The first Bitcoin Solar mining device coming soon - SolarMiner USB2 machine

[lightfoot]

Honest answer: I had them on my roof. 1800 watts of Siemens 75 watt single crystaline panels. With some shading around here I was pulling about 8-10kw a day. Not bad, but cute.

7 years later there was a hole in the roof shingles. Granted they were older, but it turned out that leaves had gotten under the panels in one spot and the acid in them burned a hole in my shingles. Cost $1,200 to have the panels taken off the roof (and a LOT of calls, the installers had long since gone and no one wanted to do it) and with the new roof on I figured "screw this, put them on the shed".

So they're all grid-tied right now, although the install does not meet NEC 2010 so it's somewhat renegade although the SB1800 and dual SB700's are fully certified for grid isolation and all that. So I can't put power back into the grid. But I can run my miners on the shed as long as they consume more than the panels can generate. So there you go.

C

[Warning__3]

If the price will be within my limit, it sure is interesting!

[Suave]

This is very interesting. I'll be watching this thread to see where this goes. Cool idea lightfoot. Keep at it.

[minereu.com]

Really interesting device.  But in the UK... probably not enough sunshine.

[testcoin]

If the price will be within my limit, it sure is interesting!

The price is around $900 and it sounds expensive

It's not within my budget, and electricity is quite cheap here in my town

But I'd still think it's a nice project. Hope that there will be a price cut later so that I may give it a try

[fractalbc]

So an overpriced solar panel with overpriced li-phos batteries that will only last two years and a nifty looking USB hub? Really people if you want a solar powered USB hub you can slap one together with ease. You can buy solar panels with charge controllers for less than $1 per watt now, get some car batteries and a power inverter and use any gear you want. What's the situation where someone needs this and it save them any money over a power bill? Stuffed full of the most power hungry USB asics, it will barely operate, the batteries wouldn't last through the evening so it needs to be plugged in...

At least his batteries will last two years.  A car battery won't last 2 months in a deep cycle application.  12v inverters generally suck for efficiency.

I don't argue your main point that it looks a bit overpriced for what it delivers but hey, people will pay for a Prius to increase their carbon footprint while telling themselves they are helping it, so why not this product.  And besides, you clearly don't understand any of the engineering issues you need to solve to run a solar powered rig.

Now, ifen you had said "golf cart batteries" it woulda shown that you a) know the difference between starting batteries and deep cycle batteries and b) know the cheapest deep cycle battery on the planet.  Bonus points woulda been given if you mentioned the need to provide ventilation and store them away from fire or flame.

[repairguy]

So an overpriced solar panel with overpriced li-phos batteries that will only last two years and a nifty looking USB hub? Really people if you want a solar powered USB hub you can slap one together with ease. You can buy solar panels with charge controllers for less than $1 per watt now, get some car batteries and a power inverter and use any gear you want. What's the situation where someone needs this and it save them any money over a power bill? Stuffed full of the most power hungry USB asics, it will barely operate, the batteries wouldn't last through the evening so it needs to be plugged in...

At least his batteries will last two years.  A car battery won't last 2 months in a deep cycle application.  12v inverters generally suck for efficiency.

I don't argue your main point that it looks a bit overpriced for what it delivers but hey, people will pay for a Prius to increase their carbon footprint while telling themselves they are helping it, so why not this product.  And besides, you clearly don't understand any of the engineering issues you need to solve to run a solar powered rig.

Now, ifen you had said "golf cart batteries" it woulda shown that you a) know the difference between starting batteries and deep cycle batteries and b) know the cheapest deep cycle battery on the planet.  Bonus points woulda been given if you mentioned the need to provide ventilation and store them away from fire or flame.

Car batteries would work as long as you don't discharge them more than 10-15%.  I really want to get my hands on one of those ~300v prius batteries.

Also, Hydrogen in closed spaces is awesome, where is your sense of adventure?

[cozk]

You'll lose more money with down time - trying to get this shit work 24/7 (night time is a huge issue here) - than you would by paying for electricity.

[mightycount]

You'll lose more money with down time - trying to get this shit work 24/7 (night time is a huge issue here) - than you would by paying for electricity.

Watching... Here's my situation: at night, my electricity is 10 cents a KWh. During the day, it varies between 15 and 30 cents. If I could cut the day shifts or even redistribute the load, I could save quite a bit. But $900 for just 37Gh sounds prohibitively expensive.

[RickJamesBTC]

So an overpriced solar panel with overpriced li-phos batteries that will only last two years and a nifty looking USB hub? Really people if you want a solar powered USB hub you can slap one together with ease. You can buy solar panels with charge controllers for less than $1 per watt now, get some car batteries and a power inverter and use any gear you want. What's the situation where someone needs this and it save them any money over a power bill? Stuffed full of the most power hungry USB asics, it will barely operate, the batteries wouldn't last through the evening so it needs to be plugged in...

