Top 7 Mistakes Newbies Make Going Solar - Avoid These For Effective Power Harvesting From The Sun
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- čas přidán 4. 06. 2024
- People make these 7 mistakes over and over again when they decide to buy their first solar panel system. Learn from the thousands of people I have interacted with over the years and my own painful experiences learning the hard way. #top7solarmistakes #solarmistakes #solarpower
***Read the pinned comment below for my responses to frequently posted comments***
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FAQ:
Q: Refrigerators do not run 24x7, moron!
A: Yes, I know that. But they CAN run at any point around the clock and that is the point. Because they run on and off all day they will obviously require power during times when the solar panel system is not producing energy and will thus require battery power storage. And batteries are not included with most beginner solar kits that people start with, such as the Harbor Freight 100W kit.
Q: Refrigerators don't use 600W, moron!
A: Not continuously, no. But they can use much higher than that for a split second when the compressor motor kicks on. So a small fridge that only requires 100W when it is running may require 600-1000W to start up and that load may be inductive, which further complicates the requirements on the inverter.
Q: Why can't I just look at a power bill for my energy consumption needs?
A: Because most power bills do not give enough information to accurately design a solar panel system that can completely offset your energy demand and give you energy independence so you are not beholden to the power company or if you want to go off grid.
Q: I don't care about going off grid or energy independence. I only want a net zero power bill! So my power bill is enough.
A: That will work perfectly fine... if you account for the net metering purchase and selling rates AND those rates never change. And that isn't going to happen. Public utilities have proven for many years now that they are less and less willing to pay much for excess solar power in cogeneration relationships and they are in complete, unilateral control over that net metering relationship and can change your rates at any time. But in order to properly do the math, which will be complicated, to achieve a $0 net bill for the year you HAVE to know your energy consumption rates at different times of day. And that information is not available on most power bills. Thus, you will need a device that can data log your real world usage for a period of time so you can accurately forecast.
An hvac system that has parts rated at 30 amps might pull 70 amps for a time during startup. Refrigerator is gonna be the same on a somewhat smaller scale. Giant startup demand to get compressor going, large amount of energy while compressor is running, and then once compressor is off small amount for running fans, lighting etc.
It could theoretically run off a 100 watt system if it fed into a battery and every part of that chain was a capable of pushing the absolute max startup compressor amps which while running might be 600 watts but during startup could peak higher for a second.
TLDR: Your entire video, meaning yea it's possible but you gotta think it through and plan every step of the way. So while my initial reaction is the same as what you are replying to (um but actually.......) upon thinking about it the point of what you say after rings true, which is that you have to understand all the variables and have planned for them. So I guess what I'm saying is anybody commenting attempting to correct should quit thinking about the compressor vs non compressor wattage and focus on the general message of you should understand your appliances workings while designing a system to make it work how you want
Thank you! That is exactly the message I am trying to get across, however imperfectly I may have communicated it.
@@LDSreliance Actually yes, some fridges can use 600w. I have a cheap roper fridge that came with the house and once a day it runs a heater that pulls 400w to melt any ice that built up over the day. I first noticed this a couple years ago when I had a back-up 12v system and we had a power outage most of the day. It had a 210w evergreen panel with a 33Ah battery and I could generate enough power to keep the fridge going (as well as the internet) until that afternoon when that heater turned on.
@@kperkins1982 For a refrigerator ONLY I would spec out a 2KW alternator to cover starting loads and 400-500 AH battery with 800 w solar panels. Kenny, you are right on.
@@HamrickCE I would probably set up a switch that turns off the heater until it builds up some ice and turn off the ice maker.... These will cause the compressor to run more...
I've seen a lot of what to do/not do vids. This is straight to the point(s). Awesome. Thanks.
Excellent reminders in a nut shell to folks adding to their system as well, thanks.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching and commenting!
If you speed it up to 1.25, he actually doesn't sound grumpy. And it only takes 5 minutes to watch instead of 7..
Good call 1.5 was even better
thanks, that really helped
Grate shout!!!
@drivedrum hahahahaha.....so true!
This was very helpful. I will need to try this trick more often for any and all videos on CZcams. Thank you kind sir!
Nice Job! Just watched all the videos in this series - very helpful! I'm going to start with a simple project - 10 Watt Solar Panel into a Charge Controller hooked to a battery, and then into a fan to 12V fan to keep air circulating in my shed. I had no idea where to start, until I watched this series. Now I have a plan and simple project to get started. THANK YOU!!!
You are welcome! Be sure to check out my kits available on Amazon: kit.com/LDSreliance
What we did was start with two batteries and a battery charger and small generator. To learn a little and have something to use for power outages during storms. A year later, we now have an 8 battery bank, 2 generators, 4 inverters, lights, fans, a .98 amp fridge, 1.1 amp freezer and our light bill went from $500 to $600 a month to $70 to $80 a month.
We just ordered ten 100 watt panels from Home depot for $109 each. We have two harbor freight 45 watt kits we used for a year. We do not regret buying them. We used coupons and got them for $119 each for learning with. We wanted to DIY this over time and it is going very good. There are great advances in energy efficient technology, and by cutting back here and there, we made great strides so now our energy bill savings is paying for our new panels and laptops.
Very nice! That is a great success story and definitely the right way to go. I always recommend people start with a small, affordabe solar system (a DIY 10 watt kit would be about $75 if you ordered the components yourself) and play around with it and learn from it before you scale up.
i've been looking for this kinda channel for too long. subbed!
Hey, welcome aboard! I am glad you found me. Thanks for watching and subbing!
Thanks for the post. Being off-grid with solar/battery/generator, your comments on on point and everyone worth consideration.
Thanks! I appreciate it. And thanks for watching.
Thanks for the good video. Good information. I started with an engineered solar well system from RPS solar pumps. 400 watts and 48v battery bank. There's a learning curve and this has shown me what to do and not do. The smoke from the California fires (September 2020) has reduced the rate of charge. I had to use an automotive battery charger to give the batteries a boost.
