Adding GFCI and Over-Current Protection to the DIY Portable Power Cart
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- I've received a lot of feedback regarding the portable power cart I built in the last video. A lot of people indicated that I should have added GFCI - and you're absolutely correct! I've since upgraded the cart to feature a small subpanel with a 20A GFCI breaker to protect the user from any equipment they may plug in to the 8 receptacles. Here's the original video • Building a 5.0kWh DIY ...
WARNING: Lithium batteries are dangerous and can result in fire! This video is NOT intended to be instructional or a "how-to" lesson. I am not a professional. Do not attempt anything you see here without first contacting a certified and/or licensed professional.
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Love this! Thanks for showing how it is done. Your attention to detail is astounding. Keep up the good work!
Hi Mike! Thank you so much for sharing your videos. Both you and Will inspired me to create a similar portable solar generator with 48v 90ah 16s LifePo4 cells and a Growatt 3kw all-in-one inverter (600w solar array). It uses a Daly Smart BMS that works excellent. I have the same subpanel you have and 20A GFCI circuit breaker. I wanted to add a 30A circuit breaker to the subpanel in the back. Was hoping you could do another update video to show how this could be done on yours so that others, like me could learn how to do this with a single phase subpanel. Thanks again and good luck!
Again... perfect.
I do carry a grounding rod... even for a generator.... for a situation were it may be in position for a while. HURRICANE OUTAGE... DAYS. FIELD WORK FOR DAYS.... NOT NECESSARY FOR 8 FT.... 3 TO 4FT WILL DO. NICE IMPROVEMENTS. GREAT JOB.
Just ordered what I need to put this together, thank you so much for a very clear and detailed video.
The only other thing I could see people bitching about is that it did not appear that you used a knockout plug to close the initialy used side of box knockout. My congratulations on all of your videos as they are straight forward and not overly long yet still convey enough for someone to do the task presented.
You're right, I did not fill the old knockout and definitely should have!
A ground rod would make it more hazardous. 99% of people misunderstand what earth grounding is for, but trust me. Just don’t connect it to your household wiring and you’ll be fine.
The fact that the manufacturer explicitly stated that they don’t want you to bond the neutral to the ground is interesting, and leads me to believe that the inverter may have some sort of imbalance sensing built in (though it may not be sensitive enough to label as GFCI).
Yes! Believe it or not a grounding rod does not make you safer. Earth ground is for equipment safety. See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
Mike thanks, for the explanation, just safe and simple.
A small suggestion, totally unrelated to the electrical side of things, but using bolts that go completely through the plywood, would give more security than those short wood screws. To avoid bolts sticking out the back, use some 3-prong T nuts on the back of the plywood.
Definitely you killed that one it will now be protected. Portable generators have less protection than you made. Great idea thanks.
Regarding alligator clamps/clips... Aviation fuel hose carts and fuel trucks have alligator clamps that can be attached to ground rods installed in the tarmac where planes park to dissipate static electricity while fueling.
Well done buddy, another great video - loving your content!
Thanks man!
Nice work.The CFCI adds some protection. As for the earth ground there is no easy or trustable way to do that with a spike. If the soil or sand is dry or less conductive you'll have a bad ground anyway. If I were using this frequently in my yard I'd have an electrician verify and give a tie into the house ground where I use it most and wire it in there.
I hate to be a critic but I found another error at 4:29 The steel cover plate is a 'wall' cover plate and NOT a utility box cover plate. The 1110 boxes should be split apart and the appropriate cover plates would be Iberville BC-20-C1 or 8375-CRT or similar. Of course 4 inch utility boxes would be good too. The cover plate deployed on the duplex receptacles in this how-to video is a commercial grade wall plate with sharp corner edges not intended for utility box use. Utility box cover plates have ROUNDED corners.
Thanks for the info. I like critics. I learn from them. Also, this is not a "how-to" video.
I am a set lighting tech on Tv shows and movies and in the NEC from 20 years ago, which we follow these days, So long as the generator, the inverter, is isolated from the physical ground you don't need to do a grounding rod since this is temporary power distribution. I've had many discussions over grounding through the years with the local authorities, Always interesting and every county is different since they may or may not follow the most current NEC code. It can also be different in the same county as state buildings follow state rulings in code as opposed to county rules.