At least his batteries will last two years.  A car battery won't last 2 months in a deep cycle application.  12v inverters generally suck for efficiency.

I don't argue your main point that it looks a bit overpriced for what it delivers but hey, people will pay for a Prius to increase their carbon footprint while telling themselves they are helping it, so why not this product.  And besides, you clearly don't understand any of the engineering issues you need to solve to run a solar powered rig.

Now, ifen you had said "golf cart batteries" it woulda shown that you a) know the difference between starting batteries and deep cycle batteries and b) know the cheapest deep cycle battery on the planet.  Bonus points woulda been given if you mentioned the need to provide ventilation and store them away from fire or flame.

Have you built off grid solar systems? I have. I didn't make my post to give a detailed explanation of how to do it, I made it to point out that the system is garbage and overpriced. Besides, you clearly don't have a clue other than what you assume in reading posts on the internet. Don't be a dick.

[lajz99]

Thanks for this post, gave me a good chuckle.  Great DIY project but I can't see any reason to ever purchase such a device...

[solarminer.james]

You'll lose more money with down time - trying to get this shit work 24/7 (night time is a huge issue here) - than you would by paying for electricity.

The entire package includes three AC adapters to be used at night times.

[solarminer.james]

More Photos,

The SOLARMINER USB package also comes with THREE custom AC chargers (not adapters) and THREE solar panel stands:

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c_rdsbW9utc/UyJ70k9YchI/AAAAAAAAAGY/XDbNgywwUdY/w913-h685-no/DSCF0849.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-0deezyanHjU/UyJ8OG_P83I/AAAAAAAAAGk/B3Fdb9PxdkQ/w913-h685-no/DSCF0865.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-imOyUsr1tiw/UyJ7u7qEcvI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/BCoSVJNhucs/w913-h685-no/DSCF0831.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-p733lWgOvs4/UyJ7bVkCjmI/AAAAAAAAAGI/TzvqP5filnU/w913-h685-no/DSCF0835.JPG

[repairguy]

So an overpriced solar panel with overpriced li-phos batteries that will only last two years and a nifty looking USB hub? Really people if you want a solar powered USB hub you can slap one together with ease. You can buy solar panels with charge controllers for less than $1 per watt now, get some car batteries and a power inverter and use any gear you want. What's the situation where someone needs this and it save them any money over a power bill? Stuffed full of the most power hungry USB asics, it will barely operate, the batteries wouldn't last through the evening so it needs to be plugged in...

At least his batteries will last two years.  A car battery won't last 2 months in a deep cycle application.  12v inverters generally suck for efficiency.

I don't argue your main point that it looks a bit overpriced for what it delivers but hey, people will pay for a Prius to increase their carbon footprint while telling themselves they are helping it, so why not this product.  And besides, you clearly don't understand any of the engineering issues you need to solve to run a solar powered rig.

Now, ifen you had said "golf cart batteries" it woulda shown that you a) know the difference between starting batteries and deep cycle batteries and b) know the cheapest deep cycle battery on the planet.  Bonus points woulda been given if you mentioned the need to provide ventilation and store them away from fire or flame.

Have you built off grid solar systems? I have. I didn't make my post to give a detailed explanation of how to do it, I made it to point out that the system is garbage and overpriced. Besides, you clearly don't have a clue other than what you assume in reading posts on the internet. Don't be a dick.

I also have done solar installs and can second Rick James.  This is overpriced garbage.  If you really want to help the environment, carbon footprint, reduce daytime peak usage, just buy a solar panel and a grid tie inverter(have it installed to code!) and be done with it. It will cost less and save more money.

[repairguy]

One would be better off installing proper solar panels on the roof, if one can afford it, and use it to power your mining rig. Batteries would need to be deep cycle marine batteries as they last longer. Any surplus energy can be fed back into the grid or used to heat up water.

Unless you are going to install enough solar panels to power your entire house, and most of the time not even then, there is almost no reason ever to use batteries on a solar installation!

[repairguy]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/COMPLETE-Grid-Tie-SOLAR-SYSTEM-300W-400W-500W-600W-1KW-WATT-Solar-Panel-system-/261288775795?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item3cd6065073

Ok here you green guys go (that isn't an insult).  The 500watt kit costs 50 bucks more but will give you almost 7 times the power generation and has no batteries.

[solarminer.james]

Unless you are going to install enough solar panels to power your entire house, and most of the time not even then, there is almost no reason ever to use batteries on a solar installation!

