Taking A Deep Dive Into The Solar Generator Booster Pack

In this video I take a close look at the booster pack for my solar generator and address the delay in creating a parts list. There is one instance where I misspoke in the video. The 22 gauge wires that go to the battery positive and battery negative terminals are used to power up the display for the shunt. I said they were sensing wires for the shunt. Kinda dumb. The sensing wires go from the shunt to the display. Sorry, but there is no script and no editing so if I screw up my words I will fix it here or in the comments. Thanks for watching.

[@Doc_Cussewago]

I wish I had seen this before I built my solar generator. I love the cabinet that you have built. After seeing this, I will probably follow suit. David G.

[@marktheunitedstatescitezen185]

The Ultimate Battery Box !

[@Dutch_off_grid_homesteading]

Heya, nice booster pack and great bild love to see this kind of stuff

[@edizydorek]

I really do appreciate your honesty. I have taken a lot away from your teaching. It's causing me to keep striving to grow in this field.

[@joeabad5908]

Always love having your followers avoid your mistakes. Godbless you..

[@jeremyallard5449]

It’s nice to see transparency and honesty on your channel, long may it grow.

[@rickbattle5706]

Good explanation of what you are doing and why. Pulls everything together nicely. Thanks for your effort.

[@roncam3779]

Excellent. I recommend you make a playlist for your channel, that way folks search for relevant categories.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Done, thanks!

[@Bluntask187]

You could drill a bigger hole next to the existing inverter holes ( like those on lamp plates) - it’ll at least allow the screws to stay. So, you’d be able to drop the inverter down over the screw heads, slide it to the existing ones , and tighten. Not sure if it’s worth it, but it’s the only thing that came to mind that’s easy.

[@imbatman66]

Just found your channel. Love your detailed and thoughtful explanation. You have a new subscriber 😊

[@jamesbsa6450]

Amazing setup, thank you for the detailed layout and explanation on your thought process, and one idea for the two inverter screws is use a t-bolt screw and knob from inside cabinet. I think it may be about 1/8" high.

[@davidsoulsby1102]

A thought on your copper fishplates for sensor wires. Long spade/plate/palm lugs. Some come predrilled some no holes at all. We use a specialist batter installation company to provide 110v battery supplies on critical control systems for electrical distribution switchgear. They use this type of lug and I have never heard of any issues. Not my idea lol I just seen it used 😀 cheers

[@defjamsgreen]

Excellent video of the additional boost pack and extra components to get more DOD run time on the system. 🤙

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Thanks Cedric.

[@HappSsack]

Excellent video

[@zxrjimmy1]

Nice builds 👍🏻

[@andrewbrown6705]

great videos so much detail ,haven't seen any others on you tube with so much detail and you explain things so well. It is much appreciated, i am about to build a 48v battery pack and am quite sure that if i had not seen your videos i would have made many mistakes building them

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I’m so happy to hear you say this. This is exactly why I started the channel. Best of luck on your project.

[@joevasquez1776]

Beautiful

[@joelpunayvlog5967]

Nice sharing

[@nfr3416]

More better would be a good tool list, goodies can come later, although $ & availability come & go. Nice to have you on the cutting-edge.

[@sudokillall]

Your setup is very neat. Could you show a schematic of how you so the connections? That'll help alot as the part are a little crammed in there and it's hard to see :)

[@marktheunitedstatescitezen185]

Thanks

[@j.badinter988]

Good video, I am a fan already! Just a detail: sensing wire could be put on top on the post using a second nut. I do not think there is such a need to torque those wires to a specific torque value. They do not carry enough amperage to be concerned. This would save time tapping the bus bar. Just me, tell me if Im wrong.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Hi, and welcome. The stainless steel studs have a lot of resistance. In some of my other videos you will see that I’m a stickler for building low resistance connections including the sensing wires. Some folks put them under the main terminal nut which risks the connection loosening up. Those are the reasons I went this route. There is a lot of disagreement on these details. The more I learn, the further I move towards taking steps to achieve something close to perfection, knowing I end up far from actual perfection. I hope you enjoy the videos.

