Questions about fusing and grounding my solar.

[highdesertranger]

wow 33' on the temp sender, you can leave that at home. lol. highdesertranger

 

[BigT]

You can use a connector made for 10ga on 8ga wire - just snip off enough strands so it will fit.

Wouldn't removing strands and thus decreasing the diameter, even though just at the end of the wire, increase the resistance?  

Amazon carries all sorts of 8AWG connectors, so I shouldn't have to do any snipping.  Thanks for that tip, though.  

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_4&smid=ASGHU1PFY7LBZ

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_5&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_3&smid=A1IBW2HULNJLEY

For now I'm gong to continue seeing if my under-dash mounting is feasible, if not, I'll look into ordering the 8AWG and connectors from Amazon.

 

[highdesertranger]

yeah trimming your wire down to fit a smaller terminal is not the best way to go. it's much better to find the right terminal. highdesertranger

 

[BigT]

The end is in sight!

After finding that the brake booster sits right behind the firewall where I planned to mount the charge controller, I decided to go with plan B, and mount it to the kick panel.  It's not the perfect place to put it, but it will have to do for now.  It's certainly easier to access/see in this location.  

I inverted the cc so I wouldn't kick the terminals with my Size 13's, and I spaced it off the panel 1" with coupling nuts, and added fender washers on both sides of the plastic for additional support.  If it turns out the controller doesn't put out as much heat as I think, I'll shorten the coupling nuts and move the cc closer to the plastic panel.......  Maybe even remove the coupling nuts all together.  I don't know how hot these things get.  

At least the air flow will be good in this location, and I have the option, if necessary, to turn on the AC vents in the footwells to blow cool air directly over the charge controller.  

Now I just need 2, three foot lengths of either 10 or 8AWG stranded copper wire, a pair of eyelets, a pair of spade connectors, and a 25 Amp fuse/holder.  

 

[highdesertranger]

nice looking install. I like the coupling nuts to give you a little standoff for air flow. very clean. highdesertranger

 

[BigT]

I've got a 20 amp Maxifuse between my 130 watt framed panel and charge controller.  its only purpose is a low resistance disconnect.  

 Use a fuse holder of minimal added resistance, and use wiring as thick as one can fit into the charge controller.

It sounds like I could use a second 25 (or 30) Amp blade fuse between the panel and cc, just as a low resistance switch of sorts.  
I like that idea.  Thanks for the tip, I think I'll do that.

 

[BigT]

It turns out that 8AWG stranded wire will fit, albeit snugly, into a 10AWG crimp-on terminal.  And that's without removing any strands.  
That's good news because 8AWG connectors are hard to find locally.  

 

[SternWake]

Are you sure that is 8awg?  My tinned marine 8awg would not slide into one of those connectors without some stranding refusing entry.


I dislike the bulky yellow nylon Insulation.  I razor it off, then crimp, and then solder to cover the cover the exposed stranding then heatshrink.

 

[BigT]

Well it was on the 8AWG roll. Even if it's 10 Gauge it'll work OK for the short run to the battery.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to find an 8AWG fuse holder, and I looked at OSH, Lowe's, Home Depot, and three Fry's locations.
I'm going to have to go with a 12 Gauge blade fuse holder until I can order one in 8AWG. I'll mount it right at the (+) battery terminal to keep it short.
Hopefully that will be OK for a while.

 

[SternWake]

An ATC fuse holder simply uses quick disconnects to grasp the fuse's Tangs.

If you can find fully insulated female quick disconnects, no need for a dedicated fuse holder:

http://www.amazon.com/Female-Insula...sbs_328_6?ie=UTF8&refRID=0RX7XHH5WZD86D4WPX28

The electrical sections of my local Lowes and home despots has been quite poor lately.

Napa might have fuse holders with 10 or perhaps 8awg leads. But that is SAE gauge, which is 15 to 20% thinner than AWG.

Maxi fuses are larger fuses than ATO/ATC fuses. Their larger surface area on the tangs should have lower resistance.

http://www.amazon.com/Pico-0969pt-M...365139&sr=8-1&keywords=8+awg+maxi+fuse+holder

 

[BigT]

When I went to Fry's last week, they did have 8, or at least 10 Gauge Maxi Fuse holders, but for some reason I didn't pick one up at that time.  Now they don't have any.
I'm just going to crimp the 12 Gauge fuse holder to the end of the (+) lead where it connects to the battery, then replace it as soon as I find the 8 Gauge unit.  

Oh, I double checked, and the wire I bought is 8AWG.  

I'm about 30 minutes away from finally being done with this damn project.  I'd like to do it right the first time, but at this point I'll just be glad to have this headache completed, good-enough-for-now.
I'm hoping using less than 6' of the 12AWG fuse holder, right at the (+) battery terminal, will be OK.