Wow, that is nuts. It seems like California has these fires every year. Do they affect solar every year?
You're the first person to mention the issue of heat. It makes a big difference.
Thanks
i live in PR. after hurricane maria in sept. we all lost grid power and water for over 4 months. some here are still out in march!. i got rid of my conventional fridge that burned way too many volts when it cycled daily and got a simple GE $200 top load freezer, added a cheap digital thermostat and set it to chill between 32-37. my smaller solar set up now easily gets me through the night. this style of fridge is dangerous for small kids as they could fall in. but for grownups its super efficient! cold air stays down at the bottom so you don't lose chill like traditional fridges when opened. simply switching to led bulbs, tossing the microwave altogether and being wary of consumption has gotten me through the crazy hard times here in the tropics. if i have major power tool needs i'll bust out the 2000 honda generator...1 gal = 8-10 hrs runtime.
That is exactly what I would have done in your situation. Good job!
Tiki Rob Youte also going to need a battery (Tesla) to hold the charge when the grid is down. Solar panels alone won’t help you during a blackout.
Problem me having living in puetro rico that back up systems are so expensive vs my average electric bill here at 2 kilowatts per day. I get aee bill monthly. Telling me 3000 dollars. Makes no sense pay 3000 . to use in storms. Vs about 15 dollar electric bill. What save 11 dollars pay 3000 dollars. That be good for others that leave everything running. Me not think that way. Me think if not in the room shut off tv fans etc. Need another option for storms. Solar just for emergency use no way cost effective
When you get solar in P.R do they force you to stay connected to the grid (electrical company).
This was extremely helpful in my research of setting up an off-grid system at my garden. Thank you!
You are welcome! Glad it helped you. Thanks for watching and be sure to give the video a thumbs up!
There is so much to take into consideration when going off grid, but it's so worth it for the energy independence!
Once you get started, and there is a hump to get over, adding to your system isn't that hard nor expensive. My biggest expense was the inverter. It's not unreasonable that it cost $750 but I'm laying in bed with my fridge running, a light on and my ac going on high at 1am. Batteries you can get cheap or even free if you're willing to spend a little time with Epsom salts and distilled water. I don't care if they don't run like brand new, when you have like 8-10 batteries, it stops being an issue.
Great video! Made me feel confident since I knew all these Thanks!
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
Finally I came across a video where the person knows what he is talking about, been getting so annoyed with the people saying " Solar panels suck, the 200 watt Harbor freight panels I bought wont power my 300 Computer" lol Great job!
Awesome video. great job. your channel is one of those that inspired me to start my own channel
Good for those of us who are studying it. Much work has already been done if you can find it!
hybrid is a big learning curve with charge and discharge times and much more give and take. 5kw with 20x 260w panels and 10kw LG chem
Great vid... 1 comment... you can force control your fridge (or any other appliance) and have them "on line" when you want (or need) with very little loss in performance... become the boss of your energy loss... and maximize your inductive load vs resistive load draw on your system...
Great video! Thanks for the information. You're helping a bunch of people.
You are welcome! I appreciate the support.
Hey LDSreliance!!! Good information about solar. This is extremely helpful in making novices a little more informed. THANK YOU for sharing.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for this awesome video! I’m preparing to build my own tiny house and buy the land to park it on and I want to use solar for my power but know nothing about it really so I want to make sure I get it right. I live in New England and the piece of land I’m looking to buy is located in an area prone to weather related power outages in the winter do to the power company being so big that it often takes time for them to get to that area so it would be nice to never have to worry about that by having solar to rely on instead!
That is a great use for solar. Just keep in mind it has some limitations and do your homework and you will be fine!
Also something to consider when adding up your service calculation. When adding your heating system or cooling system, only add one or the other. Whichever is the biggest. You will only be using one of those systems at a time so you only need to take the biggest one into account.
Dealing with this in Puerto Rico atm. Knowing the load is the most important. Great video.
Thanks! I appreciate it. Hopefully you guys get things back up and running soon.
Not many of us are aware of the "dirty electricity" that gets generated by the DC to AC inverters that are used to make the solar power usable by our appliances. There are health problems associated with having these high frequency transients radiating from the wiring of the entire house. The house wiring becomes like a radio transmitter antenna.
Good video! Under #5 bad installations, I would add shading. Most folks don't understand how much effect shading part of one panel has on the whole series string.
depending on your charge controller(s)
Jim Hofoss thankyou for the encouragment my electric bill runs 200+ every month yes i have gas heat and use efficient bulbs thats 2400+ a year so it would take ten years to pay for itself how long is the system you have supposed to work if its any over ten yrs then its worth every penny i,m almost 60 it sucks being older i spent my whole life making other folks filthy rich and left with scraps of time for myself so i will figure if i should or should not do it.
Shoot me a message and we can help you see if it makes sense for you to go solar. Email is kfiles@sunsolarsolutions.com
Thank you for the excellent video. We have been using solar on our RV for 20 years, but now looking at a tiny house and we did not know some of these.
Well I am glad I could help! Thanks for watching and good luck with your tiny house project.
thanks so much for the tips, very simple, straight to the point. Greatly appreciate your time and effort!
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
Another thing to account for is that the wattage rating is really the wattage you're going to get out of the panel if all the planets align. You should expect about half in average. It's also good to try to oversize the array as best as you are willing to spend because that way even when it's overcast you will still produce some energy. Also you should get a MPPT charge controller and not PWM.
Those are generally good recommendations. However, for small systems it can be more cost effective to purchase another panel than to upgrade to MPPT. So if you gain 50W of efficiency on a small system for a $90 upgrade in controller is that worth it? What does it cost you to get that extra 50W of production another way? That is the question you should ask yourself.
That's right 1/2
Hey to all the comments posted by the knowledgeable ones, this guy on this video is trying to educate us in a simple way, don't downgrade him for not knowing it all.
