Hi, Is it Ok to mix different capacity batteries for solar use , and pls tell me why I cannot? For example, I have right now a 12V 250AH. I bought it at very good deal of a price of $255. Now, I can’t seem to find another capacity close this price, if there is one, its usually double. So, I plan to buy two 12V 125AH or one 12V 200AH, all in parallel. My setup is as follows: 3-130W kyocera solar panels A 25-30 amp MPPT charge controller 1- 12V 250AH SLA solar battery A Bioennopower 3000W inverter A Kill-a-watt (at the Inverter’s Ac output) A 150Amp DC inline Watt/Amp/Voltage meter (between the battery and the inverter) Thanks.
Excellent video and answered lots of my questions. I recently went with 4 Trojan T105 batteries and added an 1100 watt solar system to my roof of the R.V.. The results are amazing! 4, 6 volt batteries 2 wired in series and 2 banks combined to 12 volts. All I have to remember is to turnoff the solar controller when plugged in so the two chargers don't fight with each other.
I need four 12v batteries to run a 48v split mini. $400 buys 4 walmart deep cycle batteries. The cost is very tempting. Running twelve 6v batteries in series is not realistic. Can you suggest a battery that would be a better value than the walmart deep cycle battery? I dont mind spending more to get more but if i spend 2.5x the cost to get a 30% improvement, the cost benefit ratio is not there. Thx in advance! I Enjoy your vids
Great in appropriate safe battery selection use and operation , full of details not often talked about ! Thank your outstanding , and very practical video !
Dear Jeff, I have been watching all of your videos for several years. I have always found your videos to be extremely useful and interesting. I have always respected your knowledge, experience and wisdom you freely share with the public and feel that you deserve my thanks and gratitude. Q: with a small AGM battery bank, may I replace and or add a newer battery of similar voltage and A/H to that bank? I have heard that that is NOT good. However, when you need replacement of a battery after several years and or want to grow a battery bank, you have no choice except to buy new. What is your recommendation? PS I have a PWM Solar charger. Older batteries never discharged below 60% and kept indoors environment temperature regulated.
Brilliantly informative video Jeff. I am looking at starting a project. Have done this in a camper using 2 Trojan T105s a solar panel and a battery to battery charger. Would love now to start my project for my house. I have subscribed 👍
love the videos. End up replaying and replaying because you give a lot of real important tips in single sentences that seem to matter a lot. Since I'm still learning it's easy to miss some of those details.
great job explaining the different types. I started with T 105 6X from my cart that transmission went. old 36V re wired to 12V ran years on solar/wind. I found use only the top 30% for life. I went to NiFe cells in 1996 700Ah its 2018 now. still going 100% power. I still use GC2 in my eZ Go cart. EDISON cells 100 year old technology . much better than LEd acid type. I use both. off grid cabin 12V 400 watt solar 400 watt wind. MPPT charge controller. not there all the time. great place to get away !!
Is there a rule of thumb for battery storage capacity for inverters? Specifically, inverters big enough to run a tablesaw dust collector, and or other tools for short bursts.
I'd look into batteries by Aquion. I have zero info on price, but in all other respects they look pretty appealing. No acids, no venting, can drain them without issue.. Not for portable applications but look good for homes.
question.... i have 2 6 volt t105 golf cart batteries hooked up in a trailer,,,,,,,,,,had them charged to full with trickle charger about a year ago or so. held that charge for many months with trailer in storage.but that ended a few months ago .am about to install a 100 watt solar panel on the roof with a 30 amp mttp controller .will the panel recharge those batteries over time or do i need to remove the batteries and have them boost charged for them to have life again ?
Hi Jeff, I'm making plans to move into a 12-14 X 22 cabin. I'll be living in Southwestern Iowa with winter low temperatures that hold below zero for for extended periods--up to four weeks in January/February. I've been considering how to keep water from freezing, and saw your video on the aerator. I wonder if an aerator could keep a 500 gallon above ground tank unfrozen. Also, If I kept the water tank in a shed where solar batteries are housed, could the warmth of the batteries also keep that much water from freezing? The shed would be well insulated all around. By the way, I thank you for the education as renewable energy use is new to me. You have made it less overwhlming by helping me know what questions to ask at the store, and have helped me get an idea of how many panels I'll need to power regular large indoor appliances.
