Solar Power?

TheGrog

TheGrog

Member
We are moving down there soon and I just was curious if anyone uses solar panels to power or supplement their tank's power consumption.

Solar is not feasable in Illinois, so I never looked into it.

Anyone have any input on this?
 
I toyed with the idea a while back. By the time you purchased the cells, storage medium, and power inverters it was just too expensive.
The cost of a system far outweighed the savings.

But I do use solar heating for our pool - that has been a significant savings over one of our previous homes that used a heat pump.

We were considering using solar for our water heat as well. But same thing - the cost of the hardware didn't warrant the savings.
Fortunately we have natural gas where we live - since we moved here in December our highest gas bill has been $30.00.
 
you may check into recent tax breaks to offset the initial cost. IIRC there was a recent new report saying that ther are substantial tax breaks for having a solar panel system installed. That being said I have no idea how much they cost versus the tax break so let us know:)
 
I'm a roofer, and I know that the kill your roof. The pool ones arn't so bad if you can get them tied down right (no holes threw your roof). Also the plumber we have remove and replacce them when we redo a roof says you have to have a faimly of 4+ to see any benifit from them. On the other hand there is a spa that I goto over here that has a saltwater cylinder tank under a large skylight, and it looks healthy. That would be about as far as I would go with solar ;) G/l
 
I will try to find the thread, but I remember reading about someone who used a shaft (with mirrors) from their roof to their tank to supplement their lighting. They were saying it was working pretty well, too
 
I have been doing a little more investigating on it.

Seems that the number of panels to power the entire tank (with MH lights being the killer) would cost way too much. I would have to run them for almost 10 years to break even.

Now, you can get a much smaller setup with only a few small panels that you can mount to a post in the ground (not messing up your roof) that connects to a smaller system for a backup power supply!! Powering the lights are out of the question, but I figured that I can run my return pump and my skimmer pump (aeration) for almost 72 hours off a single, large deep-cell. If it is sunny out (it least 1 our of every 3 days), then they could run indefinately. They could run durring the day off the solar as well!

So, using solar as a backup system makes a lot more sense to me both financially and for peice of mind!!

Of course, I would rater have a generator and run the entire house! The generator would cost less too......unless gas keeps going up!
 
The Grog, Whats the cost on the backup type system? That could possibly solve my issues of haveing to worry due to being gone for a week or more dureing a storm
 
i am a roofing contractor and if the solar system is installed correctly with the roof penetrations there should be no problems.

it is true that the payback time is several years but then it is FREE from then on.

we are putting in a 12Kw system on my new house, that although expensive is entitled to state and federal rebates that will help defray the cost.

it will also be good for the environment in the long term.

Carl
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9938355#post9938355 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TheGrog
I figured that I can run my return pump and my skimmer pump (aeration) for almost 72 hours off a single, large deep-cell. If it is sunny out (it least 1 our of every 3 days), then they could run indefinately. They could run durring the day off the solar as well!
Click to expand...

What kind of pumps are you running? And how big is the battery?
I'd be interested in the load calcs and recharge rates.

There's a house on 535 a block or so north of 429 that has solar panels on his entire roof. As well as a dozen more mounted on a frame behind the house.
It looks like enough for a whole house rig. I hadn't seen it before - the road construction crews took down his fence and the whole thing is in view. It's quite a set up!


We bought a Honda generator a while back. It's small, nearly silent and has a seperate DC winding to keep our batteries charged.
Only drawback was it cost $1800........
 
The complete system (without the battery) is around $1200 and the large deep-cycle battery is another $150. Look on Ebay for solar panels and you will find a lot of them. There are sellers who sell pole mounting brackets so you don't have to screw them into your roof (if you are renting like we are) for around $90.

I am running a ASM G-3x with the Sedra 5000 pump and a Quiet One return pump. Together draw only about 90 watts.

The system is probably a little overkill and you could probably get away with a smaller solar panel thus spending a lot less and just link another battery to the system.
 
I checked out solar for my house and if I recall correctly, it was going to run around 70K for my house which still wouldn't even supply all the power. After factoring in interest, I found it would take over 40 years to break even. By then, better tech will be out. There might be a cheaper way but just not something I see as feasible. There are government rebates though.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9940740#post9940740 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TheGrog
The system is probably a little overkill and you could probably get away with a smaller solar panel thus spending a lot less and just link another battery to the system.
Click to expand...


I wish.....
I'm running a Panworld 150 on the mains (soon to be a Dart)
A Mag 3 feedpump to the ER RC180 skimmer with a Eheim 1262 recirc pump....
I'll probably scrap the Mag and go with a Sedra 3500 - much better pump and less current draw.

Thanks for the tip - I didn't even think about Ebay - seems like every time I want something I get out bid in the last 30 secs....
 
I too checked into powering my reef with solar cells. Cost prohibitive for me. I do have eight 4' x 14' panels for my pool. I can swim all winter with the pool at 85 degrees or above.
 
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