Yep, no one knows it all. And none of the people with negative comments have been able to come up with anything that was wrong, just a misunderstanding of a fridge running 24/7. I should have said it is plugged in all the time and CAN run at any time, thus requiring battery storage which does not come in any retail kit.
My solar guy went through all of the information in your video; which makes me feel better about taking the plunge. I'm getting the 24 panel solar tracker.
Good. I am glad they were above board with you. Read the contract carefully and you should be good!
Thanks for taking the time to make this video. Good things to keep in mind
You are welcome, Nate! Thanks for watching.
Thanx! good to know. All I need now is a house to mount them on.
You are welcome. But the house part I can't help you with. Good luck!
LokiDaFerret you can always buy a mortgage for a small monthly fee and bam now you have a house
LokiDaFerret lol
LokiDaFerret 😂😂😂😂 mount it on your neighbors home and just get an extension cord to your apartment😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Not good. Build a frame to mount your own panels,close to the CC.
Great video and tips! Thanks very much! I am considering installing a system myself and these tips are very helpful - especially the angle to mount = your latitude ... that’s huge! I initially considered going with a lease/install company, but you’re right - beware...it is too good to be true! Thanks again!!!
Great video, very informative, keep up the good work
very good advice, I recently had a professional system engineered and installed, one thing that is a must is a way to monitor what is actually happening in real time and I am using the Sense system . very revealing , my water heater is the biggest watt hog and I would have never suspected it was so bad. time to update !
Great advice. Thanks, James!
Great video! I’m starting on my journey to becoming certified.
An excellent presentation, and very informative, thanks for sharing. I've been planning my off grid estate for over a decade, and I've looked into every conceivable nuance, but even I learned something here. I've never heard about the lattitude angle for the mount. Seems like that would be more commonly known. Thanks!
Well then I am glad I could help! I, too, am planning my eventual off grid homestead. That and prepping is what got me into solar. It is a fascinating technology and really liberating to use when you realize you will still have power when everyone else is down and that if energy prices continue their upward trend you will be insulated from that.
Thank you! Very insightful. Clear explanation
Your advise & suggestions were indeed great. I learned a lot. Thanks. God bless you.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
Good vid. I would suggest that installers use a rail system that only attaches under the eave (uses horseshoe shape to go from top to under eave) thus eliminating nail or screw holes in the roof which inevitably result in future leaks and expensive repair and require uninstalling panels to get to the roof leaks.
If you want the best home solar energy system online then visit this website here: HootPower.xyz
Ground mount is best (if you have the room) easier to maintain and adjust tilt... (you can also add morning and evening light to them with reflectors)
Needs to attach to beams for structural integrity.or it would blow off in a wind Storm
For 110 volt AC, Kill A Watt meters will record amp hours over time, work well and cost about $18 on Amazon.
Yep. That is one of the best $20 investments you can make before going solar.
good video. great point about the temp of solar panels, too. After looking into the PPA and rebates, it seems the only drawback is that you can't take the system with you, and prices can go up during peak hours, where you might still use more. If we get enough panels for our load, and maybe a battery, should be fine.
@TA Achieve where do you live, in the U.S. or other? With a lease or PPA you cannot take it with you and selling a house with a lease or a PPA is a nightmare. It is more expensive to own but then you have equity or you can take it with you when you move.
Your clarity of speech is very good! Good video
Great, practical advice. Thanks for posting! I was approached by a Solar co while in the Orange box store. I asked what is the best I could hope to reduce my electric bill for the area in which I live. He said max 10%. Now, I am in the construction electrical trade so I am not totally ignorant about solar. While working on a home a month ago, I saw the neighbors roof was covered in solar cells, so I chatted with the neighbor about it. When I asked how much his electric bill has been reduced, he said at this point, nothing.....the Solar co installed the cells right away. The POWER COMPANY has not done their part yet, 7 months after installation......I guess the power company is not interested/hurry in losing money to grid tie systems.
Great comment. Utility companies are in an interesting position with this. I need to do a video on some of this. But basically, they are motivated to decrease peak demand (demand response) because it saves them money on expensive power plants. They would rather have a more level demand curve for power, which is not the real world. Then again they want to make money and have control over their grid system. So they are pretty conflicted with solar and wind.
LDSreliance if the power company hasn't done their thing after 7 months, it usually means the installer didn't do something right and the power company is waiting till the error gets fixed.
Stephen Anderson not necessarily. The local inspectors for the county or city will fail the job however the utilities can take up to nine months just to come out for the first time. If it passes the local inspection there's no reason that it would ever fail the utility inspection. I work for that solar company in the big orange box store and deal with this every day
Will Gawlik I guess it all depends on which utility it is. 7 months would be unthinkable in the Seattle area. Here it is very possible to pass electrical inspection just to have the utility show up with the meters and say, "hey, that meter socket is too high, or that's a CT can and needs a variance, or you need a knife switch on the disconnect."
I would like to add, in my area, a contractor must contact the power company and describe the work in order to get a 'work order number'. Then the work is performed. Then the inspection by a 3rd party, UL inspection agency.. The inspector is given the work order from the contractor. Upon passing, the inspector gives the work order number back to the power company to confirm the job has gone full circle and is good to go.
Great video LD, but everyone forgets one of the largest power draining devices. You most likely will not guess it. It is your TV Converter. It uses so much power and it is left on 24/7. Turn it off when you are not watching TV. You will see the savings right away.
Ivor Fernandes a proven myth. They use less than a lightbulb.
Thank you for sharing. Great information.
Simple and Superb. Great info and delivery. A lot of good stuff to discuss with a potential installer - one of whom is coming by our home tomorrow!
Awesome! Glad it could help you.
hey man whoever you are, thanks im from the philippines especially the one with the air thing
You are welcome! Thanks for watching.
figure out your power usage by looking at existing power bills.
Its a no brainer.
