Panic as I wire Solar Panels into the Ecoflow Delta Pro UK
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- Опубліковано 14 жов 2024
- In this video I am installing the cables I intend to become the permanent setup for the solar panels and the Ecoflow Delta Pro UK edition. Things don't quite got to plan as I turn it on.
Links to product I used in this video (affiliate links):
Ecoflow Delta Pro amzn.to/3LcKGuF
Shed Consumer Unit amzn.to/38zLpsl
2P 16A DC Circuit Breaker amzn.to/3ldfkcv
Solar PV Wire amzn.to/3yJzYsO
Solar Connectors MC4 Connectors amzn.to/3weuC7k
Meterk Crimping Tool amzn.to/38Rq79I
3 Way Y MC4 Connector amzn.to/3Mr6PqA
JOAUIAX 2021 Clamp Meter amzn.to/3sFDII1
This isn't ideal cable for this purpose but it does work and I'm including it here for completeness
Arctic Cable 100 Meter amzn.to/3wjmX7V
Thanks for sharing. It's good to see that the Delta Pro charging via the solar panels you wired yourself.
Hi Ricardo, it works really well, I have some more panels and be releasing another video about charging with solar soon.
I am unsure whether the fuse is suitable for cables without wire ferrule. This could possibly lead to high contact resistance.
My understanding is that this normal way of wiring things in the UK but I am not an electritian so don't quote me on that. It has been running for nearly 2 years and I have not had an issue.
Where I have had an issue is with an MC4 connector that I had clearly been crimped badly and was heating up quite a lot. The copper in the cable had clearly degraded and gone very stiff, the wires going into the box still feel normal.
I am going to be moving house soon so it might be a good opertunity to put ferrals on the cables, I didn't have any at the time but I do now.
The first time I hooked up solar panels to my new Delta Pro, it took a few minutes for it to put out a reading. And it was a bright summer day! I was freaking out!
Yeah I was too, made all the worse that I was doing it while it was over cast and the Delta Pro wasn't even registering that there was power going in. It wasn't until I noticed that the time remaining was changing the I calmed down a little >.<
How is your setup working for you? :)
@@MattWells0 I have only charged it with the plug in. I only had a 100w solar panel attached and it was only taking 48. I ordered some connectors so I can connect 3 panels. I may need a 4th one.
I used the Delta Pro to power a 5000w window a/c in my camper trailer. It said it could power it for 6 hours but I turned it off after 3 hours. It ran the a/c perfectly fine.
I used it the next day to run a little Dirt Devil vacuum cleaner. It worked great!
I was gonna go with the Bluetti AC 200 max, but I’m glad I stepped up to the Ecoflow Delta Pro!
@@SaabAholic Oh fantastic, its getting hot here and I am wondering how well it would do with an AC unit, it is good to know it can do it :)
Which way are you looking at wiring your solar panels? Are they mounted the the roof of your camper or do you have some other arrangement?
@@MattWells0 I’ll probably mount them on top of the camper. Full southern exposure where it’s parked. I’m just south of the 45th parallel. I’m new to all of this, so I’m not exactly sure how to connect the panels. I need to watch another video and take notes! I always forget what I’ve learned, lol.
I’m also going to set up a mobile solar setup with one or two lead acid batteries rated at 12 bolts, 550 Watts per cell. I will use a Renogy Wanderer solar charge controller and a 1000w (2000w surge) power inverter for whatever it can power. Like the fridge, or my little a/c unit. I don’t know enough about this stuff yet. I’m a trial by error hands on kinda guy!
I also have an Epever MPPT charge controller. I think I impulsed-bought that a few months ago after watching a video. 🤠
@@SaabAholic series is the easiest, that is where you plug the output of one panel into the input of the next. Doing this adds the voltage of all the panels you connect together so you just need to make sure the total voltage is below what the Delta Pro can accept and you are fine, no special connectors or wiring. The downside is if any of the solar panels are shaded, by a tree for example, all the solar panels are affected by this. Alternatively you can wire them in parallel, this is where all the outputs are connected together and all the inputs are connected together. It is a little more complicated but only the panel that is shaded will not be producing full power. If you have enough panels you can have both series and parrallel strings like I have. I found this video by Andy at the Off-Grid Garage really handy at explaining: ua-cam.com/video/GFjL0-r6LbY/v-deo.html
In the end it did work fine. Thank you for the video. I have been thinking of getting the Delta Pro myself.
