Harbor Freight is probably not the only outlet for these little packages–battery, solar plates, periferals–but they are still pretty intriguing, and should provide enough light for barn chores, etc.
Anyone install this or similar?
http://www.harborfreight.com/45-watt-solar-panel-kit-10-pc-kit-68751.html
I’ve thought a lot about it, and I’ve read most of the reviews of the solar stuff on Harbor Freight – they’re VERY informative, loaded with details about performance and tips. It helped me realize that my spot’s not ideal for solar, so for now I’m going with a small Honda generator for power in the barn. If you’re conditions are right, I think these kits are a great place to start – very affordable, not too complex.
If you are anywhere near Amish communities, I’d go for a road trip. They use a lot of solar power. My BO has a battery bank that looks like it could power a small submarine. He runs auto waters, lights and other miscellany on it.
There more to it than just this “kit”. As the small prints says. You will also need to buy a 12 volt battery, car batteries work but a deep cycle marine battery works better, even better are two 6-vote connected in series. They last long on a charge. You will also need an inverter if you want to run any 120 stuff. This is rated for a 300 watt inverter which is not a lot of power. Won’t even power most small electric “tools”.
If all you need/want are lights I think you will get a better bang for the buck buying something like this. The specs say 2 1/2 hours of “run” time on a full charge. But how well, fast the battery charges depends on when the “charge” panel is placed.
Check around before committing. There are lots of Solar websites and worth checking RV stuff.
[QUOTE=red mares;8730606]
If you are anywhere near Amish communities, I’d go for a road trip. They use a lot of solar power. My BO has a battery bank that looks like it could power a small submarine. He runs auto waters, lights and other miscellany on it.[/QUOTE]
This is a very expensive set up. Requires a big battery pack for back up when the sun doesn’t shine and or is weak. Like it is in the winter. Good battery packs are $$$$$.
I have the Harbor Freight solar panel kit on my barn. I have no electricity at my barn and use this kit for lights. It works great. I splurged this year and bought LED lights and added several more lights and spot lights. I use a marine deep cycle battery. In the future I plan on adding a 12 volt electric fence charger. I currently use separate solar electric fence chargers but want to get a charger that runs off my marine battery.
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