Always a good idea to take feedback and rework a few things to fix the issues pointed out. I had a similar thing with a video i made about charging Li-ion batteries on my channel too.
I was thinking an aligator clamp as well. Great vid and I look forward to more projects!
I really like this system. I am thinking of installing this in a cargo trailer camper build. How would I go about grounding this charging with solar?
Hi interesting video. I have been researching how to add GFCI to my inverter. My inverter has an open ground when I test it with a circuit tester and a GFCI does not work in this case. I have a GFCI extension cord that I can plug into any outlet and get ground fault protection. However when it is plugged into the inverter it will not trip. Even though the test button causes it to trip. When simulating a ground fault using one of the circuit testers that confirm plug polarity the GFCI does not trip. I have confirmed all of this doing independent testing by shorting out the hot side to ground using a resistor both on the house wiring and the inverter. The GFCI trips when plugged into the house plug and circuit but not on the inverter. I would suggest that you confirm the protection by doing an independent simulated ground fault from one of your outlets to see if the GFIC actually trips when powered by the inverter. You probably have one of the plug in polarity testers with a ground fault test button. I'm still trying to figure out why the portable GFCI can be made to trip when using its own test button but not when being simulated. Leads me to believe that the test button on the GFCI is nothing more than a mechanical test, but that doesn't make sense. Any way confirm for yourself before you put all your trust in the GFCI with your installation
I really like the idea, i was thinking of building something i could wheel around in my apartment (probably smaller and on casters) that in the event of a power outage I could use as needed (IE roll it over to my computer or TV or fridge, whatever I wanted). One thing I would want to add are some 12V accessories right off the batteries and bypass the inverter, like some good USB type C PD ports and several quick charge type A ports
Did you weld a PCV pipe to the back of it and have the ground rod inside of it that you can just push down and lift back out the ground and the ground rod would be connected to the unit
I'm confused as to why you added the circuit breaker and the GFI? You purchased an all in one inverter which has a breaker at the input and your batteries also were all in one with fuse and breakers? Doesn't this defeat the entire purpose for spending more money on the "all in one inverter and batteries?" Thanks
Hey,great info from this newbie that's been wanting to do something like this for a small, ac system/emergencies to offset with powerouttages and so forth as needed.
I believe from watching another video that GFCI protection can be a good substitute when you don't have a ground.
That is my understanding as well, though I'm not an electrician myself.
@@LithiumSolar This exactly is done all the time as a retrofit in older houses that only have a neutral and line pulled in the walls but don't have a ground wire. Its totally safe now. I would consider running a ground wire from the panel out through the back and bonding the metal hand cart so there is no chance it gets energized by a worn out extension cord resting on it.
I don't see what extra protection the GFCI provides when live and neutral are not referenced to earth ground. It is safe to accidentally touch the hot or neutral wire (but not both) since there is no current path from you back to the inverter. The GFCI would not trip. If however the ground wire is electrically bonded to the neutral at the inverter the GFCI provides at least some extra protection because it protects against the case when the cart metal parts comes into contact with you either directly or through some moisture perhaps and you accidentally come into contact with the hot wire at the same time. But I believe the ground wire is not bonded to neutral in this installation, so the GFCI provides no extra protection. It doesn't hurt anything though.
@@mcg6762 it would be the same as replacing a 2 prong outlet with a gfci outlet and labeling it “no equipment ground” as required. Gfci does not require a safety/equipment/circuit ground to work. It detects current leaving the hot and not returning via the neutral (presumably going through you and back to the inverter some other way) Youre mixing up what a normal breaker (which trips when a metal appliance energizes itself) and a gfci breaker do. In any case, i think the inverter is internally bonded.
@@jasonjayalap I believe the inverter ground is not bonded to its neutral in this installation as stated by the video author in another thread. The reason I believe the GFCI does not provide any extra protection in this specific installation is that the inverter is effectively isolated from the user's surroundings. This is not the case on an outlet labeled "no equipment ground". An outlet's live is referenced to earth ground, so anything you come into contact with in your surroundings has a current path back to mains neutral. That is not the case with live coming from an isolated inverter.