I’m surprised that wasn’t mentioned.
so smart ! 🤣
Yes but if you do a work sheet where you list your appliances and time used, you get a better idea of your daily usage. Then you have to figure out how much electricity you need to generate to replenish your battery bank daily. Some days you do laundry, dishwasher, vacuum. Some days you don’t. You might watch 3 hrs of TV a night during work week but sports all weekend.
Except if you aren’t on the grid you don’t have an electric bill to look at.
Good points, thanks.
I didn't mind that my array wasn't enough to power consumption, the idea was more to implement a basic system that almost anyone could afford, and see what its capabilities are. This way people can look at my stats online, and know what to expect for the money I paid.
That is a very valid way to do it. So you are getting good returns?
Thank you very much for your dedication to make this informational video. I learned a lot.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
I bought a kit with 2 -75 watt panels and charge controllers. I plan on going solar in my next home. This has been a great learning experience for me. I use these panels in my workshop with an inverter and 2 car batteries for now and mostly powering lights with it. (LED)
It's the best way to learn doing it small first.
We have been off grid for over 30years and the technology keeps evolving
Why wouldn’t you just power your entire home with solar and get rid of your electric bill forever
@@piemasta93 1. not everyone has `$20K - $100K sitting around doing nothing. 2. Some states have code mandating to get a "certificate of occupancy" the home MUST be grid tied. 3. Borrow the money for the system and you may as well call the loan payment an" electric bill"
I installed 12 250 watt panels with the 12 grid tied microinverters from Enphase. All this + wires, rails, conduit, cut off switch, etc cost me $5,500. I did it myself 3 years ago. I still have a few years to break even, but in my head, I write it off a long time ago. My electric bill is under $20 a month. I have all LED lights, and energy star appliances etc.
Nice! That is exactly what I try to tell people. You can do it yourself and you can save a lot of money in the long run. Great job.
@Tony .w LEDs not good for health, LOL. I'd like to see the proper research paper on that one, not paid for by the incandescent or fluorescent industries lol. Anyway, thanks, I will tell this to the people who always complain that I don't have lights on my bike when it's dark.
@@tzenophile LEDs that are paired with a transformer give of EMF radiation, a risk factor for cancer. A simple google search will give you a massive amount of research. EMF radiation dramatically decreases with increasing distance.
A cheap EMF meter can measure your exposure and determine what distance is safe. I bought a meter because I was in disbelief when I read about this.
LEDs also give us an excess of blue light, which affects our melatonin levels, which regulates our sleep cycle. That is not an issue in the morning where we want blue light to wake us up, but using blue light at night will increases our risk of cancer because sleep is essential to rebuild cell damage.
In other words, sleep fights cancer.
It is therefore prudent to look at the light spectrum of LEDS before you buy them, if you want to use them at night. That is also why our phones and PC's have a night mode with a warm reddish tint, like the color of a setting sun, instead of the bluish light that is abundant in lighting of offices and factories, and daylight where alertness is essential as this creates more profitable employees. This industry is slowly recognizing the danger of blue light and is moving towards "Human Centric Lighting." Not necessarily because they care about our health, but because a healthy employee is more profitable!
Conclusion: LEDS can be safe, if you know how to use them.
Cell phones are another ballgame. ALL cell phones come with a warning that we should NOT keep the phone against our skull. Why? Because the microwave energy can cause acoustic neuromas and gliomas (malignant tumors) in our brain. Military research from the US & Russia have been warning us since the invention of microwaves (used in radar, 3G, 4G, 5G, microwave ovens, smart meters, etc) for about 70 years! Most research that is sponsored by the telecom industry, claims that "not-ionizing radiation safe is, except for some potential heating."
The motive?
5G MUST be applied in the entire world for MASSIVE economic profit!
The reality?
Gliomas have become the #1 cause of cancer (53%) among children and it is increasing among those who use a cell phone for more than 10 years.
"More research is needed", according to the telecom, ignoring the fact that most gliomas occur on the side of the skull where one holds a cell phone!
5G will MASSIVELY increase the microwaves that enters our brain.
Conclusion:
Financial conflict of interest between scientists and their sponsors and between media and their advertisers, is casting doubt on real dangers.
Greta Thunberg started her Fridays for the Future movement, asking the world leaders to just listen to the scientists, but we don't for LOL, because it isn't easy when we have conflicting interests.
@@frankbeeckman7575 Seriously, you sound confused. Give me just one scientific reference for your claims. Or a reference to a scientific paper you wrote yourself, peer-reviewed or not. I already asked for this in my previous post, and you, sadly, are not coming off as someone who knows the science. Or ballpark sane, for that matter. And please don't involve Greta Thunberg. She has science down, you don't.
Peace.. Shalom.. Salam.. Namaste and Thank You for All your efforts to support this Great Cause 🙏🏻 😊 🌈 ✌ 🌷 ☮ ❤
Solid video. I got a 20W panel to charge a 7mAh sealed lead acid battery which powers a tiny camera and video transmitter above our front door. Self-powered wireless CCTV to our TVs and IPcam DVR 😀
I run my solar system during the day...not night..I only use my solar at night to run my wifi and internet system..but during the day time I use my solar system to run most of my electric need.
Solar at night? Do your Solar panels run off moon beams or starlight?
8. Don't install solar panels over an old roof that will need reshingled within 10 years.
9. Don't install panels in locations where they will be partially shaded by vents, chimneys, or anything else.
10. Allow sufficient air-space underneath the panels to provide good airflow for backside cooling. Don't mount solar panels 1 inch off your roof.
11. Run you clothes washer, clothes dryer, washing-machine, oven, air conditioner, during peak generation hours.
12. The cost of panels keeps dropping, so don't buy premium 25 year panels. But don't buy the ultra-cheap panels either.
Good thoughts. I agree with all of those.
@Booboobear2388 black soaks heat, white reflects heat...
