Castles in the Mud, GFF's "Intelligent Domicile" build thread
- Thread starter gonefirefightin
- Start date
I will still have PV to supplement the system as most of the year it will do just fine with an array of around 1000-1400 watts, It's about the same per watt, but considering the solar propagation here in the winter months, PV would essentially be useless for roughly 2-3 months whereas the wind is too significant to ignore. When I first closed on the property I put up an anemometer logger well below eye-level wind rates on the leeward side of your folks and it still boasted a steady 14mph base average over a 24-hour timeframe that would be enough to charge a 600 amp hour setup even at night. On the high end, it would average 19-21mph which would charge in less than 4 hours.
@gonefirefightin what anemometer are you using?
Well that looks nifty. Are you storing the data in the microSD and downloading the data when on site? Can it give real time data?
I used this one on the farm -
www.davisinstruments.com
We werent logging trends, just using real time to determine conditions for spraying and other activities.
I kind of want to set up a handful of weather stations and get the data transmitted back to a laptop or app or whatever the fuck technology it is that we use these days.
I used this one on the farm -
Vantage Vue Weather Station with WeatherLink Console - SKU 6242, 6242M
This Vantage Vue wireless weather station is the perfect solution who wants real-time, hyper local weather information. The self-contained, easy-to-install design makes Vantage Vue an ideal weather station for home use. Includes WeatherLink Console (6313) to make accessing your data breeze.
www.davisinstruments.com
We werent logging trends, just using real time to determine conditions for spraying and other activities.
I kind of want to set up a handful of weather stations and get the data transmitted back to a laptop or app or whatever the fuck technology it is that we use these days.
Har har harFor your agriculture, send it to the clouds
I've used the weather stations in the past just for fishing and hunting when I was guiding but I needed a trend logger that was wireless and I could just pop the card and import it to my phone. The weather stations don't save any of the data and don't quite have all the integers I need over the long haul such as predominant bearing and mean average speeds that directly correlate to turbine efficiency, I've used these loggers quite a few years and they have evolved quite a bit. when I first got my degree in meteorology they were pretty crude and huge. These days kestrel is even making spot devices for up to a couple of months battery time.Well that looks nifty. Are you storing the data in the microSD and downloading the data when on site? Can it give real time data?
I used this one on the farm -
Vantage Vue Weather Station with WeatherLink Console - SKU 6242, 6242M
This Vantage Vue wireless weather station is the perfect solution who wants real-time, hyper local weather information. The self-contained, easy-to-install design makes Vantage Vue an ideal weather station for home use. Includes WeatherLink Console (6313) to make accessing your data breeze.
We werent logging trends, just using real time to determine conditions for spraying and other activities.
I kind of want to set up a handful of weather stations and get the data transmitted back to a laptop or app or whatever the fuck technology it is that we use these days.
Looks as if Solar and wind will be significantly cheaper and 100x more reliable to be completely off grid then to hook up to grid power that is at the end of the driveway.
Researched the local utility provider and they are a joke.
They are a very very small provider that covers the Very rural parts of the remote coast and they get their feeds from bonneville, Not only are they the 3rd highest rate per KWH in the state they also boast the most amount of outages of any provider in the state.
According to their website, I calculated the cost to hook up to the transformer at the end of my driveway and it is robbery for shit service
Service Availability Charge: $27.00 per month, PLUS Energy Charge: All kilowatt hours (kWh) at 8.06¢ per kWh @$1,700
Standard Residential Service (up to 200 amp service)…………………………………………………………………….….$3,800
4/0-4/0-4/0-2/0 SER Copper Service @$50 per foot $10,500
Meter $2,300
4” conduit $1,900
Excavator rental $1800
Aggregate $800
Total cost to me (estimated from their website) $20,900
and they still charge 10.03 per kwh per billing cycle and going up this year.
Without building a solar/wind system from scratch I can buy a complete system delivered to the door for $10k via dozens of online retailers with twice the power service and be offgrid.
Oh and they wont even discuss the engineering prices and timelines without becoming a customer and waiting 4-8 weeks to speak to an engineer for a new service connect.
At least in my specific area, solar and wind is now cheaper than the utility company by at least half.
Researched the local utility provider and they are a joke.
They are a very very small provider that covers the Very rural parts of the remote coast and they get their feeds from bonneville, Not only are they the 3rd highest rate per KWH in the state they also boast the most amount of outages of any provider in the state.
