM9lvwX39g0.html 📺Solar Disconnect: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-HOXnWXvLXko.html 📺Will Prowse: www.youtube.com/@WillProwse ➜Will's Book: amzn.to/3ujFCip Cost of the cart was about 130 Euros. Cost of the electrical components (Mppt, Inverter, Switches, Breakers, Fuses, Cables, Monitors) excluding the batteries was 700 Euros.
I feel sorry for you guys to also have blackouts( loadshedding). I thought we in south africa would be the only country. Its sad how we havr corrupt useless no USELESS goverments. That steal from the people and that lie to us and think the people are stupid.
Young Lady, I saw your photo as one of the top women influencers on You Tube. Congratulations. Sorry I didn't save the video. BUT You have Done very well. I still remember your first video. Michael
Your storehouse of knowledge and your skill set is truly impressive, Lilly. I wouldn't know where to start if I were to attempt such a project. Thankfully, your videos are very clear and easy to follow. I know I've mentioned this before , but it's worth repeating - I don't think there's anything you can't do.
Hi Lilly, Great project there. One advice though..... Hot air rises and accumulates at the highest point possible. Looking at your box layout, hot air will accumulate at the top space of your box. The most of the hot air will of course be generated by the Inverter and rest from the charge controller, all of which are mounted at the top space which has no “outlet” for the hot air. So, I would have had one of those “perforated grills” mounted on top of one of the side panels, and the second perforated grill should remain at the lower side of the opposite side panel. That way, that arrangement would allow cold air to flow in from lower grill, and hot air to flow out through the upper grill, to enhance cooling.
As a retired electronic engineering technician I can say impressive very impressive only two points number one wood burns you should use sheet metal this way you can electrically Bond all the components to it and add a little extra safety and your venting should have venting at the top and bottom so that the heat can get out but again fantastic job
I’m at the 11:20 mark and thinking “ooooohhhh no, no, no”. I’m an electrician and Lily has put both vents at the bottom. At least put one at the top to create a convection current of air. Heat rises so cool from the bottom is pulled in by the heat leaving the top. The inverter and controller both have heat sincs and will get hot. Joining them to wood with a fuse that literally burns out……. Ouch. Fire hazard. Lily needs an insulator plate between the wood and the electrical components. Old school “bakerlite” or similar.
@@fugawiaus for a minute i was wondering if it would somehow make more sense to mount the charge controller to the outside of the rack and put at least the inverter's fan opening to the outside so it can pull in external air. I know it would look weird and one has to cover the wires and all but it would provide for a much better cooling.
@@koborkutya7338 sounds good but I think lily is trying to keep the main components inside the trolley. The easiest thing would be to swap the left vent to the top, (change the wiring a bit) then if you need more ventilation, put a computer fan or two on the vent. She could even have it on a t/stat. Getting the components off the wood is a must though. 😃
@@fugawiaus I was pondering if you could have all sides from that perforated metal sheet. You could mount the parts on it be through-bolts (M4 or so for small stuff). It would have good ventillation, not combustable and definitely strong enough. I guess she just didn't have enough of that. But it is a good point, I was planning to do something similar so I will plan on some kind of metal mesh.
@@koborkutya7338 then it’s all metal and the whole trolley could get live. Remember it’s portable and not earthed. Personally I would have made it from bakerlite or polycarbonate sheeting with vents with computer fans on a t/stat but I’d probably go too nuts. Hehe Go to your local electrical wholesaler and get proper sheeting like bakerlite or pvc for the sheeting. Put one vent at the top and one on the bottom opposite and you’ll get a convection across the entire trolley. That way the sheeting is non flammable and insulated and you’ll create artificial cooling. Hope it goes well. Lily’s wiring is pretty damn good so follow how she does it. Also fix a wiring diagram in it so you’ll know how you wired it. Good luck 😃
Young Lady, We have had a drastic freeze week in the Easter part of America. I was super fine until my water pipes froze and broken. This life's lesson became every person must know how much water you need to flush a toilet, Not a popular topic but stuck in a house for a week water management program should be planned. My Toilet uses two and half gallons per flush. I did not run out of stored water.
