DIY Off Grid Solar: Building a Renewable Energy 5.2 KW Solar Panel Array (Part 3)

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Due to the crazy install (and even crazier weather where we considered building an Ark instead of a solar system)...these videos have been recorded out of order so we could show you the process lineally. Next video will be on how to assemble the combiner boxes. Stay tuned! More links in the description. Thanks for watching!

[@puddintang8034]

Guildbrook Farm - Off Grid Living I like the panels being in a easy to clean location...folks but them on the roof and I just smh!

[@ronb6182]

The power inverter should always be at the house. Higher input voltage should be used if the panels are away from the house. I would use a 48 volt system so less loss and lighter wire can be used. If you put the inverter at the site then you might could run high voltage ac and step it to 240 volts at the house with 2 120 volt sides. Then you will have power for both 120 and 240 items. It will cost more if you step up the ac voltage because you will need transformers and transformers use power even at zero load.

[@ForestNinjaZero]

@Ron B: They can simply run a high voltage, split phase inverter, and step it down to 240 at the house, which is the correct solution. Standard cables are too lossy for transmission of low voltage DC beyond a few hundred feet. The inverter should only be at your house if the storage array is also at the house (in garage, shed, basement, etc).

[@ronb6182]

@@ForestNinjaZero Thanks I will remember that if I ever need a long run from the solar panels. You are right low voltage = loss. When it comes to long runs. Wire size is also smaller for high voltages.

[@ForestNinjaZero]

@Ron B: Another thing that I noticed is that he's running his panels in series, and panels which are partially obstructed by trees, roofing, or other structures will resist while under load, even if they're just recharging batteries. For long runs, it's best to run larger, high-voltage panels in parallel, or arrange sets of panels in series where they'll always be exposed evenly if you need higher voltages from your panels due to load or distance. In this case, running from a shed which is closer to his array and extending a split-phase 240 across the yard would likely be sufficient, but consider that those low voltage inverters are sensitive to resistance and potential, and might malfunction with long, un-grounded cables attached to the outputs.

[@bsofar1675]

You're over my head right now, but this series is going to be so useful when I'm ready to get serious and make the leap.

[@DadCooks2]

Excellent, covering the panels while connecting is extremely important, not just for your safety but also for the safety of the components that could be shorted out. You are showing, once again, that you are taking the time to do it right and safe the first time.

[@Fidg234]

I'd say here's a very smart family.

[@roniniowa1661]

After watching video, and reading all the comments, I agree with everything except the technical jargon (because I don’t understand any of it). I enjoy all your videos as thorough, complete, and well researched. Glad to see ya’ll have weathered the weather thus far. At 66 years old I live vicariously through your family videos. Great camera work Jamie.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Thanks Ron!

[@carolinaprepper540]

Thank you so much for going into detail on your setup. So many other channels don’t explain things for the average person.

[@lisabooker6405]

I didn’t know you spoke such good French! That’s awesome! 😂😂 Didn’t understand a word of it 🤯 but glad to know it’s there when needed. 🤪 I’m just teasing ya. I really don’t understand this stuff but I keep watching the videos and trying. I am grateful for you guys doing this series. We’re planning on doing a build out for a camper van. We want to install solar on top. Not near your needs obviously but still knowing the basics will be very helpful. Thanks for sharing. Hair looks great. I bet it’s wayyy cooler. Bout to chop mine off for that very reason.

[@mrwhitten7704]

Glad to see that piece finally coming together for the family. Should be a huge relief! Continue setting an excellent example for others to follow.

[@brandilee520]

Thumbs up for the glimpse of the sun tea. It's a summer favorite and staple for me. 🙂

[@dodgygoose3054]

These video's your knowledge and quiet manner have been invaluable. Please, please keep them coming your simple teaching method has helped me with this subject immensely.

