VoskCoin Solar Powered Crypto Mining Farm Build Plan! ☀️ Input Needed!

VoskCoin · November 17, 2020, 4:15pm

Finally building the solar-powered VoskCoin mining farm!

First, I’m sure you’re impressed with my lovely graphic design above showing our rough solar mining farm build plan LOL! The goal is pretty simple here, huge believer in Bitcoin, Ethereum, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology.

This will be a rolling thread, basically, that just means that I will be consistently updating it with more information as it becomes available to us or simply when decisions are made.

The initial goal is to create a solar setup that provides a consistent 10,000 watts during the day.

To provide a bit of a background, I’ve always been infatuated with “off the grid” style things, but after meeting Peter aka CrazyDane and touring his solar powered crypto mining farm, I was absolutely inspired to build something similar!

You can watch our original crazydane solar mining farm video tour here

You can also watch our much better quality UPDATED solar mining farm video tour of his here!

Some key notes about our solar build

It will be built in Virginia
Long-term play, eventually, someday, one day, it will pay off
Ideally, I’d like to break even in 3 years or less
I will DIY the install to the best of my ability
I’m not interested in more than ~200 amps of usable power
The goal is to have the first phase of this completed by the end of 2021
I’m interested in bang for buck solar power panels and gear
I will use a combination of GPU, ASIC, and FPGA mining rigs in this farm

Solar Panels and inverters

Solar panels are a pretty important aspect, right? I still haven’t determined an exact model, I am planning to do a set up like CrazyDane did with his because this makes the panels easier to maintain and clean, it’s also a relatively cheap way to deploy them.

We plan to use string inverters, again like shown in CrazyDanes video solar farm tour.

For a solar inverter, we are currently considering using Sunny Boy’s

Solar power tax advantages and write-off’s

These fluctuate, but naturally, we plan to take advantage of every write-off possible. There are national programs as well as state-wide programs, again, we are in Virginia and plan to explore this further.

Just read this article, and unless this changes soon 2021 is the last “best” year to buy solar panels!

Batteries?!

I am worried that batteries will add a lot of cost and maintenance to this project, to be honest I would rather have the miners simply power off when the sun fades to add less stress to my life! Currently seeking more input on this subject to determine what is the best financial decision here that also keeps this a low-maintenance project.

Random solar-powered mining farm notes

I’d like to set up a Tesla power wall, I think they’re super cool. I would also like to run our home off of solar power as well

Here’s a reply from the solar mining legend CrazyDane aka Peter

"Hey Drew,

So this is the string inverter I used to the two newest arrays. Cost is $1,580.06 currently and I think they do free shipping.

As for the panels, if I was to pick some up now, I would go with these:

https://www.renvu.com/Solar/Mono-Poly-Crystalline-Solar-Modules/Trina-Solar-TSM-DD05H.05II-310W-Mono-Split-Cell-Module

310 Watts each, so 24 of them would be a good match to the above converter. Price is $164.30 each, so cost for 24 of them would come to $3943.20.

So grand total would be $5,523.26 plus shipping. To that you would need to add the mounting, be it roof or ground mount. There would also be the cost of wiring. All together that would probably add between 15 – 25% to the total.

Don’t forget the 30% federal tax credit, although that will be slowly going away over the next several years.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Peter"

11.20.20 Video update of my rough plans for the solar mining farm

What suggestions do you have for our solar mining farm? Reply below!

oorWullie · November 17, 2020, 4:41pm

This is exactly where I hoped you would take the channel when I started watching your mining videos back at the start. Looking forward to seeing the adventure unfold.

Carl_Bishop · November 17, 2020, 5:34pm

Batteries do add a lot of cost and maintenance to the set up, so you probably want it tied into the grid and set your miners to power off right after sundown, then back on a bit after sunrise. This way, when you do get an electric bill, it’ll be pennies, or they may even pay you depending on how much you’re producing be using.

Be sure to set up an hvac system that is super energy efficient as well. Those summer months can be rough.

RonnieDennies504 · November 17, 2020, 5:49pm

Gotta add windmills…double up…they sell combo kits

rml52 · November 17, 2020, 5:50pm

For the hydro option mentioned in the video you may want to look at Land to Home YouTube channel as he does a lot of hydro setups for both electrical and water relocation.

