oli
Apprentice
Posts: 1,065
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Post by oli on Jun 21, 2023 13:43:16 GMT 1
Does anyone here have experience with using them for a shed/outhouse situation?
I’m thinking of buying some to have a bit of a play with. I can see all sorts of issues with solar for home power, particularly the mismatch between when the power is made and when you use it. So this is really a bit of fun and doesn’t need to pay for itself.
I’ve got a wooden summerhouse with a hipped, pitched roof, one side facing southeast. It has 240v lighting and a small freezer which isn’t opened often and the summerhouse is quite well insulated. I’m toying with putting some panels on the roof to see if the summerhouse can go “off grid”.
I’ve already got an inverter laying around - 1000W - and several quite large lead acid batteries. In addition to mounts and wires, it seems all I need is panels and a charge controller.
Anyone done anything similar or got any thoughts?
Oli
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Post by chippie on Jun 21, 2023 13:56:30 GMT 1
I have a 100 watt Solar panel for my caravan…I bough the panel from eBay along with a charge controller rated for 20 Amps..
Seems to charge the battery ok…and copes with demand..
I’d go with a couple of 100w panels coupled to your batteries/inverter and see how they cope with the load presented by the freezer/lights…What’s the data plate for the freezer say in terms of what it draws? The inverter might not provide enough when the compressor starts…
A case of suck it n see…
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huffo
Tea Maker
Posts: 237
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Post by huffo on Jun 21, 2023 17:06:49 GMT 1
I bought 260w of solar panels and a charger from Amazon: ECO-WORTHY 260Watt 12Volt... www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08Z6X3M49?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_shareWhen we go camping, I connect this up to a 100Ah leisure battery and run loads of LED lights, phone and tablet chargers and a small 12v compressor fridge (not a crap peltier effect cooler). The set-up works well and seems to easily keep up with our demands regardless of the weather.
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Post by OldGit on Jun 21, 2023 18:15:59 GMT 1
FWIW we're planning on some building work, the roof structure will be PV, with more PV added to the existing roof - and some PV on the workshop roof (when it's built), all connected to some recovered cells from 'dead' BEV/Hybrid batteries which will feed an inverter, I'm not too worried about 'feed-in' I'd rather have the energy 'saved' for when we need it, not someone wanting to charge their BEV....
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oli
Apprentice
Posts: 1,065
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Post by oli on Jun 22, 2023 19:48:39 GMT 1
Thanks for the replies. Some food for thought.
I’m torn between rigid monocrystaline panels, which are most efficient and flexi ones like Huffo has. Oddly enough I hadn’t thought of a camping set up to play with, but it would be useful. I gather flexi ones are slightly less efficient, but more panel area sorts that.
EV batteries are an interesting idea.
Oli
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Post by Joepublic on Jun 22, 2023 20:08:39 GMT 1
When we had the salesman around he said the government limit the amount of panels you can have on a domestic property.
Someone should be campaigning to abolish the standing charge as that penalises the poorest in society?
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Post by chippie on Jun 22, 2023 20:51:30 GMT 1
Oli, One thing I forgot mention….
Check the panels are mono crystalline….. they are the most efficient…obviously there’ll be a cost penalty….but…pay yer money make yer choice..
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Post by chippie on Jun 22, 2023 21:35:36 GMT 1
When we had the salesman around he said the government limit the amount of panels you can have on a domestic property. Someone should be campaigning to abolish the standing charge as that penalises the poorest in society? Funny you should say that….about standing charge…. We have a management company looking after our estate, grass cutting etc..that sort of shit… We recently received a bill from them asking for more money because of an oversight on their part. Because they weren’t aware that the lighting on our private driveways was subject to a standing charge as well as the energy consumption…., What bollox…!!… But as you say, it’s getting out of hand and the government ought to do something…the so called regulator has no teeth…what’s the point? Effin useless they are..,
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