Solar power

[Foamz]

Have anyone used routerboards on solar power and batteries?

I checked the solar kit that Miro is selling and it looks like it can only keep everything powered for about 36 hours without any sunlight. I would like to know if anyone has experience with solar and battery equipment and what they used on their equipment.
Also, is there any other place where I can get solar panels (plus accessories) at better prices? (I think that kit is about R3700 or so)

[moses]

Hi Foamz.. I have worked on a lot of solar panel systems.., mostly in the cellular industry.. Its basicaly just a free UPS supply from the sun..
Well if you can call the initual cost's free :D what is the spec on this solar system and I presume that it is a 12Volt panel.. ?! Battery size? Panel max output? You can also get a bit more standby time if you use more battery's but you will have to keep the size of the panal in mind and ofcourse the regulator (if this system uses one).

We mostly used 50 Watt panels(about 4 amps feeding into your battery's) But you can also stack the panels(parralel) and get a much more powerfull backup system.. We found solar to be very reliable ( when they don't get stolen :D ) and once its up and running you have almost no maintenance. You even get a small charge on rainy and cloudy day's.

Just shout if you need some help.. will gladly assist 8) (as long as you promise not to blow up any more routers !lol !lol )

[Foamz]

I'm gonna paste it as I see it:

96 AH Battery
Voltage: 12 V DC
Current: 5 Amp

50Watt Solar Panel (although on the pricelist it says 35watt)
Nominal Output: 12 V DC

5 Amp Solar Regulator
5 Amp Load Shed
Voltage: 12 V DC
Current: 5 Amp

I have this formula in a ebook working out how much power you need etc-etc, but I've been staring at it for 30min without any results :P

I promise I wont blow up any more routers on purpose ;)

[13309544]

It all depends on your hardware. Your typical ac/dc supply's rating would be 12V/1A. This would mean that your hardware is typically running at a third of that. Nominal cuurent = 0.3A.

Running your hardware for 24hours/ day = 0.3A*24 = 7.2AH

So lets say your battery is fully charge then it would be able to supply it for 96 / 7.2 = 13.333 days without any sunlight.

NB: Never install more solar panels that your regulator can handle

I would say that the package would be good enough, but i still think it is a bit expensive.

Thanks
133

[Foamz]

ah ok. 13 days are enough for what I need.
thanx

[Foamz]

Another thing. Whats the average time for a battery to charge? Lets say its drained 50%, how long (more or less) would it take?

[13309544]

Now you look at your solar panel. If its 50% drained then it means that you have effectively 96ah/2= 48ah left.

Lets use worst case,( you mentioned 45 and 35 watt ) 35watt.
That means that if the panel is receiving good thermal and solar power it will yield a 35watt / 12V = 2.82amps.

Lets round that off to 2.5amps ( because your regulator will also use up some power.

Now we take that 48ah needed and then 48ah/2.5amps=19.2 hours

Thats about two days of sunlight ( sunny conditions ) needed to charge up the battery to full power.

[savagedavid]

Having just done a solar install I can tell you that to power a couple routerboards for about 8 days you need 80 watts of solar panels. This will normally come as 2 panels that you fit in series to give approximately 24-28 Volts. This runs into 2 x 96AH batteries in series. This has generally been determined to provide an extremely reliable setup. If you live in an area that gets sun virtually every day you can get away with maybe 50 watt units.

Total cost of the 80W units with batteries, regulator and panels was about R8500

[nOs]

Nice, this will be my my next WiFi challenge, a solar powered HS or an client connection.