Tiny House gets Giant Power and more

December 2016 Solar + Storage Course

The emphasis on our four day course is to blend theory and practice on a daily basis. The program starts with theory in the morning followed by practical sessions to reinforce and expand on the theory, returning to the classroom in the afternoon to explore the problems and solutions.

Many of the systems installed by students on this course are “real” systems. Above is a 1.5kWh/day system for the “Tiny House” located near the training centre. The house is a relocatable home for one person and has been designed from the ground up for minimal energy consumption. The solar panels the students installed were Solimpeks PVT (photovolatic and thermal) collectors. These unique panels combine water heating with electricity generation. Ideal for small roof areas such at this (7m x 2.5m).

“Beer o’clock” and system install review session! These “reviews” are part of the shared learning approach. Each team works on their own projects and come together at the end to present their experiences, likes and dislikes and problems.

Manfred explains how the Studer-Innotec d.c. coupled system works with Sonnenschein VRLA batteries.

Phil from Victron Energy shows the students how to program the 3kW Multiplus with 150/30 MPPT and ColorController.

“Capt. Col” working on the “Dream Team” – SP Pro + SolarEdge + LG Chem + Neuton Power VRLA. The concept of the “Dream Team” is to combine the high efficiency lithium battery with the low cost and depth of discharge capabilities of lead-acid batteries. The SolarEdge inverter meets the daily loads first from the LG Chem battery and only when depth of discharge limit is reached or the load power is greater than the power delivery limits of the lithium battery, is the lead-acid battery “called upon” via the Selectronic SP Pro to support the loads.

Ray carefully tensions battery terminals. Always use insulated tools when working on batteries with exposed terminals.

Ray & Adrian installing Studer XTM4000 and VarioTrack 150/80 MPPT. This d.c. coupled system gives high reliability and “battery centric” solar charging. D.C. coupling is a more reliable way of charging batteries and avoid the “black start” problem of a.c. coupled systems.