Hi James, yes it did but I was panicking for a while there! It is worth it, it is free electric and you can pick up used solar panels fairly cheaply.
the artic cable you have there is widely used as power leads for the caravan market here in the UK as a mains hook up lead, it is more flexible than standard cable and if wired correctly to the correct plugs/sockets offers a degree of weather tightness tio ip65 or thereabouts, i know it is used as a caravan hookup as i have several of these myself, and they are a common site on touring caravan sites both in blue and orange and sometime yellow
I actually purchased it for another project which would be more in line with it's original purpose, although for getting power out to where I have my christmas light display. Really good cable for that kind of thing.
Typically yellow is used for 110v equipment on construction sites so I think it would be less likely to see it although it perfectly safe to be used like that as the cable is rated for those higher voltages so it is fine to do that.
Great content, made me think about installing my solar panels myself to power my Delta Pro.
Hi Shawn, absolutely worth it! Especially if you get second hand panels for cheap. I have actually got myself some more solar panels and I'll be doing a video about that soon.
Renology also make MC4 inline fuses (which I use). They have a male and female MC4 fitting so just click between the solar panels and the line that goes indoors. 15amp ones from Amazon. Just that little bit extra protection as you are doing there too - but perhaps a very quick 'plug and play' version?
That solution would work and I do have those devices where my strings of solar panels get combined so if one of the panels were to go open circuit the other panels wouldn't cause the faulty panel to catch fire.
The advantages that this box gives me is the switch, so I can turn the solar panels off safely before I start disconnecting panels. Mc4 connectors are not designed to be disconnected while they are conducting electricity and could cause arcing and reduce the risk of me getting shocked by accident. Also I'm not using "real" solar pv cable, it is standard household 3 core mains cable so this box also gives me the advantage that water can't wick up the outer insulation and the inner cables as well as the safety protection.
@@MattWells0 Under your circumstances, the switch makes a lot of sense. My panels are only about 70' from the units so I can more easily just unplug them. The MC4 fuses do just unscrew though (the fuse is between the male and female connectors, and that center part just unscrews easily!) I could change a fuse if it ever went in about 30 seconds with no tools needed.
MC4s can sometimes be a bugger to take apart, so that's just as well! Haha!
@@mrpad0 absolutely for that setup it is completely fine. And I know the pain of disconnecting the mc4s! I have to do it every week as my panels are still "temporarily" mounted on garden furniture and I need to move them once a week to mow the lawn 😅 the pack of mc4 connectors game with a tool to help but it doesn't always fit
Hi Matt, you're likely suffering from voltage drop at that 50mtr distance, running what looks like 2.5mm2 flex. Worth running the numbers to ensure you're giving the delta pro enough juice to charge efficiently. I think the delta pro's inbuilt MPPT charger has a minimum solar input of 11v? Possibly why the single panel in the shade wasn't performing, especially if that was over the 50m distance. Wiring your four panels up in series (if you haven't already) will help combat this, but over such a long distance you may find that regardless with 2.5mm2 cable the drop is still hampering you.
You are quite right, there will be likely be some voltage drop with the cable I am using, I knew that when I made this video, I think I even hinted at it although didn't say it. I have been intending to run the numbers but I haven't gotten around to it.
What I can tell you is since I made this video I have now got 9 solar panels and depending on the time of year I either run a 4s2p which gives me 120-140v in the summer which I have seen pulling in 1700W for breif periods. Or as it is now in winter 3s3p for about 80-100v and around 1300W peak, not that I see that to often.
I can feel some warmth from the cables when it is pulling 1700W, I am unsure if that is just because the sun is heating it up for if it is the resistance of the cable at around 18amps. Either way I am happy enough with this cable that I cannot justify spending the money to get anything better.