Loving these videos. I've got several solar/battery/inverter systems in my queue, but this one is next level. I'd like to start learning wind turbines next. Excited to see more of these!
Excellent set up Lilly. My system is the same except I use two 12 volt deep cycle marine batteries, they're under $100 each. They work great in cold weather. Best batteries for cars in freezing temperatures.👍
Awesome Ideas, Fraulein! You never fail to impress me! That's a real 'back' saver... If you're tight for space seems like you always have to move not One, but two or three things around... every time you want to do anything 😉. Anything on a cart, is a great idea!
photovoltaic/solar thermal technician here: it used to be that batteries would discharge faster when stored on concrete. A battery can be drained whether it is sitting on concrete, wood, metal or any other surface. When a battery is sitting, it is slowly draining. Lithium-Ion batteries continue to slowly discharge (self-discharge) when not in use or while in storage. that's where a trickle charger comes in handy, be it 1.5 watt mini solar panel. some trickle chargers can safely be left connected for months without doing harm to your battery. very nice set up, i built one for a photovoltaic school from the equipment they had laying around, i added a SunPower string inverter on the side of the cart and a AES 7.4kWhr / 48VDC with Xanbus Lithium (LFP) that bad boy is 192 lbs.
Lilly, very creative, great system! You helped me solve an unknown connection (xt90) that i can implement so i can plug my solar panel wires into car door to reach my system. I didnt know that connector existed!
Nice idea. A few suggestions. Use a 24V inverter so you can reduce the amperage draw from the batteries thus use smaller diameter wire, smaller fuses on the DC side, and twice the power capacity of the solar charge controller. Mount inverter with air exhaust pointing up so air flow aided by convection. Good job bending the wire to the needed shape before crimping the 2nd terminal so the wire strands can shift before locked into place. Otherwise too much stress is put on strands as the outer arc strands will try to pull out of the crimp, and wire will resist bending. Would be even better to bend before 1st crimp. Suggest add ventilation near top of cabinet for convection. "This fuse is not necessary if the battery has a BMS system". Suggest a fuse in case BMS fails. DC fuse necessary because DC arcs differently than AC as the breaker trips. Love the final product.
Is there way how to use 24V solar panels and 12V batteries ? And best option 12V sine changer ? Why is on PWM module "input max 150V" and "output 12/24 V" ? Can PWM module somehow change voltage to standard 12/24 V ?
@@petrklic7064 Yes, the PWM solar charge controller (and better MPPT) will accept a higher voltage from solar panel (150V max in your example) and charge 12/24V batteries. Check specifications on the specific controller in mind. Pure sine wave inverter is best as it can also drive motors (fans, refrigerator, ...). Suggest buy solar charge controller that can handle more current & voltage than needed so can add more panels in future. Pure sine inverter should be oversized the most so can add more battery capacity without obsoleting/replacing the inverter.
@@pikayla5749 Thanks. I am going to buy changer from aliexpress, but i am not sure if i can trust their specs. I need max 2 000-2500 watt for my most powerfull tool. But isn't it 4 000-5 000 aliex-watts ? They lie about specs in solar panels. Btw. i am not going to buy many batteries. I am making budget / portable system. Btw. i know guy who have 40 solar panels on his roof, but these days, he gets from it only 1,5-2 kWh per day. It is barely sufficient for his two fridges and lights.
