How many solar panels or wattage does it take to run the lights in the home?
Question by mercy me: How many solar panels or wattage does it take to run the lights in the home?
I want to save money by using solar power, where I can.I already turn off lights when I am not in a room. I live in a 16 X 80 2000 trailer. But I only use the kitchen and my room most of the time. I have already bought a oil filled heater just for my room for the winter, instead of turning on the furnace. Can anyone help go green and save money.
Can you help? Leave your own answer in the comments!
7 Responses to How many solar panels or wattage does it take to run the lights in the home?
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you can determine the system you will need by the total watts you use. check your bill for this. so if you use 2 100 watt bulbs then you would need something capable of outputing after losses of around 200 watts. now this is the essence of it but the details can get trickier with peak loads sunlight time effeciencies and more. but this is an idea and start. you can probably get 2-4 panels roughly 2’x4′ in size to get you thru but you have to remember the invertor and charging systems and your local requirements will probably make you hook it to the grid unless you made your own circuits as well. and the biggest costs would be the batteries to store your elec. hope this gives you an idea and you can get surplus panels for alot cheaper and systems already setup and ready to go if you can invest.
tim h
June 20, 2013 at 2:47 pm
You need to figure out how many watts of energy you will consume. Also switch to compact fluorescent lamps to save energy.
Lets say you have a100 watt device that you want to power with free solar energy for 10 hours each night.
First, calculate how much energy is required. 100 Watts x 10 hours = 1,000 Watt hours total energy you will need.
Now calculate what size solar panel you will need. Based on a ten hour day of light, the calculation is simple: 1,000 Watt hours / 10 hours sunlight = 100 Watt solar panel.
Calculate what size batteries you need. 1,000 Watt hours divided by 12 Volts = 83 Amp Hours of reserve battery power. An average deep cycle marine battery is fine for this.
You will also need about a 10 Amp solar charge controller and a 100 Watt inverter to power the load.
You can use the solar power calculator in the website listed to get exact details for your situation.
webman2015
June 20, 2013 at 3:14 pm
Unless you put in a system that will store the power in batteries designing it to just run the lights is pointless since the solar cells will only produce during the day when you don’t really need to use the lights. That being said, if you want to save money, design it to run your refrigerator and/or your washing machine or something like that.
Willie_the_weasel
June 20, 2013 at 3:34 pm
There is a now a completely portable (and ultra-high efficient) solar power generator which produces up to 1800 watts of household electricity on demand when you need it most. News of this “solar backup generator” (it’s the first “off-the-grid” breakthrough in 50 years) is spreading like wildfire all across the country!
This solar generator is extremely powerful and yet very simple to use. It produces continuous electricity and runs with absolutely no noise whatsoever. It emits no fumes. But the best part about the solar generator is that it… Generates Free Electricity!
Robert C
June 20, 2013 at 3:45 pm
There is a lot of free info on the net but your best bet would be to take a look at one of those guides that offer complete DIY instruction for making your own solar panels. If you have a do it yourself aptitude, this is by far the most cost effective way to start generating at least some of your own power on a small scale. You can always add to it later.
Some people have used these guides to make their own solar panels and I have heard some good things about them. There are a couple of major players in the market, the site below offers some pretty good reviews.
Good luck!
c_kangaroo
June 20, 2013 at 3:54 pm
Hi,
You can get free quotations from us.No obligation.Check it out here:
http://servicemagic.ebeezz.com
Service Magic
June 20, 2013 at 4:09 pm
There are a lot of solar contractors our there like this solar company in Oregon: http://hometownexteriordesigns.com/solar.php that will actually come to your home and do a free energy audit that will tell you how much energy your home needs and what it will cost to upgrade your place to solar power. Look for some contractors in your area and see if they offer that! Good luck!
Mike
June 20, 2013 at 4:34 pm