Solar Power Solution

Solar Power Plans For Your Remote Cabin – Part 1

There are many ways to take advantage of solar power for your home. You can get solar panel systems that can fit any size home, energy demand, or space limitation. In this two part series we will discuss two of the most popular variations of solar power systems; Off-The-Grid Solar Panel Systems and Hybrid Solar/Generator Systems, along with the advantages and disadvantages of each configuration.

Off-The-Grid Solar Panel Systems

These solar panel systems are usually used for remote locations where electricity and fuel sources are hard to come by, such as a cabin or cottage. These systems consist of:

• Solar Panels: You can use as many solar panels as needed. You can base your solar needs by calculating your cabin’s electrical consumption. The higher the consumption of electricity, the larger the solar panel array must be.
• Charge Controller: This takes electricity from the solar panels and feeds it into the battery array. This device ensures the batteries do not continue to receive electricity after they are fully charged. This would damage the batteries.
• Battery Array: A custom array of deep-cycle batteries, the amount depending on how much electricity consumption and supply you need. It can also be dependent on the environment. For example, you would need a larger battery array if your cabin is located in an area that experiences lots cloudy days or limited sunlight. The battery array should ideally be able to store several days’ worth of energy.
• AC/DC Inverter: Solar panels and batteries produce DC power, but most if not all household appliances use AC power. The inverter simply converts DC power into useable AC power.

Advantages of Off-The-Grid Solar Panel Systems

These systems are ideal for remote cabins, cottages, or villages. They allow people to live in areas which would normally be uninhabitable. Recently, they have also been able to provide power to third world villages that would probably never have power otherwise.

There is very little maintenance for these systems. The battery array is the most demanding piece of infrastructure and will be the first part that needs to be replaced. These systems are dramatically cheaper than running power lines all the way out to the cottage or cabin.

Disadvantages of Off-The-Grid Solar Panel Systems

There is no means of getting power should the system go down due to weather or malfunction and you use all the power stored in the battery array.

To learn more about power solutions for your remote cabin, go to http://www.squidoo.com/solarcabin for a step-by-step guide on how to use the sun to power your cabin

About the Author

In case you didn’t notice, I’m a big fan of making my own renewable energy. I want to share my successes and failures and let people learn for my experiences.

Solio Compact Hybrid Solar Charger