Small bit of feedback.. Love the build and upgrades.. I might have used the second half of the AC Charge Wire Hook lower on the board to wrap the cord around. with a small length of velcros tied to the end to hold the Male Plug.. a bit of quality of life improvement...
I was going to suggest the same thing!!! You beat me to it!
Nice setup. It would be nice to have a Weather resistant cover or bag for the cart if use outside. The battery boxes, A/C outlets, and circuit breaker are not in weather resistant boxes, damp weather might be quite a hair raiser.
Is the GFCI protection for when the cart is connected to mains for charging? When unplugged I suppose there can't be any ground current since the cart ground is floating relative to earth ground. Or have I misunderstood something?
You are the ground path that it is protecting against, not the ground wire. The GFCI is to protect current from flowing from the tool/appliance through your body and into the ground or other conductive object (ie operating a power tool in the rain). If this happens, it senses it and shuts the circuit to protect you.
@@LithiumSolar Well, I'm just thinking there is no current path from you back to the inverter. Where would the current flow if you are not physically touching the metal on the cart itself? The ground you are standing on or the plumbing of your house is not in contact with the inverter so the current can not flow.
@@LithiumSolar Thinking about it some more maybe an equally safe but cheaper installation of a cart like this is to leave the inverter ground connection unconnected and just connect live and neutral to the outlets. Since the cart is electrically floating when operating from the batteries and essentially acting as an isolation transformer there is no danger in touching either hot or neutral because there is no current path back to the inverter. It is of course not safe to touch both hot and neutral, but that is not safe with a GFCI either. And when the cart is charging it would be protected by the house GFCI (provided the outlet is actually GFCI protected of course). I am not an electrician so take all this as speculation. I know however that professional electronics repair shops use isolation transformers when working with power supplies because you get the exact same thing: hot and neutral from the transformer is floating relative to everything else around you and it becomes safe to accidentally touch either hot or neutral but not both.
Just thinking out loud, I wonder if there is any sort of Neutral to Ground connection in the inverter? If there isn’t then to me there isn’t a path for current to flow from the hot, via the ground wire back to the source (the inverter) hence I’m doubting if the GFCI provide any additional protection?
@@cumberland1234 The GFCI itself is not dependent on a ground connection. All it does is compare the currents through live and neutral. If they are not equal it trips. But you have a point, since a grounded appliance for example (regardless of GFCI) depends on the fact that the ground wire is a path back to neutral for safety. Without that path there is no extra safety to be had by grounding the case of an appliance. So I think the inverter actually connects ground to neutral when it is not connected to mains via the AC input port. Otherwise I think the ground connection of the inverter is useless?
About the only improvement (and it's more of a nit pick) would be to use conduit around the Romex between the inverter and breaker box.
Other than that it looks like a great solution. How would you go about connecting solar input to this setup?
How is one of those breakers called because it also trip on a current of 20a beside the gfci?
Yes, It's a circuit breaker that also contains GFCI functionality.
But does it have a special name or so??? And also fast reaction
They're just called "GFCI Circuit Breakers" - here's the exact one I purchased www.homedepot.com/p/Square-D-Homeline-20-Amp-Single-Pole-GFCI-Circuit-Breaker-HOM120GFICP/100002959
@@LithiumSolar thx
Great presentation as ever, Mike.
The peanut gallery will have little to complain about now, but I'm sure they'll find something.
Thanks :) People always find something to complain about...
Keyboard worriers
I'm not complaining although I think the GFCI is unnecessary in this installation since the inverter live and neutral are not referenced to earth ground. The GFCI provides no extra protection. It doesn't hurt anything though.
It all looks good except where the yellow wire goes into the charge controller. Is there anyway to clean that up? It would look better if the wire insulation was pushed up inside the controller.
Sorry if im wrong but isint buying a gfci outlet and a new cover plate cheaper than buying a gfci breaker and a breaker box for it?
A GFCI outlet does not provide over-current protection. The breaker I used has both over-current and GFCI.
