…… Need best beginner's guide to solar panels and batteries

[WisconsinGardener]

My husband died this past January. He was an engineer and understood about batteries and such. He was apparently getting us ready, maybe, to use solar power, at least at some beginning prep level. Now, he's gone, and I know nothing about any of this. I have found, so far, five unopened boxes of Harbor Freight Tool solar panels (the ones with the three panels). I know we have at least a couple of marine batteries because we took them camping for our CPAPs. However, I have yet to find any more batteries. He was a pack rat, to put it kindly, and there is just stuff everywhere that I am still sorting through. Barely made a dent so far. I have run across warnings from people having dreams, from insiders speaking out, and just my own gut telling me to get ready to be without power. Timeframe from those suggest November-December. Obviously, that could be way wrong.

Bottom line - I need an understandable, beginner's guide to solar panels and batteries. I don't even know what I don't know. I would prefer a book (or several books), but while I can, I'll watch YouTube videos, so if you know of any Solar Power 101 ones that are good, please recommend. It's just not at the top of the priority list to do immediately. I am trying to get the long term structure of my garden finished, along with lots of other things, and I am alone (plus not as young/strong as I used to be). My kids are stuck in Canada, so it's just me. So, I need info that's not dependent on power to use it. I was going to go to the Midwest Energy Fair, but of course, that's been cancelled. I need really entry level info, here, preferably with pictures.

Please feel free to move this thread to a more appropriate place. I just thought I'd start with it here so people would see it.

Thanks.

Edit to add - I started this thread because I was on Amazon trying to find a good book, and I realized I could spend a lot of money and still not wind up with good information.

 

[night driver]

Basics to read. I looked at this site and it looks like they get REAL basic (starting at "What is PV Solar" and progressing). (for the record, "PV Solar" translates to "Photo Voltaic Solar Power" (it's what you are trying to do with the China Freight collectors and batteries).

Solar Panels 101: A Guide to Solar Energy and Systems

How do solar panels work? What is solar energy? What is solar power? If you've been asking these questions, find these answers and more at Unbound Solar!

www.wholesalesolar.com

Looks like a GREAT place to start educating your self.

EVENTUALLY, they are going to want to sell stuff, but just be strong and don't buy.

There is actually a "Home Soar For Dummies" book in the series, as well.

I'm hoping we have someone who knows someone in your area who can "Elmer" you through the assembly and such at home.

 

[hiwall]

I could help you with direct questions but I don't know of any worthwhile books. I had purchased a couple of E-books but I found them to be worthless as far as practical working information.
I do have a solar system on my RV and a larger system on my house.

 

[LoupGarou]

You need to find all of the pieces that you can at the moment before doing anything else. For any solar PV (Photovoltaic) system, there will be five main parts:

• Solar Panels (PV Panels) These convert the sun to RAW electrical power (Voltage and current swings change with sun levels)
• Charge Controllers These control the RAW DC power from the PV panels to regulated power that the batteries like.
• Batteries These store the power for use when the sun goes down or more power is needed at the moment than the PV can provide.
• Inverters These convert the DC to AC power for normal household devices.
• Wiring This gets the power from one device to the next.

What is needed, is to get the specs off of the Solar Panels, the Charge Controllers, the Batteries (Type, voltage and quantity), and the Inverter(s). Once you have that info, then we can make a schematic (circuit layout) that will make all of that work.

Loup

 

[Rabbit]

I need the same advice on a basic simple solar array even if it is just enough to keep small flashlight batteries charged or to run a dorm-sized refrigerator. I'm feeling twitchy about the loss of power in the same time frame.

 

[LoupGarou]

I need the same advice on a basic simple solar array even if it is just enough to keep small flashlight batteries charged or to run a dorm-sized refrigerator. I'm feeling twitchy about the loss of power in the same time frame.

What do you have as far as equipment now? Any Solar Panels, charge controllers, batteries or inverters?

If nothing in that category, what is the list of devices that you want to run?

Loup

 

[Rabbit]

What do you have as far as equipment now? Any Solar Panels, charge controllers, batteries or inverters?

If nothing in that category, what is the list of devices that you want to run?

Loup

I don't have anything yet. I would be starting fresh.

 

[TxGal]

I need the same advice on a basic simple solar array even if it is just enough to keep small flashlight batteries charged or to run a dorm-sized refrigerator. I'm feeling twitchy about the loss of power in the same time frame.