[@dorotheep.693]

The thing I like best about your videos is that you make it all seem POSSIBLE

[@guidedbygreen1480]

Dorothee P. You could wait till the iQ8 microinverter is released next year that has microgrid capabilities

[@dorotheep.693]

Tdjj93: I have made a note of it and will keep my eye on it. thank you :)

[@terawattyear]

Must be so satisfying to have designed all this, purchased it, hooked it all up and then become self sufficient. Looked really well done. My concern with an array like this is that it be very well strapped down so as to be able to withstand rough weather.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Well it’s certainly not tornado proof but no solar install is. It’s strapped down good though.

[@Christodophilus]

I didn't follow most of that, but watched all the way through, all the same. If I got to the point of installing my own, this would make a lot more sense. But you were to the point with relaying numbers, series and how everything connected up. Which makes it a little easier to follow as reference material. So even though I didn't follow it "precisely", I could see you were systematic and therefore easier to follow the gist of what you were explaining. It's great you're doing these videos.

[@cycletivity3584]

Just an awesome design/instillation vid, one of the best I've seen. Pause go back play doing it again and again just full of info, keep them coming!

[@jules2713]

I listened to the birds in the background the entire time!!! Can't wait to hear the same at my new home! Love your new place and your piggies! edit to add... love the short hair!

[@dougmc666]

Excellent timing, refrigeration and pumping water this summer!

[@rlavery3607]

Your going to have an awesome homestead for sure. Your in a beautiful area, not to cold in winter and lots of sun. I have to comment about the hair cut, looks good.

[@Beecozz7]

That is a nice setup. I appreciate that you repurpose when you can.

[@Ebiczebulanious]

Wow! Finally someone that knows what they're talking about. I'm single so my off grid project was very easy and inexpensive but it took me 10 years to perfect the efficiency I got. You have a quite a challenge ahead of you for living off grid with four people.

[@Downeastwaves]

Thanks! Hoping for good weather fro the rest of the summer!

[@cassityart7001]

Thanks! These vids are answering some questions we have before investing. 🌞💰

[@huckfinn4260]

Wow! That's one heck of an impressive system that you are assembling. I'm green with envy. Looks like you'll be able to have decent air conditioning with that. Daytime on sunny days, once you're charged you'll have way more juice than you know what to do with. I have my 24v 250w panels wired in strings of three also. Outback recommends an array voltage 12v to 24v higher than the nominal voltage of your battery bank. My array was getting up just a bit over 60v on strings of two. Not quite enough for my 48v system. I was having trouble consistently coming up to equalize voltage, so I rewired for three on each string. When it's hot and sunny like it has been lately I'm seeing 100v to 105v. On the coldest days of winter on bright sunny days my voltage has gone as high as 127v. With my Outback FM80 charge controller, when you reach 145v you let the smoke out, so I'm getting somewhat close to flirting with disaster, but I'm not worried about it. I don't know what the voltage limit is on your Midnite, but if your array were hooked up to my controller I'd worry about my winter voltage. This is turning out to be a really outstanding series. Can't wait to see the next one.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Midnight has what they call HyperVoC in their Classics that will eat higher voltage on cold panels and to accommodate those “strings of 3” situations for 48v systems. There will be a video on this very subject because I have a controller on crack that thinks it’s getting 180+ volts. Not.

[@kathrynpatino1379]

Huck Finn k

[@LeJimster]

Nice, I can see you're not messing around building your solar system.

[@BumbleBeeJunction]

Looks like it is really coming along nicely guys ! Congratulations !

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Gettin there!

[@HarshmanHills]

Self-sufficient living. Awesome.

[@blitzburghbilly7813]

BEAUTIFUL SET'UP HERE JEREMY & JAMIE ..... LOOKING 4'WARD TO THE FINAL BUILD SET'UP @ THE NEW HOME SITE 👍🏽.... AZ ALWAYZ: THX 4or THE STEP by STEP SCHOOLING ON A SET'UP & THE LINKS TOO.... From "PITTSBURGH" Pa. ...... ( KNUCKLE👊🏽BUMP ) Guildbrook Fram.

