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Old 02-05-2020, 03:00 AM   #29
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Quote:
Originally Posted by garbonz View Post
If have a solar system consists of sticking a panel in a window, This venture is doomed from the start.
Absolutely, I have two small panels to hold me over until I get a valid power solution. As mentioned above I plan on coupling solar with wind, I have a generator, but I can’t run it when I’m home because of local ordinances.

I need to fix the power issue with a solution that works for me.
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Old 02-05-2020, 03:10 AM   #30
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In the mid 90’s I bought 20 acres on a ridge top in the Sierras at around 4000’ that didn’t have power at the time. Among other relics I found on the property was a wind generator (alternator) made of two 55 gal drums split vertically and arranged in two tiers on a pole such that one drum half was facing the wind every 90 degrees; it was on good bearings and pretty well built so it didn’t take much to turn it and it caught a lot of wind. It ran a 12v pump among other things that pumped water to three more drums mounted about 30’ up between two trees providing water pressure.

It was probably built in the 70s or 80s and I never tried to get it working but it had obviously been in place providing wind generated power for many years. I always wanted to install a more modern version but prices were a lot higher back then so I never did. With current prices and products on the market today if I still had that property I would probably have a about 1500w of wind generators working for me. I noticed Home Depot has them starting at less than $1/watt. How can you go wrong?'

Whatever you use to generate power, good storage is the key to consistent power availability and if your system doesn’t have to be mobile, I’d look at golf cart batteries, or even fork lift if you can find a deal on a couple. On the aforementioned property, I had two banks of eight 6v batteries running two 5500w inverters for back up power. No solar because I was in a forest, but the grid kept it charged, and I had several days of reserve power during outages (common at the end of several miles of dirt road in the mountains) before I had to run the generator. I had an automatic watering system which helped with maintenance in that many batteries.

And speaking of batteries, for mobile power in a class C, I built the system below to fit under one side of the dinette seats. 3kw inverter, around 10kwh of Nissan Leaf battery cells. A lot of storage in a small, light weight package. Solar for this was 1890w in 6 panels on a 30’ coach.
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Old 02-05-2020, 05:19 AM   #31
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Couple of honest detailed post earlier about the not so green aspects of wind and solar

People like to hear and do things that make them feel good and tend to believe the same without checking facts

The only time either is worth pursuing is if you're a true boondocker that doesn't want to use your generator

Look at the real carbon footprint and cost of a MW of green energy

You will get a much better return on simply managing your energy usage than trying to produce it

I see all the folks that want unlimited hot water with continuous duty heaters and others with a black barrel mounted solar showers

Moderation and common sense needs to be applied to everything
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Old 02-05-2020, 09:05 AM   #32
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Getting back on topic (albeit circuitously)......

:
Quote:
Originally Posted by lwmcguire View Post
Couple of honest detailed post earlier about the not so green aspects of wind and solar

People like to hear and do things that make them feel good and tend to believe the same without checking facts

The only time either is worth pursuing is if you're a true boondocker that doesn't want to use your generator

Look at the real carbon footprint and cost of a MW of green energy

You will get a much better return on simply managing your energy usage than trying to produce it

I see all the folks that want unlimited hot water with continuous duty heaters and others with a black barrel mounted solar showers

Moderation and common sense needs to be applied to everything
I don’t think anyone here (this is an RV forum) is interested in solar because of some “green” concept or carbon footprint mentality, and for the most part, not economics either. And none of it “needs” anything. Common sense is a wobbler. Moderation is primarily due to practicality.

But just so no one misunderstands my interest in RV solar (and as of this thread, wind), it’s because I don’t like the sound of generators, even distant generators. And admittedly since building a very successful solar kit for my rig, Ive become quite bigoted towards generator addicts.

But back to green carbon footprints and saving the planet: As I’ve said before, I’m all for clean air and water, I don’t litter, I respect my environment, and I even feel rather stewardly towards it. (My first major was Forestry, my second Environmental Studies, my third Environmental Health with a minor in human parasitology. I ended up being a fireman. Analyze that for a moment.)

But:

To think that we mere humans through our acts or omissions can change the climate is both arrogant and just plain delusional. We aren’t that powerful. The Earth will win no matter what we do.

160 million years ago there was six times the carbon in the atmosphere as there is now. Thousands, probably millions, of species came and went before humans had the capacity to light a fire. The North American Ice Sheet has been gone for over 10,000 years.

And none of it was the result of the internal combustion engine, corporations, 1%er’s or whatever. Nature holds all the cards. We are just visiting. So yes, be a conscientious guest with good manners, but don’t fool yourself into thinking we are running the joint.

Whew! I hope I cleared that up! Ok, now the “back on topic” part (did I mention this would be a bit circuitous?):

RV solar is for RV solar. That’s it. No other reason matters. Moderation is for the budget conscious. Common sense dictates system design. Politics and social engineering for another forum.

Cheers!

(And yes, I am now quoting myself...)
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Old 02-05-2020, 02:23 PM   #33
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:

.... The North American Ice Sheet has been gone for over 10,000 years.
And they will be back! We are in the glacial minimum part of the current ice age for about the last 3 million years. They typically last 10 to 12 thousand years.

With large amounts of water locked up ice sheets, the planet is not a very nice place for living things.
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