MAUREEN UPGRADES HER SOLAR SYSTEM
Maureen just doubled the capacity of her power station
May of 2013 was a good time to expand Maureen's power station. With already having 200 watts of solar power, the plan was to double the solar power by another 200 Watts, add two more batteries and increase the inverter output to 2000 Watts.
First we chose a good spot for the 2 - 100 Watt panels to be mounted. Maureen wanted these panels to be able to be rotated to the sun's direction. Since a conventional aluminum rack wouldn't fit into the landscape, it was time to design one out of pressure treated lumber.
The 2 X 4's did the trick! It is time to mount the panels. Carefully - dropping them wouldn't be good for them - and the blackflies were having quite a feast on us!
Now the panels are mounted good and solid - rocks on top of the base of the panel rack keeps them down in the strong winds. We couldn't use a pole mount as there is bedrock only a foot down into the soil.
For the 12 Volt system, the panels are connected in parallel, the connections tight and waterproof so they last for decades.
Connecting the new panels to the power station means running a weatherproof, protected underground cable. Its only 12 Volts, so there is no danger of shock, however, it is nice to have it out of the way.
A shut-off switch is good to have so that the new panels can be shut off during vacations or when servicing the power station.
Some major rearranging of batteries and other components in the power station allows the new inverter and new batteries to be installed.
The job is finished. A new fuse box and second circuit was also added to her solar output wiring in the home. Maureen's system has more than doubled in its power production due to the fact that the new panels can be rotated to face the sun during the mornings and evenings.
- 4 KW/H solar power daily power production
- Over 7 KW-h battery storage
- 2000 Watts of 115 VAC power output in home