@@LithiumSolar mini circuit breakers can do the job too plus they are free
Is the supply referenced to ground? The lack of a ground rod leads me to believe it’s essentially a floating circuit which means that the gfci would work
Very well done. A couple changes/updates/suggestions/considerations
1) have some kind of cover that goes over the electrical outlets. something simple on a small hinge would be fine. Just want to keep the chance of water getting sprayed/splashed/rained in (on a job site, it happens, and rain can be unpredictable at times)
2) I'd gone with a 240V system (I understand this was meant to be on the low cost) and then have half be on one hot and the other on the other hot. That way you have 240 if you need it, and you can balance loads if need be (obviously this would be 2 breakers, as you have the space for them). This also gives the ability to have lights still on if 1 of the breakers gets popped.
- I suppose this could also be done by doing like you said by bridging the incoming lugs, use 2 breakers, and then feed half and half
As for the grounding, you may not need it since you are using ground fault protection. However, just a long screwdriver could serve as a grounding rod. This is quite common with electric fence. You are generating the power and ground return in a small area, so you don't need to go down deep for return path like you need for a building.
Can you run a groundwire from the All-in-One Inverter to a standard 120 wall receptacle using a 3-prong plug from an extension cord, with just the negative wire hooked up and ground the inverter to a home's electric system through a standard 120 outlet?
Great update. I have a similar setup in my travel trailer. My circuit analyzer reported an open ground while off grid. This unit does not internally bond the neutral and ground. When grid connected for charging, the main grid box bonds the ground and neutral. While off grid, or portable in your case, shouldn't you bond the neutral and ground? I accomplished this bond by using an AC relay. This resolved my open ground. (I'm a novice though.. maybe this is just a bypass?)
That's exactly the problem. I can't bond it for off-grid because as soon as I plug it in, it's now bondeded twice (very bad). I suppose a relay would solve that but really wish they designed this inverter with that in mind... Also, when I asked the manufacturer if I could even bond G+N in the first place without damanging the inverter (it's transformerless), they sent me a response that didn't even answer the question. Although, if you've done it successfully, I guess it's safe. Which model specifically do you have?
@@LithiumSolar I have the same MPP Solar 2424LV-MSD and am using a Zettler AZ2280-1C-120A relay. When grid connected the relay actuates to disconnect the ground and neutral bond. When off grid the relay defaults to the neutral/ground bond.
@@LithiumSolar Are you sure the inverter doesn't an internal relay that bonds neutral to ground when not connected to mains? I've built off-grid setups like this using Victron Quattro inverters, and the Victron Quattro's do have an internal relay that bonds neutral and ground within the relay whenever they are not connected to the main grid.
@@JeremyAkersInAustin It does not bond internally. However, since publishing this video, the manufacturer has confirmed with me that the N+G can be bonded if needed. It would still need some sort of relay or bond disconnect though as you cannot have it bonded at the inverter while it's plugged to grid power.
@@LithiumSolar Hmm, that's interesting. I guess this is why I spent the extra money on Victron equipment. :) I suppose it wouldn't be too hard to add a relay: Just energize the relay from the 120v input cord so that it only energizes when the inverter is connected to the grid and then use the "NC" connection on the relay to do the neutral/ground bonding so that when there's no grid power the "normally closed" contacts will bond the neutral/ground and when there is grid power the relay will switch and disconnect that bond.
Do I feed another black cable from the first breaker to the other breaker?
Awesome video and project! Thanks for posting
I've never owned any type of solar system and was about to buy my 1st solar generator the bluetti ac200 max for 2,000 but this system has me thinking that it could be a option. Its not as compact but it has more solar input more ac charging more wattage power and i can add batteries as I want.... not sure which way I should go.... any opinions.
Honestly, unless you're looking for a DIY project, it's probably better off to go with a pre-built device like the Bluetti or Ecoflow.
Any idea if this would be sufficient for a small off grid cabin?
