This is the third and final part of the “Sizing Your Solar Energy Panels” series. Have you done some calculations for your future solar power system yet? If you have been doing those mini exercises, you’ll most likely find a suitable solar panel for your home by now.

The next step requires us to find an appropriate-sized battery bank, inverter and charge controller. Let’s look at each of these:

1. The Inverter

The inverter you choose has to be sized according to the demands of the alternating current (AC) side of the circuit. Therefore you will choose a specification according to the loads in your house (with a little buffer in case you increase your loads over time). Pretty straightforward.

2. The Charge Controller

You’ll at least need a basic charge controller to begin with. Until you get fussy about how advanced you want this component to be, more affordable models will do just fine. You’ll need to get a specification that fits the output current (Amps) of your solar panel arrays. If you intend to scale up your solar power generator, you’ll do better with a larger charge controller with room to accommodate more solar panels than with two smaller-sized ones.

3. The Battery Bank

The size of your battery bank depends on how you want to use your solar panels. You can size your battery banks such that it can get you through thick clouds that pass by, or you can size them so you can get through three solid days of solar eclipse and a power outage at the same time. It really depends on you. But take note that over-sizing isn’t always realistic. You have to take into consideration the space they occupy and the how much they’ll cost you.

If your home is grid-tied, provided there aren’t frequent power outages, the size of your battery bank isn’t critical. Just size it to take care of cloudy days will do. You can still maintain your lifestyle by drawing power from the grid.

When you design your battery bank, you’ll have less power loss (through wires) if the voltage is higher. If you are able to design a 48-volt system, you can conserve more power than when you use a 24-volt or 12-volt system.

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A Small Solar Power Generator

If you’re thinking of making your own solar power generator, you may have heard how easy it is to throw some photovoltaic components together and start generating energy from the sun. Isn’t it?

Yet if you’re building a solar powered generator for the first time, I can almost guarantee you’ll make these 3 most common mistakes that most beginners (and even some experienced hobbyists) do not know about.

Mistake #1: Not Calculating the Number of Solar Cells and Battery Bank Needed

While this sounds like the obvious, a good proportion of us are guilty. Simply estimating the power and voltage generated by the cells will not do. Calculations and measurements need to be done…for everything. You’ll need to have sufficient solar cells. Battery banks also need to be large enough to store enough of these renewable energy so that it can power your appliances throughout the period of use. Everything needs to be calculated, even the wire gauge (size).

This is especially important if you intend to power your appliance throughout the night. A small initial effort (towards calculations) goes a long way to make sure your project doesn’t crash and burn mid-way.

Mistake #2: Using A Flimsy Solar Panel Casing

It is important to design your solar panel casing with proper dimensions according to your material selection. But most beginners do not have a proven design nor proper planning. As a result, many of these constructions end up being flimsy. And as you may already know, solar cells are brittle and easily broken if you do not handle them with care. If they’re mounted on a flimsy panel casing, they can be broken during installation — it is at this time when most handling (and knockings) occur.

Mistake #3: Not Vapor-Proofing Your Solar Panels

Most homemade solar panel projects break down due to corrosion and rust at metallic joints. This is especially apparent if you’re living by the sea or in a humid area. Reason: vapor seeps through many types of sealant through time and they stay in the interior of the solar panel. So it is important to use the correct type of sealant so vapor cannot seep through.

While there are many other pitfalls you’ll probably encounter while building your first solar power generation project, the above three are the most common among hobbyists.

Fortunately, many mistakes such as these can be avoided if you have an experienced hobbyist guiding you. A good alternative is a reliable, step-by-step construction guide. This can also help you avert mistakes that can potentially bring your solar power generator project to a grinding halt.

PS. As many “advanced” hobbyists have commented, they’re still referencing this manual even though they’ve built a few successful projects over the years. I guess this is probably the only manual we’ll need to build any solar powered project…unless you want to power the whole city!

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