[@destinyranee8300]

Sure have missed yalls videos but glad to see your getting some solar panels i wish I could

[@____________________________.x]

Something to consider in northern locations is the first snow will cover the bottom half of the panel and you’ll lose most of the potential output. Weeds have a similar effect. Raise them up 3’ and you’ll avoid this

[@easymac79]

4:45 I watched a more recent upload about wiring the connector box, and I was thinking that exact same thing "I wonder if you need to cover the panels or work at night to avoid live wires".

[@OakKnobFarm]

Great series, can't wait for the rest!

[@valhowe1950]

Great content as always, but I just love the new springtime haircut! Looks handsome and intelligent.

[@dianehall5345]

Excellent walk through of your solar energy project Jamie. Good DYI demo, plus folks can have an array set up by a solar company if they would prefer that option. Of course your project will save money. I had a neighbor back in 1976 who placed an array on his roof. He heated enough hot water for his family of four.

[@AnimalFacts]

Good stuff. Can't wait for the next video. Do you think the chickens getting on them and scratching and pooping on them might be an issue?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Nah. The glass has some kind of protective coating. They’re pretty tough. And so far the rain keeps them pretty clean.

[@AnimalFacts]

Ahhh.... I got ya.... good deal :-)

[@Woodyjims-shack]

Great series, thanks for sharing your work with us. It looks very good going into the future. Please be careful with wind on your temporary array, it could cause a great deal of damage to your equipment. 👍

[@jamesndarlene]

I am really liking these videos on solar. I have been looking at the batteries you had on your last video for my system. Thank you for for posting!

[@vink6163]

Nice job, especially splitting it into two independent arrays. The biggest problems I see are people unable to expand their single array because they can't find matching panels, but if you can just move them into the other array (or even add a third array) that makes future expansion much easier. Not to mention a failure of one array won't leave you without power, but will just mean your batteries charge a bit slower. Splitting each array into three strings instead of having a single 9-panel string will also greatly improve efficiency, especially with any shade (or chicken poo!) as this will only impact three panels rather than all nine. Job well done, you've really planned that out properly!

[@celinebridges7817]

Hey Jeremy 😃 We enjoying the videos. My hubby following along and might have to watch them over again . Thanks Jamie for all the information.great job Using pallets it's a good idea. By the way Jeremy the sun tea look delicious. We also making sun tea with weather in the 💯. Thanks guys Blessing 👩‍🌾

[@offgridsweden]

Really well done. Thanks for a good video. Greetings from Andreas on Off Grid Sweden

[@westvandude]

Nice work. Really like your videos. Just a quick FYI on your panel racking angles.... I've got 12+kw on grid tie and find that my 5kw array at 40deg tilt is pretty much self cleaning. The 3.5 and 2.5kw arrays on my workshop at 4-12 pitch are a pain. I have to wash them twice as much as the steeper angle panels. Also, if you get into it, solar hot water is pretty good too, over 70% efficiency on evacuated tube setups. My setup works good but my 200gal storage tank isn't large enough for winter. Consider adding wood boiler heat in winter. Always go with a drainback setup vs closed loop. Hardly any maintenance with drainback. Offers both freeze and overheat protection as well as power failure protection. I've boiled over my closed loop system a few times, recently when the power authority decided to cut power 6hrs for line upgrades on my street. Combining sources for solar/wind/hydro/ etc is the way to go. BTW, here in Canada (BC) I have some 330w panels on order for $0.50cdn/watt. No excuse anymore to go green. Happy homesteading!

[@StIsidoresFarm]

Looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing the process. Hope to do this ourselves one day.

[@patriciablanton6243]

You guys are doing a great job.

[@oldtimeengineer26]

FYI The three that are only 85v will bring the hole array that are paralleled down to 85V. Good job

[@BackroadFreedom]

Great video and series. Very educational. Enjoy the videos y'all put out.

[@HandyC]

solar tracker wouldn't go a miss either! good efficiency gains to be had from tracking the sun through it's daily arc! Not expensive to make one either

[@beerandprawns]

Very informative, thanks for sharing. Love your KZbin channel.