@Booboobear2388 I would guess that painting the back of any panels would invalidate the warranty. With how low the price of solar is now, it's not worth it. You won't lose that much production because of heat on the underside, especially in Wyoming. It's overkill. You could add 1 more panel which would more than make up for any loss due to heat.
@steve b harsh
@silverbird58 - - Just a quick carpentry refresher.....
"Joists" go under floors.
"Rafters" are the support framing for roofs.
I am impressed, let me just say that first. When I saw the title, I was all ready to tear whatever you said 'to pieces' but no, there is nothing you said that any rational person might disagree with.
Ok, you didn't address battery banks or germanium diodes but it wasn't entirely the remit and I do appreciate that?
You might get the impression that I am indeed an 'expert' and yes, I've spent over 30 years installing 'back-up' systems for buoys, beacons and light-houses. Everything from diesel generators to wind gen's and of course, Solar Panels. For those that know, you have to change the math for installations in the water? I might explain that or just leave you to think about it?
The reason I don't explain is because I respect you and would hope and expect that you might figure it out all by yourself?
I absolutely love your question and answer 'section', getting the impression you were getting PO'd with stupid replies. Hopefully you won't see mine as such, I certainly don't wish it to be.
Pax dude.
Thanks! There are many irrational people out there that love to argue over silly points and this video attracted quite a few of them as you can see by the comments and the FAQ.
You have gained considerable knowledge since part 1. Presentation skills have improved also. Nice job.
Thanks, Barry! I agree with that assessment. Thanks for watching.
Thanks for the overview. It is accurate IMHO.I would add a discussion of how to size the battery bank (stored energy and $$$) for the expected load, as that almost sunk my installation.
I did produce a video on that very subject: czcams.com/video/iGTTUzN5Jjs/video.html
I've noticed that the angle and temperature of the panels don't realy matter that mutch
Just make sure u place them full south and avoid ANY shadow then clean them once a year and you should be good.
I'm running a 3400wp max (20x170wp) installation and in summer it peaks @4200
Very nice! I agree. If you have the ability to optimize the angle do it. If not, it isn't the end of the world. And as long as you have 4-5 inches between your panels and your roof the temperature won't ever be a problem.
Are you cleaning pv panels by yourself, or a company is doing this task? What type of equipment do uoy use to clean them ?
@@michaeld2826 - I just use water and a squeegee, Most of the times it's enough. Some soap might be handy on occasion, mostly because of bird droppings. But surely nothing sophisticated! ;-)
Niceone brother! Some useful information rite there! Thanks a lot. God bless
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
In July it's winter and cold in south of Australia. Hardly any sun, except a few days of low sun.
I would also add if your biggest fear is power outages, NEVER go "Grid-Tie" because if the grid goes down, so do you. I went off grid to be isolated from outages (not necessarily to be "green"). Either get solar for battery back-up or go off grid entirely. (Off grid = approximately 5-9 years of electric bills up front. That is the cost)
i wonder what that means, *5-9 years of electric bills up front* ; how is that?!
@@josepeixoto3384
the average cost of being completely electrically isolated from outages.
- What ever your electric prices are in your current location
(home, city, nation).
I partially agree, I think if you have a battery backup you can still use it during a power outage. An off-grid system is probably much cheaper and easier to DIY, especially if you could put it on a patio awning or a gazebo instead of roof of the house.
You're partially correct. I have a Sol Ark 12k grid tied inverter with 30kWh battery back up that runs my house during off solar hours. The Sol Ark can utilize the grid if needed, sell excess power to the grid and even sell excess battery storage to the grid. I wired my solar power into a separate panel box and moved circuits to that box - utility, lighting, refrigeration, HVAC and well pump. I still have the grid available if I need it. I'm waiting to get through this winter to see how the system 'actually' performs through the winter.
Sun hours and load expectancy, it's hard to get this through to people with out them thinking it's all a big con. And when they decide to get a cheap unit online not mentioning any culprits here (cough cough coEBAYugh) and their like "it doesn't do anything" .....
@Jackson Parker yeah that 10 watt panel for $40 won’t run my fridge, aircon and dryer ...... 🤣🤣🤣
Very important tip about ventilation
I live in quite a low latitude and saw according to several inclination calculators that I shouldn't worry too much about the angle of my solar panels. So I though: "then I could just 'glue' them to my roof". But this wouldn't help my solar array, instead (since is quite hot here) it will make it worse. Thanks for the tip!
Yes, even the semi-flexible solar panels that are starting to become popular that do not have an aluminum fixed frame need lots of ventilation. It might be tempting to just plaster them on the top of your camper or trailer or car. But they will only generate a fraction of their rated power if you do that.
Thank you for the kindness, It good information on solar panels.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
1watt for new solar panel (corrently) costs $0.23
US goverment is changing it to double that, as they say the price is too cheap and will not allow that cheap panels.
If your a democrap. Government doesn't have to know.
One concern I would like to raise about Solar installations is the roofing materials that the panels are mounted on. (assuming a roof installation). I was looking at all the framing infrastructure used in a typical multi-panel installation, and was quite uncomfortable.
I realized that at some point AFTER the solar plant was in operation, the shingle roof would EVENTUALLY need to be replaced. That makes for some SERIOUS extra work & expenses!. I think it makes more sense to install a wind turbine(or 3) rather than buying solar panels. I suppose it really comes down to return on investment, and where you live.
For me, WIND & SOLAR are great choices here in Texas, especially WIND...
What do most people do in these situations?
You are correct. Solar leasing companies don't really tell you all that will be involved if and when you have to replace your roof. It is in the contract but not usually discussed. Solar leases are usually for at least 20 years and that is about the lifespan of a roof, too. And in Texas/Oklahoma you are bound to have hail damage or high wind damage at some point in 20 years, too.
Most agreements I have seen will charge between $500-1000 to have a team come out and uninstall the solar panels and then reinstall them after the roof is replaced.
