Protect Your Lifepo4 Energy System With Surge Protection Devices From Midnite Solar

This video is about the need for and installation of Surge Protection Devices by Midnite Solar. Transient voltage spikes from nearby storms can threaten and damage our off grid systems. These devices are an important part of our protection strategy.

[@jake-hy2zb]

New to your channel. As someone who appreciates the kind of detail you employed here, I want to congratulate you. I will be building a small system soon just for my workshop. It will not be tied to the grid but just for lights and a few tools converted to DC. (One of them a 1-ton dump truck hydraulic system converted to run my tubing bender! Thank you very much for sharing your expertise and foresight with us. Happily, subbed.

[@sickwhip]

Glad I came across this video. I was looking for SPD installation examples and now that I saw your wall recess for the battery banks, I'm changing my design to incorporate that. Thanks!

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That’s why I make these videos. I appreciate you letting me know.

[@neomatrix2722]

Thank you for sharing appreciate your video

[@energydreamer5347]

Ray - If I have to look at that Deye name one more time ….. !!!!! That equipment is nice! The whole thing is a nice setup and top notch!

[@energydreamer5347]

Again - great share; thanks Ray!

[@bentheguru4986]

You let out a golden hint at knowing something about lightning protection. Short and direct as possible but NO sharp corners or bends. The only downside is that your earth point is so far away (house) which is fine for electrical earth but surge/lightning earths are a whole other topic. I see too many sparkies or DIY'ers who get it wrong.

[@sebastienmuniz9788]

Keep up the great craftsmanship!

[@Sylvan_dB]

I wired in several Delta Lightning Arrestors (LA-xxx) on D.C. and A.C. lines. Saved me a couple of times, according to the neighbors complaining about lightning and dead televisions, ovens, dishwashers, clothes washers and dryers.

[@jeremysongs6135]

A very comprehensive video Ray, it’s good to see someone doing their best to eliminate risk to equipment, I am all for it.

[@davidmills2266]

Great vIdeo again Ray, hope you are well and dandy!!

[@petewoodhead52]

So much work, and knowledge. Thanks for sharing it!

[@Wrenchen-with-Darren]

Super nice, very clean, setup. 👍

[@yankey4]

Love it brother. Thanks for sharing. God Bless

[@bbrown_sc]

Could be better? Looks great to me and I'm accused of being OCD.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I’ve never been accused of that.😂😂

[@CET675]

This is my comment to help with algorithms

[@9111logic]

Excellent system and precious tips for all of us - Thanks 🙏

[@ComplexSystemsModelingGroup]

I've had lightning strike a tree outside my house and leap into the house knocked a clock off the wall and fried an electronic motor on a 20' satellite dish I have. Several years later the tree grew back and got hit again luckily it wasn't as big so it did not arc over intothe house which is only about 30' radii between..

[@donaldsmith3048]

It looks like you have done a good job! I live in South Florida! I worked around radio towers. We have sandy soil. I have seen lightning hits that formed glass around the ground rods. That is the power from a hit. There is no way to keep that out. But what you have should take care of the near by hits. The lightning that hits the system, all bets are off! You have all the grounds together, fuses on everything and you should be good unless you get a hit on the system. There is nothing you can do do stop that!

[@jeffmotes2129]

Neatly done, sir.

[@randywolf8487]

Once again I express my appreciation of the level of detail that you explain your work. It is a tremendous aid to understanding the articles I read, and allows me to answer the questions those articles have created for me.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That is always my hope. Thanks for letting me know.

[@jamesbsa6450]

Ray, I love your videos, keep up the wonderful knowledge sharing! Question: Would you please explain lesser known electrical basics (future video?) 1. Why you use only one ground for the house and this outbuilding? 2. Why bend the wires in tight bends? 3. Which DC battery wires have you carefully worked out to be longer than the shortest convenient length and why ( are +/- same length) Why? And other related strategies, techniques, maybe incl things you'd have done different if starting over. Please include the why's. I've seen you reference that you do these things but often left out details of why. This could be a great video! Thanks for the consideration. What is your thought on the $200ish SquareD /similar whole house panel mounted surge devices and is there a reason to not use those in the 120vac side?

