Building a Solar Generator, Powerwall, System for off grid Tiny House on Wheels

This is a complete build of a solar system that will power my friends Tiny House on Wheels. The video shows all the layout, connections, and testing. So make sure to watch to the end if you want to see it fired up and working.
My friend's nick-name is Poet. Poet built his Tiny House on a trailer to it can be towed, THOW. He built it and bought a piece of land completely off grid. There is no grid power available. There is a well on the property that requires 240V AC to power it. Right now, Poet, uses a Honda Generator model EU7000 which can output 120V and 240V split-phase like we use. The well pump is submersible, inside the well. The cord comes out of the well and has a 30 amp twist-lock plug on the end. This is what he plugs into the generator to run his well. This means that in order to have water inside his tiny house, Poet must fire up his generator. This is costly, noisy, and inconvenient.
I'm building Poet a solar power system to handle his needs for the well pump, and a future air conditioner. Below are some of the parts I'm using:
Inverter: I'm using the Growatt SPF 5000 ES model. This inverter has a built-in solar MPPT charge controller (up to 6,000 watts of solar). It can output up to 5000 watts of AC power at 240V 60 hertz. This inverter can also charge the batteries from an AC source, such as his generator. I bought the inverter from Signature Solar.
Auto-Transformer: This device can "split" the 240VAC output into two legs of 120V each. In North America many household appliances run on 120V. This was also bought from Signature Solar.
Update: There is no longer a discount code available.
Circuit Breakers and box: These were purchased from Industrial Control Direct. No affiliate. www.industrialcontroldirect.c...
Din-Rail Box: www.industrialcontroldirect.c...
Ebay affiliate link:
Large DC circuit breaker: ebay.us/6uLDdz
Amazon Affiliate Links:
Fuse Holder, UL: amzn.to/3DLrscL
“As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”
Affiliate Links:
Growatt 5000W Inverter with 450V MPPT Charge Controller 5000ES: signaturesolar.com/growatt-48...
Auto-Transformer, 5000ES: signaturesolar.com/growatt-5k...
EG4 Battery, 48V, 100Ah, 5.12kWh, LiFePO4, Server Rack design: signaturesolar.com/shop-all/b...
Waterproof EG4 battery: 48V LiFePO4 Lithium Battery with Bluetooth, EG4 Brand: signaturesolar.com/eg4-wp-lit...
Disclaimer:
My videos are in no way intended to be instructional "how-to" lessons. I am simply documenting my project for informational purposes. Property damage, personal injury, or death may result, even when following manufacturer's instructions. I cannot be held liable for such damage or injury. It is YOUR OBLIGATION to ensure that you are complying with any local and federal laws as well as code and permit requirements.
David Poz, LLC

[@qqqWarriorppp]

*I love the Input/Output wattage function along with the % of charge remaining. solar **Generater.Systems** Well done.*

[@maverickmacgyver]

I’ve got 16 years of professional off grid design/install experience. This video compresses that down to 27 minutes 11 seconds. Excellent work!

[@DavidPozEnergy]

I'll bet in 16 years you have a lot more tricks on how to do it easier.

[@amarumipeopel214]

Wow

[@TruthBiased6640]

And safer. Ply is flammable is it not?

[@NoOne12]

would be awesome to get a full parts list and wiring diagram to help us less experienced folks reproduce this system. thank you either way!!

[@cherylmoseley9746]

Yes, please! And it wouldn't hurt my feelings if he sold this system as a kit.

[@Life.Reimagined]

Me 2!

[@mondavou9408]

Me 3!

[@locosailor]

Me 4!

[@benkanobe7500]

I thought the same thing as I could not duplicate that wonderful system at home as it was just too high level and lacking important details (for a beginner like me).

[@markbryant7411]

That's awesome. Would love to see the final installation with the solar panels and batteries!

[@mondavou9408]

+1 for that!

[@robw7205]

Fantastic. This matches exactly what I need done down to the smallest detail. Also; excellent content and superior production values, this is what every KZbin channel should strive for. Thank you!

[@jamiejoker118]

Love to see it installed in the off grid house

[@cherylslater6574]

David, Your videos have helped my husband tremendously. We live completely off grid in the jungle on the island of Cozumel, Mexico. Thank you and we love your excitement also.