IMO, the best way to power a home is a hybrid setup with either micro hydro or wind and then combined with solar panels. And I would rather mount the solar panels on a back yard rack system than on the roof for multiple reasons.. if you have the room of course.
LDSreliance: Thank you very much, I do like the hybrid idea best of all. The Sun doesn't shine all the time, but the wind blows MOST of the time...
John Mulhall ground mount systems are much more expensive than roof mount unless you do a dual axis tracking. Roofs under solar last far longer than roofs not covered by solar since uv rays don't touch them.
$500-1000 sounds like a pretty good deal to be honest.
Good info I'm out of the US in a country where it's summer like weather almost year round and the Sun is kicking. My reason for going solar is the utilities companies here are notorious for being corrupt and their billing/usage system is ridiculous. They barely even come to read the meters just send random guess usage bills with no accountable to any agencies. And we have about 7-10 power outages weekly some lasting 4 to 6 hours. So needless to say my strategy is to reverse this situation and start having them pay me for my grid contribution.
Some good things to think about. But a panel does not "need" to be facing South, nor have a certain angle. By doing a calculation (there are free programs and web sites) you can see how good it works. I have engineered pv systems facing more or less West, with 10 degree tilt that generates 850 kWh/kWp/year
Once the system is on your roof, what would you do if you needed new shingles in say 5 years for some unknown reason? And, if you have a very large lawn, why not put them on the ground on posts if you have the location and no trees or buildings to restrict the panels from sunlight? Thank you for such an informative video.
"Put them on the ground on posts". Disadvantages as I see it.
One is the obligation to build an additional structure, to support the panels. After all, considering all things equal the roof would already be there!
Cable lengths, bury, etc. Can also be an additional issue once more depending on the particular condition. On my rocky ground...
On the roof, production and consumption are probably much closer to each other!
My personal vision of the issue is simply area lost to the panels. Something that won't happen on the roof. On the other hand when maintenance time (cleaning, etc) comes by. An installation on the ground makes life way easier... ;-)
I put mine on TV tower beside house.
Actually, while south facing makes sense from a purely electrical production POV the compensation for production under different metering schemes can alter this. For example, I have NEM 1.0 in California and it provides TOU compensation for both consumption and production. Since the peak cost period is during the late afternoon, I have west facing panels which while they generate less power during the day, their effective production (i.e. their financial production) is doubled for the time at which they are optimally aligned with the sun (in the late afternoon). Thus, they produce nearly the same financial production as my south facing panels.
Yes, that is a good point. If you have a north/south ridge on the roof, putting solar panels facing east and west can give you a slightly lower total but a better spread through the day.
If you have battery system you can store more production from south and use it afternoon however that's interesting approach
@@bagmszsolarenerji4029 I get 3× the financial benefit of a battery without the expense of buying a battery.
Excellent report Sir. Very educational and informative.
Thank you Sir, very much.
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
@ 01:58 - #3 EXACTLY! When I moved into my "new" house. the first thing I wanted to do was to replace all of my lights with LED lights, starting with the lights I would use the most! Luckily in the time since you posted this video, prices of LED's have come down!
Yep, they are dirt cheap now. Makes it even more obvious to do first before you think solar.
Some good points but remember that at the winter time you have shorter, colder, cloudy days and that your heater is running hence it makes the refrigerator work longer! You should have a proper pv system that would compensate an efficient inverter and charge controller that would stand up the circumstances!
Shorter winter days and colder weather requires 3 times input of the power usage! please consider it!
My Battery Powered House w
A refrigerator doesn't care whether your heater is running or not. It does approximately the same amount of work summer or winter because you're keeping the indoor temperature of your house approximately the same summer or winter. It's just that during the summer you're not having to run the heater to keep it that way, in fact you may have to run an air conditioner, but in the winter you are running your heater.
If your house was super insulated, then you wouldn't have a primary heater in your house to begin with.
would adding more insulation around a refrigerator reduce its power draw or blowing cold air over the coils say like from underground or under the house
basically what I am asking is there a simple way to reduce the Refregerator power draw?
yup. good vid for the beginner. guess what. also a good vid for advanced users. makes a nice check reference for one's system. good job!
Thanks! I appreciate it.
+LDSreliance
G'day,
Yay Team !
An excellent video.
You might perhaps have added in the trap of underestimating the amount of Lead-Acid Batteries it takes to be able to live through a 3-day cloudy-spell, without either cranking up a Backup-Generator or dramatically reducing the service-life & storage efficiency of the Batteries.
We still use the same Lead & the same Acid as they did a hundred years ago, and the fact is that if you expect 20 years service from a bank of Cells, then it must be charged bulyva minimum of 1.1% of Rated Capacity daily, it's daily Service-Cycle must be no more than 10% of it's Rated Capacity, and it must never be charged or discharged at a rate (in Amps) any greater than 10% of the Bank's Rated Capacity...; so, if you want to use 1Hp/Hr (0.74 Kw/Hr) of Electricity per day, then that involves using 57 Amp/Hours of "12-Volt" storage, so a one-day cycle requires a minimum of 600 Amp-Hours, and being able to go 3 days of rainy weather without vandalising the Batteries means 1,800 Amp-Hours of Rated Capacity...., at $2.50 per Amp/Hr of "12-Volt" Storage (13.2 V., actually...).
And the commonest scam here in Oz, among competitive Solar-System Installers, seems to involve selling a Neophyte some silly notion involving using 30% of the Battery Bank's Rated Capacity every day, or more, and killing their first set of Batteries within 6 months...; then selling them a second set which is still undersized & overworked..., and doing it again, until the Tree-Changing Yuppies finally grow an understanding of how much is involved in supplying one's own Electrickities...(!).
I have an Asymetric Tower of my own cobbled-up Scribbles & Sketches, with a 2-Axis Tracking-Array giving me 130 Degrees of Daily & +/- 25 Degrees of Seasonal Tracking, for the Panels feeding the Batteries & Inverter running my Hut...; and since 2008 my Road-Car (and my Paddock-Basher as well, since 2015) has had a streamlined Solar Array..., which has saved me a lot of Fuel.
