anyone know solar panel info?

[habeeb]

Hi guys,

was wanting to do a all solar grow.. not a big one, like 150 watt max, maybe even 80 watt..

wanting to see if someone can help me with all the technical aspects


from what I know, my options really are only ? :

-hook directly up to the system, and if there's sun it's powered, if not, it turns off

-battery hookup, where the power is drawn from the battery, and this is where I think it gets very tricky as it involves inverters and charge controllers????

please let me know, as I thought it would be a fun project..

thanks

 

[Sat X RB]

Habeeb ... I 'm on Stand Alone Solar Power. have been for a long time. did my own installation and do my own maintenance. hope I can fill some gaps in yr thinking on this.

the 80/150 watts you seek is at 240 volts.

to figure your Solar needs this wattage needs to be converted to 12 or 24 volts (your choice) so:

Watts = Volts X Amps. thus 150 watts divided by 240 Volts = 0.625 Amps

this figure needs to be multiplied 20 times to convert to 12 Volts. so 20 X 0.625 = 12.5 Amps.

so this is 12.5 Amps PER HOUR.

you will have to store energy for those times there is not enough sunlight.

leaving out further technical stuff (but I 'll elaborate if you ask) ... from my experience you will need to have quite a large battery bank to ensure a crop. say 1000 AMP HOURS.

in this country the cost of a battery bank this size is around $5000!

 

[Weezard]

It would work directly with LEDs, but not with metal halide or HPS.
All that would need is a current limiter.

For discharge lamps you will need an inverter and a high capacity UPS,
(un-interruptable power supply.

Like Sat said, about $5k.

You could just go for it with a $20K whole house conversion and use some of it to grow, yah?
That's what I'm considering.

Aloha,
Weeze

 

[habeeb]

Habeeb ... I 'm on Stand Alone Solar Power. have been for a long time. did my own installation and do my own maintenance. hope I can fill some gaps in yr thinking on this.

the 80/150 watts you seek is at 240 volts.

to figure your Solar needs this wattage needs to be converted to 12 or 24 volts (your choice) so:

Watts = Volts X Amps. thus 150 watts divided by 240 Volts = 0.625 Amps

this figure needs to be multiplied 20 times to convert to 12 Volts. so 20 X 0.625 = 12.5 Amps.

so this is 12.5 Amps PER HOUR.

you will have to store energy for those times there is not enough sunlight.

leaving out further technical stuff (but I 'll elaborate if you ask) ... from my experience you will need to have quite a large battery bank to ensure a crop. say 1000 AMP HOURS.

in this country the cost of a battery bank this size is around $5000!

two words.. holy shit. that's some expensive weed, haha.

ok, well let's skip the battery idea for now, as I'm in a rental, and moving to Europe later, so.. that's not going to be doable at all. I thought it was like one big ass battery and that's all... damn

so as wee said, do all I need is a current limiter if I direct hook to LED? can I also hook the panel to a inverter to run my led and fan from it, or is that asking too much?

It would work directly with LEDs, but not with metal halide or HPS.
All that would need is a current limiter.

For discharge lamps you will need an inverter and a high capacity UPS,
(un-interruptable power supply.

Like Sat said, about $5k.

You could just go for it with a $20K whole house conversion and use some of it to grow, yah?
That's what I'm considering.

Aloha,
Weeze

ok. is the current limiter all I need as I know different sized solar panels put out different volts and amp...

yeah I was going to do a 30k house install, but I didn't like my guy I was talking to as he was trying to change parts on it when I didn't ok it.. also good thing as I sold the house later... it was funny as they guy looked at my bill, it was like $80 to run a 4,000 sq foot house in CA ( LED light bulbs and being conservative like hanging my clothes and had alot of windows for light.. also used only 1 light at night, I was a freak ) and he's like you only need a small system, and I'm like, no trust me, I'm going to use more power soon... haha

but I'm renting right now, so I wanted a or 2 solar panels like this as you can move them and they transport very easily.. thought it would be a fun / funny setup to grow some pot off a jerry rigged setup, that was all free ( minus costs to buy ) to grow... just seemed interesting.

only problem is running it at winter / cloudy days, as where I'm at in Southern California it gets cloudy in the morning and then works it way to sun .. so my weight would be like small, and might be super stretchy if they don't get some good initial start to form some sets of leaf first.



well I say you go for it wee, solar incentives are only dropping off from what I last heard. not sure how it is in HI, but I know you have killer electric bills ( lived on oahu and maui ) so you definitely need it!

 

[Sat X RB]

No, can't hook directly panel to inverter. light fluctuations will cause varying panel output and inverter will probably turn off and on.

and hooking panel via current limiter will not avoid light fluctuation either.

the best way is as Weezard said: put whole house on Solar. that (grid connect) way you can be true to a green ethic AND have access to base load power on rainy days.

(government subsidies for solar installations are ending in this country too.)

 

[frito bandito]

1000 amp hour capacity doesn't cost anywhere near $5k. Try $2300 plus shipping:

http://www.batterystuff.com/batteries/pv-solar/

Six of those 2V cells connected in series will do the trick.

Some may say that is expensive....but when you buy quality solar equipment, that power is FREE for the next 20+ years. Which would you rather do? Rely on the power company, getting nickled and dimed by them month after month? Paying a $5 service charge each and every month just for the privilege of paying your damn bill? Or how about just pay for it all up front and never have to worry about power again, even if civilization collapses?

I don't have the money right this minute to convert my 8k grow to all solar, but I'm about to install an efficient and reliable generator though. I will add solar as funds permit. The good thing about solar is you can add it in one panel or one battery at a time as funds permit. You don't have to spend that money all at once.

 

[Weezard]

"No, can't hook directly panel to inverter. light fluctuations will cause varying panel output and inverter will probably turn off and on.

True dat!
That's why it's no good for HPS.
Leds will go off and on with the sun.
The plants are used to that, and it does not bother the leds at all.

and hooking panel via current limiter will not avoid light fluctuation either."

Actually, it sort of will.
The current limiter is for the leds.

Keeps them alive and at full output until the sky gets very dark.
Then the inverter drops out and they turn off.
That and they use about half the wattage as HPs for the same weight of bud.

Do not cheap out on batteries.
Lead-acid cells tend to fail in about 5 years and do not handle full discharge very well. That's why you need to over-spec. them.

I looked into going off the grid.
Very expensive and there are maintenance costs.
Bout the best deal offered is selling power back to the grid during your off peak and daylight hours.
You pay a very low bill to stay connected to the grid so there's less power interruption.
Like Sat. said, access to base load power is critical for growing.
Renting a safety net kinda.
AT $20 USD per month I'd never amortize the battery cost before having to replace them.
I'm all about bang for my buck. (Read, cheap.)


Aloha, y'all
Weeze