ok so im getting ready to make a new set of work benches. while i was walking lowes i see solar pannels and say to self
why cant i run LED lighting in my shop least most the time and not hav eot pay for it (yes i know i pay first
) i have a few moded flash lights and love them
for the shop tho i need 2 say 4' long strips of ok light and 2 pin point (beam for inspection type) movable spot lights
there is other lighting in the shop and also a radio and it would be great to run extrta if i could tho i know i will not be runing mmy shop tools on solar yet
i was lookign at the 50 watt or 2 20watt setup with a few 12v batt.s
with this will i be ok at least most the time
OOO o in south PA and if needed i coudl put the pannels on a swing arm so after lunch i could "flip " the into more light
thanks all
To tell you honestly you should go with a thin film technology panel.
As most would say do with a thick film such as a Monocrystalline(High Efficiency) or a poly crystalline(Lower) or if you have the bucks a Gallium Nitride(Highest). These three are going to give the most power when the sun is out and clear but they are going to cost the most in $/Watt. Also the three thick films/crystalline will only work well when the sun is is within a 45+/- degree angle of perpendicular(directly over) and also will hurt performance and life when they aren't exposed or if they are shaded a little(trees and debris). Beware of these as you are going to have to pay a premium in order to get these panels with protection diodes and anti reflective film on them as the cheaper one come without and that why you are able to get these so cheap.
A quality thin film(Amorphous or CIGS/CiS) by sanyo, sunpower or sharp will give more power in a given day with all lighting conditions, rain or shine(even on low light, sun up til sun down). These are going to cost less in terms of $/watt and still are going to last the same with a 20-30 year lifetime with only a 30% reduction in power within these 20-30 years and still will put out ample power but the manufacturer calls it time to change within these specs/lifetime(30% or 10%/ decade(10years)). These are still going to have the same lifetime as a mono/poly/GaN too without the crazy costs and are also going to have the anti reflective film and protection diodes too.
They(amorphous or CiGs or CiS) will provide more current for charging and have a longer working time(8-10+ hours/day of collecting light Amorphous(Lower efficiency/Lowest cost and lowest heat degradation) or CiGs/CiS(higher cost/Higher efficiency and higher heat degradation) vs.(5-6hrs/day max of collecting light of mono/poly/GaN(higher efficiencies/ higher cost and highest heat degradation).
Heat degradation is a key problem next to mounting location as this is going to effect power output and seems to effect the thicker technologies as they are great insulators and keep heat a lot better, which is a bad thing for the chemistry of silicon as they perform poorly as they need to stay cool as possible. It effects the performance when they are converting the photons in to electrons and replacing the electrons holes efficiently and thus generates a voltage and then current.
This is why the thin films do much better in the current territory as they collect much more of the broad spectrum of light and this = more current vs the thick films as they have a very thin spectrum absorption and thus a higher voltage with lower current. Might seem weird but this is the characteristics of the grade of silicon and number of n-p junctions used.
It applies like a japanese motors as they call them junk when they reach 40k mi as it fails to meet their emission standards, but as we all know they will last 300k mi easy with little emissions and power degradation with proper maintainance of course.
Also with the batteries, you should go with an agm battery for a golf cart as these are the same as a premium optima but are going to cost a 1/3rd of the funds. They are also maintainance less(don't require water to be added periodically and safer) and when they go out in about five to ten years they wont break the bank.
Then for the charger controller this is going to be based on power requirements that you set as 100watt seems to be most you will use with a few batteries and about a handful of led bulbs.
The main thing is that you don't use incandescent and compact florescent as they state that they only use 20-30w but are going to be very dim and going to put out some heat as well.
I would advise you use these led bulbs as they are only 6 watts each and they use any standard e27 light bulb fixture, us standard as well.
http://cgi.ebay.com/700-Lumens-AC-L...621?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19bf2454a5
Don't be discouraged of the ebay thing as this is a reputable dealer as I have and a dozen others have bought from this gut and they are the real deal and the specs are 100% on. You just have to choose from cool white or warm as this is also another choice of yours as the cool is going to give a little better efficiency than the warm. Also for other led fixtures its going to be hard to beat the 120-130 lumen/watt with a power led array as they put out a lot of heat and need to be fan cooled or have a pretty big heat sink, so they are in the compact fluorescent territory. The fixture i have posted will put out no heat and therefore doesn't require heat sinking and that why they put out the efficiency they do for the cost as well.
Make sure you choose a quality manufactured panel with descent agm(absorbed glass mat) batteries and the controller/charger will come from the store you choose as they couple these things and choose quality at the same time. Then for the led bulbs it your choice as the ones i listed are going to be lowest consumption of power and will run for weeks if not months on a single battery and still leave you with power for your radio or other small peripherals.
I can pm you links to great manufacturers and great prices but i don't want to get banned as they have been putting the smack down with links and pictures lately. I feel that I can steer you in the correct direction and then you can make choices on power and aesthetics if you do not mind.
Also I am glad to help as I am very knowledgeable in this field as its my profession/obsession and its also awesome that you chose such a great technology to be self sufficient or partially sufficient in this matter as its the small things that make a great impact for the better. I admire your choice to do such a responsible project and not to mention cool as S#$T. Also like to see that you already see that this will pay for itself within time and will work when the powers out as I hate the dark(i think that's why I love flashlight so much)
Disclaimer:The market will favor the mono/poly/GaN due to it providing more instantaneous power as it trying to meet current power demands with incandescent lighting and other ac fixtures. These require the DC power to be converted into AC(which results in a 30% reduction in transfer of power) and will fit the higher demand profile much easier.
If you use led lighting and stick to as much as DC power usage as you can(not a lot but majority) the thin films will meet and exceed your needs and not to mention put a lot more money in your pocket. As we all know that you can do just as much work without trying as much when you play it smart. Also it doesn't make sense to use 60watt or 100watt lighting any more as you would have to use a lot of batteries and have more panels but its not a bad thing its just going to cost you more up front.
Hope this helps as I can provide tons more of info, specs and chemistry but have given you a basic layout of the best options with what you have given me already. Don't be discouraged too as this is a very easy to understand technology once you get the basics and are able to determine what the differences are. They have their strong points but there are a few that are the best rounded.
Eric