[@Roll2Videos]

Wow! What a amazing system!

[@jackiedines5229]

Looks amazing😊

[@bluetrepidation]

Very nice update.

[@OffGridGarageAustralia]

102° is not that bad. We get 107° in summer but with almost no humidity, so it is easier to bear.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Hottest I’ve seen here is 117. I’m really glad I added the mini split to my systems. It keeps the equipment cool and makes the rooms more useful and pleasant to work in with little energy used. I suspect but haven’t proven that the improved efficiency makes a significant compensation for the energy used in these well sealed and insulated buildings. More important to me is the long term effect on the batteries. I think they can handle some heat but I’m thinking decades. 20 years can fly right by.

[@gubbernl]

Hi Ray, yesterday I found your channel. Respect! Especially, as you are a carpenter by trade, as I understood correctly? I already watched about 6 hours or so. Very nice, calm and relaxing voice, with good explanation of things. Altough I studied electronics, I am impressed and learn a lot. Maybe I'll build my own battery system soon. (Our grid is one of the most stable ones, but we face an other thing overhere: all power we do not use we produce with solar, we can send it to the grid. The government promotes solar since 1 or 2 decades, so what you produce, you may use within a year. So the grid is our battery, for free. Only it will stop. In 2025 only 70÷, until the next 8 year or so to 0÷. What you produce more, you may sell it. Altough, due to taxes, only for a third of the price for what you buy it for. Also, and again it's very rare, when there is an outage, I now don't have power. So a battery system within the next year or so will help for the nights, and for the 8 or so sunny month every year. You mentioned in an other video to make a couple of breakers in a box next to the solaredge, to switch your house between the solaredge and external power. Couldn't you just use a heavy 3way switch, between the breakers or so? Then you never have to worry someone makes a wrong connection/short, as its just not possible. Maybe even a small version of this ATS: new.abb.com/low-voltage/products/switches/automatic-transfer-switches/compact-ats A question about your own 2 solaredge units: don't they require power from grid, before starting and during operation? At least in the Netherlands, it's required they will shutdown when there is a power outage. So, how will they work when you connect them to your 'gen input', as there will be no power on those inputs? I'm a scubadiver since 30 years, never did tech, so be my guest to show what you do also:-) Ps. Did I see a nitrogen removal rig in your house, to boost the O2, for Nitrox? Greetings from the Netherlands. Take a peak at our more or less unique underwater shed;-) Google Chrome nicely translate. www.kaaiman.nl/onderwaterhuis

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Wow, that's a lot of questions. Thanks for showing so much interest. I will probably make a simple interlock for the generator/AC coupled PV panel. Not interested in paying for an expensive ATS. The hybrid inverter is designed to accept AC coupled power. All the grid tied inverters I've ever seen have the same shutdown requirements and all hybrid inverters and battery back up systems have ways to fool it. My only lingering concern is the programming for the inverter setup to make sure it knows which source is coming in on that lug. There is a fall back approach if it doesn't work. I can generator in on the grid lug but I will cross that bridge soon enough. It is a complex setup to have all these energy sources and scenarios covered by one system so stay tuned. So far I have gotten comfortable that I can make it work without compromise. I create and store EAN32 with my nitrox stick pumped through my RIX compressor. I bank it in four big 300 bar tanks that I use as a cascade. For higher levels of O2 I have a booster and can fill 100% O2 up to 150 bar. I create other mixes including trimix by partial pressure blending with the booster. It gets little use right now because I haven't been diving locally. That's a cool "shed" you've got there for diving. Looks pretty pricey. I hope it gets lots of use. I'm glad you enjoy the channel and I hope you stick around. Best wishes.

[@pteepan2708]

I love that you asked ANDY a question Because you have a lot of flowers in OZ. I love your videos, please keep them up, Thank you for explaining that you are pretty much a Non-Editing content maker

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Thanks so much. I love that my subscribers are from all around the world and super grateful that some people like the one take unscripted and unedited videos because that is really the only way I can make them happen. I really appreciate your comment.

[@johnwehunt4305]

Nicholas Tesla would be proud off what you have done.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Thanks so much for your kind words.

