Silicon Desert
Well-Known Member
Sounds like I have seen you on the TV show "Doomsday Preppers"
I bet your next project is a bunker 300 feet below ground 
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
what should I make sure happens when batteries get installed?
- Thread starter h2ofun
- Start date
I bet your next project is a bunker 300 feet below ground Definitely two teams. Ours showed up about the same time but they work more or less independantly and will each have their own team supervisor.
Since you mentioned old 200A service panel, does it have a 225A bus?
Yea, I thought of that. I can add the EV kit to both SE inverters if I wanted, I think.
Since I have a generation panel today, that is going to not be used off the GW output to my subpanel, and its 100% mine, I would assume I could something in there. But oh well, if I ever wanted to do, I would get a permit and qualified electrician. I have just run out of time and I already have them going nuts with all the questions I have asked them. I might kick myself down the road, but now I have to get the areas ready, and get my hard wiring installed.
I dunno, yours was two teams because you did solar and powerwalls at the same time. It could be two teams here, but this OP already has fully functional solar in place so there is no solar install happening.
It also sounds like a very complex install, with lots of re wiring, including the fact that an existing generator is in the mix on the install. I know OP says "I have the generator for the proposed power outages so I am good there", but would they even let you run the generator in that situation? I have no idea on what is going where, but if they are cutting power, whether you could run the generator or not would depend on where it sits in relation to the rest of the work, I guess?
It all sounds really complex in any case.
I doubt it would take 4 days of 8 hours each day of cut power though, as others have said. Probably 8 hours from when they disconnect to when they re connect, even if the install itself is 4 days.
The generator is connected to two ATS. They only engage when power goes out and totally isolated everything upstream from them and the house. So where PGE cuts power, the turn off breakers to rewire, the batteries die, the generator is wired to take up any slack if needed.
I agree the power may not be out that long, but that is just what I remember hearing. If not, great, if so, I am ready.
Since the generator is wired behind the two ATS, if they have no power, the only path connected to my subpanels is the generator. So, unless I am missing something, I should be 100% safe. I know when I told the gal who called I had a generator, she did not say it could not be used. Going to find out shortly.
But yep, they even sent the install manager out to look at my install before we put the plans back to the county since the engineer said mine was on the more complicated side. And yep. having the generator threw us for a few design iterations since they did not get it. Implies that have not done many install with batteries that have generators so far. But we got it all figured out. I am so happy they allowed me to review everything and be involved. We would have had a LOT of surprises otherwise, some of which would have been a big deal to deal with.
Boy am I going to have a ton of blade disconnects! My pictures when done will so how messy this may all end up being.
We had a 14-50 installed when we first contemplated an EV, but did not know which brand or when we would buy. I figured It would also be useful for something like a welder or a visitor's RV. Once we got a Tesla we had the plug removed and rewired the circuit to an HPWC.
Yep, if I remember, I will ask installers if there would be an issue to install later.
Yes please, for the love of god do not do anything like what I did for this stupid project. I'm now in week 44 since I started the project, and I still don't have PTO.
I have never had anything at work take this volume of emails and bull$4*t. I've opened billion dollar mezzanine financing and set up multi billion dollar POs with less effort than this STUPID PV+ESS crap.
Yep, if I remember, I will ask installers if there would be an issue to install later.
That kind of will be too late IMO. If you want to later add a 50, 60, 100A circuit for charging, I’d recommend talking to your Advisor now so they can talk to the design team. My guess is like it’s easier and cheaper to add outlets while construction of a house is being done, so too it will be with adding to panels designed for your current plan. If your panel gets maxed out by adding more circuits later, now is the time to find that out so any adjustments can be made before any work takes place so that can happen later.
I seriously doubt Tesla will be able to add this when they come out due to permitting and design plans and possible limits to your panel. You’d also be better off postponing an install and getting the additional electrical work done before hand.
I am not using Tesla
My permit is all done and signed.
As I said, even if my panels were limited, which I have a hard time believing, I believe I can still put the chargers in the SE inverters.
May not be the best, but I assume I would have no permit issues?
I do have it on my list to ask. Since I have no plans to get an EV at the moment, I have bigger issues to worry about. Like I am trying to drill through my sill plate between two levels of my house for my Hardwired Lan.
The drilling sounds like a pain, but the results will be worth it. Nothing beats some CAT 6/7 wiring for moving data with no drama.
When I was rebuilding my house, with many walls and ceiling sheet rock removed, I had SO many folks so no one used hardwire anymore, only wifi. Being the nerd I am I said well I have one chance in a lifetime, so I ran cat 7 to every room. Turns out I am using them all. Meaning, I have TV's in just about every room. And I bought firetv 4K sticks for all of them. Then bought a USB3 to Ethernet adapter for each. I have no issues steaming now. Wifi is SUCH a pain, even though I also installed like 6 routers through out the house since I got them for free.
Was telling my Dad today at lunch, when the batteries are done, I will have 100% flexibility for ANY power outage I get thrown at me. Another project on my list will be to stock up on food. When I see pictures of huge lines of cars for folks to just get water after a few days of power outages, etc., well, people NEED to be prepared!! Just look at how many seems to run out of toilet paper a few days into the pandemic. I got plenty of it now.