Located in NC

Carl_Bishop · November 17, 2020, 6:02pm

I can see it now… fields of solar panels, windmills, and a stream with one of those old school wheels on it and there in the back you see Vosk heading to the crypto shed…

Yacob_Tsige · November 17, 2020, 7:26pm

Hey Vosk i would suggest using super capacitors and batteries since they can store energy at daytime and slowly discharge as it goes dark. Plus the capacitors are way cheaper than li-ion but do note that efficiency of capacitors decrease when temperatures are high .

i hope this helps

VoskCoin · November 17, 2020, 8:05pm

Not interesting in windmills due to our location, their price, and also their noise factor.

VoskCoin · November 17, 2020, 8:06pm

I like this!! Crypto farming netflix series coming soon?? lol

VoskCoin · November 17, 2020, 8:06pm

any suggestions on specific models/brands?

deletethename · November 17, 2020, 9:47pm

This guys buys old lab top batteries and charges them with solar to run his house

Carl_Bishop · November 17, 2020, 10:05pm

Think of it in the sense of buying a power supply… the better rating, the more efficient it is. I can look into a few brands to see, my supervisor at work has been building homes and stuff for like 20 years.

Also, during the winter months you could probably use some shop fans as long as you have negative airflow.

That’s a good place to look as well, just have to sort out how big the mining shack is gonna be to pick how many BTU you need.

XgenPower · November 17, 2020, 10:29pm

This is exciting! I am very happy to be here and be apart of your amazing journey.

My name Colin, a co-owner of Xgen Power located in Virginia, Va. We are a solar contractor who specialize in the design, engineering and installation of residential and commercial solar photovoltaic systems. You can check us out at www.xgenpower.com

I am a United States veteran who served 8 years on active duty in the US Navy. I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering. My partner holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Structural Engineering. We both own and operate Xgen Power LLC.

My partner and I love everything solar, and we are excited to contribute in anyway we can.

Looking forward to be apart of this journey.

XgenPower · November 17, 2020, 10:40pm

I think going with a ground mount setup like Peter aka CrazyDane is the best way to go since you have the real estate for it. Also, it will be easier to continue adding to your system as you go and maintenance will be easier as well.

Since you have not decided on modules (panels) as yet, I would recommend you looking into Axitec 400W and Hanwha Q-Cells 400W modules. These are high power/ high quality modules and will also give you the best bang for your buck. I can provide or you could look up the specification sheets for these modules.

Bradtb · November 19, 2020, 4:10am

fairly new sub here … I found this guy awhile back. Super smart and I’m sure he’d love the collaboration. I’d like to have one with both you and him …when I get some land of course! Check it out. https://www.youtube.com/c/WillProwse

VoskCoin · November 20, 2020, 3:01pm

Edited in this reply into OP from CrazyDane the solar mining legend (was sent to me via email previously)

"Hey Drew,

So this is the string inverter I used to the two newest arrays. Cost is $1,580.06 currently and I think they do free shipping.

As for the panels, if I was to pick some up now, I would go with these:

https://www.renvu.com/Solar/Mono-Poly-Crystalline-Solar-Modules/Trina-Solar-TSM-DD05H.05II-310W-Mono-Split-Cell-Module

310 Watts each, so 24 of them would be a good match to the above converter. Price is $164.30 each, so cost for 24 of them would come to $3943.20.

So grand total would be $5,523.26 plus shipping. To that you would need to add the mounting, be it roof or ground mount. There would also be the cost of wiring. All together that would probably add between 15 – 25% to the total.

Don’t forget the 30% federal tax credit, although that will be slowly going away over the next several years.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Peter"

cbalbrecht · November 21, 2020, 5:31am

THREE things to consider:

#1 - Buy SOLAR panels with either 5 or preferably 8 bus bars per cell. The greater the number of bus bars, the higher the efficiency.

#2 - If you use STRING inverters, you MUST be connected to the GRID. STRING inverters NEED to see a 60Hz signal from the GRID, or they won’t turn on. https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2018/03/ac-dc-coupling-use-next-storage-project/

#3 - Look into OVERSIZING your SOLAR Array(s). https://news.energysage.com/should-you-oversize-your-solar-panel-system/ I have 6,660W of panels on a 5kW inverter.

CryptoBlockchainTech · November 21, 2020, 10:23am

I made a 44 panel (300W panels 12KW total) for my solar mining farm. I used new Grade B panels (fully functional only minor cosmetic blemishes) that I bought on Ebay and paid $105 + shipping. So take a look at Ebay when it comes to panels, you can find some great deals. There are different Grades (A,B,C) some may not be able to be used on-grid. So do your research first.

