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Hi folks,
I have a spare fridge/freezer in the cabin (off grid) that I use to store dry food and water,
I was thinking to setup solar panel to get the fridge/freezer running.
Instead of setting up an inverter, batteries, wiring, etc.
I stumbled on this portable Solar Generator.
never heard of it until last week and seller seems helpful.
Seems like a neat idea
Anyone have one of these or any recommendation or feedback, Thanks.
its basically an inverter, you still need to charge the onboard battery.
maximum solar input is only 400W, and that will be mid summer, mid day sunlight. you would be better investing in as much solar as you can get on the roof. a decent mppt solar controller etc.
you would need to get an idea of the peak wattage you require with the fridge probably being the biggest power draw, also how many sunlight hours you get per day, if the cabin has forest around it you will lose sunlight. also while away fromt eh cabin will the panels get covered in leaves etc as this will lower generation
Solar in @ max 400 watts is pathetic. (then I see the CC is 30 amp...go figure)
A fridge/freezer will consume 1, more usually 2 kw per day.
400 watt panel would need three-six hours of beautiful sunshine to recharge what has been consumed.
In mid winter in cloudy conditions a 400 watt panel will produce 400-600 watts for the entire day.
The numbers don't add up.
Plus, if its made in Chyna the inverter will shit itself within a couple of years. And/or the charge controller will fail.
For that money I would build it yourself.
If the fridge/freezer is old, I would replace it with an inverter fridge/freezer.
(edit, I see its micromall selling it. Its a Chinese owned and operated company. I bought a bunch of stuff off them 4 years ago, and I do believe its all still working, fingers crossed)
What your storing at present means the fridge is a glorified rodent proof cupboard. How often do you visit and what frozen goods do you intend to keep. Nothing worse than having a freezer to clean out after it stopped and weeks have passed. If your serious a proper pv array, controller and deep cycle batteries would be my suggestion
It says it's solar open voltage is 100 volts 30 amps but that solar input is only 400 watts. The fact it can be connected to a much larger battery bank suggests it's just a glorified controller unit
So by the looks of it it doesnt actually generate power? You still need to charge it up
yep, its a solar controller, dc charge and ac charge unit with built in inverterQuote:
Originally Posted by blip
Looks like its just a battery, ac/dc charger, mppt controller and inverter all in a pretty box.
Some good inputs, thanks team.
Yes, basically its a battery, ac/dc charger, mppt controller and inverter all in portable box,
save my time to build solar system from scratch or worse ... started a bush fire :).
Not sure how good/reliable it is since Micromall don't sell top shelf stuff but they ok with deal with so far (finger crossed)
Fridge/freezer is about 20 years old hence the reason its there, upgrading fridge/freezer is pushing the exercise to next level.
how much roof area do you have for panels??
gabble roof - approx. 3mx2m per side x2Quote:
Originally Posted by gonetropo
1st half get a decent sun but the other side, not so
That certainly seems like better valueQuote:
Originally Posted by gonetropo
It'll be cheaper overall to upgrade the fridge freezer and be able to install less battery and solar, than to need to install enough battery and solar to run the old one. It's very likely the 20yr fridge freezer will use 2+kWh/day where as a new digital inverter fridge freezer will use approx 1kWh/day. Can get a new digital inverter for $1000. Going to cost you a lot more than that to roughly double your battery, solar, controller etc.Quote:
Originally Posted by Snap 4T
FYI I've been running 320 litre Samsung digital inverter fridge freezer off grid on 3 x 250W, 12V 300Ah lead carbon batteries, 300W inverter for 8 years. Going great.
Anyone purchased batteries of micromall? See they have reasonable prices on lithium batteries currently using a bank of 12v but when they get on a bit in a couple of years might look at lithium’s to replace. For a bach so not used 365 days p.a.
I purchased parts to make up an entire system from them 4 years ago. Sharp prices and everything worked.....but not sure for how long. I had issues with the inverter (turned out to be me, not the inverter) but they weren't interested in entering into any conversations, and blocked my number after a few fruitless discussions.
I wouldn't trust their warrantees as far as I could throw them. I would purchase batteries off one of the bigger names in the business, where they have a bigger reputation at stake.
Independent Power have been around for decades, and I have been sourcing most of my gear from them now.
Why Lithium?? Weight is not an issue on a bach/house system. For similar money I would go for sonnenschein gel batteries. I have 2 x 25 year old sonnenschein Unimog starting batteries that still store energy fine.
Micromall wasn't really interested in answering my enquiry or questions so I didn't buy that solar genset that I initially wanted to.
Yeah, micromall do offers a low cost system but adjust your expectations for their customer service and warranty accordingly.
I ended up with different system & happy with it.
My old fridge (148 watts) run 24/7, I hooked it up with warehouse 3g sim & I can monitor the solar system thru my phone including turn my old fridge off/on thru my phone & other stuff.
Thanks XR500 and Snap.
That’s useful- i would only need batteries so hopefully not too much in they way of customer service required
As to why Lithium- mainly the 80% depth of discharge that caught my eye cf 50% for agm.
XR500 is that a brand of battery or a type that you mentioned?
Sonnenschein is a German brand name. The quality of its batteries are just a lot more certain than most of the Chinese brands out there. But you pay for that.
I am sure they also make Lithium batteries, but you may have to sell your first born for them:omg:
Not 50% for AGM long life, more like 10-20% DOD. I chose lead carbon as it's basically heavy duty AGM. Typically only using 20% DOD each night but the lead carbons and repeated handle >50%, even 80% for the consequetive cloudy days or snowQuote:
Originally Posted by AMac
That’s interesting everything i have read about agm says they ok with 50% dod - if you right mine will be knackered in short order ��Quote:
Originally Posted by uk_exile
Never heard of lead carbon batteries until i saw your mention of them more research required me thinks
Google DOD charts, then select image. The greater the DOD the less cycles they can handle before end of life