Solar power

[DanKATL]

"Ok then X out the coffee pot."

You just need a unit rated large enough for your coffee pot. Some draw more than others (it will be listed on the pot somewhere). You can also get 12V travel coffee pots that loose less power on the conversion to AC. I've seen videos of guys using rice cookers and electric hot plates with them to see how long they last under that type of load.

 

[10thmountain]

Got this in the mail today. Going to be testing it for a week . Mainly in my car / keep my phone charged up. Hopefully it will work great when the power goes out.

 

[10thmountain]

I am using this to power my phone during the day for the foreseeable future. Its charging quite nicely.

 

[hondoptc]

If you are curious how much each appliance pulls in terms of wattage get one of these:

https://www.samsung.com/us/smart-ho...s/smartthings-wifi-smart-plug-gp-wou019bbawu/

You can use it to complete a load study (of plug in units) and size your system. Here are some of my readings:
Coffee Maker = 1356W
Dehumidifier = 500W

You can then back into the battery capacity. If I wanted to run all three of those for one hour I would need an inverter capable of 2,000 watts and batteries with a minimum of around 2 kilo watt hours.

 

[10thmountain]

Update on the solar charger, I have used it on Solar only to charge my phone from 32% to 100% in a few hours and am now using it to charge again from 50%. Pretty cool.

 

[MegaFan]

Update on the solar charger, I have used it on Solar only to charge my phone from 32% to 100% in a few hours and am now using it to charge again from 50%. Pretty cool.

Sadly, the money you save on such a small amount of power will probably never cover the cost of the solar panels but it is a first step in understanding power consumption!! Studies have shown that it costs roughly a dollar per year to charge a typical cell phone. So, if you paid less than $20 for the charger/solar panels and the kit/panels last for more than 20 years, you "might" break even on your initial investment! If you paid more than that, say $40 to $50... oh, well!

 

[Horsehat]

Since this last Hurricane I am looking more and more ways to power my home for short term comfort. E.g. high wind , ice storms, hurricanes , crazy wind sheer seem to be the main causes of the power going out . I am getting a gas powered generator but!!!!

I want to know about any of you who have those small solar systems that can run lights, charge up electronics, just keep small things running . I do have a solar flashlight , works great, and have some solar outdoor lights that work well. Can you suggest a solar panel system that’s portable and can sit on my deck when I need it?

Not solar but we keep our router, mini cell and land line plugged into power supplies that have battery backup. The power can be out about 4 hours before they are drained. This gives enough time to decide whether the generator is going to need to be dragged out of the garage and cranked. We don’t have tv so WiFi is a semi-necessity for us. Otherwise we have to talk to each other and since we are together almost all the time there’s not much to say. We are the last house on the line and live off the beaten path so power outages are not infrequent.

 

[Horsehat]

Sadly, the money you save on such a small amount of power will probably never cover the cost of the solar panels but it is a first step in understanding power consumption!! Studies have shown that it costs roughly a dollar per year to charge a typical cell phone. So, if you paid less than $20 for the charger/solar panels and the kit/panels last for more than 20 years, you "might" break even on your initial investment! If you paid more than that, say $40 to $50... oh, well!

If you have no power and a dead phone this becomes less important.

 

[lokidogg]

I spent $8000 on my system and figures are it won’t pay for it’s self for 12 years.

 

[payneed]

I spent $8000 on my system and figures are it won’t pay for it’s self for 12 years.

Cheaper than a Tesla... just saying...