Adding Solar Power.pdf

http://www.HomeBrewPower.co.uk

Adding Solar Power

Photovoltaic’s

The basic concept here is to convert the sun’s rays into an electric current

(Shown how above)

Today it is really easy to add solar power to your homebrew system as they

normally come complete with a blocking diode so they can be connected

directly to your battery storage terminals for additional power, I would not

recommend solar in the UK as your primary source of generating green

electricity as the conversion factors as so low and the price per watt are so

high it is not worth the investment.

However they are great for providing supplementary power into your

batteries on a small scale system, say for example if you have a 200AH

12VDC system then go ahead and purchase a 12VDC 15W panel, it will

certainly be of benefit to your system.

Best place to purchase them is www.ebay.co.uk Search for ‘Solar Panel’ As

a rough guide to solar base your overall cost of panel at £4.00 per 1Watt of

power, so for a 15Watt panel you should be OK with £60.00 all in.

For wiring details and more info see the diagrams and picture section, any

further info please mail me on molesmail@gmail.com

Solar Thermal

If you are looking at not only reducing / eliminating your electricity bills but

also your gas bills then ‘Solar Thermal’ is the way to go! The panels by far

outweigh Photovoltaic panels in terms of value and efficiency; I myself do

not at present own a panel on my system but will be doing so in the near

future. I do however have a friend who has shown me his setup working on a

cloudy day and they are impressive. The panel he uses is a 20 tube

‘Evacuated Tube Solar Hot Water Panel’ as shown below.

The panel was purchased in the UK from a reputable company called

Navitron www.navitron.org.uk (Mention me if you pop by!) they are the

best quality I have seen and by far the cheapest.

They can be easily coupled into your domestic hot water cylinder to heat

your water up through the day and WILL greatly reduce your bills.

Any doubts or questions please mail me molesmail@gmail.com and I will

do my best to advise you.