[@lastcenturyclassics]

You are a very kind man David, and thanks for your efforts M8. 👌

[@jasonbroom7147]

I love your videos...you give the impression that normal people could actually do this stuff! :) Would love to see this installed, with the solar panels putting in power and driving the well pump.

[@yankey4]

NICE this looks so good. I love the breaker box!! Thanks for sharing. God Bless..

[@gavincregan7892]

I appreciate the detail that you go into putting everything together. Will Provide glosses over this stuff.

[@GreenTechFusionRenewableEnergy]

Very nice and clean, compact setup David. Your buddy is going to really be able to use what you configured for him. Good job!

[@johnhanley2431]

As an engineer, I consider this an excellent video. I plan to make part of my house off-grid for critical items like the refrigerator, lighting, etc using your design. Proper sizing of batteries would allow a generator to be run for only parts of the day to recharge the batteries when we have a prolonged power outage. Adding solar will extend the time between charging and decrease fuel costs.

[@ericdunn6232]

With a battery monitor and remote start the generator could run automatically to keep the batteries charged. As someone with limited electrical experience, it would be nice to discuss differences between AC and DC generator charging and how each could be integrated with solar. I've read DC generators can be more fuel efficient, and would eliminate the inverter losses in the generator. The 30A AC input is perfect to use power at RV parks.

[@mikejf4377]

If he wants AC, get him to do the mini split like you did in your garage. I’ve heard there is a few that would with three to four panels that he could put on his small house. Very nice of you helping him out.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

We talked about it, but he didn't want to commit. But I figured, this way I can make the video that is applicable to more of the audience members.

[@mikejf4377]

@@DavidPozEnergy very cool, very nice of you.

[@lithtweezie1]

GREAT, GREAT video. This really struck home with me. I too live in an off-grid tiny house. Thanks for the awesome system build.

[@ekko3million468]

Thanks for sharing David!

[@gordosimmins2727]

He'll appreciate that no doubt, but only we can appreciate all the lessons learned to produce that result. Pretty clean David.

[@babaluto]

Clean work Dr D! Having lived in the humid South now for a bit, I switch from using zip style steel screws to a stainless truss head sheet metal screw. For the box mounts you're doing, I use the #10. Unfortunately the big box stores do not carry these but you can find them ebay or amazon. Best wishes

[@craigcampbell6933]

Great Job! Love to see a project come to life, congratulations. Very generous of you to help your friend out.

[@excillisbank2611]

Belle démonstration de simplicité dans la complexité technique David ! merci pour cette belle vidéo.

[@jonathansperb]

Excellent work. It is really looking good, and it works. Great job.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

Thanks

[@LithiumSolar]

Looks great - nice, clean, and good choice of components!

[@abelgonzalez5388]

Hey LithiumSolar, did you get my email on the 32 EVE 280Ah cells? Bought them from your link the day you dropped your video (2-15-21). Do you want me to hold them for you?

[@Chris_at_Home]

Nice installation. The technology has changed since I put a system in 16 years ago. I have both a 48v system for the inverter and 12v for lights, RV pump and water heater. We collect rainwater in the summer so no need of a well pump.

[@johns6119]

Bro, you don’t realize how much your videos help us all, thank you. God bless you sir!

[@EdwardTilley]

Great tricks; really liked use of offset connectors and plastic (red) metal cable-shield wire protectors; even drilling of plastic panels was new for me. Great Video!

[@captainobvious9188]

Great work! I'm going to use this as a reference for everybody that asks me how to make a basic offgrid system now.

[@jktification]

This is really well done. I think a follow up video showing and explaining details of connections would be greatly appreciated. Lots of people commenting with this request.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

I agree. I didn't realize so many people would want to get "down in the weeds"

[@jktification]

@@DavidPozEnergy There are a lot of interesting things going on with this IMO. The distribution box is not a conventional panel so I think it is very interesting how you handled the wiring. For example did you connect AC Out and the Auto Transformer directly through a circuit breaker? If so did you then jumper from the AutoTransformer side of that breaker to get your L1 and L2 hots for the receptacles? Seemed like you did not provide a breaker for the 240V receptacle? What’s most curious to me is the generator scenario. I assume after the breaker the generator circuit goes directly into the AC IN. If this is directly switched to AC OUT that means you would get a regular good ole split phase 240VAC on the AC out. This will then feed the Auto Transformer with a voltage situation that is “unexpected” .If this is the case I’m curious how the Auto Transformer will react to this scenario. Thanks again for producing very valuable content.