[@eradicator187]

I'm likin' this. 👍

[@SkypowerwithKarl]

Yes you absolutely have to protect the front end against external voltage spikes like non direct hit lightning and transmission line shorts. However, nation wide, the vast majority of all household electrical surge damage is internally generated. That is, something inside the house causing the problem. It’s extremely important to have surge protection on the load side as well (after the inverters) in the distribution breaker panel. This can help protect both inverters and the household electronics

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I have every panel in and out of the inverters protected. Pricey but I'm happy to have it.

[@SkypowerwithKarl]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Good Man! Yeah, it’s not cheap insurance but cheaper then what could happen.

[@ChaplainDaveSparks]

This seems to be a well thought out system! I might recommend that you consider one or more additional ground rods, *IN ADDITION* to utilizing the house ground at the main panel as long as you tie _(bond)_ them all together which your #6 ground wire will do. This should help your _”ground wire”_ to avoid also becoming an *ANTENNA!* Plus, you'd want to dissipate as much lightning current *BEFORE* it gets close to your house. I’m not familiar with Midnight Solar, but I do like the fact that they come in a transparent enclosure so you can at least visually inspect them occasionally.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

One ground rod to avoid a ground loop. I have an SPD at the main distribution panel and another at the meter panel where the power line meets the first panel which is the meter panel.

[@ToddLarsen]

Prefect timing Ray, I live off grid in Southern Arizona and know a little about heat but not so much about the humidity like you have lol It is Monsoon season here and lighting is a real threat for solar systems and the like. I have 8ft earth grounding on my combiner box from my array and another from my breaker in my shipping container/shop. This is wonderful info and is a very important subject. Thank you for sharing and as always keep building 👍

[@EricHansenHaiTech]

I've heard it can be dangerous to have multiple ground systems. Did an electrician do yours?

[@Trent28888]

@@EricHansenHaiTech it doesnt matter how many ya have,its only a earth rod

[@energydreamer5347]

@@EricHansenHaiTech - Ray’s is 100% DIY

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I only have one grounding system as I stated in the video. There is an electrician involved.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@energy dreamer I hired an electrician friend to run the conduit and make up the panels on this system which is why it is done in flex rather than the EMT that I ran myself on my solar shed. You can see that in another of my videos. I also have a painter that has been doing the finish work on my projects. I hate painting and finally, I hired the concrete slab out to a contractor. Yeah, beyond that, I'd rather just do it myself. Other things I would hire out on other projects would be drywall and I'm having some cabinets built that would take me toooooo long with the tools I have. That's going to show up on a future video about the art studio.

[@gugusse55840]

Hello, I can't judge your work because I don't know US electrical code. I would like to recommend something about the grounding we can see at 5:00. The Din rail is metal (where all of your breaker and block terminals are installed to), so you could replace the 3 terminals by grounding terminals. That will allow a better connection of each ground cable. Here it is not allowed to put 3 wires into a terminal because at least 1 will not be secured. Even more for ground connection we were not allowed to put more than one cable or end sleeve. Here is a reference of what we used USLKG, when you thighten the middle screw it makes a connection with the DIN rail and you are able, that way, to have all the block terminal grounded thru the rail and then make a good connection for each wire.

[@Dutch_off_grid_homesteading]

Heya, this is why I watch so many vlog about this kind of stuff, I haven't think of this so have to take this in consideration. thanks for helping to remember. still wounder how the elektric company protects us consumers ???😁🤣

[@calvinflager4457]

Very nice video! I might mention that the Midnite Solar SPDs do not claim to protect against anything you called "military", and for good reason. A HEMP (high altitude electromagnetic pulse) is too fast for these to clamp down with the first pulse, which peaks at 5 nanoseconds. The Midnite Solar documentation mentions different activation times in different places, but the fastest test time I saw was for their UL listing test. It was "less than 15 nanoseconds". Anyway, different people have different priorities about the type of electromagnetic pulse they want to protect their system against. For lightening and solar flares and CMEs the Midnite Solar SPRs are good. For anything faster I would look at the other alternatives, which have undergone military standards testing. Thanks again.

