I am planning a DIY solar setup that will have a 6'X6' battery and inverter shed 30m from the house. For added anti theft security, this will be a metal shed.
My question is should I install and air conditioning unit into the shed to keep things cool in the Summer? I could buy a mobile AC unit for not a lot of money and then maintain the environment at a maximum of 20C which would keep the inverter and batteries running happily. It'd only be running on hot sunny days so the PV panels should be putting out surplus energy on our off-grid setup anyway meaning it'd only be using power that otherwise would be surplus.
Has anyone done this? Good idea or waste of space and money?
Does a battery/inverter shed require air conditioning?
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Dave Foster
- Posts: 824
- Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2022 7:21 pm
That’s a good question, for what its worth the inverter and battery are both rated to 50C after which the inverter will derate, the batteries should never be operated above 50C or they will be damaged.
So that said, it depends on location and shading if the shed is in direct sunlight (make sure it is painted white) there is a good chance that it will get close to that in summer, normally good airflow and/or cooling fans should keep the temperature in the usable range - there’s nothing wrong with using a portable air-conditioner but it will itself generate heat, make noise and require maintenance so arguably using good air-flow and cooling fans would be best.
Also just to say the battery temperature ‘sweet spot’ is 30C (not 20C) where they will give you their best performance - so a note for winter that a small tubular greenhouse type heater will keep them operational.
So that said, it depends on location and shading if the shed is in direct sunlight (make sure it is painted white) there is a good chance that it will get close to that in summer, normally good airflow and/or cooling fans should keep the temperature in the usable range - there’s nothing wrong with using a portable air-conditioner but it will itself generate heat, make noise and require maintenance so arguably using good air-flow and cooling fans would be best.
Also just to say the battery temperature ‘sweet spot’ is 30C (not 20C) where they will give you their best performance - so a note for winter that a small tubular greenhouse type heater will keep them operational.
I'd say passive measures like insulating and ventilating your shed will be much more cost effective than air con. The insulation is arguably particularly important if you want to use the batteries in winter since their performance really drops off if they get cold.
I've had good success putting x3 12V 120mm PC fans on top of the cooling fins of my inverter to control the temperatures of that bit of kit. While the inverters can and do run at elevated temperatures, given how hot the power electronics will get when doing this (especially in a shed which itself may get warm!) a bit of extra cooling in the summer definitely doesn't hurt in my opinion, I think it will very probably extend the life of your inverter, possibly considerably.
I've had good success putting x3 12V 120mm PC fans on top of the cooling fins of my inverter to control the temperatures of that bit of kit. While the inverters can and do run at elevated temperatures, given how hot the power electronics will get when doing this (especially in a shed which itself may get warm!) a bit of extra cooling in the summer definitely doesn't hurt in my opinion, I think it will very probably extend the life of your inverter, possibly considerably.