@@petrklic7064 Hard to trust specs on any cheap product. 2500W is difficult to do with 12V. Current = P/V = 2500W/12V = 209 Amps! Higher if your tools have startup surge current. Suggest use higher voltage. Calculate your Whr need and size the battery accordingly. Lead acid batteries can only be discharged 50% so double your Whr need unless using Lithium Iron Phosphate. Figure a 100W solar panel good for 100W*80%*6hours/day=480WHr/day. To be safe would double the solar panel and battery requirements. So much for a budget system but better than buying a system that dissapoints. In your example 2000WHr/40panels=50WHr/panel. Estimate 50WHr/6hours/.8=10.4W panels. Makes no sense so I don't believe that data. May be a good idea to buy a book.
Nice job, but would suggest switching the left venting to the top, heat rises, this way u would have cross ventilation , air enters on bottom right, exit top left.
A standby charger would be nice also, if you're not using the solar panels to charge and to keep the batteries charged as long as the grid is active. I have the same battery monitor in my van, best buy so far, love that thing! Great job, with all the details for installation of a system kept track of, not too bad for a office girl... 🤣 Thx for showing, keep coming with stuff like this, all information from one hand! 👍👍👍
i love the entire line of Renogy I've pushed it for the last 8 years. Their products and services are great! This was an incredible build Lilly I've been nervous to try this and after watching your video I really think I'm going to do it now. You laid this out perfectly. GREAT JOB! Thank you!
As i get older it's more difficult to crouch while working. A tip I've learned is to set the project on a table so I can work standing up or sitting on a tall stool. Same can be done with that cart although you'd need a 2nd hand to set it back on the floor after testing.
Most excellent! 110% on this one! I hesitate but maybe an AC charger to help keep it topped off? With a fuel generator on extended low solar? This may be one of the best build outs I have seen!
You built yourself some furniture suitable for your house. A lot of battery/inverter setups for emergency power in the home look crude. Better suited for a barn, not a house. Your cart looks good enough that you can store it next to an elegant grand piano. And still look good.
What an awesome build Lilly. You always seem to impress me with everything you do. Keep up with these ideas of yours and May you have a happy and healthy New Year.
A great wonderful Work for your Home that you made.The Humans loves their Comfort with Energy for catastrophal last Days and Desasters,but primitiv survival is real🎯😯The Future sun will now Shine for the great Performing🎆👍
I hope you are feeling better and coming to grips with your medical issues , you are in my prayers . Be safe , be well , and a new year of safety , prosperity and health.
Great job setting your system up but the problem is there is hardly any sun in the winter making the solar redundant most of the time that you will need it as most power cuts will be in the winter and you'll just end up draining the batteries.
Adding an AC to 12v charger would be nice. To be able to charge it from the house and then take it somewhere if needed. Rather than have a solar only charging option. Very cool build though, love it!
Awesome job Lilly, excellent project and perfect for what I’m planning to do. Love the use of the roll around cart, great idea. Better than trying to stuff it all into a box like i was planning. I’m in the US but most all of the principles are the same. Now I feel pretty confident I can put mine together and be a fun project. Thanks for the video and looking forward to see how the solar panels are working. Keep the project videos coming❣️
I think you need additional venting on top. Those items you installed up high can get very hot. I'm thinking some additional vent holes or an offset roof (sort of like a ridge vent). Nice work! Love your videos.
I have so much respect for DIY people. I did the same but in big milk crates and my panels breaker are outside so anyone can close it. They are mostly considered like on/off switch. Also it doesn't need to be code compliant because it's not fixed to a wall and considered movable.
This video told me exactly what I have been trying to figure out for months now. I have batteries, and inverter that I charge with a gas generator or the AC if the power is on. I have been trying to learn what I need to charge solar instead of the gas generator. This did just that. Thank you. Everyone I talked to wanted to sell me a whole system that would work independently mostly from what I already have, although I could tie in what I have to a complete system, but I would have double of some things that a complete system would come with. I can't afford to pay for some things I already have, and I want to build a system that is expandable as I can afford to buy parts. Parts for a system like this are expensive - at least the parts I need now - solar panels and charge controller etc.