Something that I had considered doing is this cable has 3 conductors, I'm only using 2 of them, I could pair up the spare conductor with one of the other 2 and reduce the amount of resistance (half?) in one direction at least. I was thinking about making a video on it but I haven't gotten around to doing it yet.
Hi Matt, have just bought the delta Pro, not read the manual yet but just seen your videos. i have yet to learn about connecting panels in series and parallel. I obviously want to be able to charge the pro with as much energy and as fast as I can from solar panels. Would very much appreciate any advice. It might be a good idea to read the manual now ah ah. thanks for the videos, they have inspired me. Neil.
Hi Neil,
It is really easy to install them, I would recommend watching Andy's video over on Off-Grid Garage where he goes over series and parallel solar panels ua-cam.com/video/GFjL0-r6LbY/v-deo.html it really helped me.
I have just upgrade my solar panel array video here for more ua-cam.com/video/gGxwt0R0KFc/v-deo.html so I will use them as an example:
For the Ecoflow Delta Pro when you put them in series you must ensure that their total open circuit voltage is below 150v. My solar panels are 37.8 volts (I'll call it 40 for easy maths) which means that 4 panels are 160v which is to high so I have to use 3 for 120 volts.
When you put them in parallel it combines the current, in theory you can put as many of those together as you like and the Ecoflow will not use more than it can handle. It is rated for 15 amps, although on a good day I have seen it go up to about 17.5 amps for short amount of time. My array is rated to produce about 24 amps.
The reason for the additional panels in parallel above the rating of the Delta Pro is that on cloudy days the solar panels cannot procuce their full current and means you are more likely to get a good charge on these days. This is often referred to as over panelling. If you live in a sunny part of the world you probably don't really need to do this, in the UK however on a cloud day even with over 2000 watts of solar panels I have seen it only pull in about 350 watts max all day about a week ago.
Matt
@@MattWells0 I was just about to post a similar comment regarding over paneling, thanks for saving me the time. LOL. I have a Delta MAX with 4 340 panels in a 2S2P format and consistently get 800 watts into my MAX for a good portion of the day, regardless if my panels are oriented properly, slight over cast, etc.
@@johncasey5594 if you have enough panels on a nice day you don't even have to aim,especially at the moment with the summer solstice approaching. :)
Hi Matt, im totally new to solar and solar generators, im after some advice, could this be coupled to use both wind turbine and solar panels for a faster charge in an off grid situation, cheers.
Hi Martin, this is an interesting question and something I have only had a very brief look at and come to the conclusion that wind with solar generators isn't really a thing.
They are designed to work with solar panels, wind requires additional electronics to manage the excess power that wind produces without damaging the turbine.
The only way I could think of is to have a buffer battery which the wind turbine charges but since the solar generators I have seen only has a single DC input you would also need to add the solar into the buffer battery. By the time you make a big enough buffer battery to push enough power into the solar generator you may as well just make your own complete system.
I think it is possible but I don't think it would be easy to do.
Do I need a breaker for 1 solar 100W panel? And if yes, which you recommend?
Thanks!
Probably not so long as you are using good cables, if the panel uses the standard MC4 connectors they are probably fine. That isn't to say that other connectors are wrong or dangerous, they are just most common.
For a more technical answer 100w panel is probably about 12v so a maximum current of about 9 amps. The wire will likely have a number on it followed by "awg", if the number is lower than 20 they should be okay but the smaller the number better, I would probably want at least 18 awg. The lower the number the thicker the cable is.
What breakers, fuses and other things like that are mostly for is to stop to much power going through cables which can only carry so much current (amps). If they carry to much they can heat up, in extreme cases can cause fires.
If you do want to get a breaker find it what power your cable can handle (there are charts all over the Internet for this) and find a breaker that is about that current (in amps) or a little bit less that is rated for DC (direct current), most are AC (alternating currently) and cannot handle DC.
If you are ever unsure please do ask a qualified electrician.
