A very good and while not the best system to get your feet wet is a Harbor Freight system. It is small (45 watts at best) has 3 panels, comes with 2 5 watt 12Vdc CFL bulbs and a PDU (Power Distribution Unit) but they for some reason have labled it a controller. You'll need to get a few batteries as well. Purist will say not to; but old useable car battereis are in fact perfect for a "test" system. Just make sure they are usable and won't boil dry. Attach the panels to a stable area. The anchor they ahve is okay if you weight it down with sand bags and make sure they are "locked" in place.
READ the manual that comes with it!!! it does explain that it will drian the batts if left on at night :-(
This will help TONS it getting a very good start to both the limits of a solar system and what items can and cannot be used with it. Once you have a fairly good undersatnding , then you could also purchase a small inverter that'll take the 12Vdc up to 110Vac. Plus you'll gain a better undertsanding the higher current needs of "stuff" Along with ALL this you'll be able to take vampire circuits OFF your home system by letting the panles do the charging of those items. Where you'll see a drop in your electric bill.
This money saved , you could then add to build a bigger system :))
Above ALL else have fun!! Bruce S[ Parent ]
I believe knowledge is first and foremost. You repair alpliances for a living so you already know first hand how much these puppies can suck in energy.
Once you've gained the knowledge from this beginner system, you may then decide to go further into a grid-tie system OR to keep it ALL for yourself :_))
Any further questions don't hesitate to ask, I'll HELP all I can.
Cheers Bruce S[ Parent ]