This morning I woke up with the same though, Rabbit. I'd like a solar system that will run a dorm-sized fridge. Our recent events with a new fridge from Lowe's that pooped out after three months and trying - not too successfully - to get it repaired has shown just how unwound the system is becoming. The wait times for repair (if lucky) or even to try to get through the phone system to try to schedule repair has pretty much crumbled.

I just don't have a good feeling going forward. I dearly hope I'm wrong.

 

[dberszerker]

I have this video, it was helpful. They offer free lessons as well, but I haven't looked at them.

Solar Training Course-Green Power Videos

GreenPowerVideos.com is for sale | HugeDomains

Easy, affordable options for you to obtain the domain you want. Safe and secure shopping.

www.greenpowervideos.com

 

[Warm Wisconsin]

You need to find all of the pieces that you can at the moment before doing anything else. For any solar PV (Photovoltaic) system, there will be five main parts:

• Solar Panels (PV Panels) These convert the sun to RAW electrical power (Voltage and current swings change with sun levels)
• Charge Controllers These control the RAW DC power from the PV panels to regulated power that the batteries like.
• Batteries These store the power for use when the sun goes down or more power is needed at the moment than the PV can provide.
• Inverters These convert the DC to AC power for normal household devices.
• Wiring This gets the power from one device to the next.

What is needed, is to get the specs off of the Solar Panels, the Charge Controllers, the Batteries (Type, voltage and quantity), and the Inverter(s). Once you have that info, then we can make a schematic (circuit layout) that will make all of that work.

Loup

WG if you get all the pieces together that your husband collected. I could stop out and help fill in the gaps Then when you get everything together I could help assemble it and test it.

 

[bbbuddy]

I would suggest that anyone with questions/ wanting to learn, join this forum Northern Arizona Wind & Sun Solar Forum.
Many experts there, many quite willing to help and answer questions.

I was able to build our system pretty much just from doing extensive reading there, and asking some questions. We live off grid, I use many electric appliances, including a regular refrigerator, and regular upright large freezer, a washer, and a dryer.
Oh, and a 1hp well pump....

 

[hiwall]

My RV has a dorm-sized fridge with a small freezer (standard 120 volt). When running it draws 88 watts. When starting it draws about 1000watts for a second. I have a 750 watt inverter with a 1500 watt surge capacity. That works great. I have two 12 volt deep cycle batteries that I bought at Walmart. On the roof of the RV I have about 250 watts of solar panels. That solar setup is 12 volts into the inverter which changes it to 120 volt(standard house current). My solar controller is a MPPT 30 amp.
When camping the solar runs the refrigerator and any other small things we use (laptop, charging cell phones). It also runs the lights and the water pump. We have never run out of power when camping. (Disclaimer: we only camp during nice weather and we live in Arizona where we get a lot of sun).
I just checked ebay for prices....
Inverter= $45
100 watt solar panels= $75 each
30amp solar controller= $40
12v deep cycle battery(Walmart)= $84 each

So for a system to run a small refrigerator and a couple small things would be about $500.

 

[Millwright]

I second Arizona wind and power, forum.

IIRC, they have a beginner's room.

 

[WisconsinGardener]

WG if you get all the pieces together that your husband collected. I could stop out and help fill in the gaps Then when you get everything together I could help assemble it and test it.

Thank you!! It is so great that you are near by and understand this stuff. I will begin collecting. I know I saw a box (unopened) that said controller. It is possible that he had gotten everything he needed. He just needed more time. It's probably all cheap Harbor Freight, but at least it is something.

And thank all of you for the advice. ♥

 

[LoupGarou]

If anybody wants to start from scratch, or already has some or most of the parts, I don't mind talking them through the rest of the setup. I have posted a excel spreadsheet a few years back that does the math for you if you want to use that, or I can work it out with you on this thread so that others see what is happening.

If you are starting from scratch, then we need to start with the loads you want to hopefully power, and the specifications of each (voltage and either amperage or wattage). On the back or underside of most devices (usually near the power cord input on the device), there is a nameplate that will list the power input needed for the device to work as designed. You need to list all of these devices, along with both the voltage needed (12V DC, 120V AC, 240V AC...) and either the Amperage (5 Amps, 10 Amps...) or the wattage (150 watts, 1300 watts...). Once we know that list, then we can see how much capacity we would need in Solar Panels, Batteries, and Inverters.


