Solar panels
Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2022 9:16am
Please share your experiences of having solar panels - we have 6 lardé ones on a quad. Thanks
Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2022 10:08am
Vanessa66 wrote on Sun Oct 30, 2022 9:16am:
Please share your experiences of having solar panels - we have 6 lardé ones on a quad. Thanks
When I moved into my home near Tibi in March, it was powered completely off grid by solar panels and an array of lead acid batteries. Some multiple cloudy days in the winter showed the system to be problematic and it needed to be upgraded. The newer surprisingly inexpensive panels put out twice the output of the original and lithium batteries are far more reliable and can be drained nearly empty without damage. I am slowly adding to the system and now have not just one system but two where the original lead acid batteries are a backup to the new lithium. The old system is also connected to two room air conditioners and the circuits in my garage. The lead acid are kept full by an array of just 3 new panels. Eventually, the older panels feeding the lithium array will have as their source 10 new panels which will leave me the 15 original older panels to feed a 3rd system I'll put in that will feed my pool pump which is the largest load at this time if I run it for substantial hours.
One must be smart about appliances for an efficient solar system. Avoid electric heating elements like the plague. Have gas stoves, ovens, no electric kettles. You can get away with toasters and microwaves if you don't overuse them. Wash your dishes by hand and enjoy the wonderful scent of laundry dried on a line. Obviously all lighting should be LED. Modern TV's and computers take very little power. Hybrid grid tie systems are an option. I eventually decided not to explore that. I have a backup generator should it be necessary.
My advice when designing a system for maximum reliability is to take the lesson of NASA and build in redundancy and backup. Energy prices are only going to get higher and higher with political instability and climate change and any investment now will pay huge dividends in the future.
Azphilosopher wrote on Sun Oct 30, 2022 10:08am:
When I moved into my home near Tibi in March, it was powered completely off grid by solar panels and an array of lead acid batteries. Some multiple cloudy days in the winter showed the system to be problematic and it needed to be upgraded. The newer surprisingly inexpensive panels put...
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... out twice the output of the original and lithium batteries are far more reliable and can be drained nearly empty without damage. I am slowly adding to the system and now have not just one system but two where the original lead acid batteries are a backup to the new lithium. The old system is also connected to two room air conditioners and the circuits in my garage. The lead acid are kept full by an array of just 3 new panels. Eventually, the older panels feeding the lithium array will have as their source 10 new panels which will leave me the 15 original older panels to feed a 3rd system I'll put in that will feed my pool pump which is the largest load at this time if I run it for substantial hours.
One must be smart about appliances for an efficient solar system. Avoid electric heating elements like the plague. Have gas stoves, ovens, no electric kettles. You can get away with toasters and microwaves if you don't overuse them. Wash your dishes by hand and enjoy the wonderful scent of laundry dried on a line. Obviously all lighting should be LED. Modern TV's and computers take very little power. Hybrid grid tie systems are an option. I eventually decided not to explore that. I have a backup generator should it be necessary.
My advice when designing a system for maximum reliability is to take the lesson of NASA and build in redundancy and backup. Energy prices are only going to get higher and higher with political instability and climate change and any investment now will pay huge dividends in the future.
Thank you so much. We don’t have batteries. The system just sells excess to Iberdrola.
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