I have no doubts that one day you will build the Flux Capacitor, great channel. Finding your channel is like striking Off Grid gold. Greetings for the Kootenays, Creston, B.C.
Brilliant! As usual of course. I need to do something like this with my solar panels on the shed for the water well that usually isn't producing unless I am pumping water.. Thanks Jason! Bye Kara!;-)
I like the way you diss criticism in sarcastic way ;) It is astonishing there are so many pseudo-experts speaking with authority, while they are missing basic knowledge like an actual wattage equation!
So happy a problem solving geek like youself is sharing this online. I'm planning on doing a van conversion (24v or 48v power)soon, and want to have a ryzen itx build computer w/pico dc psu (full dc pc) . I have also been wanting to do somthing similiar to this video of not wasting wattage when batteries are full and the sun is shinning. I was planning on diverting it to a 24v zerobreeze a/c (if i need it) or diverting it to an atmospheric water generator ( haha which is a 300W dehumidifier/ with berkley water filter that feeds back into my water tank) Hope you guys are enjoying your trip so far and hope to see you guys at a meetup in Canada in the future once my van is complete!
@@Everlanders well all the best in your guy's travels. Look forward to your video on explaining how you have your raspberrypi stats screen. Would there be any way to incorporate collected data from a victron system. I like customizability of it but I'm not competent enough to rely on coding for all my BMS (I'm a basic Linux user). I Also think using a stream-pi deck for all my power switches, pumps, etc. Would be an awesome build idea!
Another great video...I just wish I bought the DEXT16 when I got the rest of my system. They are all sold out for now, so just gonna have to wait patiently.
I approve this video, especially how you completely went overkill on the power cables to your hot water system if those cables ever melt that means pigs can fly on that day, nice job, also love the fact that welding cables are easy to get. Complete overkill on the soldering of the wires to the termination lugs i am sure you would be able to use that cable to pull out a stump before lug comes off i also Approve of this, nicely heat shrunk as well.
The more power you push with 12v the larger the cable you need. While a 12g wire is fine for a 20a line using 120v, move down to 12v and your cable needs to be 10x as large. There is a reason battery cables are so large on a 12v system.
Your channel is totally "Next Level" engineered solutions for Off Grid boon-docking RV-ing. Your solar electrical abilities are off the scale crazy good.
This is great! I run my 10 litre hot water tank off the inverter, it pulls 800 watts and I tend to put it on once a day and that does me. I did look for a 12v water heater but couldn't find one. I might look more into making my own, but I have been put off by those very same mythbusters episiodes on what happens to a water heater and things go wrong!
@@Everlanders That is very true, but I'm still cautious :) Maybe I'll give it a go when I back from this current trip. It's working well enough for the moment so not going to mess with it on the road.
@@Everlanders Hi Jon, I wanted to share that you are the one that got me interested with programming Arduinos and how to automate stuff using 12VDC. I was so inspired that I bought a bunch of gear including some WEMOS D1 minis (ESP8266 Wi-fi) and have started my first project of automating watering my garden. In addition, I have installed Home Assistant on my NAS and setup monitoring through it. I keep watching your videos for more inspirations. Thanks for your amazing videos!!!
Interesting. I have no problem watching your commercials. My Victron components have no secondary take off to do such a diversion to for instance run my absorption fridge on electric a few hours a day. I will say the LifeBlue batteries BMS does have a j45 network plug, 2 each. No documentation how to make use of them. The factory Rep. Said they were for software updates. It may be possible to gather state of charge information from them and then setup a seco dary load takeoff that way. I'm able to do it manually for now plugging my shore power cord into the inverter, then unplugging it when the sun is low, 3 to 6 hours later depending on time of year. With the price of propane now, a few hours on solar daily could save a fair amount of coinage over time. Anxious to hear your plans to cross the isthmus whether by land or sea. Most go by sea but your resourcefulness makes me wonder if you'll be the one wo does it by land. Take care...