If you already have some of the pieces, we need to see what you have, what it is rated for, and what you are expecting it to do. This means that you have to get the specifications for all of the pieces separately, from the panels, to the charge controller, to the batteries, to the inverter, to ALL of the individual loads.

Solar Panels will usually have a sticker on the back of them that shows a myriad of info. The important parts for these calculations are:

• Vmpp Voltage at Maximum Power Point
• Impp Current at Maximum Power Point
• Voc Voltage Open Circuit
• Isc Current, Short Circuit

Charge Controllers will have a few important specifications that need to be worked with as well:

• Charge Controller Type (This will be Switched, PWM or MPPT)
• Input Voltage Range (it will always be a range, with a well defined maximum, 15-22V, 18-42V, 30-150V...)
• Output Voltage Range (will have to match what the battery is needing AND what the inverter is designed for)

Batteries will have three specifications as well:

• Battery type (Flooded Lead Acid, Sealed Lead Acid, AGM, Lithium (many different types), or NiFe)
• Nominal voltage (2V, 6V, 12V, 18V, 24V...)
• Current Capacity (This will always be in AH (AmpHours), if the battery is ONLY rated in CCA, you don't want it for solar use)

And lastly, Inverters will have at least three specifications that need to be known:

• Inverter type (MSW (Modified Sine Wave), or Pure Sine Wave)
• Input Voltage (12V DC, 24V DC, 36V DC, 48V DC, 120V DC...)
• Output Voltage (120V AC, 240V AC...)
• Output Wattage Capacity (This will be rated in Watts, and should have both Continuous and Surge values. You want to know both)

And you need to get a list of loads together along with their separate Voltages and either Amperages or Wattages.

Loup

 

[desert knight]

this is a pretty good beginners guide to solar power. its 47 minutes long all together but very understandable for a newbie.

View: https://youtu.be/w4qcoEXYqK0

 

[CELLO]

Warm Wisconsin and LoupGarou can get you through this quite nicely, Sounds like.
(Says Cello as he's sitting in his solar powered RV, powered by a Wholesale Solar modified "Cabin" package. Freezer, Microwave, small window a/c, Mr Coffee and everything else running quite nicely without plugging in!)

 

[fish hook]

I need the same advice on a basic simple solar array even if it is just enough to keep small flashlight batteries charged or to run a dorm-sized refrigerator. I'm feeling twitchy about the loss of power in the same time frame.

If that is all you need you might consider this or something like it

Amazon.com: Solar AA & AAA Rechargeable Batteries Charger for 1.2V AA AAA NiMH NiCD & 9V Battery with 2Watt Solar Panel Portable Backup for 1.2V Ni-MH Ni-CD of Solar Powered Lights and Household Battery: Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: Solar AA & AAA Rechargeable Batteries Charger for 1.2V AA AAA NiMH NiCD & 9V Battery with 2Watt Solar Panel Portable Backup for 1.2V Ni-MH Ni-CD of Solar Powered Lights and Household Battery: Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

 

[Giblin]

Hi does anyone know of a complete portable solar unit? About 20 years ago I saw a small unit mounted on a 3 w
wheel bike that opened up to the sun and then folded to be stored for emergencies. All you needed was to plug into it. At the time it was way beyond my finances. Something smallto run a dorm fridge and laptop. Thanks

 

[nwillitts]

here-

DIY Solar Power Forum

Love building DIY solar electric projects? Come hang out :D

diysolarforum.com

and here-

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4pN4DVPOcY&t=629s


your welcome.

 

[Tundra Gypsy]

Thanks for all the information too! I'm have no idea where to begin. I've been feeling the next thing to happen is power outages. I will look at some of your posts and start writing things down as to what I will need.

Had a couple out this week to put some solar panels on my little travel trailer. Bought some additional propane tanks for the trailer. I will use the solar panels and an inverter to keep the batteries charged. For my trailer and little room off the house, I bought a Mr. Buddy and numerous 1 lb. cylinders. Will be getting an adapter so I can refill the little bottles from the bigger ones. The small tanks are only good for about 5.4 hours. If we have fires; I will be bugging out in that little trailer. I need to be self-sufficient.

 

[hiwall]

Hi does anyone know of a complete portable solar unit?

There are things called solar generators but they are always very expensive for what you get.
Here is one....