[@roadeycarl]

I'm interested in your idea of single earth location. Current flowing under a fault or surge tends to take multiple parallel paths. Even if its a spike from lightning strike. Although I know regulations differ from country to country, I have also put an earth rod in the ground on my outbuildings, this is also connected to the earth of the incoming grid.... this is all connected back to neutral at the transformer somewhere else down the line, which is also connect ground. I always love your videos, please keep up the amazing work!

[@houseofancients]

hi'ya ray, been awhile .. make sure you stay cool !

[@WiSeNhEiMeR-1369]

HOWdy R-B-C-S, Thanks MidNite SOLAR needs to SPONSOR you in some way 🙂 Thanks COOP ...

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Thanks but I’m not really into that whole being sponsored by every good supplier thing. I’m more into hoping people find good stuff they can count on. I like to sweat for my money. 😂😂😂

[@user-mz8mq6xe9p]

You do pretty wiring

[@Msquared299]

Thanks for all the great info on your videos. Had already gone with an EMP Shield. Cost quite a bit more but the specs are very good. Will it work? Hopefully I never have to find out but possibly will someday.

[@ComplexSystemsModelingGroup]

Let me clarify about the inverter before I switched to 24VDC Nominal I was on 12V amd was using a 2500WC inverter and started with a 200A thermal breaker but it kept tripping so I installed a 300A breaker amd didn't have anymore problems. Even at 40% load capacity it tripped after a few minutes. Even in winter in EASTERN NC. Now I know I really only need a 105 A fuse or whatever for my 24VDC 2500WC inverter but I didn't have one and I rarely use it at or above 35% load capacity or about 900 watts. Now I have 6 12v 100A lifep04 batteries in a 2x3 series parallel configuration for a 24V 300Ah nominal bank and I plan. On adding another parallel branch to make it 400ah. I am using 4/0 gauge welding cable from windynation. I also have looked into Class T fuses but I struggle to find a kit with a fuse and holder together for a lower price...Again, Mr. Ray you are cooler than the stuff you build considering your knowledge and even I have an engineering degree. But I'm Still new to the whole off-grid diy world only about ~ 2 years experience. But I have managed to pull 112% of my rated solar capacity day after day even in winter with very little sun with some proprietary technology and know-how. Any advice or help would be greatly and so graciously appreciated and super well received. Thanks, Ray..

[@cncdavenz]

Hi Ray, I am a retired electrician from New Zealand and it has always amazed me how the world did not get together and decide the colour coding for electrical wiring from the start. The only colour that seems to be consistent is green. Protecting from power surges is an art and you only find out if your system worked after an event. Keep up the interesting videos and if you can send some of that heat down this way it would be much appreciated. (only 8 degrees C today) Cheers Dave.

[@SkypowerwithKarl]

Yeah. Color codes differences are hilarious. I’ve been watching an electrician in Australia and was astonished by practice differences. Is some places more restrictive and other more lax. I’m not sure if you’ve got split phase down there or if that’s primarily a North American nightmare.

[@ursodermatt8809]

@@SkypowerwithKarl split phase is definitively an american thing.

[@MrHowieking]

I really enjoy you videos very informative, i have learn a lot from all your builds love to know where did you buy your inverter am interested in those deye 8kw

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

They are no longer available in the US due to pressure from one of Deye's client's here that demands exclusivity. They got strong armed into not distributing split phase directly.

[@guytech7310]

Seems like you got a good understanding of how lightning strikes work. When lightning hits the ground it temporarily raises the ground voltage from zero to high differential. The pulse comes up through the grounding rod and can cause damage since circuits in the building are at a lower state than the ground line. Issue with a CME, is that the CME can induces a high voltage differential not for microseconds, but for minutes to hours. The CME dumps charged particles which create a high voltage difference for extended periods. No Surge suppression system is going to protect system from a long duration event. The only practical option is to disconnect everything, and open every breaker so the wire length (ie antennas) are as short as possible. Fortunately for a CME you have 2 to 3 days before the charged particles arrive at earth giving you time to disconnect everything. The only issue is that I believe the Midnight Solar SPD uses MOVs which degrade with each event. Really good Surge protectors use TVS diodes which do not degrade. For protecting the BMS, a better option would be a Fused TVS diode across each battery terminal set. The Battery voltage is likely 6V\12V\24V (depending on Battery Model) and you can buy small TVS diodes rated for near the battery voltage so that each battery is individual protected. Small low voltage TVS diodes are pretty inexpensive usually costing under $2 each. For a 6V battery use a 10V to 12V TVS, 12V use a 16V to 20V, and for a 24V use a 30V to 36V. Note you need to use a TVS with an operating voltage *above* the charging voltage which is higher than the battery voltage rating.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That’s very interesting. Please tell us more. The batteries we are using are 48 volts. Where would you install this diode and how would it be at handling the amperage that we are using.

