I want to try this.- 'How to Make a Solar Power Generator for Less Than $300' - Any advice?

[Breeze54]

http://www.rain.org/~philfear/how2solar.html">How to Make a Solar Power Generator for Less Than $300

Using parts easily available from your local stores, you can make a small solar power generator for $250 to $300.
Great for power failures and life outside the power grid. Power your computer, modem, vcr, tv, cameras, lights,
or DC appliances anywhere you go. Use in cabins, boats, tents, archaeological digs, or while travelling
throughout the third world. Have one in the office store room in case of power failures in your highrise.
I keep mine in my bedroom where it powers my cd player, turntable, lights, modem, laptop,
and (ahem) a back massager. I run a line out the window to an 8" x 24" panel on the roof.

1. Buy yourself a small solar panel. For about $100 you should be able to get one rated at 12 volts
or better (look for 16 volts) at an RV or marine supplies store.

2. Buy yourself a battery. Get any size deep cycle 12 volt lead/acid or gel battery. You need the
deep cycle battery for continuous use. The kind in your car is a cranking battery--just for starting
an engine. Look for bargains, it should cost about $50-60.

3. Get a battery box to put it in for $10. (This is good for covering up the exposed terminals in
case there are children about If you going to install the system in a pump shed, cabin, or boat,
skip this.)

3. Buy a 12 volt DC meter. Radio Shack has them for about $25.

4. Buy a DC input. I like the triple inlet model which you can find at a car parts store in the
cigarette lighter parts section for about $10. This is enough to power DC appliances, and there
are many commercially available, like fans, one-pint water boilers, lights, hair dryers, baby
bottle warmers, and vacuum cleaners. Many cassette players, answering machines, and other
electrical appliances are DC already and with the right cable will run straight off the box.

5. But if you want to run AC appliances, you will have to invest in an inverter. This will convert
the stored DC power in the battery into AC power for most of your household appliances. I bought
a 115 volt 140 watt inverter made by Power-to-Go at Pep Boys for $50. More powerful inverters are
available by mail. Count up the number of watts you'll be using
(e.g., a small color television(=60 watts) with a VCR(=22 watts), you'll need 82 watts).

6. Use a drill to attach the meter and DC input to the top of the box.

7. Use insulated wire to attach the meter to the wingnut terminals on the battery.
Connect the negative (-) pole first.
Only handle one wire at a time. Connect the DC inlet to the battery in the same way.
Connect the solar panel to the battery in the same way.

8. Close the lid (I use a bungee cord to keep it tight). Put the solar panel in the sun. It takes 5-8 hours to charge a dead battery; 1-3 hours to top off a weak one. It will run radios, fans, and small wattage lights all night, or give you about 5 hours of continuous use at 115 volt AC, or about an hour boiling water. This system may be added on to with larger panels, inverters, and batteries.
Options: A pop-up circuit breaker may be added between the positive treminal and the volt meter. Some of you will want an ampmeter as well. The panels I recommend have built-in bypass diodes, but I recommend charge controllers for people who have panels without diodes. Another option is a voltage regulator, which is not necessary for a system this small, but a larger system would require one.

http://www.rain.org/~philfear/solar_power.html">Technical specifications for this solar power generator, some solar links, and more about solar power.

http://www.rain.org/~philfear/panelplus.html">Tired of the high cost of of solar panels? Hate cloudy days? Try optimizing your panel this way.

If I could build one or two of these, I'll bet i could save a lot of money using
my computer, lights, maybe even running my refrigerator!! That would be awesome!!!

What's a gel battery?? :shrug:

[zabet]

1. Gel batteries

look like any regular 12v battery. They are
deep cycle batteries used mainly in marine
applications. i.e. boats. We switched from a
regular 12v deep cycle battery to a gel battery in
our bass boat over 1 yr ago. What I have seen is...
it charges way faster than a regular battery. My
BIL has used them for a while and claims they have
a much longer life span than a regular 12v battery.

[Maq]

2. Thanks for your little research project Saves Me

some time.

Copied your post to WORDPAD and also the URLs you cite.

Should be an interesting little handymans job.

[NMMNG]

3. What a great idea!

Thanks for the info! :thumbsup:

[unpossibles]

4. cool! I love it and might try this myself. thanks for the info. nt

[NoSheep]

5. think I could run my washer and dryer on one? I do @ 3-4 loads

per week and mostly hang my clothes to dry on the back porch. It's a front loader if that matters.

[NoSheep]

6. Please have a look at this comment from an electrical engineer in my circle:

He asked that we post these comments to add to the "general good" of the discussion.


The solar-power plan is OK but it's limitations are minimized. Note:

A 16 Volt panel would be REQUIRED to charge a 12 Volt battery directly.

All the energy in direct noon sun light is about 100 Watts per square meter, and an
affordable solar panel gives 10-20 Watts. So, the AVERAGE power required must be less than
this amount.

If 100's of Watts might be demanded for a few hours, one or two deep-cycle 12 V bats for
boat trolling would be economical. These are the size of big car batteries (about 90 Amp
hours and 1000 Watt-hours) and would require several days to be charged from a modest solar
panel.

Except for things that run directly on 12Vdc, inverters are required. These may be big and
expensive if something like a washing machine is contemplated (for 1 load of clothes a week
without drying or water heating.)

Without a charging control, the batteries should not be left to charge indefinitely without
use, but should be disconnected if the terminal voltage hits 14.5V