A small modular emergency solar set up

[SunEagle]

I got some jumper cables from "Horrible Fright", and while taking them apart for parts, discovered that in addition to the thin wires and fat insulation (Look at these big fat cables, they should start a locomotive) the wire inside was aluminum, not the best thing for a good, high power connection.

Bigger is not always better.

[mj52]

RED Generator 3Kw.

I'm going to buy the DC plug. 12V/12A/144W

Before I buy batteries I want to be absolutely certain of my meter usage.

Theory is good. Knowledge applied is power

Dc plug has 2 leads, how would I determine the hot lead?

I'm asking this before even buying the plug.

[Mike90250]

RED Generator 3Kw.
I'm going to buy the DC plug. 12V/12A/144W
Before I buy batteries I want to be absolutely certain of my meter usage.
Theory is good. Knowledge applied is power
Dc plug has 2 leads, how would I determine the hot lead?
I'm asking this before even buying the plug.

uh, stop buying stuff.

If you bought a 3Kw generator, and it has some AC receptacles on it, and a 12v DC receptacle for battery charging, STOP

The little DC receptacle is just for recharging a small battery. 12A would take several hours to recharge a low battery from a car. if you have several deep cycle batteries, you should get a AC battery charger, plug that into the generator, and then use 40 amps or more, to charge batteries. You have told us little more than the color of the generator.
How many batteries ?
How much solar ?
How much load ?

[mj52]

Mike90250

Thank You for your concern and for the SLAP. I mean that.

My generator is several years old now and has earned its stripes. It hasn't paid for itself but has made life easier on several occassions. Mostly turning several different "Storms" into opportunities to learn how to use this tool.

I agree. This flimsy little 10' lamp cord is a DC feed? Didn't sit right with me. You've got serious cordage between cells and this flimsy gizmo is an asset. I don't think so. I never even considered using our generator as anything else than a bandaid. A way to relieve a temporary inconvience.

Generator is good as long as I have gas.
Generator actually runs house in survival mode quite well. Single burner hot plate, griddle, coffee pot, TV, radio, lights.

SO THEN, I have this generator and it has served us well on several occassins, could it be utilized in different ways under different circumstances?

I have not spent $0.10 toward utilizing solar but have come to accept Harbor Freight isn't the place to shop.

Respectively mj52

[Amy@altE]

mj52,

If you are still thinking about going with solar to back up the circulator pump, I just thought of this product that might interest you, not sure if it is more money than you wanted to put into the project. You'd also need to buy the solar panel(s) and batteries. Samlex TN-1500-112F. It is a 30A PWM charge controller, a 1500W inverter, with an auto transfer switch and AC charger. It can be used as a UPS, it will keep the batteries charged with the solar, but if it can't keep up, it will charge with the grid when it is up. So you could keep the pump always plugged into it, powering it with solar when possible, by grid when not, and by battery when the grid is down, topped off with solar when available. Kind of a nice all-in-one product, and very configurable for different modes depending on your needs.

Amy