[@guytech7310]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Bourns 5.0SMDJ60A-QH 5KW 60V TVS Diode $2.89. Littlefuse 15KPA60A 15KW 60V TVS $9.48 you can also add a PTC fuse in series such as Bourns MF-RX375/72-0 72V 7.5A PTC Fuse for safety. PTC work by increasing resistance as temperature increases. For a brief surge pulse the would allow just about all of the current to be shunt, but as the heat up the would limit current to their trip rating. This would be usefull if you accidently connected the diode backwards. TVS diodes are high power Zener diodes. You connect the backwards such that the block current until their reverse breakdown voltage is exceeded, and start acting like a short until the voltage drops below the breakdown voltage. You can also buy bi-directional TVS diodes that avoid the issue with reverse polarity. However using a uni-directional TVS is better, in case the Surge cases a negative voltage (ie surge has reverse polarity which would be very bad). The Diode would go between the positive & negative terminals for each battery, but in reverse: Diode Anode to Negative\Ground) and Diode Cathode to Positive. When a Surge pulse hit the battery the TVS diode will shunt, limiting the input voltage The 15KPA60A TVS will start limiting around 67V, and do a hard clamp at about 97V. 15KPA60A will handle up to 155A Peak surge current. I would go with a 60V TVS for a 48V battery pack since the charging voltage could be as high as 59 for LiFePO4 batteries. Another consideration is using Ferrite toroids on your circuits, which slow sudden current spikes, and they also reduce switching noise. In my house, I installed small ferrites on all of the LED lights, Outlets, and panel (breakers circuits), Since they aren't in direct contact with the circuit conductor there is no chance of them ever failing. The Sol Ark inverter (basically the same as your Deye) provided Ferrites as a kit for surge protection. if Deye does not sell them, you can probably contact SolArk & ask them to sell you the Ferrites for the DC power connection into your inverters. You can buy all these parts from mouser or digikey.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@guytech7310 thanks so much for spending your time explaining this. I have to think this through.

[@tastiger91]

Doesn't usually get this hot in Tasmania, sometimes on occasion and it burns good. Visiting Utah at the moment, see me waving?

[@patrickmckowen2999]

👍

[@davidcox8961]

Hey Ray. If you can figure out a good way to protect marine systems from stray current from lightening you will have a market amongst sail boaters.

[@chuxxsss]

Afternoon Ray from Australia, Yes it gets to 47 degrees or 116 F here in Victoria. 50 degrees or 122 F in some places north in land, not Victoria.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Most I've seen is 117f

[@chuxxsss]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Well mate we normally in Central Victoria get 45 to 46 degrees C for a week of two.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

ouch

[@keithbrookshire]

@@chuxxsss That's brutal.

[@chuxxsss]

@@keithbrookshire Air-conditioning is your friend or a pool of water. We had one fan, when I grow up. You get use to it, not really. 10 degree today.

[@NoTreadingOnMe]

Ray, I'm new to your channel and absolutely love all of the content. I'm in the planning stages of a system and wondered if you had a Bill Of Materials (BOM) of sorts for the boxes, breakers, service panels, etc. ? It would be handy to consult for researching the components I might want to use.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I have never created a bill of materials. I have discussed all of the materials and what they are in the actual videos related to their implementation. You won’t find affiliate links in my videos for a variety of reasons. Many of the things that I used are no longer available at the same source that I used when purchasing. Most all of the materials are still available but the ones that come from Amazon shift around us to who is selling them at the moment. I hope you enjoy the videos and after you watch them if you get stuck on sourcing something just send me a message in the comment section or by email and I will try to respond, I mostly respond to all the comments if a question is asked.

