# Opinions on solar please...



## esb_mama (Sep 30, 2014)

I have been reading over a lot of the posts here on solar...I'm very new to it and still feel very dumb on the matter. We will be purchasing "something" in the near future, probably a kit. My question, is there a best name brand, type etc., and is there anything I need to stay away from? We have a laptop, tv, radio and eventually would like to have a fridge and maybe a freezer. We cook on a combination of a camp stove, grill and wood burning cook stove. Any advice and info would be much appreciated. Thanks.


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

Stay away from harbor frieght.

Grid-tied or off-grid system?

WWW


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Backwoods Solar offers some "packages" of the real stuff...........
But the price will likely shock you......
Then since you profess to not know about this "stuff" ..who is going to assemble the system for you . . ??


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## esb_mama (Sep 30, 2014)

Www, off grid for sure. I'd heard some about Harbor. So will steer clear.
Jim-mi, I know this will sound naive probably, but I figured there would be instructions. Not sure outside of that. But these are the things I need to know about so thanks.


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## lynnemabry (Dec 28, 2013)

I would never consider installing myself. My darling is a mechanic and understands the basics of wiring and circuits needed help. No directions and a lot of variables.


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

esb_mama said:


> Www, off grid for sure. I'd heard some about Harbor. So will steer clear.
> Jim-mi, I know this will sound naive probably, but I figured there would be instructions. Not sure outside of that. But these are the things I need to know about so thanks.


The instructions are written so that a person educated about electricity could understand. Without that knowledge it would be like a person trying to bake that didn't know what cup, tablespoon, or teaspoon are.

First thing is to reduce your electrical usage as much as possible. Without that the cost of solar is to prohibitive. '

Second realize that growing a system is very difficult. Old and new batteries don't like to mix. Different sized systems require different voltages to optimumly work. Using oversized equipment to anticipate growing wastes power and can damage other components that aren't oversized yet. One would almost be better to just build separate systems for each updgrade.

Gary has some good suggestions and advise on energy reduction at his site http://www.builditsolar.com/

WWW


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

esb_mama said:


> Jim-mi, I know this will sound naive probably, but *I figured there would be instructions. *Not sure outside of that. But these are the things I need to know about so thanks.



You're in luck....there are !

38 bucks at Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Photovoltaics...&qid=1412686784&sr=1-2&keywords=Photovoltaics


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## esb_mama (Sep 30, 2014)

Well my husband is an electrician so that eases my mind. I will definately check that site, thank you so much. After what you said it made me wonder if we couldn't just do maybe a separate small setup for each room or two rooms. We really don't need much. We are already off grid using a Generac 4000, charging one 850 cca battery. We use the generator during the day and the battery and inverter at night. I really appreciate the info guys!! We may pull this off after all lol.


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

Since your already offgrid you can add panels to the existing battery bank to cut down the generator run time. That can be done in steps.


WWW


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## gpforet (Dec 24, 2013)

After having put together a small 100w system to power lights and pump in my horse barn which has now been running for 4 years with only a few glitches I've started the adventure of assembling a 1kw system for the house. Being off-grid gives you some advantages such as not having to deal with code and such but does require batteries which I assume were in your plan from the beginning. After looking at the hassle of codes and inspectors and such I've decided to dedicate the 1kw system to off-grid use and select specific items to power, namely my refridgerator, freezer, and a few lights and chargers.

By deciding first what it is you want to power, you can properly scale your system to your needs, while at the same time, make considerations for future expansion.

Solar is much more costly up-front than a generator and even in the long run may be a break-even proposition when comparing battery replacement costs to generator fuel.

I'm choosing solar because I can use it all the time, decrease my electric bill by powering appliances with solar rather than grid, and also provides me emergency power during grid-down situations.

Matching panel size and voltage to battery capacity (which helps prolong the life of the batteries) to load requirements is an algebra problem.

Several solar suppliers offer calculators on their website to help you size the system according to your needs.

Hasty choices in purchasing solar gear can be quite costly. Spending a few weeks doing homework and calculations now can make the most of your expenditure.

As an example, after performing all the calculations, the system I'm installing involves 4-250w panels in 2 strings of 2 panels each, sending 48v charging voltage to an MPPT controller charging a battery bank of 9-6v/235ah in 3 strings of 3 batteries, making a 24v bank, and driving a 2000w pure sine inverter. Total cost, doing it myself is around $3,800 not counting the bits and bobs to connect it all together. All this for producing electricity that would cost me about $1/day to buy from the grid.



esb_mama said:


> I have been reading over a lot of the posts here on solar...I'm very new to it and still feel very dumb on the matter. We will be purchasing "something" in the near future, probably a kit. My question, is there a best name brand, type etc., and is there anything I need to stay away from? We have a laptop, tv, radio and eventually would like to have a fridge and maybe a freezer. We cook on a combination of a camp stove, grill and wood burning cook stove. Any advice and info would be much appreciated. Thanks.


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## wy_white_wolf (Oct 14, 2004)

gpforet said:


> ...Being off-grid gives you some advantages such as not having to deal with code...


That depends on your location. WY state laws requires all residential systems to follow the NEC. All includes Off-grid systems.

WWW


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Your math is more than a bit flawed 3 X 6 does not equal 24


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## gpforet (Dec 24, 2013)

Right you are. That was meant to be 3x8v in 3 strings. Thanks for catching that.


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