I really enjoy all your videos and I will be contacting you for a complete starter wind turbine and solar backup. I live in a very windy area of north Florida and can't wait to get started.
Thanks for the great info as always! If I'm new to this stuff and want to start with used batteries like you said, where should I go to get them? Thanks!
cool you guys are close to Branson Missouri I should be getting the contract assignment at Cox Medical Center Branson in the next 2 or 3 weeks I'll be checking you guys out so I can get some batteries for my RV
I have really enjoyed your videos. Looking forward to T&E of turbines when the tunnel is operational. Could you please address the topic of amp hours and voltage for battery banks. 12, 24, 48v. What is right and why?
+Bill Vance 48 volt is more efficient then 24 volt. 24 volt is more efficient then 12 volt. 24 volt cables are half the size of heavier more expensive 12 volt cables.Amp hours is really just the size of the battery. The more the amp hours are the longer you can use that battery before you drain it.
+MissouriWindandSolar Here is where I get confused; yes 48 is more efficient and cheaper wiring and by using series & parallel I can ramp up the amp hours but then I look around and LED lights are usually 12v; the hot water heater element you recommend is 12v; my motor (will be) 24v for the simple pump water pump; I've been told it is more efficient to charge your rechargeable batteries for the small stuff by going DC to DC and all the small battery chargers are 12v. What's a guy to do????
Hahaaaaa! I just upgraded my battery bank with new Trojan L16 batteries (four, 24v system). They are beasts. I thought about AGM...then saw how much they cost. I think I am going to do four more Trojan L16 for a total of eight. QUESTION: I have a large garage (3 stalls). I cut a grill opening in the ceiling. I have a box fan running 24/7 to vent the garage. Do you think that is enough ventilation for my Trojans? thanks man.
Hey Jeff. You forgot to say that Trojan has the Hydrolink Watering system for watering the batteries in less than a minute. I have it and it is easy and fast to use
I watched three videos I found from your company. You are my choice of suppliers, being in Kansas. I see there are more, but it is time for bed. I will be giving a call for advice. I do have a 40 foot Rohn tower I can use for the wind machine. Trees are an obstacle, but obstacles are there to be met and dealt with. I may not cut them down, if I can get sufficient power, but I would like to talk to someone who can advise me.
Great video Jeff! Any thoughts on the Tesla Powerwall coming out later this year? Little pricey but lots of capacity, li-ion, and a 10 year guarantee all sound good.
72 degrees being a nice optimal temperature and the insulated box to help keep them warm, but how about to keep them cool if they are outside during the summer?
I want to send out a special thank you to you for filling in the blanks in my head about battery types.. I have a question about fuse and sizing. The fuse will be between battery and inverter. Is there a switch that comes with a fuse that can be installed between the battery and Inverter? How do we calculate the fuse size? I am trying to save on my electrical bill during the day since I am retired. I have a 45 watt solar panel set and a 10 ah battery. I am planing to get a marine 100AH from BJ's or a 70 AH . The hydrogen fumes have been a major concern. I am going to place the battery in an air condition box so it could vent outside. Thank you so much for posting this video.
sir nice video very informative. may i ask, what is the ratio of the solar panel and the battery? example 100 watts is good for 50ah battery? i heard from someone that the ratio is 2 is to 1.
Hi There, got a question for you... Do you know if there is a safe way to harness the hydrogen gas that comes off of the wet cell batteries as they are used? Thanks!
Jeff so is it OK to run down my golf cart batteries to about 25% then charge them up or do I always keep them charged no matter how much Iuse them I have t105's.
I know this video is several years old. I am hoping that some kind of lithiumbattery will be available now. I can't lift much weight over 25 pounds as a single woman. What do you suggest I use in my battery bank because of the difficulty I will have with lead acid batteries?
