Bluetti AC500 w/B300K battery for our home backup/supplement system install and review

Your shed panels look great. I'm thinking of doing something similar for charging my batteries for my cordless Dewalt tools. Three seasons anyway. They're isn't any heat in my shed.

 

No heat in my shed either (or lights or anything but solar panel connectors). If sunny and in the 20's, the batteries will keep themselves warm enough while charging just sitting on a table. I haven't tried in the single digits yet.

I recently got an HDX tote w/lid while HD had them on sale. Took some scraps of foam shipping inserts and rigid foam insulation boards to insulate it. I did a very sloppy job with just throwing a few pieces in there and it was by no means well insulated. It was successful in keeping a power station plenty warm (went from 70's to mid 60's) while charging it in the upper teems. The power station was out charging for probably 6-7 hours (goodness, I hate the winter sun angle).

I also just received a couple of seedling heating mats. They draw 20w and "should" help keep a station warm in a tote during really cold weather. Not that I could make much solar power, but it is more about a project and less about satisfactory results.

 

That's great information. I won't be able to do anything with mine till it gets warmer. I've got other projects I'm working on inside where it's warm. What are you thinking about running off the power station, in the future?

 

Spring thru fall I run all my kitchen appliances, except the refrigerator from power stations. Additionally my clothes washer and computer/router/wifi are run from power stations. Once it starts getting warmer, I also run window fans in the morning from stations.

I've been able to start "spring" early this year, since the I have the shed panels. The last couple of "springs" haven't started until mid-march or April in previous years as I've used portable panels so I had to wait until I wasn't wading thru hip deep snow. When I get better/stronger sun, I also charge my Ryobi tool batteries.

 

I'm sure you accidentally included the "k" or forgot a decimal point- otherwise those are monster panels. I'm only getting 8.5 kwh all day with the house solar, with 6 x 400w panels clear of snow plus 4 panels partially covered with snow.

I can confuse myself enough, don't need help in that area

 

I started working on my shed solar project a few weeks back. Having the Aferiy P280 in the family room didn't work out. When it was charging with solar, the fans got a bit loud for my wife's liking so I moved it out. I actually have a childs playhouse that was built by the previous owner. It is 8'x8' and my shed is right next to it. The shed is 8'x12'. They are right next to each other. The previous owner also ran a 20amp circuit from the breaker panel to the shed and playhouse so they both have electricity.

I cleaned up the playhouse a few years ago and it is primarily used for storage. The shed. Well it's a mess inside. It got commandeered by a red squirrel about 10 years ago and it got pretty tore up. The squirrel broke the only window and tore a hole in the roof when I sealed up it's egress. I boarded up the window and replaced the roof about 5 years ago, but the inside was such a mess that I didn't know where to start. So I didn't. Until now.

Right now I'm getting some of the electrical squared away.

Good fun. I hope everyone has recovered from the winter.

Have you decided what inverter you will be using? EG4 has really dropped their price on the 12000xp. It's only a few hundred more that the 6000xp

They are both the off grid models, but they allow a grid connection to charge the batteries and supply power to the house if you don't get enough solar. You can't sell your excess power back but it has merit. The prices on the hybrid models haven't dropped.

 

I take it you're no longer heating with oil?

Depending on how much power you need out there the eg4's sound like a good fit. They're interesting and very easy to setup. New windows and when you're putting them good seal them up good to stop even more draft. Save money on the heating bill too.

The heart of my project is the P280. It has 2048wh and I ordered a 2048wh expansion battery for it so I will have 4k in battery out there. I have 650w currently of panels and I'm looking to add at least that much more this year. Right now I'm running the two sheds with 20amps from the P280 and no issues with not having enough power. The 650w of solar is keeping up so far but it's not optimal.