If there's no batteries, the extra power that can be saved in day time are wasted. Batteries are necessary, it keeps extra power to compensate in cloudy days and evenings. It's especially necessary for CONSTANT BITCOIN MINING RIG.

AND SOLARMINER use LFP batteries not the batteries used in cars! For those who are experts will know why.
For those who don't, here's the quotes from wikipedia:

The LiFePO4 battery uses a lithium-ion-derived chemistry and shares many advantages and disadvantages with other Lithium-ion battery chemistries. However, there are significant differences.
LFP chemistry offers a longer cycle life than other lithium-ion approaches.[7]
Like nickel-based rechargeable batteries (and unlike other lithium ion batteries), LiFePO4 batteries have a very constant discharge voltage. Voltage stays close to 3.2V during discharge until the battery is exhausted. This allows the battery to deliver virtually full power until it is discharged. And it can greatly simplify or even eliminate the need for voltage regulation circuitry.

[Cactusizer]

I like your step towards energy efficient mining and as someone stated earlier the first step will not always be so efficient but I am sure that one day you will make a really good product. The machine seems good but I think that the solar panel is where the problems are. You can't really improve solar panels beyond the worlds best because then we would have be having less problems with power in general but I think that your device needs to be built in cheaper ways and also accept wind power or make a machine that plugs into it that creates a small dam.

I am not fully sure but suggesting some ideas because most/all great inventions in the world started with a great idea.

I am currently working on building a ASIC that is very power efficient like the other leading companies that are doing it. I will be willing to work with you to make sure that the ASICs that are on the machine also take less power so that your machine will be more efficient.

Does the product come with some USBs or some piece of miner when you order it or is that suppose to be bought already. If you don't have a specific USB to give them already I can supply you with some that will be aimed at letting this project to be supported but also just for general usage.

Good job 

[solarminer.james]

I like your step towards energy efficient mining and as someone stated earlier the first step will not always be so efficient but I am sure that one day you will make a really good product. The machine seems good but I think that the solar panel is where the problems are. You can't really improve solar panels beyond the worlds best because then we would have be having less problems with power in general but I think that your device needs to be built in cheaper ways and also accept wind power or make a machine that plugs into it that creates a small dam.

I am not fully sure but suggesting some ideas because most/all great inventions in the world started with a great idea.

I am currently working on building a ASIC that is very power efficient like the other leading companies that are doing it. I will be willing to work with you to make sure that the ASICs that are on the machine also take less power so that your machine will be more efficient.

Does the product come with some USBs or some piece of miner when you order it or is that suppose to be bought already. If you don't have a specific USB to give them already I can supply you with some that will be aimed at letting this project to be supported but also just for general usage.

Good job  

Thanks! Would you mind telling me what company you are and what ASIC project you are working on? We are talking to some of the major players in the market for cooperation and we always welcomes new and better ASIC providers to partner with.

For SOLARMINER, we all know solar energy fluctuates depending on condition of the day, but that doesn't mean there's no other ways to improve it. We design it to overcome these condition and utilize solar as much as possible. Save power at great times and use it at overcast and nights, The product comes with three Solar panels total of 150Watts and three Lithium iron battery AC Charger for night times.

Our R&D department is also developing an even efficient way to dramatically improve the solar panel conversion rate with our patented technology. I can't disclose much of it, the only thing I can say is that, we ARE CHANGE the world and we are trying to provide much better solar solutions.

[repairguy]

Unless you are going to install enough solar panels to power your entire house, and most of the time not even then, there is almost no reason ever to use batteries on a solar installation!

If there's no batteries, the extra power that can be saved in day time are wasted. Batteries are necessary, it keeps extra power to compensate in cloudy days and evenings. It's especially necessary for CONSTANT BITCOIN MINING RIG.

AND SOLARMINER use LFP batteries not the batteries used in cars! For those who are experts will know why.
For those who don't, here's the quotes from wikipedia:

The LiFePO4 battery uses a lithium-ion-derived chemistry and shares many advantages and disadvantages with other Lithium-ion battery chemistries. However, there are significant differences.
LFP chemistry offers a longer cycle life than other lithium-ion approaches.[7]
Like nickel-based rechargeable batteries (and unlike other lithium ion batteries), LiFePO4 batteries have a very constant discharge voltage. Voltage stays close to 3.2V during discharge until the battery is exhausted. This allows the battery to deliver virtually full power until it is discharged. And it can greatly simplify or even eliminate the need for voltage regulation circuitry.

Yes, But a sine synchronous inverter will utilize every bit of power that a panel makes, without using batteries that will eventually go bad.  The kit that I found on ebay and posted earlier will make 7times the electricity as your product, has no batteries that will ever go bad and only costs 50 bucks more.