According to their website, I calculated the cost to hook up to the transformer at the end of my driveway and it is robbery for shit service
Service Availability Charge: $27.00 per month, PLUS Energy Charge: All kilowatt hours (kWh) at 8.06¢ per kWh @$1,700
Standard Residential Service (up to 200 amp service)…………………………………………………………………….….$3,800
4/0-4/0-4/0-2/0 SER Copper Service @$50 per foot $10,500
Meter $2,300
4” conduit $1,900
Excavator rental $1800
Aggregate $800
Total cost to me (estimated from their website) $20,900
and they still charge 10.03 per kwh per billing cycle and going up this year.
Without building a solar/wind system from scratch I can buy a complete system delivered to the door for $10k via dozens of online retailers with twice the power service and be offgrid.
Oh and they wont even discuss the engineering prices and timelines without becoming a customer and waiting 4-8 weeks to speak to an engineer for a new service connect.
At least in my specific area, solar and wind is now cheaper than the utility company by at least half.
Wind turbines, what a racket
in short ive come to the conclusion that ALL turbines will only do half of the rated output and thats at peak numbers and going past that they either degrade in output or start to self destruct with higher wind speeds.
Thus far it seems most turbines will have a peak power band that usually resides in the 40-60mph wind range and will still only do half of what they are rated for. In order to find a turbine that does what it says they are usually much more expensive than the other junk that is out there. in order to be in the 3-5kw class the prices are starting around $5k and shooting past $10k that refelcts in some features that seem to be mandatory for efficiency such as Magnetic levitation, optional AC/DC outputs from 110v-220v AC or 12v-48v DC and even configurable blades to meet your local wind averages.
As of now it seems the only person who could truly benefit from a turbine is someone whom needs a very low voltage hybrid system with a panel or two to run a well pump or small scale needs under the 400watt mark.
For example
This turbine boasts 1200watts and only costs a couple hundy
The actual amount of power, real world users have declared on the youtubez was never more than 390 watts and that was in 40+mph winds. This system would be fine for the price for someone needing power for a small guzler, off grid cabin or light battery load under the 200amp hour mark but it simply wont do much for a large system.
On the other hand you have these
thesolarstore.com
They are claiming 3k watts but I have only seen a real world peak of 1200w and still at nearly hurricane force winds but for 10 grand of a price point you could double your solar and battery array and get more than 18kw of power for the same price.
I am still looking around for wind options but as of now it looks to be a complete defunct resource due to price per KW and doesnt make any sense even in a hybrid scenario.
in short ive come to the conclusion that ALL turbines will only do half of the rated output and thats at peak numbers and going past that they either degrade in output or start to self destruct with higher wind speeds.
Thus far it seems most turbines will have a peak power band that usually resides in the 40-60mph wind range and will still only do half of what they are rated for. In order to find a turbine that does what it says they are usually much more expensive than the other junk that is out there. in order to be in the 3-5kw class the prices are starting around $5k and shooting past $10k that refelcts in some features that seem to be mandatory for efficiency such as Magnetic levitation, optional AC/DC outputs from 110v-220v AC or 12v-48v DC and even configurable blades to meet your local wind averages.
As of now it seems the only person who could truly benefit from a turbine is someone whom needs a very low voltage hybrid system with a panel or two to run a well pump or small scale needs under the 400watt mark.
For example
This turbine boasts 1200watts and only costs a couple hundy
The actual amount of power, real world users have declared on the youtubez was never more than 390 watts and that was in 40+mph winds. This system would be fine for the price for someone needing power for a small guzler, off grid cabin or light battery load under the 200amp hour mark but it simply wont do much for a large system.
On the other hand you have these
Southwest Windpower 3000w Whisper 500 48V w/ Charge Controller and Display
Southwest Windpower Whisper 500 48V w/ Charge Controller The Whisper 500 is a 3000-watt rated turbine that will deliver in excess of 500 kWh per month in a 12 mph wind. This machine has...
They are claiming 3k watts but I have only seen a real world peak of 1200w and still at nearly hurricane force winds but for 10 grand of a price point you could double your solar and battery array and get more than 18kw of power for the same price.
I am still looking around for wind options but as of now it looks to be a complete defunct resource due to price per KW and doesnt make any sense even in a hybrid scenario.
Solar is fine, wind is a joke of an industry unless its in the 20kw and higher classes, anything under 5kw class is the same money for a 18kw-20kw solar setup with battery storage. I will just go bigger on battery storage for the winter days that only produce 2-3 hours of solar power
Hydrogen has been enticing me.
A few places around here are doing Solar to battery then once the battery fill make hydrogen amd store it. You can make a fair bit of hydrogen and it lasts a lot longer than batteries, and the tanks are pretty cheap too, but electrolyser/fuel cells are still a bit pricey. We are seeing it at Maraes and ither places with spikey demand (nothing, nothing, lots type of thing). It makes a good seasonal level buffer if you can afford the kit.
