Solar Power Off Grid Help Please ...All Inputs Very Much Appreciated ...

I appreciate the information I will consider all this. And I believe that the Lord will come within three years or so when everything goes south

I've got off grid solar, been using it since 2010. You can find really clear guides and how-to videos on Youtube.

You'll need to decide if you want to connect your panels in series or parallel, so look up tutorials about that. They will show you the cables you need and how to make the connections between the panels and then into your charge controller. Plus you need isolating switches before the controller.

From the charge controller you'll go to your batteries, again with series or parallel connections. It's a good idea to pop a shunt in which connects to a meter so you can monitor your state of charge and see how much power gets drained when you're using stuff.

Like this one [link to www.amazon.com (secure)]

Then the battery cables connect into your inverter, which then goes to your electrical panel. Or if you don't want to connect your house wiring up for code reasons, you can get inverters with outlets on them which would let you plug in your pump etc.

You'll need to pay attention to the order you make connections.

Spend some time watching videos so you get a good grasp of what you need to do, then go to a solar forum to get the answers to anything you don't understand or if you need recommendations for equipment and cable sizes.

[link to diysolarforum.com (secure)]

There is a Youtube video for EVERYTHING.

Wow! Thank you so much and God bless you. That's a lot of information I can look through and I can know what to look up when I go to YouTube once again thanks

Is your well pump 220V or 110V? My guess is it is 220-240v. You can set up a separate system to operate the pump or run it off your house system if it is close and step down from 220-240 to run everything else. Call Glen at Ben's Discount Supply and he will explain the cheapest way to get it done without breaking the bank

Hey cool and thank you very much and God bless you I will look into that

IF YOU have a 20 amp water pump for example it surges an spikes up to 30 amps usually at start up if don't have that 30 amps at start up it will quickly burn out a water pump or any other type electric motor like it most solar system don't have that many amps readily available. I would use a generator to fill a cistern one or two times a day an use gravity to pump it out of that an put a couple of shallow wells with hand pumps an also small low amp water pumps that might pump alit slower but could work on most solar but f
More filtration on shallow wells hand pumps don't draw water as deep as electric but a good one should go to 30 0r 40 feet

Okay thank you for your input I will review that God bless you

Yes 220

[link to store.santansolar.com (secure)]

got 16 of these bad boys when they were $50 a panel

Cool...

Wind is always better than solar instead of space tbh

The only viable place to use solar is actually space, it’s a big waste of money and space down here, so wind is going to matter a lot more

Wind power is as erratic as the Sun in most places, and there's moving parts to wear out...Solar has no moving parts, aside from the photons striking the panels...

Ok Thanks

Maybe Both ?

I had a hybrid system and decided solar was better...

You need a tractor to raise and lower your wind generator pole, or climb up to it...Mine was 70' in the air to get into the best air channel...

A boat is a great place for a wind generator...Mine was a marine windmill that I used on the farm...

Well, camp as we called it...63 acres for the kids to grow up on, to fish, shoot, boating, and for me to experiment...

Assume a 15% loss from the solar panel charge controller to your load.

If your load is 1,000w, plan for generating 1,150 watts as seen from the charge controller (not the panel's capacity).

This 15% will take into account inverter and battery inefficiencies. Loss from the solar panels to the charge controllers could be up to 5%, depending on the gauge wiring you chose.

I run an array about the size you described and have calculated the loss I see.

you need a generator building to hold all the dc/ac components and wiring and of course that generator .. leave room for expansion and repair and engineering

If you don't have a basement, you can build a shed for your batteries and inverters...The inverters should be as close as possible to the batteries...You can send the AC current large distances...

Go to you tube and search for

Will prowse solar.

Start watching and learn.

Technology is wonderful...I did it all analog...

Not easy or cheap sadly.

No. I decided to learn it and the cost was tuition...Solar power is a hobby, and I power my home, and even cut my grass with an electric lawnmower, all powered by photons!

I am still in the process of reverse engineering the photon, in studying quantum physics, quantum mechanics, and quantum electrodynamics...

I can say with some certainty, that I understand all the basic principals and theories...

From Tesla's polyphase alternating current motor and generators, to the quantum mechanics involved in producing the photon...

It's exciting! Pun intended!

If you only want to run your well, you should get a Grundfos solar well pump. Have a professional install it. Depending on depth and water needs you have, 5-6 200 watt panels should do. Dedicate them to water pumping and do not worry about power storage for that system.

For your home, you'll need to go thru everything in your house that consumes power. Lighting, refrigerator, computers, appliances (forget a dishwasher), etc. Size storage for night time fridge, lighting and a small TV/computer.

Color coding is nice, but colored elecrical tape is cheaper.

Learn basic skills with a meter and electrical theory. 220 single phase is not difficult. Make sure things are properly grounded and you won't have more than 110 volts RMS to ground or neutral. Bond well, but only in one place - generally the main panel.

As long as the battery bank is adequate and the inverter is large enough, the pump can start and run. Keeping the batteries full is a function of the size of the panel array and charge controllers. Make sure all connections are well made - especially the DC panel and battery connections, since they are where the highest current draws are.

Learn Ohm's law and Watt's law. Those are the basics.