While I was waiting for the main house batteries to be sorted and to give some blackout cover at the cottage I purchased an Ecoflow Delta 2.
They are sometimes what is incorrectly called a solar battery. Its so much more than a dumb battery. It is a 1024w 51v LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate)battery which is married to a 60v 15 amp Mttp solar controller, a 1kw battery charger plus a 1800w inverter ( 230v out) it also has USB type c x 2 USB type A fast and slow ports. A 12v 10 amp cigarette style port. It can be fast charged up to 1100w down to 100w by the app - yes its all app controlled. It can be charged at 80w from a car charger while driving. Its very versatile
At home it has a 1024w extra battery attached so its makes it a 2kw battery. It is charged overnight slow time to protect the battery on cheap rate electric. I have a 380w solar panel to go onto the gable end of the workshop (south facing ) so it'll be charged up for free for 3/4 of the year and maybe more. When at home its job is to run the fish pond pump and UV filter as well as the fridge freezer and wine fridge ( don't judge me ).
When it comes to the boat it has its own solar panel to charge it up - see last post. If no sun it can be charged from 5% to 95% in an hour off the Honda 1kw genny. While being charged its running the boats electrics via the shore line hook up which includes the battery charger for the boats batteries - which after I think four and a bit years are showing their age.
That one hour genny charge or free sun charge brings the Ecoflow onto the boat and it'll be plugged into the hook up and can run the tv and the battery charger if needed... last night it ran the microwave to start the baked spuds ! Then it gets plugged into the 12v circuit by a pig tail to the bus bar and is fed by the 10 amp cigarette socket - not idea but it works. On the more expensive units there is an Anderson port for more amps. It'll stay like that now all night running the fridge and the router ( 12v ) as I sit typing this just lights on the boat is using 25w
It is all work in progress on the boat and the cottage - still learning. The cottage gauges above are from a little Raspberry Pi running Home Assistant - there are a ton of automations that I need to develop but for now it is a good monitoring base for me ( better than the app that comes with the inverter and batteries)
I like that I capture the suns energy and save it and reuse it - small things please simple minds as they say !
The only thing is it is quite compulsive watching and measuring. But I'd remind you of the adage I worked to at the University - If you are not measuring it you are not managing it !!
More to come no doubt and what fun it would be to have an electrically powered canal boat.... more are having them and I have pondered what it would take to replace Percy's engine with a generator and a load of batteries ....!! Now that would be a project
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