It's crucial to understand the potential for fire and serious injuries when dealing with batteries. When sizing conductors for loads and sizing fuses/breakers to protect conductors ambient temperature/conditions of use are the determining factors. The more heat the fewer amps a wire can carry and system efficiency is affected. To safely do this requires knowledge you cannot get from one video. I recommend Explorist life and Will Prowse.(YT) Love you Lilly.
Wie immer top👍👍 Lilly! Super gemacht..., auch top Austattung,.. bei mir sieht's nach solchen Aktionen auch immer genauso aus😉.Ich wünsche schon mal einen guten Rutsch ins neue 🍀Jahr🍻🍀
Like the system. My dad and I just bought and built a solar generator for Christmas. One 100watt battery and 2000 watt inverter so far but fully expandable system.
That's a pretty sweet rig. I built something very similar in the beginning of 2019. I call it my "Tesla cart". It's super handy and it has been on several road trips with me. You're a master builder Lilly. 👍👍
You are one AWESOME Human Being! This is one of the BEST DIY jobs I've seen! Excellent work. I'm saving my pennies right now to upgrade the setup I built for our home. I eventually want to get TWO of the Power Queen 410 Amp 12 Volt LiFePO4 Batteries. This will not happen until my wife and I can Move to to SW Oregon. I also plan to have a 6KW Panel Array to Drive the system
@@SurvivalLilly Yes it is. I realize that. But I can also read the Tea Leaves regarding what is very likely coming. Believe me, I am NOT wealthy by ANY stretch of the imagination. I expect it will take TWO YEARS of buying one-piece-at-a-time to accomplish this goal. One thought I've had is that if I have 6 Kilowatts of Solar, and 800 Amps (11,000 Watt Hours!) of storage, I can FULLY power my House off-grid, EVEN on Cloudy Days! Our County just came off an 18 Hour outage due to a weather event. Our PRESENT system is a small 600 Watt Panel Array into a 20Amp Controller to 2 Deep Cycle Lead Acid Batteries. From the Lead Acid Batteries to a 500 Watt Inverter that charges and Maintains a 100 Amp 12 Volt Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery. From THERE to a 650 Watt PURE Sine Inverter for Clean 110 VAC. THAT Powers the Home entertainment System, and other chargers for other devices as required. Back on the Lead Acid side, I use the usb outputs on the 500 Watt PURE sine inverter to charge our GOAL Zero usb Lights, phones, and handheld Ham Radios as well as our flashlights. I ALSO use the Lead Acid Side to charge a 40 Amp 12 Volt Lithium Battery which runs the Main HF-Shortwave Ham Radio Station which allows me Global Communications in any situation. Yes, my wife and I are both Licensed Ham Radio Operators. It is possible to do a LOT with even a minimal system. This is NOT Rocket Science, and I would be happy to help ANYONE who would like to know more.
Very good looking project, as we call it in the electrical maintenance field "eye candy" . I added a plastic try under my batteries just in case of leakage, great video
Warning some of what you say about the electrocution protection device hookup is questionable but I don't know your code or device design. As to series-parallel solar array connection, there are weatherproof fuses with a standard solar wire male and a female connector at each end that work nicely provided the wire size is sufficient for the current. The solder connections are best avoided as the stranded wire did not get hot enough to fill the wire strands with solder. Suggest you eliminate that through-panel device completely and wire the solar pigtails directly.
i really liked your build & i’m going to use some of your suggestions but i just have one suggestion for your system that you should connect your power wire & your negative wires on opposite batteries to the inverter because this will draw power more evenly across both batteries & not more from just one battery i learned that from watching youtube videos i hope this helps & again very good build
Surely! Maybe, maybe. See also: Solar power plant mounted in multi-storey building! (for survivors in the zombie apocalypse): Shorts version: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-k9AiiCLALRA.html Full version: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-sOskjOsl-cA.html ru-vid.comGuZc2KhHEs0?feature=share High Power Mega Coil gun! - RU-vid
Great build! You might want to monitor the temperature in your cart when the door is closed. The ventilation grates at the bottom of the cart may not be sufficient when the system is operating at full capacity with the door closed, especially near the top of the cart, and you may want to add a fan to move the hot air out.