Rich Jageman In a word, Yes... if all you need is small dorm-type refrigerator and LED lights. I suggest you determine total wattage needed per day to calculate size of system. Of course, bigger is better, And consider multiple days without sun to re-charge batteries. Also, have contingency plans to accommodate low(er) need of electricity. i.e., wood stove for cooking / heating. and other ideas for food storage to reduce refrigeration needs, etc Good luck.
Don't ground it to earth. This mobile system is actually safer *because* it's not grounded to an earth ground. If you grounded it to an earth ground using an alligator clamp or some other method it would actually make this less safe rather than more safe.
The main power grid uses earth as a ground because it's convenient and provides protection from power surges caused by weather events such as lightning. That's not a concern here. In your case having an isolated ground makes this safer: Since nothing is grounded that means there's no path for the current to travel between your body and the inverter. You could literally grab the hot wire while the inverter was on and it won't shock you because there's no return path for that current to travel through your body back to the inverter. If you grounded your setup to an earth ground you would be *providing* a return path because now the current can travel through your body, to the ground and through the ground back to that inverter.
In fact people often pay extra to setup a "ground isolation transformer" when doing work outside in wet conditions to help ensure their safety. A ground isolation transformer essentially does exactly what your setup does: It uses a transformer to create a new 120v (or 240v) circuit that is not referenced to earth ground to help protect the user from inadvertent shock. What you have here accomplishes exactly the same thing as a ground isolation transformer.
This is also why the GFCI is largely unnecessary. The only time the GFCI would provide protection in this case is if you were somehow touching a hot wire from the GFCI with one hand while simultaneously touching the body of the inverter with the other. Since there is no earth ground path back to the inverter there are very few cases where you could get shocked with this setup.
You could even do a video where you demonstrate this by connecting one lead of your volt meter to the hot wire and the other lead to something that is earth grounded. Then once you've established there's no voltage between those points and established that it would be safe to do so: you could even touch the hot wire yourself and demonstrate that nothing happens.
The point of a earth ground is providing a low impedance ground path to the gfci. So if your hot starts feeding threw the person to the ground once it hits so many MA it trips. Also for any reason the neutral comes in ground path on load side it trips. In the US the NEC makes good mention of this. I would had uses a CAFI breaker for more safty. Im assuming this is a pure sine inverter.
@@hvachacker586
"The point of a earth ground is providing a low impedance ground path to the gfci."
This is absolutely 100% wrong. Very VERY wrong. Please, PLEASE go read the NEC and copy paste back to me anywhere the NEC says that the purpose of "*earth* ground" is to provide a "low impedance path for GFCI". It doesn't say that anywhere. You're confusing so many aspects of the NEC that I'm not even sure where to start with how wrong this is.
1) You're confusing "equipment ground with "earth ground." Earth ground is not a "low impedance path" which is exactly why "equipment ground" involves a ground wire leading back to the breaker box. The "low impedance" path you refer to is the "Equipment ground" via the ground *wire* not *earth* ground. You might be conflating these but they are different: An "equipment ground" via the ground wire in a home is eventually tied to earth (Back at the breaker box), but the earth is not part of the "low impedance path". The low impedance path is the ground wire itself between the appliance and the breaker box where ground and *neutral* are tied together. This *wire* provides a low impedance path back to the breaker box that would cause the breaker (Not GFCI) to trip in the event that the hot wire comes in contact with the body of an appliance. Earth ground would not play any role in this path. In fact if you removed the ground wire and instead relied on the "earth" ground you'd find that "earth" in this situation is a fairly *high* impedance path: The appliance may be sitting on plastic or rubber feet, which are sitting on wood, carpet or tile, which may be on a wood frame floor or concrete floor... None of these are low impedance conductors and you would never want to rely on "earth" being your ground for this kind of protection. This is why we tie the body of the appliance to a ground pin which is then connected to the breaker box via a low impedance *wire* rather than rely on the "earth" to carry this current.
2) Not only have you confused "Earth ground" with "equipment ground" you've also confused "GFCI" with "circuit breaker". The "low impedance path" is for the circuit breaker, not GFCI. Some circuit breakers have GFCI built in... so maybe that's led to your confusion? Not every circuit has (Or even requires) GFCI protection, and the protection is often built into the outlet rather than built into the circuit breaker which even further negates your claim that the earth ground would provide a "low impedance path" since the path back to the GFCI would not even involve earth ground at that point.