[@sandyoklahomatransient8557]

Very well done! Would love to have solar power or wind power. Right now other issues on our homestead have dominated our time and money.

[@Drinks-and-finger-food]

I’m the sun....and I approved this video

[@Guildbrookfarm]

😂

[@southernohiosolarhomestead8477]

Sweet , must be solar mount week lol same thing I’m doing only not as big as yours great video

[@50shadesofgreen]

another fun filled and action packed video guys !! love this solar series

[@fissb1]

Congratulations of having a good size panel.

[@EastMesaUrbanHomestead]

Another great video installment in your series! If I may ask what is the cost of this type of set up?

[@walters5235]

Great video guys. Thank you!

[@unclemikessouthernoutdoors3783]

Congrats on the solar build!

[@MrsLaytonClassroom]

Looks amazing! We need a similar system actually. If you don't mind sharing, what all are you running with this sized array? Washer dryer, frig, a/c, or any big stuff like that? Looking into getting a propane gas dryer, but still need to power the washer. Just curious about whatcha got. Really, looks great and so happy for ya. Thanks lots for sharing.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Washer, fridge, water pump, PC and lights. No dryer, we hang clothes. It will run a small window A/C also.

[@MrsLaytonClassroom]

Guildbrook Farm - Off Grid Living That's awesome! Thanks lots!

[@RAKRail]

Thanks for another great, informative video in the series...

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Thanks for watching!

[@essemsween818]

Woo hoo no more generator noise! Roll on next Winter, no lighting or washing machine issues!

[@PopleBackyardFarm]

very cool would love to do this!

[@stacyhackney6100]

Very nice, well done.

[@Omgwtfbbqsammich]

Great video on putting in off-grid solar. However, can you explain how can look 57 yrs old with a bandana on and 27 without it, that’d be great.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Hillbilly Magic 🤘🏻😎

[@BornAgainFarmGirl]

Fantastic job !

[@brandytrevino]

Super great info Jeremy!!! the only thing I really knew was how to run in a series lol jk but the hubs has hydraulics in his car and that's how the battery bank has to be ran as well or kaboom! waste of money😆 as always,I'm very excited for y'all!!! The whole system looks great and high five for all the hours researching everything.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

It’s been an adventure for sure. Especially since it rained for 2 weeks.

[@brandytrevino]

Oh man, that really sucks...

[@margaretkerns4979]

This is the most info I think I’ve got watch dolor installs

[@believeliveloveandlaugh3844]

Looking good!

[@jerrycoon4504]

Wow! That's pretty sweet! Great job. I wonder if the chickens jumping up there and pooping will be an issue? Not sure how you'd keep 'em off of there. Maybe threaten them with the stew pot. Thats what I do. hahaha

[@mynameisnotcory]

Jerry Coon you could put a carpet of artificial grass around the solar panels to keep weeds down and chickens hate walking on it

[@sonyachoate1480]

@@mynameisnotcory great info, thank you.

[@Berkeloid0]

Where I live most public solar panels (for powering small things like temporary traffic signs) have a row of spikes sticking up from the highest point of the panel to stop birds from landing there. It seems to work very well as you see them everywhere and never see any bird droppings on the panels.

[@colleenrodamer6230]

Wow so cool

[@JasonAndrade427]

Are your arrays concreted in and what about your module ground, I saw the combiner grounded but nothing about module level

[@CKKnifeandTool]

WHAAAAT!!!! A 1990’s Jeremy? Hey there mister! Ha ha ha ha! Good stuff mister. Good vid.

[@R0yL33]

at your latitude, shouldn't the panels be tilted up a bit more ?

[@wtftolate3782]

I would put them on a building or on a tall rack about 6-8 feet off the ground.

[@davefaddel6761]

Listen at 4:07 ....

[@donaldsmith3048]

I hope your charge controller will take well over 110V. Must take the open circuit voltage of your panels. Because when the batteries are full and no power is used that is the voltage to your charge controller will get!