As far as calculating how many panels you will need for each GPU expect 4:1 ratio for typical 150w/GPU to cover electricity usage 24/7. Here is a graph from this year when my system went active in march. I ran with a 13 Rig 5700XT system until mid July and was breaking even for mining as the energy consumption in the graph includes home usage. So 13 GPUs x 4 = 52 panels needed to break even (keep in mind they produce less power during the winter due to shorter days). I did lose the fight with the wife to go to 52 panels as she wanted sun tanning space so the patio roof had to be smaller. Now keep in mind where you live can impact the amount of power you produce. I live in the southwest US and have 300 days sun a year, so I have a great solar index.

In July I started expanding in preparation for POS rise in price and 4GB rig drop-off in December. I am currently at 87 and going to 120 RX5700 XTs by EOY. You can see I would need a lot more solar to support these 87 cards, or 87*4=348 panels (at 300W each)

Finally you don’t need batteries. Use the grid (unless you don’t have grid access on your property) as your battery. You overproduce during the day and take back the energy from the grid at night. No hardware/maintenance costs. Also since you are a do-it yourselfer DO NOT pay someone to install solar for you. They are the biggest ripoff right now and one reason why it is expanding so slow. My 44 panel system was quoted at over $75K and I did it myself for1/4 of that cost.

KillrrPC · November 21, 2020, 3:19pm

Hi Vosk
This is my house.
before roof
We live in Ontario between Toronto & Niagara Falls. In Spring 2017 we purchased $30K CAD, or a 9.96 KW solar system for the roof. The maximum residential install on solar here is 10 KW, and that is also what is sensible for the property. The panels are all on the backside of house and not visible from the street, love that part. We do have a tree in the backyard, but it is not too bad for casting shade on roof (we have it cut back every few years), and of course our Canadian winters, with snow sometimes covering panels.
after roof
We do not have batteries, and feed back to the grid directly. In 2017 we got onto tail end of provincial Microfit solar program, which is 20 yr contract to sell back power @ $.30 per kwh locked rate to our local power company. This is a little more than twice our average cost to use power on our time of use program here, and our average cost is similar to yours in USD. We receive a bill for what we use, and then a week later a check for what we have produced. The panels have averaged about $3,200 CAD return per year, and we also get a nice capital cost allowance depreciation on the equipment at tax time. The ROI I have estimated to be about 8 years on its own steam, and every piece of equipment on roof has full manufacture warranty for 25 yrs.

From sign to install it took 1 1/2 years, and was a complete nightmare to coordinate via the brokers. Solar power for us is strong in summer and overall per year pays back about 40% of my power & water bills, 37 GPU, 4 people & dog. My location is probably not the best for solar, but the system will pay for itself in what I consider acceptable time, and with the crypto mining multiplier it is a sound vertical investment for sure. Of course it may also impact my home resale value positively. The panels do a good job of preserving & protecting my roof underneath, which I consider a benefit having paid to replace the roof twice since owning home.

My advice to you is to build out as much solar as you can, because I think you will find your eventual mining power requirements will have your solar maxed out, and you drawing from grid. We did not go with batteries because of the ongoing expense replacing them, and because of our government incentive to feed the grid. You should look into programs to find if batteries are the best route, or simple less expensive grid feeding is more beneficial.
That creek hydro power idea may have legs, and I cant wait to see more on that. You could also look at wind power generation.

XgenPower · November 22, 2020, 3:34pm

Vosk,

Are you absolutely set on using string inverters for your PV system? I want you to understand the advantages and disadvantages of these inverters.

Some advantages are; the technology is trusted, they are cheaper than microinverters and they are easy to maintain.

Some disadvantages are; they provide a single point of failure. If the inverter fails then your entire solar array goes down as well. Also, expandability will be an issue unless you buy a larger inverter than is needed upfront. I personally stay away from string inverters as much as I can. My main reason is that the panels are wired in series, if one solar panel output is affected say by shading, the entire series of solar panels are affected as well in equal measure. This is however not the case with microinverters.

Bottom line, microinverters allow the flexibility to continue to scale as you go without limitations. They also don’t have a single point of failure and this is the main reason I recommend this route.

Thank you,
Colin.