3) GFCI does not need earth ground (Or any ground) to function. The whole point of GFCI is to provide protection in an event where the equipment ground fails. GFCI operates by comparing the current flowing out the hot side of an outlet with the current flowing back into the neutral. If there's even the smallest difference in current between the hot and neutral that means that some current is flowing through some other path that it's not supposed to and the GFCI trips.
4) In the setup mentioned in this video with an inverter: If there was no earth ground then the Earth is not a current path period. That means you can literally grab the hot wire from the inverter and not get shocked: Because there is no path through your body for the current from that hot wire back to the inverter. No path = no current = no shock. Tying it to earth would provide that path and actually increase the danger from electrical shock. There is still an equipment ground here via the ground wire which grounds the appliances back to the frame/chassis of the inverter but there's no need for that to be grounded back to Earth since there's no power lines 100ft in the air here that are at risk of being struck by lighting (Which is the primary reason for Earth grounding in the main grid to allow a way to dissipate power from lighting strikes and other static interference on the power miles of power lines leading to your house)
5) Every single "mobile inverter" setup in the world is not grounded to earth: Think about it: There's no way to install a ground rod in a boat or RV when these are underway. Again: "equipment ground" and "earth ground" are not the same thing. earth ground is only needed in cases where voltages from other sources such as lightning are an issue. In a mobile inverter setup you don't have thousands of miles of power lines sitting hundreds of feet in the air so dissipating lightning strikes is not really a concern in an RV, boat or other mobile setups like this.
@@JeremyAkersInAustin Yes! See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
What was your cost and great video
Can you make a video reviewing your solar home system. I know it is mostly in the other videos but it would be nice to have all the information in on place. In it you could explain how much energy you are storing and using on a daily basis. Thanks for all of your content it is amazing.
I had a question for you where did you happen to buy the MPP Solar inverter/charger from?
I bought it directly from the manufacturer. I told them what I wanted, they sent me an invoice, and it was delivered from Taiwan to the US in just a few business days.
LithiumSolar cool man I will contact them👍
peggy@mppsolar.com - you will get a better price vs buying from eBay because of no fees :)
@@LithiumSolar Well shoot, I just ordered one through their eBay yesterday. Oh well.
Not trying to be rude but why use a 70 amp breaker if the wiring is only rated for 20 amps?
Not rude at all, happy to answer when I can. The breaker panel has a max rating of 70A. That's the largest amount of current you can pull through it. I'm using a 20A breaker so it's protected at 20A. Sure, you might be able to find a smaller panel but these are so cheap that why bother? :-)
Love the build but I have one question. Did you use a new box or somehow cover the knockout you used before? Otherwise that's a huge safety risk with exposed wiring easily accessible to poking fingers.
No, I didn't use a new box. You can fill the old knockout holes with these www.lowes.com/pd/Sigma-Electric-ProConnex-3-4-in-Knockout-Seal-Conduit-Fitting/1100047
Perfect solution!
Install a mini electric fence around the gen to keep the lil fingers out. Dang it that made me laugh.
Why a 70amp breaker box? I just got a 30 amp breaker box with 20amp breaker, is that okay?
The box I used was cheap. You should be good as long as the inverter output doesn't exceed the box rating. I'd probably size it by 1.25x, but am unsure if there is an exact requirement for sizing.
One glaring problem here I can see is you should put a replacement blank in the old cable conduit hole. They aren’t expensive and take a few minutes to install.
Yes, didn't have any on-hand but should have used one.
I love the project you did and the upgrades you made.
I only have one question, why is everything that is used for for electricity made of highly conductive metal?
In my opinion that is a safety Hazzard on its own.
Because it's always supposed to be grounded, making it way safe.
Does that GFCI really have a over current protection? Usually the "20A" is the rating and other circuit breaker is needed for that purpose
That is true for a GFCI outlet. This is a GFCI circuit breaker that I used here. It provides GFCI functionally built in to a 20A breaker.