Good Job sir, I'm waiting to purchase my solar panels and seeing this video completes my procedure. I like the crimp Pliers. Are they found at Amazon ?also
Hi MiKyahl, yes you can get them here: amzn.to/38Rq79I (affilate link) or you can search for "Meterk Crimping Tool" which is what I used in this video but any MC4 Crimping tool should do. I have a newer video where I have expanded my solar array ua-cam.com/video/gGxwt0R0KFc/v-deo.html be careful it gets adictive xD today I have pulled in about 6kWh. How many panels are you getting?
@@MattWells0 Yes sir, I'm getting 3 400 w panels
@@mikyahl8749 nice, that should give you quite a bit of power even on an overcast day :)
Hi with the possible power outages not too far away do you think one of these units would power a combi boiler?
I would expect so. I think combi boilers heat the water with gas and only use the electric for the brains to control it. The spec of the boiler should tell you how much electric it should use. However, I'm not familiar enough with boilers to know for sure. It if something that had crossed my mind though.
@@MattWells0 Thanks Matt
@@The_Tool_Scoop of you find out please let me know. I think the difficulty you have is that they are normally hard wired in
@@MattWells0 Yes, I will look into it and get back to you.
My boiler is not actually hard wired, it has a plug so I'm guessing this would make things easier but I do have to call an electrician out in the next week or so I will run it by him and get back to you.
Good thing about Ecoflow it show you how much go in ( on ecoflow screen ) so you can find out what is the best ( in serie or parallel when you connect your solar panel to charge ecoflow ) BTW Ecoflow support center do give you the information about your Ecoflow back up station
Yes I have been in touch with Ecoflow Support a lot they are extremely helpful and quick at getting back to my about all my stupid questions. I have to commend them for that :D
@@MattWells0 I learn there are No stupid question , only ...... answer . Keep ask you will find the right answer 👍
@@lucthien601 that is true, I tell my collegues that all the time however at least half of my questions have been "if I do x will my delta pro be damaged?" xD
I don't understand this video. My own delta pro and solar panels are in the post as I write this and as far as I know all you need to connect the delta pro indoors to the solar panels outdoors are some extended mc4 cables to bridge the gap between them, which you can pass through a window. These aren't very expensive. The delta pro has its own internal controller so I don't understand why Matt has gone through all this hassle to get his delta pro charging indoors. Am I being naive? I dunno. Feel free to educate me, please.
Hi Darren,
Please note that I am not an electritian, I'm a software developer who like to do this stuff in my spare time. This is my understand of how to make this equipment as safe as I can but I am not an expert so please do you're own research.
Would it work without it? Sure, but there is a risk that something could go wrong. I would advise that you place inline fuses with the solar panels at the very least, like these ones I uses for connecting the strings of solar panels together amzn.to/3wZCWqO (affiliate link). A fuse is an intentional point of weakness which will fail safely, potentially protecting the rest of your cabling, equipment and yourself.
In my situation my solar panels are about 50 meters away from where my Delta Pro lives, anywhere closer than that they would be either in the way or covered by shade most of the day.
I am using cable that has is 2.5mm2 copper conductors which is about half of what "typical" solar PV cable comes as so the current carrying capacity is going to be lower with this cable so I felt it was a good idea to have the extra safety of a breaker as the number of solar panels I have could produce over 24 amps which will cause the cable to heat up above what the cable is rated for. This means that the insulation around the cables could melt causing shorts and arcs which can cause fires or injur someone touching the cables. I felt that given that this installation is fairly permanent adding the breaker will ensure that the current can't get anywhere close enough to be a danger and provide a convinent switch to be able to turn the panels off if I needed to.
As for burrying the cable, this is mostly for conveneicen, as you can see it goes over the front lawn, which needs to be mowed about once a week. Rather than moving the cable every time I want to get by I felt that tucking it under the grass would be useful. Also has the added bonus of reducing the risk of tripping over the cable. There is still a section of cable going over a path between my house and the lawn that I am looking to add some extra protection, possibly something like this amzn.to/3GACnbj (affiliate link).
