Off-grid post, 5-1-22

There's not a whole lot of news to report. This is still a process of gaining confidence in the solar powered scheme, and it is still a bit of a problem. This was mentioned previously as a shutting down of the power to the inverter, which shuts down the appliances attached to it.

It was perhaps a bit of wishful thinking to attribute the problem to a defective fuse. It did seem that way when the fuse was taken out and replaced with a new one. The questionable fuse was moved to another circuit, which was the one going to the panels. Lo and behold, the panels stopped producing current. An answer? Nope. Although the replacement of the offending fuse with a new one did clear up THAT problem, or appeared to, the previous one of shutting down the inverter RETURNED. The impression was that maybe there's something that is in the inverter circuit that is ruining fuses, and maybe the new one is being ruined, or is already ruined. To confirm this, I'll have to open up the power tote again, which I haven't done yet.

It is plausible that it could be the inline fuse holder. The last time I opened it up, it did seem a bit "frayed". It is an old fuse holder. Perhaps I could replace it, or just take it out altogether. There is already a protective device on that circuit, so maybe it could handle it. But that seems a bit shaky at this time. Another option is to get another fuse holder, and install that one in its stead.

All of that is tentative as I haven't inspected it yet.

There is another possible mode of failure. Temperature seems to be a bit on the high side. There are a couple of usb ports on the controller. I could get a usb powered fan, and let that cool down the controller. As of now, it is being cooled by a small fan, which is placed a foot or so away. This fan is too large to get in close, and so it may not be getting enough air. A small one could be maneuvered close in, and perhaps it could do a little better.

So the process continues. The closest thing I can find to a cause is excessive heat. I'll work on improving upon that situation in hopes that all issues have been resolved, and I can begin again in expanding the system a bit more.