[@user-mz8mq6xe9p]

Ray, you do beautiful work. Would labeling on the red switch be a good idea if it was loaned to a neighbor during an event? Maybe some kind of rubber boot over the inverter terminals?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Good idea

[@jimmyross1672]

kk cool video i wish i had your life lol but owell keep up the great work i wish most people would be like you and as smart as you and the world would be such a better place lol

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Funny thing us the people that know me and see how I work always say they would never want to do what I do. They think I work too hard and try too hard.

[@paul_dz]

I liked the idea of mounting the main leads to a partial busbar - at least that's what you did on the positive end of the battery - curious why you did not do the same on the negative side.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I actually did! Take another look. I tried to get a good enough video of it but I think our eyes play tricks on us. If you look again it will be more obvious now that you know it is there. I think it is a depth of field thing. Easier to see in real life but on the video everything becomes 2 dimensional and it is harder to see things that are going away from us.

[@paul_dz]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff Got it now - thanks. I see that the main positive and negative lugs are under the partial bus bars with the smaller wires connected to partial bus bars. My initial observation was that the main positive was connected to the partial bus bar - which was not really necessary given its size.

[@typxxilps]

17:08 thanks for sharing about the charger issues and the funny correspondence we all have to face if we buy from china. Had happened to me a lot the RC model hobby that of cause the buyer must have made the fault not the manufacturer until you start asking if they have a QC that has checked each unit for every single feature working. Therefore I only pay with paypal and show paypal the proof that things were put together right.

[@edwardbyrd7667]

The two generator batteries will need to be pretty close in SOC before they are mated up will they not. Something to keep in mind

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Not necessarily the same state of charge but definitely they need to be close in voltage to prevent a high amperage transfer as well as arc potential.

[@mckenziekeith7434]

Is it necessary/important to compress aluminum case batteries? I am building a small battery pack from very similar plywood also.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Yes, it is important. As you will see mentioned in many of my other videos, I avoid the use of the word compression because my goal is to restrain movement. I’ll let the other videos take discussion of that further.

[@frankthies221]

Hey Ray, how about fabricate a board like the bottom of your solar main box? Mount your 1k inverter on it and your swapping would be easy as pie.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That's a thought. For now I'm liking them separate. The other thing is I've shifted to building the solar shed and I'm using lots of cast off surplus material from many years ago which takes a lot more time but its my time so.....I spent all day just just moving material around and sorting and stacking, oh and making a video and charging batteries. Never got around to vaccinating the cows but there will be another day.

[@jimmyross1672]

lol ive had ebay seller say the same thing to me lol they always think im trying to rip them off whne in reality they are the ones who are ripping people off lol man i wish i had a life like yours all i want is a chance to do what your doing i have a 100watt solar panel finnaly and i got a cheap ebay inverter but is was only for testing lol and ive bult my own litium ion batterys packs but they dont work great like the batterys like you got. well keep up the cool vidies ill be waiting for the next videos lol

[@PlanePreacher]

Don’t give up! I started with a vw car charger panel and a 12v 7ah battery and a light bulb! After many iterations and mistakes, I have quite a bit more now, but it has taken 12 years. And I’m still growing and changing my systems. Plus solar hot water panels heat in the winter.

[@mattue84]

nice packs, but didnt they come out and say the batties have to have room to expand and contract some or else the press valve blows early

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I'm using far less pressure than the manufacturer recommends. There is lots of discussion to be had on the subject of cell compression. I'm concerned with stability of the packs and the relationship of the terminals from cell to cell not flexing and putting pressure on the terminals. Others use flexible busbars or short cables between the cells. That is a resistance issue for me. I will be doing a video about the testing I've done of bus bars and short cables.

[@asderven]

I normally would rate most chinese equipment at 50% usage to be safe for long term use. If the inverter says 2000w, 1000w for a few years is safe. 1500 watts every day may make things go bad. Similar with all other things. DOA (dead on arrival) is becoming a bigger nuisance now even with top-grade stuff (computer components costing 600+ dollars). I see more people talk about it in my circles compared to 10~15 years ago. Not sure what specifically has changed, but always best to be cautious and test things as soon as they come so return procedures can be started.

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

There appear to be some serious problems being caused by supply shortages. As companies find it difficult to acquire components for their products they are left scrambling to find replacements for some rather minor parts that can later fail and cause the loss of the entire product that was previously reliable. This doesn't address your 10-15 year timeline but it is something that will be with us for at least the near future. I'm concerned about auto and appliance manufacturers that will be seeing an uptick in warranty claims. I will have a video up soon about my experience with the Seplos BMS. As always, more will be revealed.

