[Chiefster23]

If you are planning on 4 panels, buy at least 6 and maybe 8. You will be upgrading later on and you can’t beat the price. And as far as the genny, buy it too. I have a solar set up AND a 3 kw army generator. If you have an oil furnace you already a big diesel fuel tank to feed the genny.

BTW, I started with 400 watts of panels and I am now up to 1000 (soon to be 1200)

 

[Mad Trapper]

If you are planning on 4 panels, buy at least 6 and maybe 8. You will be upgrading later on and you can't beat the price. And as far as the genny, buy it too. I have a solar set up AND a 3 kw army generator. If you have an oil furnace you already a big diesel fuel tank to feed the genny.

BTW, I started with 400 watts of panels and I am now up to 1000 (soon to be 1200)

I can't swing a genny and solar right now. Might get some panels and finish the setup later. I think the genny would be better for immediate future (if my oil tank is full), as I have wood heat.

 

[Chiefster23]

I started out with a new Honda 2KW inverter gen instead of the battery backup for the pellet stove. BTW, 2kw rationed properly will do an awful lot for you. Then some time later I started with the 400 watt solar setup. Maybe 2 years later I bought the 3kw military generator. Over all those years I gradually upgraded the solar power components. Ya can’t do in all at once. Too expensive.

 

[LDSreliance]

You lose. 80 watts.

No offense, but what you are claiming is mathematically impossible. Is there more to the story?

 

[Back Pack Hack]

No offense, but what you are claiming is mathematically impossible. Is there more to the story?

Um... maybe the fact that you don't run anything off the solar panels.... you run it off the the batteries.

 

[LDSreliance]

Um... maybe the fact that you don't run anything off the solar panels.... you run it off the the batteries.

That is what I am talking about. Even if you are using a very efficient chest freezer and a small dorm fridge, you are still looking at about 600Ah for 3 days of use. And that is before you account for the inefficiency of the inverter and power lost through your cables and connectors.

If you are going to brag about something at least make sure it is possible to do.

 

[Back Pack Hack]

That is what I am talking about. Even if you are using a very efficient chest freezer and a small dorm fridge, you are still looking at about 600Ah for 3 days of use. And that is before you account for the inefficiency of the inverter and power lost through your cables and connectors.

If you are going to brag about something at least make sure it is possible to do.

Again with the assumptions.

I don't turn the system on and let it run 24/7.

I turn it on, let the fridge and freezer cool down, then turn it off. I can then leave the power off for 6-8 hours with no ill effects. STARTING a refrigeration compressor is where most of the power is used... NOT running it.

If you're going to tell someone a liar, at least get your own facts in order first.

 

[LDSreliance]

Again with the assumptions.

I don't turn the system on and let it run 24/7.

I turn it on, let the fridge and freezer cool down, then turn it off. I can then leave the power off for 6-8 hours with no ill effects. STARTING a refrigeration compressor is where most of the power is used... NOT running it.

If you're going to tell someone a liar, at least get your own facts in order first.

Can you please point me to where you specified that information? How am I or anyone supposed to know that? Anyone reading your statement thinks that you actually powered a fridge and freezer for 3 days with your tiny setup. So you let everyone in the thread, including the people responding to you in disbelief, think that you did all this with a 400Ah battery bank and an 80W panel. The only difference is I know that it isn't possible.

So now there might be people on here that read this thread and ignorantly think they can run a fridge and freezer now for 3 days with your setup. And I get dozens of emails and video comments a month from people like that wondering why their system isn't working because so and so on some internet forum making grandiose claims or on Youtube with some clickbait video told them it would work.

 

[Back Pack Hack]

........think that you did all this with a 400Ah battery bank and an 80W panel. The only difference is I know that it isn't possible.
.......

And you know this because................ you've actually tried it and failed, or just read it in a book somewhere?

Perhaps you should go back to plugging your sales.

FWIW, I'm not going to spend any more bandwidth on you.

 

[Chiefster23]

Based on this tread, I just tried running my 7 cubic foot chest freezer on a 600 amp-hr battery bank to see how long it would go. I left the year old freezer run round the clock. Full disclaimer; the battery bank is 5 years old but it has been well maintained and never discharged below 75% capacity. I got 48 hours and the batteries were down to about 50% by specific gravity readings. I disconnected the batts from the solar panels or this test so the batteries were on their own.

 

[LDSreliance]

And you know this because................ you've actually tried it and failed, or just read it in a book somewhere?

Perhaps you should go back to plugging your sales.

FWIW, I'm not going to spend any more bandwidth on you.

Yes, I have tried exactly those kind of scenarios. I do real world testing on almost all of my projects (whether I film it for Youtube or not) but I also do the math beforehand to verify the theory and parameters are going to work before I waste money and time on a project.

I have no interest in getting in a pissing contest, either. But if there is misinformation or clickbait being spread that is going to lead people to having a bad experience with solar I am going to jump in and correct it every time.

 

[LDSreliance]

Based on this tread, I just tried running my 7 cubic foot chest freezer on a 600 amp-hr battery bank to see how long it would go. I left the year old freezer run round the clock. Full disclaimer; the battery bank is 5 years old but it has been well maintained and never discharged below 75% capacity. I got 48 hours and the batteries were down to about 50% by specific gravity readings. I disconnected the batts from the solar panels or this test so the batteries were on their own.

See, now that is a believable, realistic result. You ran a chest freezer, which is highly efficient and a pretty small load, for 48 hours and consumed approximately 300Ah. Even if the batteries are under-performing and you would have only used 250Ah with a brand new battery bank, that is still a far cry from his claims that a 400Ah battery bank ran a fridge (much higher load than a freezer - at least double) and a freezer for 72 hours.