Hope this helps,
Matt
Use ferulas on braided cables.
Nice word play there
what do you use to edit the app into the video ?
I used Davinci Resolve
it's too bad the watt measurement can't handle lower wattage.
That's the problem with shunts, they are either accurate enough with low currents but can't handle high current or they can measure high current but can't see low current sadly. I'm sure there is going to be something expensive that can do both though
Digilent makes a little current/voltage sensor for $10 USD called PMON1. WIth a raspberry pie (or other low power computer), you could make your own display or logger.
@@morpher44 I was considering doing this before I discovered an integration with Home Assistant which lets me put all the stats on a dashboard as well as run automations based on the the state of charge of the battery or how much power is coming in. Take a look at my latest video to see how ua-cam.com/video/KFpb1SVWdIA/v-deo.html although I might do it anyway for the fun of it
@@MattWells0 Yes I use Home Assistant. I originally had it on a Raspberry pie, but then tried the Oracle VM Virtual Box version and running on a PC is a bit easier for me.
@@morpher44 I have the Generic x86-64 running on an original Microsoft Surface Pro tablet, works really well and has an in built UPS, I'm really pleased with it, only a bit of a shame that I have to use a USB network adapter though. Also enjoy that a Microsoft device is running fully opensource software :)
You seemed like a genuine guy whose priority was to help people with this solar stuff. Yet, my last post was swiftly deleted, seemingly because I mentioned a cheaper alternative to your affiliate link (regarding cable protectors). I cannot forgive you for deleting that post, as it speaks volumes about you.
I wouldn't mind so much if you were starving to death, buy ffs you've got a bigger garden than 95% of us, which speaks volumes.
Of course, this comment will also be deleted, but for sure YOU will see it. My only hope is that you see that there are more important things in life than manipulating human beings on UA-cam to make a FEW quid. Seriously, genuinely.
Have a word with yourself Matt. Be genuine, or just don't bother.
Hi Darren, I can assure you that 5 hours ago, at 4 am I was fast asleep in bed and was not deleting comments, in fact I have just woken up now. I would like to see chapter alternatives myself regardless of them being an affiliate link. UA-cam has an automated comment spam removal system which I have no control over and feel is extremely over reaching as I get hit by it often when talking about technical things or mentioning other UA-cam videos or even mentioning names of products on other people's videos, posting links is also a massive nono. My advice is to try and post your previous comment again but change it with the things I have mentioned in mind but as I have no control there is very little I can do in afraid.
@@MattWells0 Okay, then I need to apologise for just assuming that it was you who deleted my comment. Very sorry.
On the plus side my delta pro has arrived today. Just going through the process of setting it up now.
@@James-dx8qb Absolutely no problem mate, I fully understand your frustraition with the UA-cam anti-spam system as I myself have had difficulty posting longer descriptive posts and want to reference another source and for the post to be deleted 😢
That is fantastic news that your Delta Pro has arrived. How was the delivery experience and what are you intending to do with it?
@@MattWells0 Delivery delayed for some reason, but I'm not too bothered. I've got everything set up now, including 3x 375 watt solar panels in series. Not sure if I've done something wrong as only currently getting 60W input. Though it's now nearly 6pm and panels are shaded. Expected more than that though.
I've bought this to power some of the utensils in the house and save a bit of electric money. Also, for emergency back-up during blackouts.
Any more tips much welcomed. :)
@@James-dx8qb When the weather is overcast it really does make a huge difference, do make sure you have the solar panels tilted to a good angle for the sun, in the UK at this time of year you want them pointing south with something around 35 degrees from horizontal, in the winter you want somewhere around 75 degrees from horizontal. If you are mounting them at a permanently at a fixed angle you will probably want something in the middle. Another thing to make note of is if you have them in series (one plugged into the next into the next) then even a small amount of shading on one panel will significantly reduce the amount of power.
As for tips, you want this thing well away from a place where you spend a lot of time as it is fairly loud when the fans kick on, for example it isn't great under your desk 😒