[@davidsoulsby1102]

I see this myself in the electrical distribution industry. Certainly for us the issue is they can cut costs will lower quality/parts and then factor in a higher failure rate. Its two fold, first profit margins, secondly they can have a quicker manufacturing timescale, less stock left on shelves etc. If they get it right the costs of replacements is offset by the ease of procurement and cheaper parts. It's risk assessment, it isn't just for safety but economically too. 🤷

[@asderven]

@@davidsoulsby1102 thank you, didn't think of it from that angle. I am awed by my elders understanding. Things should last you generations 😁. Personally, I believe such models are all short term solutions and band-aid measures. Resources are finite on this planet, we can keep on shifting the nature, production method, waste, but ultimately a turning point will come. It may not happen in the next 20~200 years, but when it does, chances are that the economy will not be ready for it. The upheaval won't be great. The distribution of resources that will happen in such times will hurt everyone. I wonder when people as a collective will start understanding and making decisions with the endgame in mind. Sadly some resources will get used up in our lifetime, never to be replaced again. Maybe too much game-theory going through my mind now.

[@davidsoulsby1102]

@asder alt its a massive fault in how modern life works. But I do think recycling is becoming more popular rather than repairing. Who's to say which is best in each case.

[@igorkvachun3572]

Yes 👍 🔋⚡💡

[@rogerlittlejohn475]

Did you set up the generator to use solar to charge the batteries?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

Not yet. Waiting for some free solar panels.

[@mm-wh4jx]

Does charging the booster with AC power supply without a MPPT charge controler create any problems?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

No it is fine if you can set the voltage.

[@fookingsog]

​@@RayBuildsCoolStuff So constant voltage with the ability of variable amperage until the battery reaches the proper charge state?🤔

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@fookingsog yes

[@HappSsack]

How about some type of QR moving dolly (with wheels) on the bottom of the case. Your back is going to last just so long

[@defjamsgreen]

I’ve already commented about that from his other video , but he said the big wheel dolly is the best thing to use to go over grassy and hilled terrain is ok to him .

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

I'm using the flat furniture dollies underneath the big batteries. You can see them in the background. Those batteries weigh 250 lbs though and I'll be moving them with the tractor when they aren't on a smooth floor.

[@paul_dz]

why not leave the screws in the middle for the inverter and do some kind of latch from the side of the box

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

That is one of the ideas rolling around in my old noggin!

[@HappSsack]

the 150A fuse(?) why not a 150A breaker?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

It wouldn't fit. The housing for a 125 amp breaker is at least 6"x4.5"x3.5". They are also pricy. Above 125 amps and the sizes really jump up. Even the class T fuse wouldn't fit in the space allowed. If you look at one of the videos of the big battery boxes I'm doing you will see how much bigger it is and if you look at the battery combiner box video it shows the size of the 175a DC breaker. DC breakers are much bigger than AC breakers because of the need for arc suppression. AC power reverses direction 60 times a second so the arc potential is GREATLY reduced. Arc welding is done with DC current for this reason. Does that make sense?

[@HappSsack]

@@RayBuildsCoolStuff yes it does. I'm trying to plan/size/procure for my build.8m going to have more room a dell AV laptop station $20 Not very trans portable. But mobile inside a structure. My build is 2-24v 100Ah batteries (16- 3.2v cells) 2-20p 8s 2 100a overkill BMS, Growatt 3kw split phase all in one

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

@@HappSsack Best part of DIY is being able to design for what makes the most sense for your situation. Manufacturers are trying to hit a broad target at a low price point so their decisions aren't always right for individuals. Good luck on your build.

[@reamtm1]

i cant see the bms you dont inatall bms us or not necessary?

[@RayBuildsCoolStuff]

The BMS is on the right side. Watch the video. It shows it. We can never use these cells without a BMS.

[@awesomedee5421]

I understand the idea of not posting bogus parts list, but it takes a long time to get parts from China, and there might be other alternatives to try and we are willing to try them. It would be helpful to make a generic parts list without model numbers etc, and put the approximate cost so we can get an idea of how much each design is going to cost for our own go/no go decision on taking on a project. Once you verified a part, then change the generic like "1000 W Inverter" with make/model/price/vendor. Oh, btw, great content, just long for the content.