Aside from being my hero I love the metal reference 🤚. I feel it only appropriate to ask for a glowing finger for 2.0? Also, if ever in the northeast USA glad to lend garage / welder to a fellow mad scientist :-).
The Electrodacus forum suggested fusing each panel if you connect/combine diversion from multiple dssr's . I'm asking if you did, because I wish to do the same as you have in the video. I'm considering buying a dual voltage 12/230v element
@@Everlanders glad you know I'm not crazy. Add one to the "interested " column! Getting close to that step in my building and would love to learn from someone who's already done it. Especially interested in how you prioritize early morning sun to the dump load.
New subscriber here.. Love all the videos you've made. I seen most of them so far. So I've got a 300v heating element like that.. it also came with a little thermostat.. I don't know how to connect it..? Are there any good forums on this subject..? or just a wiring diagram..?
Question. If I only use a 300w 12v element, can the thermostat handle that without all that fancy special wiring? I saw someone else use the same water heater but installed a 300w element and they just wired it the same way the 120v element was wired. That video is 2 years old and I dont see any updates with an explosion, so assuming all went well lol
@@Everlanders I see. I found some DC thermostats online. They're rated for 25amps which is what 12v at 300w is. Might do that and figure out some sort of extra thermostat system that I can monitor from a Guage to also visually see the temperature.
Sure, that's effectively what I've done here, the only difference is that the DSSR20 switches automatically between our batteries and the water heater.
If we have an al in one power unit like the Anker 767 can we just plug in the 120 plug into the Anker and get our hot water that way? Would that’ll save us a lot of work and still get the same results? Thank you from BC
You could but it would be very inefficient and would use 80% of your small battery to do that. The whole point of what i'm showing in this video is that the battery is charged first and when it's full, the solar power that would otherwise go to waste is diverted to heat water. (and the batteries stay fully charged)
@@Everlanders Thank you, I have gone over the video a second time and learnt more, and will do so again and again until I understand properly. I am a photographer and intimidated by some electrical work, I saw another Canadian, made to explore, using the same or similar system with a 300w heating element. I am stuck on whether I should have a power system built from components or use an all in one unit like the Lion energy safari which has an Andersen connector at 25amp to be able to use dc fuse block or the new Anker 767 unit which has 2 x10a cigarette lighter connectors. I am converting a sprinter on Vancouver Island, really glad i found your channel Thank you for taking the time to reply to me very much appreciated. I really like your power system. Does electro dacus set up power systems?
?Oh One More Question If Possible If I Wanted To Use the Rheem unit For A Shower As Well Would it be advisable To Get The 4 Gallon Or 7 Gallon Unit instead of the 2.5 gal unit.
I plan on doing something like this to heat my greenhouse I plan on using direct current from like a 2 or 300 watt solar panel I bought the 20 mm thread water heating element that I plan on screwing into a empty propane tank the only problem is I don't want it to steam out build pressure and explode so I'm thinking of some kind of way to make a pressure relief valve I was kind of thinking maybe drill a hole and put some kind of weight in the hole kind of like pressure cookers have or maybe even a thermostat from a vehicle any input would be appreciated.
You'd want to switch of the heater with a thermostat long before the water comes to a boil to create steam. And by the sounds of it, open to atmosphere is a good plan too.
@@Everlanders okay thank you for the advice I'm guessing I'm going to have to hook an inverter instead of direct current and then get a thermostat like the ones for the greenhouse and somehow wire that in.
People were forgetting that while 1/10 the voltage means 1/10 the current, power is volts x amps, so you'd get 1/10 x 1/10 or 1/100th the power. I might want to use the breaker thermostat thing independent of your smart system. Have it drive a 12V relay that the power runs through, you can get 50A relays for stuff like car starter motors. Any scrap yard would have them, plus the socket. Then you've got a foolproof, brainless safety system. I'm a computer programmer, I'd feel much happier knowing there wasn't any software involved in my safety!