[@Scat.original]

Great job, that is so very nice of you to do for a friend, enjoyed the video, thank you for sharing

[@alansmith2203]

Great video David....i really like how you 'proved' the different components. Well done.

[@Songomx]

Great work, Dave!!! Anyway, your friend should put in a ground wire to use it in Florida... with a cooper ground rod for example... just to be on the safe side... Again, very nice video...!!!

[@DavidPozEnergy]

I agree. I added a 6 gauge, 6' long piece of wire for the ground. It's hanging out the bottom of the box next to the PV wire inputs.

[@Jake-nt1nv]

@DavidPoz - I’m really enjoying watching your videos and enjoy your positive energetic attitude! will you please do a simplistic walkthrough of your system now you are using the Growatt all-in-one inverters? I would like to see the physical connections between the solar array, grid, batteries, load and backup load to the Growatt inverter? This seems pretty simple and I’m excited to see it all come together! I want to do something similar at my house and want to see the full system before I start buying things. Thanks for the great content!

[@lunatik9696]

Great vid and timely too. I am waiting on batteries for my new system. I am using the MPP LV 6548 since I do not require 220V. I am using this setup as my model for distributing power.

[@wehvacwehvac5612]

Very impressive and quickly installed, up and running!!..

[@surendrapersaud3857]

David this is an incredibly useful setup. Would it be possible for you to do two things and share with us. The first will be a list of the various components etc and the second is a circuit diagram. Many thanks again for sharing your work with us all.

[@MrStevhen]

Yeah a Circuit diagram would be awesome ! 🙏. 🤠Steve

[@bakaariiim]

Approximately what cost this project. Congrat.

[@jim7smith]

Outstanding as always! You are the Man!

[@wideawaketotruth5301]

Thanks David, I will need to build a similar system very soon. As I am buying a box truck for conversion to RV.

[@DialM4Microcontrollr]

David - you should do a follow-up video once the equipment is installed and running down in Florida. Great job!

[@FrugalRepair]

Such a great project (and I bet fun to build too)! Congrats.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

It was tons of fun to build

[@richardvargas3983]

This is the set up I am planning on using. I have my midpoint transformer. I am waiting on Signature Solar to receive their September shipment of GroWatt invertors. I wish their had been some commentary while you were assembling the system. Thanks David!

[@xazoola6000]

@@DavidPozEnergy Do you happen to have a wiring diagram of the entire system? It would be nice to see how the autotransformer and other items are all connected together.

[@DavidSelf3]

Thank you so much for showing all the detail David. Love your content!

[@michaelcoghlan9124]

Yes thank you, nice job. An very helpful. You all have a great weekend. M

[@col.johnson9938]

Nice job David, you should consider making and selling them or at least detailed plans, top notch. And kudos to helping out a friend in need.

[@teekay1785]

too much liability to sell to general public

[@teekay1785]

Only changes I would make are 1. screw a piece of hardy board over the plywood 2. consider a strip of 2x2 or whatever on back where the long screws for heavy parts come threw. 3. consider threaded stud/rod in the 2 holes at bottom auto transformer and bolt through to back of board. (only need one)

[@alandonnels7382]

I agree with the need for Hardy board but in this case it may not be practical. The power board will be transported to Florida and hardy board is notoriously fragile.

[@teekay1785]

@@alandonnels7382 yes but not after attached to solid backing

[@setag54321]

Dave....What I like using are T-nuts when I want to mount a really heavy item to a thin board like plywood. They assure me nothing will go anywhere, the screws won't work themselves free and allows for a flush mount on the backside. Get them on ebay instead of Home depot/lowes/etc. for the best price. Thanks for sharing, educating us all & being a really good friend. Peace Brother

[@EDUGILLE]

Excellent project looks neat and effective. Thanks for sharing

[@Jimdandy1958]

Wow.. that took a lot of time and camera moving and editing!.. Nice work!.. I don't think people really appreciate how much time and forethought it takes to do one of these videos.. not only planning the system layout etc... but also planning how to get it all captured on video.. nice work David!.. How long did it take you from the time you ordered all of these components until you actually got the project finished and then edited the video together and uploaded?

[@DavidPozEnergy]

Probably 2 months total. Thanks for appreciating all the work. This one was quite the time hog.

