solar panel and generator

[ravenv12]

We have been thinking of ways to save on the light bill. I have been looking to see if this is possible. If we put solar panel On the roof That would we charge 3 batteries And the batteries would be hoped up to a motor and the motor would drive generators can you? hook up like 7 generator together? That would go into a inverter that would run like your computer lights A.C also would a ALTERNATOR work the same From a car? Would we have to just use solar panel and batteries how many solar panel does it take to recharge batteries how many batteries would we have to have and solar panel

[Norm]

    It doesn't work that way ...it goes from

solar panels to batteries to lights or inverter.

   You really should do some reading about solar

panels first.

            ( :>) Norm

[jimjjnn]

Losses so high that all you could do is drive motor with generator and lose more energy than you put into the motor

[RogerAS]

Hi Raven,

THE cheapest way to save on the light bill is to NOT use as much power. PV's are expensive, I know I have some. Batteries are also expensive. Any type of renewable setup is going to be expensive to start out from zip. Even a windturbne of any real output is going to cost, DIY or ready made. You have to figure out how much you're willing to spend and how to spend those coins wisely.

Sure you COULD drive a generator with a DC motor, but why. The motor would use much more than an inverter. I know of no generators that can be strung together, but there are inverters that can be. Car alrernators can produce battery charging power, but I drive mine with an engine and ONLY as a last resort.

I suggest you do a LOT of Google searches and figure out what can be done and what you can live with and/or without.

Simply switching to compact florescent lighting will save heaps. Doing without the AC when it's less than 85°F. Not watching TV for hours on end. When you figure out how much and what you really need to power you can then plan to supplment that. Since you have a light bill you are not off the grid. I am and I'm here to tell you I'd kill to have the AC run when it's so damned hot at night here in Arkansas, but we do without. That's the kind of choice one makes living without the grid. Want to have it all? Get ready to pay! Ready to make some sacrifices? You might be able to unhook or lower that bill.

Get a grip on the situation and those here will jump through hoops to help.

RogerAS

[ravenv12]

I have looked around a lot for web sites. Can you run a inverter right off of a wind generator? I have read where people use more than one wind generator to power their house. I have looked on eBay for them example one I found and it says 12 foot prop 25mph 2798 watts. Would it have to do so many revolutions? Say if I only use solar panels and batteries. How many solar panels would I need to recharge batteries and keep using my stuff. I know stuff won't be running 24/7. How many batteries can you hook up together? How long does batteries last say if you have it hook up to a small window A/C unit or a PC. I want to Do it in a small scale at first. I have read a lot on this web site and other ones but none of them really answer my question thanks for responding

[AbyssUnderground]

I suggest you look around www.otherpower.com and this board for your answers using the search when you can.

Also try google for your questions. Remember google is your friend. Its helped me on a thousand and one occasions.

If after that you can't figure out what to do, you should come back and post.

With regard to running an AC/PC, it will take a lot of PV and Batteries to run an AC, and also a large inverter. A PC is 1/8th of the power an A/C takes, at the very most.

Ive started small by powering CCFL's and LED lights. I can run the inverter if I want but it takes days to recharge my 17.5Ah bank with only 9watts of PV. Hopefully soon Im going to move to a 100Ah-300Ah bank and a small 200w wind turbine if I can ever get the time and money to build one.

[RogerAS]

Raven,

If you look at my posts you will see that I run a VERY small AC unit. I have 650+ watts of PV panels and ths isn't enough to keep up. I also have 200-300 watts of wind, and this isn't much help either, as the wind rarely blows much in the summer were I live.

I would not attempt to run an inverter straight from a windturbine. The flucuations would mess with it hard. Inverters like a source that can be drawn down like a water tank. Think of it like this. You flush the john and water rushes in to refill the tank for the next flush. Your AC unit kicks on and the inverter needs to have something to draw upon. With wind that might not be there at the moment the AC unit needs it. That's where batteries come in.

I have more than one wind turbine. There is theoretically no limit to the number of turbines one can operate. RPM's have nothing to do with output. Look at DanB's latest monster. It seems to be a very low RPM machine but makes over 2K watts.

We don't know what your "stuff" is that you want to keep running, 24/7 or not. Each appliance or device states the required power to operate. Add them up to get an idea as to what you need. Look at your current power bill, it should list kilowatt hours used. That will tell you more thna we can.

There is no limit to the number of batteries one can hook together. The issue is how many one can keep charged. Batteries not being drained by an external source will go dead over time on their own. This is where your PV panels and a charge controller come in. I have a 1320 amp hour bank of batteries. I am underpowering my bank, all renewable sources combined. That's why another source, in my case an engine driving a big alternator, is needed. If I expanded my PV's or added more wind power (which I will eventually do) it would be better.

In my case if my batteries are up to around 14V and I run the AC (2500 BTU) on a bare minimum setting the batteries will be down to 11.5V in less than 6 hours. That's if the sun is shinning brightly. Once the sun sets this rate of discharge increases dramatically!

Thinking of small scale is a good idea. Since none of us know what you really want to do and how much energy you need this is the best way to learn. Nobody can assert that renewable energy is easy. However it isn't rocket science either. I would start with around 250 watts of PV's with a small charge controller, 400 amp hour battery bank, and a 500 watt inverter. I would think one could run a laptop 24/7 with this setup. However running an AC unit will require much much more power on all fronts. A big inverter, a large battery bank and some source to keep those batteries at some state of charge. Completely depleting even true deep cycle batteries is not good.

Do some more searching within this site and look at what you want to power via renewable sources. 99% of the info you need is here already.

RogerAS

[antw]

Your questions are a bit like how much petrol does it take to run a car.  It depends on the car, the way you drive it, the load it carries, the speed you drive at, the distance you travel each day etc.

You need to look at the amount of watts each appliance uses, and the amount of time you would like to use each appliance for.  With some more information people here are only too willing to help.

I think if you want to run an A/C unit, you will have to spend a LOT of money on solar panels and batteries.  The pc and lights will be cheaper place to start.

[Clifford]

Ok,

You could potentially make an alternator/generator that would run synchronously at 60 revolutions per second (3600 RPM), and it would produce perfect sine wave output.  Old Gas Generators did something like that.

However, the energy losses would be HUGE to run it off a DC motor.

An inverter also produces AC current using solid state electronics, and will run as high as 80 or 90% efficiency.  You can use "modified sine wave" which most appliances will accept, or you can get a more expensive sine wave inverter.  

However, if you are currently on the grid and want to dabble with alternative energy, then figure out a few "target" applications and start with those.

For example, you can purchase 10 watt or less DC Compact Florescent Light bulbs.  Thus, you don't need an inverter.  Depending on how many lights you use at a time, you really wouldn't need too big of a system to run it.

And, you will amaze your neighbors that you have lights during the next power outage.

 I've heard of some people connecting an excercycle generator to a TV.  No TV unless you are pumping away.

Most of all....  HAVE FUN.