@@LithiumSolar In North America they are combined together in one breaker. In Europe where the breakers are more modular and DIN rail mounted it is true that the GFCI /RCD protection is a different breaker from the overcurrent protection.
You could just have a little lever, and when you push it down, it causes it to lock into the ground and then it would be immobilized and you would no longer have to worry about knocking it over by accident, and you would also have it grounded a little bit because it would go 3 feet into the ground.
Great build!
Would you recommend those batteries over an EG4 24V Battery?
Definitely not. EG4 is the way to go (LFP). This is NMC and I don't think is even in production anymore.
@@LithiumSolar Thank you!
I like that set up. yet I will Ned go for the 220/240, I will have to find Breakers that will allow for 220/240, or swap out the Breakers for GFI out going to th outlets on my step down transformer set up.
Really good video!
thank you from london
Will this power 2 frige
The GFCI is not necessary. Since the neutral from the inverter is not connected to the ground (I don't see a ground electrode) the GFCI will never trip (since a fault to ground doesn't have a return path to the neutral inverter).
That system is intrinsically safe, in sense that even if you don't have a GFCI you cannot get shocked touching a live wire, you have to touch both live and neutral. Also even if you touch a live wire the GFCI will not trip (try it, of course not with your hands, but by shorting live with an electrode in the ground).
Thanks! Though keep in mind for a 20A circuit you should have at least a 25A inverter ... but now I'm just nit picking
I'm not ignoring the question - this is a 20A continuous inverter, I have a 20A breaker. IF you're following NEC rules and you want to pull 20A continues (defined as 3+ hours) then you need to consider derating.
@@LithiumSolar Let's be real very few ebay specials can output 100% rating constantly. Even then if you had any sort of surge on any appliance you'd put it over the limit.
Excellent job
Add a spike near the hand truck handle so when you set it down the spike can sink into the dirt..
Bad idea. Grounding will make it more dangerous.
Is it worth doubling the amount of batteries to this ?
It all depends on your battery needs. These two provide more than enough power for my uses.
Thank you so much helps alot!!
Thanks for watching! :)
Thanks good job.
Wish I knew how to do this at home, I am so impressed by your ability to get things done and do it with ease amazes me..please help me to build one like this unit
Nice update.
Another great video!
What I do with portable Gen Set is a 2’ copper ground rod. At least the 2 foot ground rod gives you some potential to earth. Just to be safe
I use a galvanized chainlink gate pin. Its got a nice handle to pull when you’re done. I was using my Triplite FC 3000watt one time and getting a lite shocked off the car body (-) that was powering it. The pin fix that and the GFCI stop intermittently triping.
Depends on type of Gen and if stand alone or connecting to house.
very good my friend
Have you got to look at BigBattery's New PREORDER for 12V 170Ah LiFePO4 Power Block for $899 each. This looks great for a beginner like me . Just wonder if you got to check out those batteries.
Plz my solar 480 watt . What ineed inveter mmpt ......... and butress ...... thanks
Great job bro
Awesome 😎
Alittle expensive build but cool none the less
Yeah, kindof pricey, but fun project none-the-less :)
@@LithiumSolar Keep up the good work!
I'm not an Electrician..but why is it important to have a ground connected to to some metal rod? What's wrong with the setup he have in video for ground wire?
Great build BUT you have no ground. If you have an issue the electricity will have no clear path to earth. I suggest an earth spike or a lead that connects to a real earthed outlet.
This is incorrect. Believe it or not a grounding rod does not make you safer. Earth ground is for equipment safety. See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
@@scottmoonshot Sorry but you are wrong. Do you have any real knowledge of electricity? An electrical circuit will always complete using the path of lowest resistance. I will bet my life on a copper cable going to ground / earth rather having me complete the circuit. Please do not believe everything you see or hear on youtube. Do the research and educate yourself. BTW yes I have worked with electricity for many years and have the education.
@@pgprentice You are not alone in this belief. I am amazed at how strong common myths are and how hard they are to correct.
You are correct about "path of least resistance". This path is to complete a circuit. If the source of power is isolated from the earth, there is no path to complete the circuit. If you add the earth ground, you create a possible path of least resistance to electrocute yourself.