NATURE'S GENERATOR 1800-Watt/2880W Peak Push Button Start Solar Powered Portable Generator with One 100W Solar Panel GXNGAU - The Home Depot

The Nature's Generator is comprised of 2-natural ways to generate free electricity. The first is through the included solar panel(s) and the second is through the wind generator port, wind generators can be purchased separately. The system consists of a battery pack that stores electrical...

www.homedepot.com

 

[LoupGarou]

Hi does anyone know of a complete portable solar unit? About 20 years ago I saw a small unit mounted on a 3 w
wheel bike that opened up to the sun and then folded to be stored for emergencies. All you needed was to plug into it. At the time it was way beyond my finances. Something smallto run a dorm fridge and laptop. Thanks

Do you want: Ready made, kit form, or put the system together yourself from parts?

I am assuming the dorm fridge and the laptop are around 100 watts each when running. The fridge runs about 15-25% duty cycle, but cycles all day (24 hours a day), so you are looking at 100W X .25 X 24 = 600WH (WattHours) a day for the fridge.

The laptop probably takes 100 watts max, for the length of time you plan on using it each day. If you plan on using it 4 hours a day, you are at max using 400WH per day. 12 hours a day = 1,200WH per day max. For the calculations, we will say 4 hours a day on average, so 400WH/day.

600WH for the fridge per day, plus the 400WH for the laptop, gives us a power demand of 1,000WH per day (1KWH/day).

First, we look at what we need as far as a battery to keep that up for a day... We need to know two things now: How many sunny hours in a day do you normally get, and how many cloudy days do you get in a week on average between the sunny days. Around here, we get about 6 hours of strong sun, and we usually get a "strong sun" day at least every 3 days (so sunny day followed by two cloudy days before the next sunny day). This figures in to about 6 hours every 72 hours with a marginal amount of light for another 12-14 hours during that period. Our batteries need to be able to cover the load for at least 72 hours by themselves, so 1,000KWH X 3 = 3,000KWH needed over 3 days. Now we break this down to the battery specifications needed. 3,000KWH / 12V = 250AH. The battery is just a storage place for electricity, not a generator. Think of it as a gas tank. If you don't have gas stations between here and where you want to go, you have to have either a bigger gas tank, OR multiple gas tanks to get there from here. 250AH in Lead Acid (the easiest to use, and the cheapest per AH of capacity) can be made with two 12V 125AH batteries connected in Parallel, OR two 6V 250AH batteries connected in Series (will show some wiring diagrams later). I have been buying the 12V ~100AH AGM batteries from SAMS for most of my smaller solar setups and have had no problem at all with them. You could use 3 of them in parallel to make up a nice 12V 300AH pack.

Now, to charge that battery (fill the tank). in 6 hours you will need: 250AH / 6 hours = 41.6 Amps of "12V" panels. Again, this is for here where we only get 6 hours of sun every three days. If you get 6 hours of sun a day, then you are looking at a LOT less panels: 250AH / 18 hours = 13.8 Amps of "12V" panels. I put the 12V in quotes as 12V is the NOMINAL or SYSTEM voltage of the panels. The actual voltage is around 18V for a "12V" panel. This is the same for batteries as well. A "12V" battery is actually going to run between 10.8V for fully discharged, to 12.8V for fully charged, to 13.5V during float charging, to 14.2-15.4 for cyclical charging (which is why we just call the parts by their nominal or system voltages). Now, getting back to the solar panels, since "12V" nominal panels are actually 18V devices, you are only going to get around 5.7Amps per 100 watt panels, so to get the needed 41.6 Amps for around here, you are looking at (41.6A / 5.7A per panel) 7.3 , 100W panels. If you are in a better part of the US, and get the 6 hours of sun per day, then you can get away with 2.4 panels (13.8 Amps / 5.7 Amps per panel). And the panels are still cheap. You can get the flexible ones for around a dollar a watt, and the framed ones for less if you look around. Amazon sells them a little higher, but you have more choices. I have been picking them up over the years form MANY sources (Amazon, SunElec, other wholesalers...) Some I get for 30 cents per watt in bulk, some are higher but have features I want like bendable or flexible panels, OR CIGS or Amorphous type panels that do better during cloudy times. Three of the framed panels on Amazon (Search for "100 watt solar flexible panels") that run around $100 each, will easily fit the bill if you get 6 hours a day of sun. 8 of the panels for the crappy weather we have here may not fit to easily on a bike, but three would.

