[RE-wrenches] Monitoring on Remote Sites

[Luke Christy]

Dave-
As Dan pointed out, the Litebeam products are not wifi extenders. They must be used in pairs or other multi-device arrangements. Put simply, they allow you to transfer a hard ethernet connection wirelessly through  a 5ghz radio link. One nice thing about them is that they function exactly like an ethernet cable when it comes to connections, so you can simply plug in a device at the far end of the link to use as a 2.4gHz access point for your SMA inverters. Your Nanostation M2 would be idea to connect to the far end of the Litebeam link to provide a 2.4gHz wireless access point there. 
I have used all sorts of solutions for wireless access at the far end of my radio links. Standard household wireless routers reconfigured to not use DHCP work fine as a wireless access point in most cases. I have also used lots of Ubiquiti Unifi AP devices as access points and those are better because you can set them up with a laptop and they are much more reliable than a low-end residential wireless router. They are pricier though and a little fussy to set up. 


> On Mar 14, 2022, at 12:38 PM, Dave Tedeyan <dave at sungineersolar.com> wrote:
> 
> Luke, 
> I wanted to try out Ubiquiti products, and bought a NanoStation M2, but haven't installed it yet. With the Lighbeam, can any device connect to it? If so, I know at least the SMA SB wifi can only connect to 2Ghz, and not 5Ghz. I'll have to see if there is a 2Ghz option. This is why I cannot use the Engenius equipment anymore, since their 202 replacement is 5Ghz only.
> Cheers,
> Dave
> 
> On Mon, Mar 14, 2022 at 2:28 PM Luke Christy <sgsrenewables at gmail.com <mailto:sgsrenewables at gmail.com>> wrote:
> Adam,
> I would second Dave’s suggestion to use wireless bridges for this application -if hardwired internet access is available elsewhere on the property and if there is decent line of sight access between that point and where your equipment lives. 
> 
> I have used a lot of Ubiquiti Litebeam point-to-point links for this sort of thing and they are awesome. They have given me rock solid dependability once they are set up and configured, they function just like a virtual ethernet cable over the radio link, and you can even have a single access point transmit to multiple stations. Range for the entry-level Litebeam M5 unit is up to 10km and you can get a pre-configured pair of antenna dishes on Amazon for less than $200. Two devices can be had for around $100 if you are willing to configure them yourself with a laptop or the UISP app from Ubiquiti.   Worth checking out. Other versions are available with longer range and more features but I have found the Litebeam M5 is very affordable and works well for most shorter-range applications. 
> 
> 
> Luke Christy
> 
> Renewable energy consultant.
> 
> NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional™: 
> 
> Solar Gain Services, LLC
> PO Box 531
> Monte Vista, CO. 81144
> SGSRenewables at Gmail.com <mailto:SGSRenewables at gmail.com>
> 719.588.3044
> 
> 
>> On Mar 14, 2022, at 11:48 AM, AE Solar <autonomousenergies at gmail.com <mailto:autonomousenergies at gmail.com>> wrote:
>> 
>> Wrenchers,
>> We have a project on a large property, where the install site has no internet (there is internet much further away on the property, and on a different service) and cell reception is pretty bad. We attempted to use SMA Cell Modem Kits (sunny boy inverters), but couldn't get a good enough signal for them to work. The client was fine with having just a production meter with no internet based monitoring. Now there is the possibility of expanding the system quite a bit (also with Sunny Boy's), and I'd prefer to figure out a way to monitor everything from offsite. Has anyone had any success using a third party antenna with the SMA Cell Modem Kits? Or have thoughts on other methods for setting up monitoring where we could, at a minimum, see the combined output of all the inverters? Thanks for any thoughts.
>> Adam
>> 
>> Adam Katzman (he/him)
>> Autonomous Energies | Owner/Operator
>> www.AutonomousEnergies.com <http://www.autonomousenergies.com/>
>> (518) 567-1468
>> 
>> 
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