[@NoTreadingOnMe]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Thanks Ray!

[@davepartlow6430]

🤙

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

You are almost caught up. I have to make more videos.

[@jackiedines5229]

Hotter mate!😛

[@ComplexSystemsModelingGroup]

Have you ever tested those "DC" breakers you have in your midnight solar box? Bc it concerns me about sellers repurposing high voltage/current AC breakers as DC rated when that is not the original maniactured intended purpose. I wish you could do a more in depth video on circuit and device protection? Bc right now I'm only using thermal breakers for my batteries to charge controller, battery to inverter, and pv to charge controller. And I'm really not sure I even have them sized correctly. I do have a 300A shunt as well, but of course has no protection bc it operates on the negative side, but i want to change that too. My charge controllers are rated at 60A so that is what all all the thermal breakers are rated for except for my 2500WC inverter which is a 300A only bc it kept tripping at lower amp ratings with a 24VDC Nominal rating. I'm willing to pay just about anything for safety and peace of mind but I want to make sure I'm getting correctly intended purpose use, authentic, and properly sized and rated products.. but this is a very helpful video. I'm just weary of buying a 63A "DC" c-curve rated breaker for under $5 from anywhere and expecting it to work when a real 60A thermal breaker cost about $25 minimum..l am starting to find your videos invaluable and quite bingeworthy and impossible to stop watching

[@nealhamilton3881]

Can you make a video showing more on how it's all wired, what breaker panel does what and the flow of everything? Did you create a wire diagram for all this? Parts list...I'd like to know what breaker panels those are and the DC breakers for the pv side? Thanks for taking the time to put this on youtube.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

How about this video to get you started. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bWK3ep6Art-Vgrc

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

This one gives another system install. kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5PPpHeulK6sa8U I'll do one pretty soon with another overview on parts and my opinion on them.

[@ComplexSystemsModelingGroup]

Have you heard of EMP SHIELD? I hear they are the top military rated device to use...

[@SyberPrepper]

Great video and much appreciated! I'm a little fuzzy on the midnight solar surge protection device compared with a Siemens FS140 protection device?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Not familiar with it but it’s pricey, right?

[@toddwikel3849]

Ray, where in Texas do you live? BTW, great video. I have done similar research on breakers for my future solar system and came to very similar conclusions.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I'm in the hill country.

[@bradspaugh9827]

Im thinking a lightening rod on the opposite side of the property away from everything would wbe wise

[@Bripromo]

Hi friend, I live in the Caribbean island 🏝. How IS the deye inverters working out with your lifepo4 batteries and BMS? It is very hot where I am too. Any issues with batteries and inverter communicating.

[@ericanderson9004]

Bad days… 20.2 kW system can produce as little as 6.7kWh per day, a good sunny day will be 94 kWh at same time of year (feb 3). Just got thru a four day ice storm, jan 30-Feb 2 of 2023… Then there are ac/dc efficiency ratios ..

[@MaximC]

Good to know. Thank you for the information. P.S. I don't know about you, but I always found strange that people mount the electrical systems on wood... Isn't it worse in case of fire, sparks and such.🤷 Why not mount it on fire resistant materials, I wonder... Or maybe I'm over thinking it...

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

The wood I'm mounted to (the whole room actually) is painted with an intumescent coating that resists ignition. I have a video about it where I show what happens when you blast it with a mapp gas torch. I'm more than comfortable with these steel housings mounted on my fire rated wood walls.

[@MaximC]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff I didn't know that. Then it's probably good to go. And especially if the whole room is fire proof (in fact I wondered about the whole room/structure). By the way, are you a professional electrician? You did the whole system by yourself, right? I mean, this looks like a too complex of a project for a non-expert DIYer. Or did you make it check by a professional after you built it?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I am qualified but not licensed. I did the design and all the work at my house. On this project I pulled the wire and installed the panels but paid one of my electricians to make up the panels because it is for a client and I have too much on my plate. You can look at the video of my solar shed and this one and judge for yourself. Mine is done in EMT while this one is done in flex. He does a good job but it's just not quite as elegant. Perhaps that only matters to me. I've been a hands on builder for 40 years so what seems easy to me may be a lot to take on for someone new to the trades. It is always good to consult or hire an electician. Not all things involved in electrical work are intuitive. There are sneaky things that can easily create hazards if done without the required knowledge. Even professional electricians are sometimes ignorant of all the implications of certain applications and systems. The ones that are really expert at understanding it all are very rare.