And as far as inverters, you are looking at a 400-750 watt, 12V inverter needed to both start and run the fridge as well as run/charge the laptop. You can pick up them at several places for under $100-150 depending on model and other features they have.

And the last piece, a good, high efficiency MPPT charge controller can be had for under $150 if you look around (Like: Amazon.com: Renogy RCC40RVRE-G1 40 amp MPPT Solar Charge Controller, 40Amp, With Lcd Display: Electronics $136), OR under $30 for a PWM one (Like: https://www.amazon.com/Charge-Controller-Intelligent-Display-Regulator/dp/B07KXDFVNM $17.99). You need one or the other, not one of each. The PWM one is cheaper, but does not do well at all during cloudy days. The MPPT pulls the most power it can from the panels no matter what the conditions are, so even during cloudy days you will get at least some usable power to charge your batteries. I have a MPPT on most of my systems, and it is good enough that I get usable power (a few amps) during a full moon at night on my systems that have Amorphous or CIGS panels.

All total, you are looking at:
3-7 panels ($300-$750 at amazon prices)
2-3 100AH 12V batteries ($200-$400)
1 Inverter ($100-$150)
1 Charge Controller ($20-$140)
Wire to hook it all up ($20-$50 depending on how much you want to spread the parts out)

Loup

 

[nwillitts]

lifepo4 batteries is where its at.forget lead acid.way too heavy and and and not much power.

 

[desert knight]

for our cabin system, we have been using (6) 6 volt golf cart lead acid batteries tied in series and parallel, making (3) 12 volt batteries with 690 amp hours of capacity . each battery cost around $110. we have been using them now for 5 years. its only a weekend cabin, but the system has worked perfect. i definitely will be looking at the lifepo4 batteries once these golf cart batteries are done. however, i know that those batteries run close to $900 per battery

 

[LoupGarou]

lifepo4 batteries is where its at.forget lead acid.way too heavy and and and not much power.

Agreed, but for a simple system and keeping the up front costs down, I was showing the Lead Acid route first. The availability of equipment for the older Lead Acid systems is also still much easier to get and a lot more tolerant to any "OOOPSes". I have both lead acid and Lithium, as well as three NiFe based battery systems and they each have their own set of pros and cons. I do agree that in the long run, the Lithium batteries are cheaper, provided that you take care of them, never let them get too far discharged, always keep them balanced, and NEVER overcharge them. If you are looking for something that will take a few times of being mistreated, Lithium systems are not it, Lead Acid are much better at taking "rough treatment" as far as charge/discharge levels, and Nickel Iron (NiFe) are the best of all. NiFe tolerate being dropped to zero volts and have very little problem being overcharged, plus they can be built from scratch if you have a good source of Iron/Steel and Nickel sheets and some Lye. They are wicked heavy and rather large per AmpHour, so we talking even less portable than a large lead acid system, but they are very dependable.

Loup

 

[Giblin]

Thanks Loup, I'm in SC and age 70. I was hoping for a box to open and system ready to plug into.

 

[mecoastie]

Loup where are you getting those AGM batteries? Reading this got me thinking I need to get new batteries while I can. I currently have some Marine batts but they are a few years old.

 

[WisconsinGardener]

So much of this sounds Greek, but I will watch the videos and hopefully learn the language.

 

[LoupGarou]

Loup where are you getting those AGM batteries? Reading this got me thinking I need to get new batteries while I can. I currently have some Marine batts but they are a few years old.

Sams club has the Group 31 Size (105AH) 12V battery for around $180. They are more expensive than some of the other options, but I have not had a bad one yet. You can find them a bit cheaper if you look around.

That being said, I would also suggest looking at the serviceable "wet cell" batteries ranging from the Trojan 16 series, to golf cart batteries like the EGC2s. While the AGMs are nice, it is also nice being able to pop the caps and add in hydrogen peroxide if the cells get low if you overcharge them or equalize them too long. AGMs should NEVER be equalized because they can't be refilled easily, so you can end up with cells out of balance if you are not careful with AGMs. The Wet Cell Lead Acid Batteries can be "topped off" with either distilled water or better yet, regular hydrogen peroxide (3%, brown bottle, in the pharmacy) to get them back up to level and allow the cells to be equalized as far as charge. The Hydrogen Peroxide does a great job of keeping the plates clean, no sulfation, and keeping the current flow at max.