Cool beans but solar generators should be used as a last resort I prefer the gas/propane generator We can buy 55gal drums of gas. 500 gallons of propane I have had no luck with solar My bluetti over changed and burn up I would build a unit like Lilly before I bought another premade one! There's new solar film that return's up to 42% charge.
i have good Big Cooper cables and Wire and Big Contacts From the old GDR,Massiv .I have purchaised since 20 Years,Low Costs.Very good for me and the Inflation.
I built a few before. But your design is very cool. The cart is a great idea. You should add a super capacitor across the inverter to supply surge current for starting inductive loads
Great build Lily. I’m ordering parts and some tools to begin similar for my dad as he constantly gets power outages in rural Jamaica. I was a bit confused at 33:53. You hand is in the way and it would be nice to see how you were wiring the live and neutral from there. I saw a wago clamp but not sure what to do from there. Can you please get back to me on this. Many thanks. Keep up the good work.
Excellent video. I have almost the same setup. One tip; For an apartment the castors of the cart is too small. I have upgrade to 100cm Wheels so as not to damage the apartment floor. Batteries weighs 34Kg's.
In northern regions at winter .. panels in series. Volts up, amps same. Good MPPT charge controller is must. Greetings from Estonia! Enjoying our 6 hours of our "daylight" ;)
Hi from Finland Nice setup, basically there is bit room to add more battery capacity if needed. I own few Epever controllers and you should be able to turn output/load ON/OFF from MT 50 Monitor, just press OK button.
Great project for the times. A 1-wire Delco Remy alternator mounted to a stationary bicycle for last option to charge batteries during no sun/no generator situation. A person could Run it through a 40 amp dc to dc Charger that works on lithium or flooded batteries. Not absolutely needed but would offer that high charging voltage lithium requires.
Great build Lily. I’m ordering parts and some tools to begin similar for my dad as he constantly gets power outages in rural Jamaica. I was a bit confused at 33:53. You hand is in the way and it would be nice to see how you were wiring the live and neutral from there. I saw a wago clamp but not sure what to do from there. Can you please get back to me on this. Many thanks. Keep up the good work.
Wouldn't it have made more sense to put the inverter on the bottom where there is airflow since the fan is on the right side? Maybe you're going to be putting fans in later in the video.
Hitze steigt nach oben… die Gitter an der Seite hättest Du daher eher nach oben gesetzt… Löse das Problem mit einem oder zwei 120mm PC Lüfter mit Lüftergrill oder Edelstahlnetzgewebe in der oberen blecharbeitsplatte die die warme Luft rauszulassen. Aber auch so: Eine perfekte Arbeit 👍
I built a very similar solar box as yours. Same size batteries. Main difference in them is mine is in a heavy duty plastic storage chest with wheels. Well done! Mine will run a small fridge for days without any solar, and adding solar could extend that to over a week depending on the weather. Be sure and run some tests to see what capacity you have.
@@SurvivalLilly Ich habe meinen -wohnwagen umgebaut: Ein Relais schaltet wenn Strom vom Netz vorhanden ist. Dann wird Solarstrom ins Netz eingespeist wenn die Akkus voll sind. Die 230V werden dann nach intern durchgeleitet. Ist das Netz weg schaltet Solar automatisch auf Batterie laden um und das Hausnetz wird per Inverter versorgt. Das wäre eine einfache Prepper Erweiterung für Dein System... LG
Very nice setup!! Impressive work. I would make the suggestion of using LifePo batteries if not already and maybe think of adding a cooling fan in the box. Shouldn't use much current
Nice job Lilly, I've been thinking of a similar build for myself. Really enjoyed, and got some very good tips from your video. God bless you, your awesome.