With power prices going haywire, having a good backup source of power is awesome. For those who like a quick and dirty fix for it, a gas/diesel/LP generator is the first choice. Problem is, it takes constant fuel and when you turn it off, EVERYTHING goes out. It's a really handy contraption to have around though. As an alternative to gas, many have turned to solar. Although it is rather expensive and the payoff-to-ROI is long term, it is a strong provider from the first week it is installed. Some will decide to go have a $30,000 system professionally installed so it is wired into your panel with a grid sensor to make sure your heat pump and favorite soap don't go out. If you want one of these, then that is your choice totally!! A less expensive option is to DIY and save thousands! The panel switching gear is not really needed, although you can jumper the inverter into the panel. WARNING! DO NOT! I REPEAT, DO NOT try to run them both at the same time. You will electrocute yourself, destroy your solar setup, and backfeed electricity into the power grid. It is best to run completely separate wires from a completely separate panel. Many households can manage on less than a few thousand watts per hour per day. The solar killers are dryers, microwaves, water heater, hair dryers, coffee pots, and any other wattage hog. Here's a chart to reference:



There you can see the power hogs.

On my system, I run a simple 300 watt solar panel/30a charger, 500Ah, 3kw inverter configuration. And Connected to the inverter are:
30" flatscreen, satellite box, DVD player, phone charger, 200w PC tower and 23" flatscreen, a laptop, a DC voltmeter, PC speakers, and a 12v LED RV light. I can run these all day long on a full charge. What you have to remember with an off-grid system is that it runs out of juice. So you learn to be frugal with appliances. I don't use a blow dryer or a heater where I live. I'll post another thread about solar heating at a later date. As far as refrigeration goes, they don't use very much power and require a much simpler setup than a typical off-grid system.
Here is a link to see most of what you need, yet you will find dozens of solar kits in our store.

I'll start by doing a solar refrigeration setup as it is easier to follow. The layout is rather easy, given the logic of the install:

The panel charges the battery. So it has to connect to the charger (to control the charge). The charger keeps things under control while sending power to the battery. The battery holds the charge. It sends power to the inverter so the appliance can run. The inverter changes car voltage to house voltage. It consumes power so it needs more power from the battery, which it gets from the solar panel.

To start with you will only need a 40 watt (roughly) solar panel
, a deep cycle marine battery (a sealed one preferably as they are vaporless), a 10 amp charge module, a 1000 watt inverter, and the necessary wiring/hardware. First is the solar panel. Mount it outside where it can collect a good amount of direct light throughout the day. Be sure and mark the ends of the wire to show the + and - wires, as many do not indicate this, and this will prevent you from wiring the system in backwards. Run the 2 wires from that panel into the kitchen (preferably near the refrigerator). Keep them separately capped or taped up as they have instant electricity when exposed to light. It's low voltage DC but it can short your panels if you let them touch (just like the jumper cables on your car) .The bare ends of that wire will connect to the Charge controller (usually at 2 terminals clearly shown on the module cover). Connect the + wire to the + terminal, and the - wire to the - terminal. You should see the designated light on the charger light up. So far so good.

In wiring smaller systems I tend to use 10 gauge insulated solid wire as it will handle the power here without heating up. As for the battery, a 100 Amp hour (Ah) is plenty. Solar batteries are usually in 6/12/24 volts commonly. I use 12v deep cycle solar batteries. You will need only one for this application. From the charge module, run a red and a black 10 gauge between the charger and the battery. Many solar batteries have a screw terminal top (1/4" x 20 bolts) so wiring this up is easy. Just be careful. Cap the ends with wire nuts so 1 connection at a time can be done safely. Attach the red wire to the proper terminal on the charger and connect it firmly to the + terminal on the battery. Now attach the black wire to the - terminal on the battery. Make sure everything is snug and no bare wire exposed. You're done on that part! I give mine a few days of good sun to charge the battery.

Now comes the inverter. Any inverter of about 1000-1500 watts will do as it will only be running the fridge. You can find them in many department stores in the automotive area, or at RV dealerships, as well as automotive stores (better yet, we have them in OUR Shop!). This is the easiest part! Clip the red clamp to the + terminal, and the black clamp to the - terminal. That's it!
On a side note, some inverters require an earth ground, and will have a screw terminal on the back for it. Simply run a 10 guage green insulated wire outside and attach it to a metal rod pounded into the ground. There are ground rod attaching lugs at your local hardware store. The install is complete, except for the aesthetics of concealing the battery and inverter. They can be stored underneath a cabinet or next to the fridge. After a few days of good charging, you can unplug your fridge from the wall and into the inverter. This setup will make sure your fridge is always cold, even during power outages. Many inverters have a charge indicator on them to show battery status. If the weather does not allow it to charge fully, you always have grid power, but if the grid is down, a backup generator is a great idea. It is also a good idea to put an ihnline fuse between the battery and the inverter. You can get these most anywhere, and for this application, a 10 amp fuse will do the job.


Doing things on a larger scale is not much different. You have to pay close attention to wire sizes to make sure there is minimal power loss and no wire overheating. This is about all I have for this article. Small systems are great for the household and eliminate the need for extension cords, and such. Other small solar items work really sweet like solar powered outside lighting, and small solar powered battery chargers. You can also get book sized solar panels for charging automotive or lawn mower batteries. We have it in our store so go check them out

Until the next article..........