@@Everlanders Yup I saw, but it depends on the solar controller functioning properly, which is a computer. I'm sure it's reliable but it's better for a safety system to be independent, and ideally dumb and as close to intrinsically safe as possible. You'll probably be fine, I'm sure, but that's what I'd have done, if I were lucky enough to have an RV.
Is the main reason you're diverting the solar directly to the heater, rather than having a relay on your battery system trigger when it's at 100%, to not put unnecessary load on your battery system? I guess if it was a relay it would only be able to turn on the full load, which may pull more power from the batteries than what the extra solar could put in and then just turn it off again. Whereas this way if you're only getting 150w of surplus solar, that's all the water heater element is given and that's that. .... Okay I think I just answered my own question... *Walks slowly away*....
For someone like me, that is not electrically savvy, just by looking all your videos that give me an inspiration to try to be better, I thank you very much for it
Love your DIY videos and I am wondering why you are not a millionaire . I am watching some 'specialists' in solar power on RU-vid and in my opinion you are at another level .Good luck and don't make us waiting for videos so long :))
Good video Barba Roja! I’m looking forward to you showing how to set up the power display. Really impressive. What a beautiful view from where you’re parked! Take care you two.
A kindred spirit in project geekiness. Except I come from the days of old school relay logic and building my custom parts out of fiberglass or whatever. You are inspiring me to start digitizing my projects and join the 21st century.
Hi, Jason. I am new to your channel, but I am watching all the videos and enjoying each one of them. Could you point me to the video about the InfluxDB and Grafana?
Another great video! Thank you for sharing it. Any chance your soldered ends will relax, or even melt at that heat load? I suppose it would be about the best case scenario, so long as they don't dead short to the other terminal...but either way, you mentioned you left your proper lug crimper in Canada, but why not just beat it with a hammer? (Don't misunderstand, I'm not trying to strike up controversy, just kinda curious...totally being an armchair quarterback here btw.)
Thank you for these excellent vids. Is the only downside to using the heater’s original 120v AC element with the original plug and run through an inverter a loss of efficiency? I have extra solar power in my 12v system and have been planning to invest in a decent inverter anyway. Any suggestions or cautions for keeping my instal simpler (more reasonable for my skill-set), and doing it that way?
Im Very interested in this , the grafics , the solar.. I have a off-grid house, set up like an RV or camper, nearly 1k ah 24v batt, and a smaller 12v system, that does 12v lights, and accessories, I don't trust my well to drink the water, I'm going to add a 12v pump for the kitchen, and use a heater like yours, or another instant/tankless gas heater. I have alot of work to do, I have plans to add a 1200-2kw 12v inverter as a backup, because in an emergency I could connect a car to it and charge it to keep the fridge going, and maybe a microwave, I'm thinking about going 48v on the main system, so I will not need so many charge controllers, and get a 6kw Genetry solar inverter, being I could probably pull 8kw from it for a while, I can cool it with the cool basement air, although I can probably stay below 2500watts, I plan to use my generator to wash clothes, I'm planning to build a diesel generator , that doubles as a DC generator to directly charge batteries, as well as a 7kw ac split phase generator, and do about 300amps at 30v, not sure what it could be capable of at 60v+/-, I would need to build a regulator for the alternators for 48v, maybe run them in series, and burn waste veg.oil , I also been thinking about converting my wood stove to a boiler, and build a steam engine. To generate DC to charge batteries, and use radiators in the house as heat and to condense the steam, for a closed system, maybe use a heat exchanger, to get hot water. I also been thinking about building a thermal storage, like build a small room big enough for a few hundred gallons of water, set it on a few inches of foam and wood, with about 12"-18" of insulation in the walls, and about 2' for the roof, use the wood stove to heat it, as well as solar thermal collectors, with a steam engine, generator doing about 600-1500watts+/-, for about 12hours more less. It would definitely be worth the effort, it would also heat the house, I'm in the foothills of NC,. So heat is needed about 3months a year, and only half that needs serious heat, I'd like to add heat to the floor, before insulate it, use a tiny pump, that can circulate about 5 gallons per hour, but definitely keep the radiators for the really cold nights, may e the thermal storage can keep heating for a day or so after the fire is out. Part of it is a crazy dream, but I definitely need backups but definitely interested in what you got going on, I plan to build a couple thermal solar panels, with 1/2" aluminum tubing, and plumb that into he thermal storage , the hard part is figuring out how to control the mess! Haha, maybe I can learn Arduino or something, but definitely need it to be safe and energy efficient,. Sorry to ramble!! But I'm very into this stuff, alternative power, fuel, life, everything!
