Not really an off-grid post, but once again, it is related. This time, it is time to change batteries. The battery I bought five years ago for my off-grid project has finally given up the ghost. Another one is on the way.
While checking the battery, I checked the controller, wiring, and connections. Everything else seems ship shape. Now for the battery to come and it's back to business.
This time I got a smaller battery. Why? I mean, this old one wasn't very big either.
The answer is that no loads are being placed on that battery. The old battery had a real easy time of it. When I first bought it, I knew little about batteries. Now I don't claim to know a lot, but it is more than nothing. Anyway, I tried running a microwave on that little thing while I was out there in the desert. It wasn't nearly enough of a battery to handle a load like that.
Live and learn. Sometimes you find things out the hard way. Capacity is not the only thing.
Battery power isn't cheap. If you try to go solar, then go SMALL. Small ball is all I can afford these days. Even when I had more money, I would be hesitant to add the amount of battery power to live the livestyle of a city feller out in the desert.
For example, the a price quoted on a replacement was well over a hundred bucks. That's plenty of money for something that doesn't do a whole lot. Not even microwave popcorn.
Batteries are rated on what they can do over a period of time. The one I've seen the most of is the 20 hour rate. Even for a 100 Amp-hr battery, 5 amps per hour is not much power.
An a/c can use 1500 watts for a small window unit. For 12 volts, that's 120 amps. Multiply by 20 and you'll need 2400 amp-hrs. Yikes. That's only for the batteries. You need a lot of solar panels to keep them charged. Also, if there's no sun, there's no power.
I'm not keen on solar power. But you gotta do what you gotta do on the desert.
No comments:
Post a Comment