If you don't mind used, you can ask around when you see the technicians and engineers working at cellular tower sites. They have to replace the batteries in the little building at the bottom of the tower every few years and usually if you talk to the right person, you can pick them up for next to nothing and most of them work just fine. I have picked up vanloads of 35 and 50AH AGM 12V batteries and all sorts of others over the years. Computer data centers are another one to go check out. Hospitals are as well for the smaller batteries as they have to replace them even more often as a battery failure may cause a lot more personal issues than a downed cell tower would. Either way it is a cheap way to pick up a lot of good AGM batteries.

You can get with your local Dept of Transportation and do that same thing with solar panels, as a LOT of road projects get traded out and upgraded and those used panels usually sit in a warehouse somewhere till they get written off the books. I won't even begin to list all of the goodies I have picked up that way...

Loup

 

[LoupGarou]

Thanks Loup, I'm in SC and age 70. I was hoping for a box to open and system ready to plug into.

There are several systems that are fairly plug and go out there, but you will be paying for the convenience.

Goal Zero has the Yeti line. For what you are wanting to do, the Yeti 1000 Lithium with one external battery added to it should work fine.
The Yeti 1000 Lithium itself: Yeti 1000 Lithium Portable Power Station + MPPT + Nomad 100 Solar Panel Kit $1199.95
The expansion module to allow it to have additional batteries: Yeti Link Expansion Module | Goal Zero $399.95
And one Yeti Tank Expansion battery: Yeti Tank Expansion Battery Yeti Tank Expansion Battery $399.95


There are other units out there but you have to take a long look at their full specifications to see if they will work for your needs. For example, Jackery makes a 1000W Lithium Power Pack with 1002WH of battery capacity, but no way to add any more capacity to the battery, AND it only allows up to 200W of solar panels to charge with. Now, this may seem like it would work, and charge the battery back up in 6-7 hours (200W X 6-7 hours is 1200-1400WH into the 12V battery). BUT, the issue is that none of that solar power would be going to power any of the devices, so the battery would never get charged unless it is used and THEN charged. This would allow you to run your refrigerator and laptop for 5-6 hours at night, but it would have to recharge with the devices off during the day so that would not work. The 1000W inverter would work, but you need more battery capacity (2000-3000WH of batteries depending on how many shady days you have), AND you need a lot more solar capacity to charge it in 5-6 hours guarnateed while the rest of the solar power is running the loads. 2000-3000WH of batteries and at least 500-700 watts of solar panels input to the system. Most of the small premade systems dont have that capability. They are designed for smaller loads that are not run constantly, OR really smaller loads that are run constantly that are small enough that 50 watts of the 200 watts of solar power coming in will power the load while the 150 charges the batteries back up.

Whatever solution you look at, make sure that it has the battery capacity to actually cover the battery alone running all of the devices you want for the time between a full sunny day to the next sunny day. So if you have 200 watts of load, and every other day is a sunny day, you need 200W X 48H = 9,600WH of battery. Most of the portable systems are not going to have this much, but then again, what you are talking about is also not that much demand. As I suggested above, you are looking at more along the lines of a 100 watt laptop for 8 hours every two days, and a 100 watt (@25% duty cycle, so it's actually 25W) fridge for 48 hours. This works out to 800WH + (25W X 48H) = 2,000WH of battery needed. Definitely doable. You just need to make sure that you can charge that back in 5-6 hours (2000WH/5 hours)= 400 watts of panels for charging the batteries, PLUS another 200 watts of panels to run the loads while the batteries are charging, so 600-700 watts of panels will do it.

You might want to still look into a make it yourself package system, even if you build it inside of a cooler or on a hand truck cart for portability. It will save you money and since you use off the shelf parts you can repair it a lot easier.

Loup

 

[Giblin]

Thanks Loup!

 

[mecoastie]

Loup THanks for the info. I found a store locally that has the Duracell Golf Cart batts so I am going to grab a couple this week. That should work for me for now. My panels are 100 W and my charge controller is only 10A so I think I am about maxed out on panels due to the size of the controller. It works for charging batteries and powering a radio which was its original intent. This thread has me thinking of expanding. Going to start watching CL for some more panels and a bigger controller.

 

[MaryLu]

Thank you for all the information, I too am interested and w
now have a great deal of reading and learning to do.

