This will be my first solar set up and for us it is a must have since we are 13 miles off the grid which is what we wanted. We have a small trappers cabin that will need very limited power. We are located in the central UP of Michigan. We have 6 -12v LED lights that actually draw about 7 watts and see limited use. When temperatures are warm at night we run a small 12" fan that draws about 75 watts for about 7 hours, We would like to add a 22" TV someday just to catch the local news once in a while. That is the extent of the power demands for now. I have been using my generator to charge my 200ah battery, but I'm sick of that noise and want to use the generator only for emergencies.
I am looking at a Renogy 400w system with a 40a mppt tracer controller. Eventually, I would like to set up a twin to this system allowing me some redundancy. With only about a grand in each set with the battery I feel the cost is minimal.
One issue I have is the old cabin does not have much of a roof structure to be mounting the panels on it. Due to a tree line close to the cabin on the South side I will be forced to mount the panels on a pole probably 75 feet or more from the cabin. What gauge of wire do I need to run between the panels and the controller if I run the panels in a 12v configuration and need to cover that 75' or so. Or can I run 24v to lower my amps and will the tracer controller then charge my 12v @ 12v. You can bet I'll be tuning in a lot now that I'm close to pulling the triiger.
Thanks
Swamp
I am looking at a Renogy 400w system with a 40a mppt tracer controller. Eventually, I would like to set up a twin to this system allowing me some redundancy. With only about a grand in each set with the battery I feel the cost is minimal.
One issue I have is the old cabin does not have much of a roof structure to be mounting the panels on it. Due to a tree line close to the cabin on the South side I will be forced to mount the panels on a pole probably 75 feet or more from the cabin. What gauge of wire do I need to run between the panels and the controller if I run the panels in a 12v configuration and need to cover that 75' or so. Or can I run 24v to lower my amps and will the tracer controller then charge my 12v @ 12v. You can bet I'll be tuning in a lot now that I'm close to pulling the triiger.
Thanks
Swamp
Comment