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Classic 150’s will take 180v

[@aLatios]

What do you mean by 17% efficiency rating?

[@deevila704]

Great job! Just share the videos with my boyfriend let’s see if he gets motivated. BTW hope you donate the hair! Lol Looks great 👍

[@Guildbrookfarm]

See vid #2 about batteries in this series. I talked about the haircut lol.

[@deevila704]

Guildbrook Farm - Off Grid Living you guys are the best! Sending my love to the family 💖💖

[@yarpos]

any reason you ruled out micro invertors at the panels? greatly simplifies wiring when you arent pushing DC around.

[@westvandude]

It's an off grid setup so no ac grid for the micro inverters to synchronize to..... unless he has an SMA Sunny Island setup (which is a whole other animal) which can be ac-coupled but only by sunny boy inverters.

[@RRinTN]

May I suggest bringing the front of the racks up off the ground by 6-8 inches to make it easier to weed eat and mow around... also keep small animals and insects off the panels. You could also use a chicken wire fence around the perimeter to keep the chickens off of them.

[@leexgx]

Was just thinking if you have got them setup this way should they not each have there own mppt on each string as they are all operating at different voltages hooked upto a combiner box would not the lowest voltage of the string bring down the total power made (norm on housed roofs where they have 2 strings on the roof they norm use a duel mppt inverter so one side of the roof can't affect the other ) It be so good if dc to dc inverters was a thing off grid systems (micro dc to ac off grid inverters)

[@Sunpowerenergy-t5d]

Genial la energía del futuro⚡️⚡️⚡️

[@not2day300]

Oh man, I want to know what you are saying so bad! Just learning and I understand nothing! Are there any instructions out there with pictures and lists?

[@carolynv3530]

OK! This is silly, where you show the sun tea, there is a....”Cheeseburger bird singing in the background... ha ha😂

[@davidjones1393]

NICE

[@SolarizeYourLife]

I hope you use some ground ties to keep the frame from blowing off in high winds, yes those winds will flip those damn panels even though there +54 kg a piece... Hopefully the manufacturer gives you the normal specs included with the Standard specs, use the normal specs for designing your system because the manufacturer does not really show you the heat coefficient loss of your panels which will occur....

[@debashissardar8630]

How much cost have you paid for those

[@drewskihikes5981]

Awesome!!

[@AndyFletcherX31]

The panel angle looks a bit low for an off grid system. They should be set close to the Winter angle to maximise the worst case production around the Winter solstice. In Summer you will get more power anyway due to the longer days.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

They will be raised up for winter

[@AndyFletcherX31]

No problem :-) By the way, thanks for the videos

[@DerykRobosson]

I think that shading from the chooks will be an issue.

[@JusticeNDOU]

it does not look like the sun ever shines in this area though

[@davejones17]

Bro..? I just want to know... what happened to the pony tail..? And do you have a Gibson t-shirt? Looking good guys. DJ.

[@masterdebater8757]

in the start of the battery video recently he said he donated it to locks of love.

[@OakKnobFarm]

He donated his hair for charity in the previous video

[@davejones17]

That’s awesome...

[@desiderata4445]

Are those US-made or Chinese?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

US

[@bettyjoelauper]

Wait..25 seconds in I'm like who is this guy..you cut your hair off!!

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Lol I talked about it in the last video.

[@bettyjoelauper]

Guildbrook Farm - Off Grid Living time for a gbf binge guess I missed that one!!!!!

[@MrsDigiot]

Beautiful man!

[@jules2713]

I'm glad someone else asked! I immediately noticed it, too, but felt weird asking!

[@mrporter4488]

i like the new do better then the solar panels :) hahah

[@russchamberlain8755]

Do Y'all pay for exposure ?

[@cutweldngrind]

I have 8 acres with out a shed or home. I was thinking on getting a 40' container and going crazy. I can add a 3kw solar system on it easily. Here I go again dreaming like its 2009 when I just ordered a 3.5kw system from sunelec lol...