I'd think that your options for under 25lbs are pretty limited but you might check out jehugarcia channel and his homemade lithium battery packs! They can be almost any size and then wired together for whatever voltage and capacity you need!
im looking to install solar on our airstream camper. my ? is im thinking about 4 100 watt panels minimum, so how many batteries would you use for lithium battery bank. i looking to save weight. and we have a gen for ac when needed.
this is great info. what jeff left out is you can't equalize agm batteries like you can flooded batteries. when I started out I had 1000 watts of solar and 10 marine deep cycle batteries from Wal-Mart. I now have a hub, a mate and six outback flexmax 80 amp charge controllers with 1200 watts running to each charge controller. I have two massive battery banks. I went with superlex 6 volt golf cart batteries cause the factory is 45 minutes down the road from my house. I can say after 3 years of using the batteries I have had no problems with the flooded cell batteries. I just check them and refill them with distilled water. YOU CAN NOT USE TAP WATER OR SPRING WATER!! that has minerals harmful to your battery bank. that will cuase them to die very fast. jeff is giving people perles of wisdom here. he just left out a few pieces here and there. I run 100% of my 120 volt 100% electric home off grid. my cooking stove, water heater, closes drier and central air is all the power company runs. they have been out to my home 5 times in the last year trying to understand why our bills are so far behind everybody elses!!!! at the moment I have a skymax 700 watt turbine and one freedom II pmg on the roof of my house. I have two dual pma's and two single pma's I took down. not because they didn't work, but because in the winter monthes I just do not need them any more since mw&s came out with the freedom models. I do plan to put them back up later on cause it would just be that much more extra power. to give you a idea my old lady sleeps with a tv on. our lcd tv is now giving her hints that she has warn it out( it blacks out and beeps at her). in three years she has run it day and night without turning it off. the battery banks still stands strong. can't go wrong here my friends.
+derekthegreatgonzo Glad you mentioned the equalizing Derek. Distelled water is very important to remember for sure. I just keep a jug of it next to the battery bank out back. Man you came a long way Derek since i first met ya. Guys like you have a lot of good information to offer just from using all the equipment over the years. I wasn't going to go real far into batteries this time and i am not an expert on batteries at all.
+MissouriWindandSolar i'm not a battery expert neither. I would love to have the Trojans, but with superlex just down the road I used their golf cart batteries. if I have problems I can just run down there. I did call them and talk to their engineer about what to set the absorb, float and equalize at for best performance. that is a handy tid bit to know as well. I can't wait to see the wind tunnel up and running when you finish it!!
I always tell people to start with the golf cart batteries because the inexperienced will make mistakes, which is damned expensive when using true deep cycle cells. I also always warn people about using starting batteries; not useful, not economical. The minimum battery, in my opinion, is the "marine" style; they are not deep cycle, but they can be cycled shallowly for a while and still work, and you only need singles since they are 12V nominal. However, for those that have some experience with lead/acid cells, stick with 6 volt or lower cells (like the golf cart stuff) if you can't spend a fortune on batteries. In my case, I wouldn't mess with anything less than an L16 style, but I've been using PV and lead acid for decades now.
+Adam Selene Good advice. There are just some people just not sure whether they really want to use wind or solar energy or if it's really for them at all, so to those people i say start small with something inexpensive just to see what it's all about and if they can maintain a system. To many folks tell the new guys to go big like 10 grand or go home. That sort of thing scares off someone really interested in alternative energy but maybe only has a few bucks to blow on it.
MissouriWindandSolar Oh, I know it. I've seen people try to talk a newbie into a serious system, and I always think that's foolish. In fact, that's one of the advantages of a PV system; it is very modular. Aside from the battery bank itself, no sweat to add panels on, or move up to a more capable inverter, because everything can be re-purposed, sold, traded. In the case of batteries, while you don't want to mix them size/age-wise, you'll eventually replace them, so that is an area where it makes sense to skimp at the beginning. I have not played with wind power, since I haven't got wind here to speak of, but in a windy area, I'd definitely add in a turbine. What I've been looking for more recently is a property with year-round falling water before I'm too old to build a small dam. :)
I'm very, very new and wet behind the ears on the whole wind and solar. Why are the 2 Volt & 6 Volt batteries more desirable than the 12 Volt batteries? "In my mind" I had hoped to hook up 4 - 12 Volt AGM batteries in series parallel to make a tiny 48 Volt set up with plans to expand as I could. It just seems that 12 Volt isn't the right thing to have and I just don't get it. "Set me straight please"!! I'd appreciate it! Thank you! :o)
+SaltyOldDawg 48 volt is more efficient then 24 volt. 24 volt is more efficient then 12 volt. 24 volt cables are half the size of heavier more expensive 12 volt cables. Starting with a small system like you want to do is a real good way to start especially if your going to go 48 volt right off the bat.When buying a battery bank it's best to have all the same batteries and the same age. Basically when you figure out how big a system you need buy one set of batteries all at once. An older battery in the group can drain the rest down if it starts to go bad. It's also all about how much cash you have. Not everyone can do it all at once were not all rich.