Automotive Alternators are designed for running Headlights at Idle-RPM while stuck in Traffic, they're the most Fuel-Inefficient Petrol/Diesel-Electric Generator/Alternators ever put into production...; and I've observed fuelburn reductions of between 4.5% & 33.25%, after retrofitting with a "SunFoil", depending on the Vehicle, it's Electrical System, and it's "normal usage regieme".
I can't post links, as my Channel runs on a Mobile Phone, but if you want to see the Experimental Data & the CSIRO's evaluation of my results ; then please backtrack me to my "SunFoil Project" Playlist, and consider making yourself a Mk-7 or Mk-8 version...., though if you're really obsessive the Mk-3 is the most fanatically efficient..., and full constructions are on the scroll.
Have a good one,
;-p
Ciao !
That is true. I'll tackle one mistake/myth at a time :)
Thanks for the info and the comment! I'll have to check out this SunFoil. Sounds like you are on top of things down under.
Have you ever heard of Sunrun's solar as a service model? They will install the system, monitor/maintain/insure it, all at no cost. You then buy the power it produces, which they guarantee 100% of your home's annual consumption each year for 20 years.
Okay
getting my certification on Solar Energy Systems Specialist to learn how to install a few for my AC, then keep upgrading and learning until I get a greenhouse. South Florida is always sunny.
Nice, that sounds like a good plan.
Done solar and wind in my boats and never learn enough. Prepping for system on my farm in the hills of Jamaica. Thanks for the info.
You are welcome. Good luck with your project!
True you need to size your array for your power consumption....but you are being very discouraging....it does work very well with a considerable investment. My farm is off grid. I installed 54 200 watt panels on the south side of my A- frame house. six 80 amp mppt charge controllers for 20 deep cycle 12 volt batteries in parallel. They run two 3000 watt stacked xantrex inverters, for both 110 and 220 volt output. This setup runs day and night, trouble- free, silently, for 10 months out of a year. I have a 8 kw generator for December and January. I need to run the generator for an hour or two daily to charge the batteries during these months. Just not enough charge from the panels during these short days. However, the entire farm is wired, two shops, numerous outbuildings, and two houses. Mid February now, and more than enough power to go around, won't need the generator till next December. Having alot of solar panels will provide enough power generation, even on cloudy days. 25000 invested- but worth every penny. When power off the pole is unavailable this is a great solution. Even my house in town is grid-tied to reduce bills......oh and I live north of sixty in B.C., Canada, so yes it works up north, too, just sweep the snow off your solar panels to keep them working as efficiently as possible. Cheers!
I'm not trying to be discouraging. I am obviuously a big solar supporter and enthusiast. I just want people to have realistic expectations and understand that it takes a big investment to do big things. Not everyone has 25000 bucks laying around to go completely off grid, although I applaud your system and I am jealous. Someday I will go completely off grid but right now I slog it out in suburbia.
Just curious, but how's the wind in December?
TheStavros1001 Cold in December, some windy days in January, tho
Ah, then it sounds like a supplemental wind turbine wouldn't be much help. I ask because where I live there's almost always a breeze of some type during the winter.
TheStavros1001 Windmill at the farm wouldn't help a whole lot....in a valley by a river. My setup in town has a 600 watt windmill on a twenty ft pole, atop of the peak of the house, it helps quite a bit when the sun doesn't shine, but the kw/hrs don't come close to solar😀
a fridge isn't consuming 24hours a day the maximum electricity.... the pump is turning on only when needed. lets say 2 hours a day its working "full mode" depending on isulation and usage ... blabla
I agree. And newer inverter type refrigerators keep the compressor running all the time but use far less electricity and never fun at full power.
Plus, as i said in my comment, 600W for a refrigerator is insane!
I dont think anything household product consumes full power 24/7. unless you leave a light or bathroom fan on and forget about it.
its a good idea to buy watt-meter to grasp the real time usage of a single device and not trust the manufacturers numbers.
My frigde and huge freezer used 70w on average during summer combined (only thing in the house using power and that was what the power meter said)... But they say a frigde uses about 1500w when starting and that has to be considered when using a generator or inverter.
Just bought a new fridge,same size as in the video.
Watts are only around 230.
Great video! Awesome! Thank you
You are welcome. Thanks for watching!
Considering doing another solar home.Built one in the colorado mtns back in the 80's when photovolaic panels were just coming out. Had 5 panels about 30X60 inches for a 1500 sf home. The panels began to charge before sunrise. Charged 4 golf cart batteries and powered everything including a 220 v submerseable well pump. The whole system back then cost me about 3000.00 usd including inverter. installed myself, not difficult.
Very nice. It is a completely different ball game now!
walk out to your meter during the day. see how much power youre using.
That is a starting point, sure.
better still. look at your electric bill. you have detailed info on how much watts your are using. if not detailed on a daily basis, divide the total by the number of days in the billing cycle. you get watts used per day.
Or even better: check your bills for the past 12 months. I don't know about your country, but here in Brazil, the electricity bill lets you know how many kWh you consumed during the month.
4:14 I disagree.
I would say splitting the panels East and West can be as good and even better in some cases!
If you have an east west roof I would put panels on both sides, more on the sunset if possible, if you use more power in evening. And I would put a total of 40-50% more panels then the inverter maximum capacity.
This is fine for an inverters so long as you don't reach MaxV. In practice with an east-west arrangement you will still only rarely reach the inverter maximum capacity.
What it give you is a lot more power generation spread evenly over the duration of the day, and more opportunity to use it rather then sell it. Also it only costs a fraction more because you keep the same inverter and only paying for more panels and a bit more for installation.
Alternatively a SouthEast and SouthWest split is also very good (northern hemisphere), its halfway a south facing roof (maximum production per panel but generation maximum at midday) and east west roof (described above).