I hear your passion to correct dangerous advice. I feel the same.
Mike Holt is a leading educator in electrical safety teaching NEC and has investigated many electrical related accidents including the military. Many of these accidents can be attributed to myths about earth ground.
Please watch ua-cam.com/video/mpgAVE4UwFw/v-deo.html
This could save your life or others.
@@scottmoonshot
16:00 or there abouts and he will explain what I have already said. This is not magic. If the circuit does not have a ground/earth then the current will go through you to and you may die.
ua-cam.com/video/3vvvv5QVZoA/v-deo.html&ab_channel=MikeHoltNEC
y no rgb
You’re nice than me. I would have put a GFCI for that first one or a separate 1 gang box with a GFCI to daisy chain the others and called it a day.
That would have solved the GFCI problem but still relies on the inverter for over-current protection. That's why I opted for this route :)
Just have a ground wire attached to a rod that you put in the ground where you are at
samantha farmer believe it or not adding a ground rod would actually be more dangerous
John Adams how so?
@@samanthapowell5882 Believe it or not a grounding rod does not make you safer. Earth ground is for equipment safety. See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
@@scottmoonshot this grounding rod would be for the equipment?
Nice mod.
Ground it to hand truck and then have a ground wire from hand truck to copper rod that you can sick in the ground that way it's still mobile
but then the grounding is running through places you can grab, which defeats the safety purpose of grounding in the first place
@@kenzieduckmoo there is no plastic handle on the hand truck?
@@kenzieduckmoo or just have wire to copper line that is rolled up when not in use and when in use just ground it to the ground. That's how we do it with our military generator
Oh by the way good videos,👍
@@ChetCheng Believe it or not a grounding rod does not make you safer. Earth ground is for equipment safety. See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
I have a simple request : some goddam stress relief for that charging lead! One good yank and you'll have a bad time
You don't need a ground wire.
@@vicgarbutt3310 on a unit that small there is no point in grounding it to the earth. You can but it doesn't matter.
@@vicgarbutt3310 You must complete a circuit to get a shock. If there is no ground connection, there is no completed circuit. If you add a grounding rod, you will complete the circuit and be shocked. Believe it or not a grounding rod does not make you safer. Earth ground is for equipment safety. See MikeHolt videos on this topic.
So, you mentioned dual-phase. Wouldn't that shorten the discharge cycle of the batteries? Of course it would. The real question is, how fast can you fill a synchronized inverter-capacitor's inactive bank from a wall plug and a solar panel, before you reach desynchronization with our current battery technology? Every answer I found for dual phase to this question either doubles charging time and/or doubles the amount of batteries you need to have on the cart to preserve redundancy / synchronization in active discharge mode. Either condition has to happen for dual-phase to keep the same discharge time. Wouldn't you desynchronize all of this by installing dual phase, because the charging current can't keep up with half the switching timings? Not the best idea for the wheel cart.
make the handtruck grounded
Can we work together, I really like the way you work, that's awesome
a small ground stake is better than nothing
Generators don't have grounds either...
It’s a portable device. An should not have solid core wire. Multi strand flexible cable only.
might be a bit pricey for me, $2500+
Yeah it's expensive. The DIY route will always be cheapest if you have the tools and ability to do so :)
Ground it to the cart
073021/0223h PST 🇺🇸 Thank you.
Like
Just notice a almost Identical build at ua-cam.com/video/wmSzBZRJpNE/v-deo.html. he tweaked to include a larger outlet to power house/cabin, but otherwise ...
😁✌🖖👌👍 😎
Never mind I guess I cant run a welder
Ground it on metal plumbing
Never! Very dangerous advice.
Why install all that mechanical garbage? when you can buy individual GFI’ s receptacles for each circuit , much cleaner look! Shalom!
That "mechanical garbage" is a standard branch circuit panel. A GFCI receptacle does not provide over current protection.
kindof overkill...you don`t need that much for this kind of cart...maybe read less comments
starting with this one
I really like this system. I am thinking of installing this in a cargo trailer camper build. How would I go about grounding this charging with solar?
Another great video!