Basic components for detached garage system

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  • Socratic Monologue
    Socratic Monologue Solar Expert Posts: 33 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system
    mike90045 wrote: »
    NO, only if you are feeding the controller from a battery, which is not current limited, and could dump 1,000 amps in an instant, so you need the resistor.

    Thanks, mike. A lot of this information is really obvious once it is pointed out by someone else, but to figure it out on one's own would necessarily involve a fire. Like so much in life...:D
  • SteveK
    SteveK Solar Expert Posts: 387 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system
    2) Get an inverter large enough to run the AC GDO I already have. The Xantrex X-Power 1500w should be large enough, I think; it has a 3000w surge rating. It also has low standby consumption (0.3A). Are these X-Power inverters any good? I'm guessing they are at least as good as the Go Power brand. Am I being penny wise and pound foolish by considering low-end inverters at all?

    Most if not all GDO's do not like MSW inverters. Stalling mid stroke, phantom reverseing and such. Some GDO's don't even like a refridgerator plugged into the same wall circuit they share.

    I thought a regulator would work well with the Bulk charging voltage of the main charge conroller being sufficiently high to charge the onboard battery? Works well in a car I thought. You know like a better quality one of these:

    http://www.harborfreight.com/7-amp-solar-charge-regulator-96728.html

    It's why I'm a door guy...:cool:
  • Socratic Monologue
    Socratic Monologue Solar Expert Posts: 33 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system
    SteveK wrote: »
    Most if not all GDO's do not like MSW inverters. Stalling mid stroke, phantom reverseing and such. Some GDO's don't even like a refridgerator plugged into the same wall circuit they share.

    I thought a regulator would work well with the Bulk charging voltage of the main charge conroller being sufficiently high to charge the onboard battery? Works well in a car I thought. You know like a better quality one of these:

    http://www.harborfreight.com/7-amp-solar-charge-regulator-96728.html

    It's why I'm a door guy...:cool:

    I would try an inverter on the GDO with a plan to go to a 12vdc GDO if the inverter wouldn't power the AC GDO. But: I've heard the warning that you are giving, Steve, but the couple of people who claim to have tried to run a GDO off a MSW inverter (of the proper size) report success. I really do appreciate the warning, but I think that there is more of a chance of this working than a lot of people think. Or so I might find out...

    Thanks for the link to the regulator -- that looks like a small, bells-and-whistles-less charge controller. I think it is the sort of thing I would try for the DC GDO (although I'd need one bigger than 7A for even the one 125w panel I'm planning to start with).
  • SteveK
    SteveK Solar Expert Posts: 387 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system
    But: I've heard the warning that you are giving, Steve, but the couple of people who claim to have tried to run a GDO off a MSW inverter (of the proper size) report success. I really do appreciate the warning, but I think that there is more of a chance of this working than a lot of people think. Or so I might find out...

    .

    It supposedly has to do with the RPM sensor circuit sensing an obstruction. A pulse counter with a flag attached to the drive motor shaft....Slow the motor down and it will stall and or reverse.

    And I would expect the 7A size would be more than sufficient... You would be charging the Main batts as well if my memory serves me.

    Again, Good Luck!
  • dagr51
    dagr51 Solar Expert Posts: 72 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system
    It would cost me under $1000 to run power from the house (need to run a line under a road), so I'm trying to keep the budget for solar near this.

    That's your answer. Spend the $1,000 and be done with it.
  • Socratic Monologue
    Socratic Monologue Solar Expert Posts: 33 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system

    Update: the Xantrex X-Power 1500w MSW inverter fires my 1/2hp garage door opener quite well! I haven't tried with anything else drawing power at the same time, though (I did just one quick test since the PV panel isn't installed yet).
  • SteveK
    SteveK Solar Expert Posts: 387 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system

    SM,

    I'm really glad you updated this. So many posts remain open ended and it's good to see results!

    I too have tried an MSW inverter on an opener at new construction since last we spoke. I found I needed to increase the close/open force settings in order to get it to run well through the dozen cycles without stalling.

    This same setting was found to be too strong (when plugged into poco lines) to properly reverse on obstruction, a 2x4 laying flat on it's side on the floor, at the threshold. This is so we don't kill the kitty....

    Please keep in touch after your machine has had a steady diet of this MSW inverter?

    Thanks!
  • Socratic Monologue
    Socratic Monologue Solar Expert Posts: 33 ✭✭
    Re: Basic components for detached garage system

    Update: after a month of use, the system is apparently running well, and is doing what we want it to do. The charge/lighting controller is running a 16w DC light 4 hours a day. The X Power 1500 inverter powers the garage door opener without trouble. I wired about 8 AC outlets to the inverter and put a shoplight over the workbench so I can work on the chain saw. I added a separate motion sensing PV LED light over the person-door to the garage (which is right under the main PV panel), since we are in the habit of shutting off the inverter when all the cars are in the garage.

    I made a mount for the panel out of Power Strut, and it has held up to 40mph wind gusts a couple weeks ago. Figuring out how to tilt the panel 60 degrees from horizontal as well as pointing it south (which if I recall is something like a 35 degree angle from the wall it is mounted on) took about as much geometry as I know, and then a bit more.

    Total expenditure was about $950 including the LED motion light.

    I'll bet this is about as thrilling as a solar pocket calculator to many of you solar veterans, but I'm still pretty excited about it. Thanks for all the help!