 

[Jackpine Savage]

I'm starting down the solar rabbit hole. My primary objectives right now are power for comms (ham radio base station (VHF) and scanner so far), and recharging batteries for hand held comms, lights, and cordless tools.

I've done a fair amount of home/farm electrical. I actually wired our family's basement when I was 16, learned about it from a little Sears booklet, and the house is still standing! We remodeled the old farmhouse we are in now and I did all the electrical for that too. I had to get it all inspected because I shoot with the electrical inspector, and he is a hardnose about everything getting inspected.

I've been following Will Prowse on Youtube for awhile and I think I have a pretty good understanding of the basics and components.

I probably put the cart before the horse and ordered two batteries that Will reviewed. 100Ah 12V LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery

I'm planning on a 24v system that can be expanded.

But one thing just slapped me up side the head. Will Prowse is focused on 'mobile solar'. My system will have to go in the house given our cold winters and what I'm going to use it for. If I put something like Will's 24v system in the house an electrical inspector would say WTF is this! Non of the stuff is UL listed, no arcfaults, disconnects, etc, etc.

Started looking at Midnite solar, their Classic charge controller and enclosures and such. Now it's going to get more expensive.

Anyone else implemented a small, standalone system that's been inspected?

 

[mecoastie]

I'm starting down the solar rabbit hole. My primary objectives right now are power for comms (ham radio base station (VHF) and scanner so far), and recharging batteries for hand held comms, lights, and cordless tools.

I've done a fair amount of home/farm electrical. I actually wired our family's basement when I was 16, learned about it from a little Sears booklet, and the house is still standing! We remodeled the old farmhouse we are in now and I did all the electrical for that too. I had to get it all inspected because I shoot with the electrical inspector, and he is a hardnose about everything getting inspected.

I've been following Will Prowse on Youtube for awhile and I think I have a pretty good understanding of the basics and components.

I probably put the cart before the horse and ordered two batteries that Will reviewed. 100Ah 12V LiFePO4 Deep Cycle Battery

I'm planning on a 24v system that can be expanded.

But one thing just slapped me up side the head. Will Prowse is focused on 'mobile solar'. My system will have to go in the house given our cold winters and what I'm going to use it for. If I put something like Will's 24v system in the house an electrical inspector would say WTF is this! Non of the stuff is UL listed, no arcfaults, disconnects, etc, etc.

Started looking at Midnite solar, their Classic charge controller and enclosures and such. Now it's going to get more expensive.

Anyone else implemented a small, standalone system that's been inspected?

I would talk to the inspector and see if he has any recommendations.

 

[Hfcomms]

First thought would be to find someone local that does installs and sales and get their advice. Secondarily as you have already discovered there are plenty of youtube channels that deal with alternative power and a number of websites as well. I’ve always done my own and have expanded my system over time.

 

[hiwall]

Move someplace warmer with more sun

 

[Jackpine Savage]

I would talk to the inspector and see if he has any recommendations.

I don't necessarily obey all the rules , But I am concerned with doing it right and not burning down the house.

I don't hear much about solar installers here locally. I will have to do some looking.

I found a couple videos of what not to do

Wire nuts are not recommended for disconnects! Shows repairing a bad install. Run time 15:43

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k2hGXk8QVw


Wire nuts started a fire. Run time 8:05

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THCmCtPrYns


Here's the completion of repairs on the previous video. Tips on array wiring. Run time 9:00

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvHBGu1ZA7s

 

[Hfcomms]

Safety first. As an example with my small system I have the combiner box in the roof with DC rated circuit breakers (very important) for the solar strings. That goes into the charge controller. And then I have DC rated circuit breakers on the positive and negative leads out of the charge controller going to the positive and negative battery busses. And then I also have a 300 amp rated battery switch coming off the battery bank going to the positive buss.

And then on the battery bank itself I have quick acting fuses on the outputs going to the battery busses and I have the negative buss bonded to a ground rod. If I was running a 36 volt or 48 volt system I would also bond the solar panel frames to the ground bar in the solar combiner and then to top it off I have a lightening arrester mounted to the solar combiner.

I mixed and matched components over time as I could afford them although if I was going to do it over I’d buy the complete packaged from a reputable dealer including the batteries and then have it dropped shipped and I’d still do the install. That way the dealer sizes the whole package and components based on the size of the system two, three or four KW etc.