I hate big electric bills

[theflipiside]

Hi All. I'm a house renter in LA, CA and I can't build a permanent system. I work from home and I want to power my office which is a small/medium in window AC unit and my 65 watt computer with 2 monitors. I was wondering if I could maybe buy 2- 400 watt panels and a 2000 or 3000 power inverter. I have a battery backup on my computer system so I was wondering if it is possible or not. I'm mainly looking to use it doing the summer when it will always be sunny all day long. I don't know if it is even cost effective but it sounds fun. Does anyone know where I can start? Thanks

[jflorey2]

Hi All. I'm a house renter in LA, CA and I can't build a permanent system. I work from home and I want to power my office which is a small/medium in window AC unit and my 65 watt computer with 2 monitors. I was wondering if I could maybe buy 2- 400 watt panels and a 2000 or 3000 power inverter. I have a battery backup on my computer system so I was wondering if it is possible or not. I'm mainly looking to use it doing the summer when it will always be sunny all day long. I don't know if it is even cost effective but it sounds fun. Does anyone know where I can start?

It will be difficult to do what you want. Copied from another post:
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Mistake #3 - "I don't want to do grid tie, I just want to charge a small battery bank with solar, run off that, then use the grid only when they get low."

The Big Idea:
Getting grid tie approval sounds like it's a pain in the butt, and this way I can avoid all that hassle and still generate most of my power via solar; just add a few batteries to my system.

Reason this is a bad idea:
Batteries are the biggest cost in any off-grid power system. Not because they are the biggest cost up front - but because they don't last long. Golf cart batteries will give you around 500 cycles discharging to 50%, which is around a year and a half of solar off grid usage. People don't want to replace their batteries every year and a half; it's heavy lifting, they're full of acid and lead, you have to recycle them, the new ones cost money, it's the dirtiest part of the system and you ruin your pants etc etc. So they find ways to make them last longer. They use larger cells that a) last longer to begin with and b) only have to be discharged to 30% (or some other lower number.) This extends their life.

For people on the grid the answer is much easier - never cycle them. Use a hybrid inverter that keeps them float charged all the time while feeding excess power back to the grid. This allows batteries to last much longer. Telecom batteries in such applications (generally called UPS, or uninterruptible power system applications) can last twenty years because they are not cycled and kept at their "happy" state of charge. Only during the rare blackout do they see cycling.

The reason Mistake #3 is a mistake is that it attempts to do the exact opposite of all of the above - it attempts to use a small battery bank and cycle it hard every single day. This means you'll go about a year between battery changes if you're lucky, and you'll be assured of a lot of heavy lifting and buying of new batteries.
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Mistake #6 - "I don't want to run everything, just air conditioning and my efficient refrigerator."

The Big Idea - It might be tough to run a whole house, but just a few appliances should be that much easier.

Reason this is a mistake: Air conditioning, refrigeration, and pool pumps (if installed) are the biggest users of energy in a house. (Resistance heating can be an even bigger energy user, but it's madness to try to run resistance heating on solar electric systems.) A small standalone system is much better used to provide some LED lighting, backup power for laptops and radios etc. Even better, do a small grid tied system and offset some of the load from the bigger users.
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If you are still interested there are a few solar air conditioners out there that will preferentially use solar power when it is available. Google Solar Assisted Ductless Heat Pump.

Probably the best path forward is talk to your landlord. If you are willing to kick in a few $$ he may install solar just to keep you happy, and because incentives plus your $$ make it very affordable.

[SunEagle]

Hello theflipiside and welcome to Solar Panel Talk

I am not sure what your electric rates are but a solar/battery system can cost about $1500 per each kWh it can safely deliver each day. It will also cost close to $1 for each kWh it produces.

So while most people want to reduce their electric bill the best way to do that using solar is to install a grid tie system. Based on the common cost of installation in the CA area it should pay for itself in about 5 to 6 years

[J.P.M.]

Possible and reasonably workable are not the same. What you want to do is possible, but most likely not workable or anywhere near cost effective or practical, but a fun prospect.

Start with educating yourself and begin by understanding the solar resource and the types of equipment that's available.

Know your loads and think about a small grid tie system for what you describe. It probably won't be practical to get an off grid system. Start with "Solar Power Your Home for Dummies" as a primer.

[jflorey2]

I would also add that if you hate big electric bills, by far the #1, most important thing you can do is energy efficiency.

Shade your windows in the summer with an external shade. Get a more efficient A/C. Get more efficient monitors. Get a better fridge. See if your landlord will let you add insulation. Each dollar you spend in energy efficiency will save you a lot more than a dollar if and when you put up a solar power system.