[@GNiessen]

Insurance is cheaper than not having it.

[@jcschwarb]

Great video. Curious where your meter is located? I assume by you main load panel?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

It is remote and connected to house by underground conduit. There is a separate surge protecter on that disconnect panel to catch transient spikes coming in from main grid feed.

[@jcschwarb]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff really excellent detail Ray! One of the most clean installations I have seen.

[@Steve-wz5pz]

Deye? In the US? How did that happen?

[@thedabbler2753]

Hello Ray. I have a combiner box with DC surge on one side but nothing for the AC side. I was thinking about adding a whole house surge protector in the main panel for the house to protect from grid spikes. Do you think that would be sufficient or should I add one in a sub panel before the inverters as you have done? Also, where did you get those inverters? They look very much like Sol-Arks but I can tell they're not. Deye?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I’m protecting the inverters from all sides. I have 110 feet of buried line between the solar shed and the main panel. That matters. The inverters were bought from Deye before solark finally successfully strong armed them into an exclusive on split phase.

[@thedavesofourlives1]

A lot less expensive option are din rail mount SPDs

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Less expensive doesn’t help if it is also less effective. Can you offer a model number of a product so we can compare the specs?

[@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity]

I have 9 on my system.

[@scotthenderson4376]

off the topic but for a 48v off grid system is 4 12v lithium battery packs better then one 48v big battery? I'm thinking other then BMS 's it comes down to the size of the tester /charger thank you

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

It is actually a bad idea. The four batteries will act independently. We want all cells be managed in sync. It can and has been done but it is suboptimal in my opinion. I have no personal experience to share.

[@typxxilps]

Most recently we had a longer discussion about battery cell measurement and the impact of temperature cause that has been quite offen ignored. Regarding to Eve the capacity difference beteween 25°C and 5°C is 20% even though above 25° it does not change that much. Considering you tested the eel cells at thesame conditions you had tested Jenny Wu and Amis cells only then the eel cells can be called disappointing even though at least they delivered over specs. But 1 or 3 Ah more or less is nothing compared to the effect that 5°C less could cause which means roughly 4% less or 4% x 280 Ah = 11 Ah 270 Ah delivered can be as good as 281 Ah If the 270 Ah we're delivered at a 5° C lower temperature. What ambient temperatures are you having during your tests and always the same ? At what temperature

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I test in my office. It is climate controlled to 23.3C.

[@JonOffgrid]

we got hit 3 times it burn up my power pole box 10 years a go we went all solar but the solar got hit had to fix my midnites 150,s it got the to boards not hard to put in like midnite solar

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That sounds rough. Yes, I like midnite solar too. They seem to be good guys.

[@MaximC]

Not only your videos are the only ones that are only in 60fps, but also on my Android device when I play this video, it changes my display settings/colors. Kind of strange. 🤷

[@todamnbad]

How did you wire it to protect your batteries? Instructions are a bit lacking, was thinking just need to go to each bus bar and earth ground but seems like i am over simplifying it

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

In the video at the 10:30 mark you can see the red wire going to a small lug I added to the positive busbar and the black wire doing the same on the negative busbar. Yes indeed, the ground ties to the main ground system.

[@todamnbad]

@Ray Builds Cool Stuff so it os as simple as I was thinking, the instructions are very generic,

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@todamnbad the company has some KZbin videos but they’re not very good either. Things to remember are to keep the wires as short as possible but also make sure there are no tight bends in the wires. You want the electricity to flow very quickly with no bottlenecks.

[@DanBurgaud]

4:00 please explain how you wired these SPDs in this box. From the PVs to these MCBs, where do you connect the SPDs? Do you have SPDs also out there near the PVs or just here? thanks

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I have double lugged the SPD into the PV side of the breaker. There is no other SPD on the PV circuit.