[@andrewgower3508]

Great video David! I am using the same growatt system with the auto-transformer and was have a question of how you wired the transformer into the panel box. We are wiring into 125 amp 12 circuit Homeline load center and wanted to figure out how best to wire the transformer 6 110v circuits

[@johnperry5960]

Dave, this is an absolutely incredible build. I would pay you to build this for me and I'm sure others would too. It would be excellent if you put out the full video without no fast forwarding and showing all the details that you are speeding through or a wiring schematic. This is by far the best build of this type that I have seen. Thank you

[@mattwalker8230]

That's great. Love the facility to plug in a generator too 👌

[@MinhTrinh918]

Is there any diagram of how the wires being hooked up? Would appreciate it

[@ContainingLuxury]

Awesome video man! We should make a joint video for building a system for our container home’s! We teach a course on how to build them and want to start offering a perfect off grid system as an option!

[@douglasmcleish7355]

Awesome layout David!

[@ThePytercoyote]

Thank you for the video David. It was fun to watch because we can't see the connections and how devices interact with each other. If at least I could know enough about electricity to understand it 100%. Anyway good job! 😎👍🏻

[@Ted...youtubee]

Nicely done. However, when going over one particular hybrid inverter the instruction manual stated "DO NOT INSTALL ON FLAMMABLE MATERIAL" and included clearance requirements all around. I assume growatt inverters are ok mounted this way.

[@winstonsmiths2449]

The warning is CYA. The inverters do not get anywhere near combustion levels of heat, barely warm. More for the shorted-out system caused by who knows what. At that point your overhead clearance from flammable materials is of more concern. IMO LOL.

[@rexmundi8154]

I’m in a similar situation where I’d like to run a small mini split in an off grid situation. Can you talk batteries? It’s also a tiny house. 8"x37’

[@loucinci3922]

Amazing job, as usual. Very detailed and the layout looks perfect. The french cleat was awesome. The only thing missing to me were some labels on breakers. Maybe numbers on the outlets so one does not have to think when they really need to kill power. Also noticed you did not test the PV input. But we know it worked when it was on your wall. Hope we get to see the installation/test at friends place. Thanks for sharing.

[@DutchAussieProductions]

Thanks for the video, David. Nice, neat job with short cables. I learned a lot from your videos. Have a great day.

[@rdavis20]

What was the cost of the components? About how many hours did it take?

[@mondavou9408]

+1 for that!

[@elvinbinet758]

I like your brake box, What is the model?

[@tm510a]

Thanks Dave, as always a great job.....

[@vladanmarkovic7372]

Well done! Your friend will be more then satisfied with this solution.

[@edc1569]

I’d be tempted to install a load of euro sockets and just run everything at 230v

[@shadowmoon7763]

Hi, thanks for another great build. I know it might be a pain, but would you create a detailed parts list, I would like to make several of these for my friends, we live in a hurricane prone area, and this would make a great portable setup. thank you and keep up the great work.

[@susanpatin6684]

I would love to know too. I'm trying to learn but it's still all Greek to me.

[@kevinroberts781]

Looks like a work of art!

[@HoshMultinational]

Nice one Dave

[@solexxx8588]

Nice build. What battery is your friend going to use? Are you going to do an installation video with the battery and solar? I'm building a tiny house right now for my daughter.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

He bought two of the 48V Gyll batteries I've reviewed in previous videos. That's just over 10kWh of capacity. I'm not going down to Florida, but I'll be giving this to him while he is up in Maine.

[@solexxx8588]

@@DavidPozEnergy I think I'm sold on the Gyll batteries. This will be a good way to heat water with the 240 volt side for her tiny house as well. I have room for 12X60 cell panels on her tiny house roof.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

For a Tiny House build I would look at the water-proof version. shop.signaturesolar.us/products/48v-100ah-water-proof-battery-by-eg4 I just pre-ordered one to test. Discount code: DAVIDPOZ25

[@solexxx8588]

@@DavidPozEnergy Thanks David. Very clean build. You really have become quite an expert on these DIY projects. Congrats on your success! We are in Ontario Canada so the batteries will be inside to stay warm in the winter. It will run a mini split and the refrigerator most of the time and a clothes washer/dryer and induction cooktop when needed as well as LED lights. That inverter will easily provide all the power she needs and the generator plug can be for shore power or a generator.

