Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

thenderson4
thenderson4 Registered Users Posts: 16 ✭✭
In a few days I go to the Bahamas to get a friends solar up and running. A few months ago a contractor installed it but it never reduced my friends power bill. Turns out the contractor did not use enough battery storage, so the inverters went into AC Pass Thru, which means the inverters are not doing anything. Of course the erratic grid power was making the inverters go into fault at other times.

My main purpose in this next trip is to hook up 24 new Surrette 2 volt batteries, 2ys31ps is the model, if anybody is interested. But a secondary reason is to try to get the two Whisper 100 wind generators up and producing power, for night-time suppliment. I have read the manual but this is my first time to get into wind generation. I have tried to eduacate myself so this much I have learned. The output is 3 phase AC, being rectified and controlled by the controller, which passes this into the battery bank. I feel honored to get to work on this system, it is the largest residential system I have seen. The total PV power is 84 each 280 watt panels using 7 Xantrex 60 MPPT CC. This is all needed because the load is tremendous. This DC feeds four XW 6048 60 in tandem, which when operating at near rated power can pull almost 500 amps from the batteries.

All you readers out there can weigh in with things to look for (trouble-wise) from these two Whisper 100 turbines. I will look for shorted diodes, bad cards, etc. . .

Comments

  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,422 admin
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    I looked at the Whisper installation manual, and the battery wiring is not optimum... They have series/parallel connections made "ladder" style... The battery(ies) nearest to the charge controller will get the most charging current, etc...

    Look at this web page for the correct method of connection (if you have any parallel strings--which you may not with your 24x2v battery bank).

    www.smartgauge.co.uk/batt_con.html

    Also, you may want to check about bringing tools... A couple of good quality hydrometers (one always breaks) and a cheap (or expensive) DC Current Clamp Meter you can leave behind for debugging/monitoring (cheap, you can leave two).

    Fuses/holders and a Battery Monitor...

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
  • waynefromnscanada
    waynefromnscanada Solar Expert Posts: 3,009 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    All you readers out there can weigh in with things to look for (trouble-wise) from these two Whisper 100 turbines.

    There may well be nothing at all wrong with the wind turbines, or their installation.
    Inverters pulling 500 amps from the batteries and expecting these units to do much more than sit up in the sky and look pretty, is in my opinion, (based on personal experience with small wind turbines), nothing short of pie in the sky.
    Yes, during semi-hurricane wind speeds they will probably produce some usable power, but how often so you get such winds?
    The same money spent on solar panels will produce power almost every day.
  • Cariboocoot
    Cariboocoot Banned Posts: 17,615 ✭✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    "Contractor did not use enough battery storage."
    That sounds bad. 23,520 Watts of panel (if I read that part right) is huge. We're talking 650 Amps @ 48 Volts. That's enough for 6,500 Amp hours of battery. We're also talking about a need for more than ten 60 Amp charge controllers, not seven. That's nearly 60 kW hours AC from those panels, btw.

    Divided among four XW 6048's, 500 Amps is 125 each which is not so bad. That's normal peak power for one. What we don't know here is the daily Watt hour consumption, which is important for checking the battery bank size (also unknown) and its relation to the panels.

    "The erratic grid power was making the inverters go into fault at other times."
    That sounds bad too. If the grid power isn't good enough to run the inverters in charge mode it might be necessary to alter the charging method. This could be anything from 'telling' the inverters the grid is a generator (more tolerant of fluctuation) if possible to using the grid to power a stand-alone charger (or chargers) connected to the batteries.

    "This is all needed because the load is tremendous."
    There's the worst problem. This is essentially an off-grid system which happens to be grid interconnected. Rule #1 of off-grid is conservation. So is Rule #2 and Rule #3.

    As for the wind aspect, Bermuda may just have enough breeze to get some output from turbines. But I'd sort out the other problems first or else it won't matter.
  • thenderson4
    thenderson4 Registered Users Posts: 16 ✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    I felt the same way, pretty much. My thinking is with such a great need, the wind-produced power is a drop in the bucket. The windmills are an example of poor design.

    The reason I am going down to install these huge batteries is because the "Professional" design and installation used 24 of the Lithium battery, XP U27-12, these only have a 138 ahr rating per battery. These batteries cost $2500 per battery. Not a good choice. If it had been possible to operate in the Grid Support mode, these might have worked, but with all this power being harvested by the 84 panels, there should have been some place to put it for later use. For you see, on this island, you can not sell the excess back to the grid!!
    Wish me luck.
  • Cariboocoot
    Cariboocoot Banned Posts: 17,615 ✭✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    Ugh. 138 * 24 = 3312 Amp hours. Half the size the panels could support. Lithium? Charge profile difficulties. Twelve Volts each? That's six parallel strings on 48 Volt system = more potential problems.

    You've got your work cut out for you. Good luck!
  • thenderson4
    thenderson4 Registered Users Posts: 16 ✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    This system has only been in about four months. These lithium batteries would be a good buy for anybody wanting to build electric vehicles. Otherwise I will be trying to come up with a way for him to use them.

    A note about the inverters and bad grid power compatibility. The over-voltage sense circuits of the inverter makes it impossible to operate in a grid support mode. (sell or no sell) The fault light comes on and inverter shuts down.
  • Cariboocoot
    Cariboocoot Banned Posts: 17,615 ✭✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2
    This system has only been in about four months. These lithium batteries would be a good buy for anybody wanting to build electric vehicles. Otherwise I will be trying to come up with a way for him to use them.

    A note about the inverters and bad grid power compatibility. The over-voltage sense circuits of the inverter makes it impossible to operate in a grid support mode. (sell or no sell) The fault light comes on and inverter shuts down.

    That's to be expected, under the circumstances. Maybe "pretending" the grid is a generator would help, maybe it wouldn't. Depends on how far out of spec the grid power is. Some battery chargers are available with a switching power supply that can take a very wide range of input Voltage without harm. Someone here knows which I mean; can't think of it right now.
  • TheBackRoads
    TheBackRoads Solar Expert Posts: 274 ✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    Don't forget to post up some pictures!!! :p:D;)
  • kenputer
    kenputer Solar Expert Posts: 27
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2
    There may well be nothing at all wrong with the wind turbines, or their installation.
    Inverters pulling 500 amps from the batteries and expecting these units to do much more than sit up in the sky and look pretty, is in my opinion, (based on personal experience with small wind turbines), nothing short of pie in the sky.
    Yes, during semi-hurricane wind speeds they will probably produce some usable power, but how often so you get such winds?
    The same money spent on solar panels will produce power almost every day.

    He did not ask if he should put the turbines up,if you had trouble with yours then maybe you did something wrong.
    My whisper was simple to setup and works great in the night when my solar is useless.
  • Ralph Day
    Ralph Day Solar Expert Posts: 1,019 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: Whisper 100 in the Bahamas x2

    works great in the night when my solar is useless.
    __________________
    ...works great in the night when my solar is resting.

    Ralph