[@DanBurgaud]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff shouldn't it be on the *Load Side* as per NEC code? This part sure is confusing. Many put SPD on the panel side, while others put SPD on the inverter side. NEC did not specify what is Load Side when it comes to Solar Panels.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

It appears that the instructions from midnite solar call for it to be on the panel side but it is a bit different because they are using a combiner. I will call them tomorrow and update if necessary.

[@DanBurgaud]

LittleFuse had them between fuses and inverter kzbin.info/www/bejne/gpqmdaeInZ5ogK8 I am confused... What I did was have two of them, one before and one after! LOL! I am getting too old for this

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@DanBurgaud 😂😂😂

[@benjones8977]

I’m curious if the surge protectors are also EMP protection? 🖖

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

No, they are not. That is a whole nuther matter and protection is within reason, not absolute.

[@benjones8977]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Thanks! 🤙

[@ursodermatt8809]

hey ray, i am interested to know how hot it gets inside once the installation is finished and it is 102 american degrees outside. thanks

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Did you see my video about the solar shed at my house? With 12kw of solar at mid day after many days of 100 degrees, it was at or less than 85 degrees just from the thermal mass of the rainwater tank that it is up against. Check it out. In late July I started turning the mini split on when it got up to 86. It was 103 or 104 for several days. The mini split barely runs at all.

[@ursodermatt8809]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff hey ray, yes i watched that video. however, now i see, that the batteries are not even connected yet in your shed. at least that is what it looks like to me. so when all is up and running, then a temperature test might be more, ehhh, accurate. thanks for responding.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@ursodermatt8809 yes and there will be more panels but it is very moderate with 12 kw of pv being inverted right now.

[@Just_An_Idea_For_Consideration]

I see that you are using Deye Inverters. And that you are in the United States. I had bern told that i could not purchase Deye branded inverters in the United States, because Sol-Ark is also a rebranded Deye Inverter. Can you tell me where I can purchase the Deye branded inverters, in the United States? Thank you

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Sorry I can’t help you. I got mine when it was still possible.

[@Just_An_Idea_For_Consideration]

Could you post a link to the company where you bought your deye inverters so i can see if they will sell me a few of them?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@Just_An_Idea_For_Consideration they will not. They cannot. If they could I would buy a spare.

[@skipwilson5086]

got any advice for me?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

In regards to?

[@skipwilson5086]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Well, I've got a "solar" generator myself. Are you familiar with a young man from Louisiana named Mark? My "solar" generator may interest you. I can't wait to talk to you myself and Gleen some information. Do you happen to know anyone that can write a Gerber file? I'm trying to find an American Company to source inverters from. Mark put me onto your videos.Take care now, skip.

[@lukefarmer5391]

May or June of 2025 we are predicted to have the largest solar flare to ever happen in human history. It is predicted to bring down all power grids earth wide for a long period of time. I’m not sure if this will help or what to do about this?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Question your source for this. Solar flares are unpredictable at best we will get a sketchy indication less than 24 hours in advance that will not likely be passed on due to the potential for panic.

[@chrisrichardson8908]

Why didn’t you just buy a sol-ark it has surge protection integrated

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

They cost 4 times as much and I don’t like their ethics.

[@Trent28888]

ya only got a bunch of MOV's ya can get GMOV's which are even better but then TVS diodes work even faster aswell

[@meko1896]

I haven't taken the time to look these up, but if that's correct, then it's just a bunch of feel good in a can. Never understood mixing lightning protection and transient protection like this. If it is just MOV, then they will degrade over time. Maybe that's what the circuit inside if for, detect when the MOV is no longer viable. I've been on too many lightning damage jobs to waste time with transient protection devices being used for lightning protection. Never gonna happen.

[@Trent28888]

@@meko1896 i use both so the tvs diode knocks it down faster for the mov to catch up but the gmov has a gas discharge tube in it which is where the G in GMOV comes from

[@davidniquot6423]

cables of different diameter in the same hole on those breakers....

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

It has been changed to ferrules on the advice of midnite solar. Thanks for your close observation.