[@sunshinegalkw9675]

Ugh!!!! I didn’t get my notification!! I’m a day late! :(

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Click the bell thing to make sure it says “always” and not just “sometimes”. Next month i’m sure there will be another stupid hoop to jump through also 🙄.

[@TheStormisComing24]

I noticed since yesterday my notifications for all my channels weren't coming in. But I think its fixed now.

[@dwohio6398]

Why do your panels lie so flat compared to many other similar installs?

[@dwohio6398]

And what can one expect in electrician install expense?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

They are angled for summer sun which is more directly overhead. Winter sun is lower in the sky so they will be tilted then.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

No idea, I did this install myself.

[@butchtheiw]

WHEN it snows, your modules will be covered at least as deep as the snow, which will lower your total output. Should have them at least 2-3' off the ground.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Could put them 30’ in the air and they would still get covered in snow. But then you couldn’t reach them to push the snow off.

[@breakthru3000]

he will understand what you're saying when he'll see mountains of snow all over his pannels :)

[@Berkeloid0]

Well this is what it looks like with snow: kzbin.info/www/bejne/moXPiGykobt6sJY It's a bit hard to tell whether they are covered at the base or whether it's a hill of snow obscuring the panels though.

[@MsKalamity]

Watching videos on solar power make me feel like a complete idiot. The learner curve for me seems extraordinarily long. Luckily, I'm not ready for solar yet, and the intimidation factor may postpone it indefinitely. But, this looks uber well done :-)

[@sonyachoate1480]

Ever think about wind.?

[@pcguysoffgridcabin]

What combiner box did you use?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

DIY Off-Grid Solar: Assemble & Wire a Combiner Box (Part 4) kzbin.info/www/bejne/gmW3oKGurrZ3eNU

[@sonyachoate1480]

@@Guildbrookfarm we live in Tx and the only reason we have for not going solar is hail storms. One storm could easily destroy every panel if we went solar. So we're thinking wind.

[@Berkeloid0]

@@sonyachoate1480 If only you could extract power from hail stones, it sounds like you'd be set

[@idahomike100]

How many hours of tv and you watch at full charge? Can you run central air in a house and watch TV ?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

An energy efficient LED tv should be able to run all day. This system is not designed to run AC but we have a separate plan for that. 😉

[@gailreese4699]

Will the chickens getting on the panels harm them?

[@Guildbrookfarm]

Nah

[@TheWaterman1000]

Wait till they start crapping all over them😬

[@mmfc6]

If you put the inverter next to the panels, and ran AC to the batteries, you would not have the voltage drop, and not need such large wire. I don’t know if the losses from going from DC to AC and then back to DC and the expense of another inverter offset the expense of large gauge wire.

[@TheVexCortex]

95% efficient inverter, 5% loss, times 3 (counting AC to DC for batteries as an inverter), 15% loss from inverters. He spec'd the wire for no more than 3% voltage drop. If I understand everything correctly, using inverters like you suggest would be 5X less efficient than his planned setup.

[@OakKnobFarm]

Or if it was feasible, build a "power shed" near the panels for the inverters and battery bank. Then run AC from there to the house

[@dougmc666]

Usually running 110 volts AC means you're using way thinner wire than say 12 volt or 24 volt DC. But the panels are wired in series to be about 100 volts DC so you'd actually use the same wire as using a 110 volt inverter.

[@Guildbrookfarm]

The 3 strings are then wired in parallel at the combiner box so 100 volts at up to about 26 amps. Using 10 gauge AC wire would probably work but stranded copper is better for DC and AC is usually solid copper. We’re using 4AWG fine stranded copper welding cable and it’s working great.

[@OakKnobFarm]

Yeah, 4 ga ought to cut down on your voltage drop ;)

[@pjmtts]

You should get together with engineer775 for your final installment

[@Guildbrookfarm]

He’s way to busy anymore.

[@erNomic]

Buy loose leaf tea. You'll save a ton