[@unclerumple9287]

Would like to see a schematic of all that.

[@kcjones3368]

+1

[@ernestgalvan9037]

👆

[@dapperdave2090]

Nice... Very Nice... an awsome DYI presentation and informative vlog... 👍😎👍

[@virgilthewolf8950]

Fantastic thanks heaps for sharing this

[@DavidTuckerII]

What's the "proper wiring" for the auto transformer. I think you had mentioned doing it differently, but didn't see how you did it on this one.

[@DavidPozEnergy]

This time I hard-wired the auto-transformer in. I could do it this way because I have only one inverter (5kVA) to one auto-transformer also rated at 5KVA

[@billjohnson3344]

@@DavidPozEnergy A schematic would be helpful - not clear if you wired this to the inverter output only (both protected together by the 30A breaker), or on the 'main' output bus. Pros and cons either way. If connected to the inverter with no breaker (both sharing the 30A breaker), not ideal since a fault in the transformer would cause short circuit at the inverter output. That's how the actual SolarEdge StorEdge inverter would do it (and what this transformer is meant for), but it makes use of the temperature sense so the inverter can shutdown if a transformer fault. The auto-transformer challenges makes this probably more complex than it needs to be. Would think a proper-split phase inverter would have been simpler and same price, but I understand you wanted to use your existing equipment.

[@davefroman4700]

Only thing I would have done differently is to use Cement board as a backer instead of wood.

[@FlashTwoSix]

isn't cement board brittle though?

[@MatthewN8OHU]

@@FlashTwoSix I plan to attach cement board to an existing wood wall when I put mine in.

[@ibendtin]

That is some gift. Very special.

[@zannemairiwoods528]

Great job !!!

[@rolliebca]

Beautiful job.

[@VictorRodriguez-vt1gy]

Excellent work

[@demivrachanski9275]

Great job 👏

[@eskanderx1027]

This is so well explained. Thank you!

[@sreekumarUSA]

011022/0245h PST 🇺🇸. David, Bless you brother. Satisfaction is yours. You had the magnanimity and compassion to the fellow American. A friend in need is a friend indeed. David, thank you. 73s…

[@sheepdoglogic]

I want to build exactly what you did in this video for my "Hunting Cabin". HOOAH!!!

[@mihaiagh7469]

Ciao David, sei bravissimo nelle spiegazioni e nel modo come lavori. Compimenti bel lavoro!!!

[@hugotorres6536]

Thank you for teaching us your knowledge. Gbyou. Genius.

[@bobwire6440]

Best build you have done been watching since the first volt battery build. You should definitely market this as in a kit form or pre-wired unit only thing i would change is a enclosure around the battery breaker and maybe a metal back board.

[@ianmorgan3005]

Good job, quality equipment. Well done

[@starckmad1779]

Great job David!

[@patrickfordyce2958]

Wow man you sure know how to put all of those components together and very neatly wired that’s awesome I am just learning this kind of stuff and know it’s a great thing to have you showing how it’s done for just getting the parts to make a system is so expensive to me any ways . Thanks for a awesome video for real !!

[@ralb3766]

very creative; well thought out, thank you,

[@JoshuaJoshua0]

Another great build!

[@wobbleszo]

Good work David!

[@bobcole3852]

Nice job, hope your friend appreciated it!

[@321dirtrider]

I have the same set up minus the ac input...great video THANKS

[@jgazaway4944]

Wow that is impressive build. Always good to see people helping people. Are going to share the drawings of that off grid system. I want to build something very similar.

[@rrvallance]

Super clean nice work.

[@0777482287]

Great video Thanks

[@phasekay]

Awesome 👌

[@TestTest-eb8jr]

Very nice, well executed, build David!! Congratulations! 🖒🖒🖒

[@jamess1787]

You are a craftsman. Way to go.

[@magic.marmot]

I love watching what you do.

[@stevetobias4890]

Neat setup, will be perfect for a tiny house

[@nicolaashartman3496]

Great man! Going to try of grid too!

[@farside87]

NOW this is Perfect! This is exactly what I need for my off grid small cabin with (12) 400 watt panels mounted on a rack system and a DIY 48v 320ah battery for storage. Wanting to come as close to a $5,000 price tag as possible. THANKS!

[@DavidPozEnergy]

Your welcome. Have fun building.

[@benlyons7752]

Great project. From sunny Florida.