Solar Power System Installed

[Huggybearman]

On the subject of panel power output, one thing to bear in mind depending on how your panels are wired, is if one or more of your panels in a multi -panel setup goes into shade, from a tree shadow or adjacent building for example, then that will bring down the whole power output of your solar array. That will happen of they are wired in parallel, which they normally are. In that case it would be better to divide the panels and wire them in series, or series/parallel to prevent such a drop in output. 

Also it pays to clean them from time to time to prevent debris/bird droppings/leaves etc reducing the output, which can be quite a considerable loss over time.

Ken

[Gary D]

9 hours ago, Huggybearman said:

On the subject of panel power output, one thing to bear in mind depending on how your panels are wired, is if one or more of your panels in a multi -panel setup goes into shade, from a tree shadow or adjacent building for example, then that will bring down the whole power output of your solar array. That will happen of they are wired in parallel, which they normally are. In that case it would be better to divide the panels and wire them in series, or series/parallel to prevent such a drop in output. 

Also it pays to clean them from time to time to prevent debris/bird droppings/leaves etc reducing the output, which can be quite a considerable loss over time.

Ken

Yes ours drop off rapidly in the evening as they start to get shade from next doors roof.

[bastonjock]

Do they have decent deep cycle batteries available in the Philippines 

Ive been thinking about solar for the farm and perhaps a small hydro sysrem using the creek that runs through the land

[Tommy T.]

I am also interested in learning about what batteries are available here. As I noted previously in another topic, I used gel batteries on my yacht and I feel they were the best for endurance, quality and value... but they were not cheap. I believe firmly that you get what you pay for...

[Huggybearman]

38 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

I am also interested in learning about what batteries are available here. As I noted previously in another topic, I used gel batteries on my yacht and I feel they were the best for endurance, quality and value... but they were not cheap. I believe firmly that you get what you pay for...

Certainly Gels are the way to go if you can afford them and if they are available here in phils. I haven't seen any over here but I would be dubious as to their quality even if I could. I shipped mine (Victron, a Dutch brand highly respected in the marine world) over from the UK and they have stood the test of time.

Not cheap but, as you say, you get what you pay for.

Ken

[Tommy T.]

5 minutes ago, Huggybearman said:

Certainly Gels are the way to go if you can afford them and if they are available here in phils. I haven't seen any over here but I would be dubious as to their quality even if I could. I shipped mine (Victron, a Dutch brand highly respected in the marine world) over from the UK and they have stood the test of time.

 

Hi Ken. Curious... what are these Victron batteries? Never heard of them. Are they wet, gel or dry cells? And, wow, shipping from UK would cost a fortune, I think?

Last time I bought those good gel batteries I had was when I was in Palau and had them shipped - relatively cheaply - from USA.

And I agree, I would not trust batteries produced here. A few weeks ago I needed a new battery for my motorcycle. I bought one (for less than 1,000 - what does that tell you?) and it lasted 48 hours before it would not start my bike. I went back for warranty replacement (1 week only!!!) and they did replace it. But they went through four batteries - still in their original boxes - testing them until they found one that was "good." It went flat three weeks after I bought it!

[GeoffH]

You can get Japanese sourced batteries here and Taiwan sourced ones as well as Chinese sourced ones.  I've not had reason to use deep cycle ones but the Panasonic car batteries we've bought (SWMBO has a tax franchise) have been ok.  Maybe try looking to see what they've got in deep cycle?

 

 

[Huggybearman]

19 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

Hi Ken. Curious... what are these Victron batteries? Never heard of them. Are they wet, gel or dry cells? And, wow, shipping from UK would cost a fortune, I think?

Last time I bought those good gel batteries I had was when I was in Palau and had them shipped - relatively cheaply - from USA.

And I agree, I would not trust batteries produced here. A few weeks ago I needed a new battery for my motorcycle. I bought one (for less than 1,000 - what does that tell you?) and it lasted 48 hours before it would not start my bike. I went back for warranty replacement (1 week only!!!) and they did replace it. But they went through four batteries - still in their original boxes - testing them until they found one that was "good." It went flat three weeks after I bought it!

Victron are a marine equipment manufacturer based in the Netherlands. They produce a complete range of chargers, inverters, solar equipment and batteries mainly for professional marine use. They produce several types of AGM and Gel batteries. The ones I use are the Gel type.

They also produce Lithium ones as well.

https://www.victronenergy.com/

 

I see you can get them here now from a company called PhilSolar. https://philsolar.ph/victron-energy-off-grid-solar-systems-philippines/

Also I see now that you can get them through Lazada.

I have used Victron equipment for years on both sailing and canal boats and they have always been supremely efficient and reliable equipment.  

Your experience of locally sourced equipment sadly mirrors my own, which is why I prefer to ship reliable  equipment from oversees. Shipping is not too bad as we use the balikbayan box method. Fortunately it is by volume not weight so batteries are not too expensive that way.

Ken

Edited July 1, 2019 by Huggybearman

[Tommy T.]

3 minutes ago, GeoffH said:

You can get Japanese sourced batteries here and Taiwan sourced ones as well as Chinese sourced ones.  I've not had reason to use deep cycle ones but the Panasonic car batteries we've bought (SWMBO has a tax franchise) have been ok.  Maybe try looking to see what they've got in deep cycle?

 

Good ideas, Geoff... thanks. I also have a car battery (don't know the brand right now) that I bought here that works great. I think I would tend to trust Taiwanese or Japanese sourced, long before I would even consider Chinese. I don't even have my house built yet, much less solar panels on a roof! But I will look around, since I have lots of free time and see what I can find...

[Tommy T.]

4 minutes ago, Huggybearman said:

Victron are a marine equipment manufacturer based in the Netherlands. They produce a complete range of chagers, inverters and batteries mainly fot professional marine use. They produce several types of AGM and Gel batteries. The ones I use are the Gel type.

That's great information, Ken - thanks!!! I tried wet, AGM and gel on my yacht. The gel far outperformed the others and were significantly cheaper than the AGM. The wet cells scared me because of the venting of gases and they always required water top-ups. The gels were "abuser friendly" and lasted over five years with proper care.

Unfortunately, I cannot use the Balikbayan box since I have no Filipino friends or family abroad. So I am limited to shipping only small, light things here. But - as you point out - some quality goods can be found now. So you give me hope!