For the time being, solar/battery is about the only option considering the price per KW and the overreaching hand of our gov's building code enforcement. The US is still stifled with ignorant legislature about hydrogen and even collecting rain water to the point of criminality. If I were to dabble in other energy sources it would have to be after the permit for occupancy was issued. I am already making waves with the county going completely self sustained even though there is a transformer at the end of the driveway. For the time being until tech catches up I will be able to have a whole house solar battery system to the tune of $10k-13k and have over 18kw of split phase 110/220v at 200 amps.
Did you list your solar / battery build info somewhere and I missed it? Care to share it?
As part of the new roof hunt for the shop, I am wondering if I might roll solar and new roof all into one project….
This thread reminds me of all the things I need to get going on…I really need to retire…
As part of the new roof hunt for the shop, I am wondering if I might roll solar and new roof all into one project….
This thread reminds me of all the things I need to get going on…I really need to retire…
This is about the size and scale of system I will be using. will piece together my own kit but pretty much the same
Complete Off-Grid Solar Kit EG4 6000XP | 12000W Output | 48V 120/240V Split Phase + 12800 Watts of Solar PV [KIT-E0009]
Explore energy independence with Off-Grid Solar Kits, EG4® 6000XP inverters. Choose components, batteries, and panels. Revolutionize your energy with EG4.
signaturesolar.com
Damn, I really like that setup, wow.This is about the size and scale of system I will be using. will piece together my own kit but pretty much the same
Complete Off-Grid Solar Kit EG4 6000XP | 12000W Output | 48V 120/240V Split Phase + 12800 Watts of Solar PV [KIT-E0009]
Explore energy independence with Off-Grid Solar Kits, EG4® 6000XP inverters. Choose components, batteries, and panels. Revolutionize your energy with EG4.
kinda like legos with EG4 and their batteries and off grid inverter setups. Easy to pair, communicate and expand. That system is the barebones I would reccomend to anyone that still wants to have a shop with use for 220v but if all your major appliances and heat is LPG there is a ton of power there.
That is what I had in mind for my 3 container setup. If we ever got the properties we've looked at, that would be about perfect.
If you dont need 220, you could def run things with a $5-6k setup with 400 amp hours of battery, Just doesn't make sense to use the transformer at the end of the driveway for a fee of $25k and still have to pay over $10 per KWH every month for weekly outages.
Been kinda geeking out on how some folks have created a kind of showcase for their inverter/battery/low voltage systems and been gathering ideas for some of the best I've seen.
Some of the wire trough/cable chase and cabinet builds are pretty sweet looking. might have to do some LED back lights since the server racks have plenty of PoE. Might use some glass doors as well.
Some of the wire trough/cable chase and cabinet builds are pretty sweet looking. might have to do some LED back lights since the server racks have plenty of PoE. Might use some glass doors as well.
The cabinets are cool especially with all the wire chases, it would look good with glass doors and backlit I think
@gonefirefightin has experience in this area despite divesting the asset.I love the idea of an expandable rack setup.
an enclosure like that also allows for some thermal management with positive pressure ventilation and even fire supression.
For Victron components yes, way overpriced and not reliable at all in comparison. They used to be the only dog in the fight but now are used only for commercial applications.
I like that they have a TV in the network "closet"... guaranteed some nerd is down there occasionally whacking off.
Agreed, the "Room" will be all concrete to start and sealed from the living space, will also have a signifigant drain in the middle of the room to allow for a supression system down the road, havent found the best option for that yet but thus far using batteries that have built in suppression measures such as automated kill switches and temp sensors. There are some dry chemical options as well as mist options but wont know what direction I go untill I have my system dialed but still planning for the infrastructure.Which you *definitely* want with those lithium batteries hangin' around.
Which you *definitely* want with those lithium batteries hangin' around.
Wouldn't they be the less volatile lithium Iron phosphate batteries?
With the use of an Arduino or raspberry Pi you can throw all of your system stats, voltages, watts, info etc on a big screen to keep an eye on your basics with out having to look at each individual components screen.I like that they have a TV in the network "closet"... guaranteed some nerd is down there occasionally whacking off.
yes, they are a very safe medium actually, the newest offerings have thermal run away and supression system in them allready but nothing for the "room" itself that I will be developing as I go.
What do I look like? A goddam *engineer*??
Whacking off - guarantee it.
Yeah, Jeff's server room setup is all built out. His battery and management setup is low key in the main garage. It's not a rack setup oddly enough.
I am pretty sure I will go with a lot of the components on wheeled server racks just so I can easily get in, behind and have flexibility if and when I have to replace or repair any part of the system. Some of the components will of course have to be hard mounted but still designing that in my head, will more than likely weld up my own structures.