so if I have 2 12V 33Ah batteries, thats 66ah at 12vv, that means I have 6.6 hours at 120v. Hmm. Probably not enough to run a big ac unit overnight! But probably enough to run a RV and a tiny AC unit. So with those 2 batteries, a 2k inverter makes sense? And if I had 4 of those, then a 3k inverter? LIFEPO4 is still wayy to expensive right?
Jeff? After watching this, I'm thinking, something dangerous for me to do or my ex kept saying, AGM over gel would seem the safest way to go but I went to Trojans site and see they have the T105 in AGM, then I noticed at the bottom of the page that deep cycle TE35AGM.Any thoughts on it or would you go with the T105 6V in AGM?
+rolloverriderpgr AGM's are nice to have, i have AGM'S. The hydrogen gas from flooded cell batteries is really not that dangerous unless you put them in a very small room with no vent pipe. Hydrogen gas floats up quickly by the way. Ina larger room there's not really any danger at all if you have a leaky building. There is some maintenance to flooded Trojans, water needs to be added from time to time but not often.
1 less job having to keep flooded batteries maintained with AGMs for me! The gas I'm not that worried about. I'll be working on an old '83 model Honey, so space is at a premium and if the batteries need to be put in a sealed and vented box under the bed or dinette thats what I'll go with and flooded batteries in a place I'll have to reach into filling them can be a problem. Those TE35AGM batterys, Any thoughts yet?
+rolloverriderpgr Those batteries i have had no experience with at all so i don't have any opinion on them yet. Yeah space can be a problem with flooded batteries so AGM's are going to work out better for you. AGM's have advantages over flooded batteries for sure.
2 volt are for large capacity.. if you use a 12 volt battery you should only connect 3 in 'parallel' together so the charging and power draw keeps the batteries equal.. so if you use 6 volt you connect 2 in 'series' together to make 12 volt and then connect no more than 3 pairs in 'parallel' together.. (that is 6 batteries). so if you need a lot more power that is when you should get 2 volt batteries.. with them you connect 6 together in 'series' to get 12 volt and then connect 3 sets in 'parallel' together.. (that is 18 batteries). if you connected 18 batteries that are 6 volt together to run as 12 volt you will have 9 pairs connected in 'parallel' together.. when you connect more than 3 single/pair/strings of batteries in 'parallel' together they will not remain equal over time through draw and charge and will become poor quality.. look on battery manual page 6, and 7 and you will see what I mean by 'parallel' and 'series' connections www.rollsbattery.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Rolls_Battery_Manual.pdf
I am new to solar . that's what I have . the T-105's. in a 24v system. what would the cost of 12 of the L16's? I have a 5 kW inverter. only 200ah bank. and I need 1200-2000 ah. I'm using a DC generator to Handel the offset in storage. I have the potential to generate near 600 amps DC. I know a little about batteries and the DC world. even though this is my first. system. I am getting more batteries. I just have to works my way to it. I plan to go with 1watt per amp hour! do when the panels get here I'll have 200 watts. on a 200ah bank . with 5kw inverter. all though I am only using half its capacity. at peak use. normally about 5-10 amps ac what ever that is multiplied by at 24vdc. I got the 5 kW inverter for future needs. I hope to get my bank up to at least 1200-2k ah. and the same in watts solar! so is 1watt per 1 ah a OK rate of charge? and then I will have the wind and water generated power!
Always best to avoid wearing metal bracelet wrist watch when working on batteries. I know someone who had one short a cell and burnt his wrist very badly.
Just shot a video of my batteries...Can I post it here since it relates to your video? Here is the link: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OBBPv9ihjo8.html I got the batteries here in town. Thanks Jeff!