The problem I have with tankless on demand electric water heaters is that you can't store the energy as heat in times of surplus... dumping that power into a thermal battery is cheap storage.
your videos are very good although I don't understand much about electricity I like to watch them and try to learn something new every day thank you very much for your videos I'm just following you but I find what you do very interesting and that we share the same feeling of traveling the world although you are doing it and I am still in my dream of doing it soon good health and waiting for your new videos a big hug
Another Great video once again, keep them coming 👍 I have a question about solar panels its probably a stupid one but do you have to use 12v panels. I only ask because my son install solar panels for house in the UK. I was wondering if I could use them ?
I’m looking at doing a similar setup. Did you wire it in such a way you can also override and heat water from the battery bank when there isn’t enough solar?
Watching this again, don't you think there is a risk that if just one of those 4 relays welded shut, you would have 70+ amps through one 8 gauge cable and worst still, no way to stop the water from further heating leading to that water heater going boom? Or do you not see this as much of a risk and i am missing/overthinking.
The same risk applies to every solar charge controller on the planet, if the FET fails on, the battery is going to blow up. Fortunately, FETs fail from over current, and the solar panels can't make enough current to _over-current_ the FETs anyway...
I cannot find 12v or 24v heating elements or suitable bulkhead fittings. Among other things, US threading is not the same as in Europe or the rest of the world.
Search for "Dernord" They are available in many wattages, voltages and thread fittings, NPT or BSP www.aliexpress.com/store/group/DC-Water-heater-element/1862595_506538127.html
At this point we don't have access to run everything concurrently, we need to budget for AC or hot water as needed depending on our solar production and forecast. More on that in Part 4...
You got criticism after your first video over theer drain plug, honestly. With what you're doing you're clearly not dumb. Why do pele always feel theer need to be negative. I for one think your project is ace :)))))
I was thinking of an idea to solve your overheating wires maybe add some aluminum fins at the terminal kind of like a radiator. S*** you might even be able to put a peltier fan on it lol.
The wires don't overheat... But they do get hot as they are an extension of the heater itself. As long as the wire jacket is not cheap PVC, you'll be fine. Insulated to keep the heat in, 2 years and no problems.
An enjoyable video, but' where on earth can one obtain a small tub to make a water heater from, looked around can not see or find one!! Any one good at welding?!! You would make some with being able to make such a small tub/under the sink water heating tub, none to be seen, or let me know where?
Any home improvement store sells water heaters... www.homedepot.com/p/Rheem-Performance-2-5-Gal-6-Year-1440-Watt-Single-Element-Electric-Point-Of-Use-Water-Heater-XE02P06PU14U0/204318371
Instead from batteries what if we give direct solar DC to the heating element. Because pulling the current from battery is impacting battery lifecycle.
@@Everlanders that's great, again I am concerned that the if current it pulling from charge controller then it may introduce heat to the electronic parts like mosfets and capacitors and affecting their life. I am amazed to see someone in the world having same thought process for the green energy. Today solar energy becomes cheaper but the electronic items used for conversion are still expensive and has recurring expenses due to their life cycle.
There are no Mosfets or Capacitors in these charge controllers... They were designed with Ideal Diodes which have a total internal resistance of 3.5mΩ producing a paultry 1.4-watts of loss to heat and thus a 99.7% transfer efficiency.