So if you think your roof is not optimal because it is not south facing (northern hemisphere) then think again.
You also forgot to mention that even for a south facing system it is still a very good idea to use 20-30% more panels then the inverter maximum capacity, because the system will only rarely get to its maximum and this is a good way to optimize the system.
Also having a higher pitch roof then the latitude can be good if you are doing the east west split( because the sun is lower) or if you want to optimize for winter generation rather then summer, because that is when you spend more on heating.
Sergey K I'm glad you posted that comment because I have an East West roof and I was worried that solar panels would be incompatible with my house. Everyone seems to say that the roof must be south facing but when I look at how the light falls on my roof if I put panels on both sides it looks like I will generate more power than on a south facing roof alone.
I think this 'south only' argument is putting a lot of people off solar when it's not entirely true.
@Jan van Coppenhagen true if you want max wh per metre of panel. But if no one is home middle of day then you sell it for peanuts. Panels are cheap these days compared to cost of install and inverter. So max wh per metre of panel should not be driving system design.
Our panels have adjustable angle mounts out in the yard, so we don't have to compromise the angle, which also allows me to set them vertically to remove snow, and horizontally for high winds.All fixed angle-at-latitude systems get far more power in the summer, and far less in winter, so if there is an option. I would set fixed angle systems somewhat steeper than latitude so that you can extract more power in the winter.
All great basic information. I think the most important step before you buy anything is know how much you are using now and if you can reduce that with more efficient appliances or cut back your consumption.
Agreed.
3:36 If your refrigerator is RUNNING 24 hours per day, it's definitely time for a new fridge!
Do you unplug it when you go to bed? It runs off and on around the clock. That is the point. If you buy a solar panel system to try to run your fridge you will need a much larger battery storage component than if it was for your landscape lights or entertainment center because those loads are not used around the clock.
I was surprised how much my pc consumes. when I have a small battery back up UPS and my pc, monitor, scanner on, it is 200 watts. No desk light, no printer. I plugged a Killawatt meter in and watched it, monitored total consumption over time with it.
Kill A Watt meters are great for that. It really opens your eyes to how much electricity things actually use, regardless of what other people say or what they are rated for on the box.
Yep, I'm building a new pc and just realize all the parts together it's 415W supply. I'm building gaming/work pc.
steve b why is he a dumb ass?? I have both. Im not a dumbass be nice to people dude
Consumption of electric power is proportional to calculating power. Gaming laptop consumes more than weak desktop PC. There is no laptop analog for gaming PC with gtx 1080ti.
USB power meters are helpful as well. This smartphone is drawing half an amp of 4.9 volts
We live in N AZ, and have a 8.5Kwh hybrid sysyem.
This is 30 panels (split between the East facing and West facing sides of the roof) with 24 second hand batteries and one inverter (33 Amps).
We run everything in the house on solar, EXCEPT the large Amp items (dryer, A/C - heat, stove)...
We are on a program with APS where we bank the excess watts, then, as we are on the standard pricing bracket, we get to use those banked watts at any time (if you are on one of the off peak programs, the power co only let's you use the banked watts at the same time as when they were produced - so if max production is at 11am - you would only be able to draw those watts at 11am - by remaining in standard we can draw those watts at night).
We run the house A/C for around 1-2 hours in the late afternoon (it was 103 recently and the house was 80 - we cooled it to 75 then turned the A/C off), then use the portable A/C only for night time. This seems to work very well - our last two electric bills were $20 and a few cents.
Our highest bill previously was $325. (Average was 175 - 225)
Should the power company go away for whatever reason, we have the portable A/C, a plug in turkey oven and a two ring plug in electric 'stove top' and a clothes line outside as substitutes for the large Amp items.
So far we have used a max of 30% of our battery storage in one 24 hour period - but managed to recharge before the evening again - despite cloud and forest fire smoke obscuring the sun.
The batteries require periodic equalizing to maintain the string output. Otherwise it is pretty much maintenance free.
That is a great system and a good success story. I hope people read this and learn how to do things right. Good job!
Good information, especially about how to mount it. I'm new to solar so every bit of info is appreciated.
Thanks, Damon!
If you live in SoCal I can help you 🙌🏼☀️
Anyone living in SoCal is beyond help.
600W refrigerator? That's a small cool-room, not a fridge. . .
Yes they run on about 100 watts but how much does the motor require when it first starts?
That's momentary. Inrush current. You say it yourself. "When it first starts." Unless your inverter is complete crap, all that will do is drop your voltage for a moment until the compressor is up and running. Slow start. Oh well.
he doesn't know...He even thinks refers run 24/7...
I'm not an electrician, but I know enough to know that startup power demand is real concern for appliances off-grid. ....and when he says the refrigerator runs 24/7, he means periodically throughout the day and night, use some common sense in your comments.
Practically nothing with inverter LG, runs at 80 Watts uses about 875 a day, I have been of grid since 1983
great stuff, i like how straight you are with "how is that going to work out?"
very informative...
Thanks, Petrie! I appreciate it.
Thank You for supporting Solar and All that you are doing for World Peace and for our Planet...
Peace.. Shalom.. Salam.. Paz.. Namaste ..
🙏🏻 😊 🌈 ✌ ☮️ ❤️ 💐 🕊
first thing to know. on grid and grid tied are the same...
Most people will be on-grid/grid tied! One thing to note on that is that your electric bill will never be $0, as most electric companies will charge a small fee for you having access to electricity (grid), but it will usually be a small amount ($10 - $15)
refrigerators do NOT run 24 hours a day, they cycle on and off according to cooling load
You know what I meant.
Then say what you mean.
as You can see LDSreliance... most of the posters are idiots....
farmertrip p, k
Sure ike fun, as long as you never open it!
I love the video! The problem is - there are too many questions - as to the cost of switching - versus the savings - to make the change.
Thanks. I am not sure I understand your questions, though.