Solar Power help

[CDavis]

I’ve got a ranch near Langtry, TX and currently runnning off of Propane. I would like to see what my options are with Solar. Can anyone point me in the right direction? TIA

[Pedernal]

When you say you are running on propane I assume you mean a generator? Are you looking for a full off grid set up?? Or do you just want to supplement your current set up?

[CDavis]

When you say you are running on propane I assume you mean a generator? Are you looking for a full off grid set up?? Or do you just want to supplement your current set up?

Yes sir, running off a 22 kw generator right now but would like a full off grid set up. It’s running a small mobile home and 400 sq. Ft open room

[Draco]

Just message 91cavgt on here. There isn't much that he doesn't know about solar systems.

[Pedernal]

Prior to retiring I was building off grid communication sites. The sites required a lot less power than a full residential system would require. One of our power hog sites was using appropriately 5K watts per day which again is significantly less than you would need for a home. To be clear, I have zero experience with residential solar. Here are a few suggestions:

It is imperative that you get an accurate number on how much power you are using. Once you have that, figure out about how much each of your major appliances is utilizing. Try to keep furnace, dryer, stove and water heater to run on propane as I suspect you probably already do.

Battery banks are going to be big $. So the more power you are required to store the more expensive your system is going to be. The good thing is you already have a large generator to for a back up.

I have spoken to a couple of residential solar companies here in Del Rio but I would not recommend either one. Both were from out of town and both seemed to have hugely marked up prices on their systems. There is a local construction company that is supposedly starting to do solar. If you like I can get you their contact info. Not sure if they do battery banks or not. I have no affiliation with them. I am personally going to talk to them soon as I wan’t to see what they have to offer.

[91cavgt]

For batteries, there is a source located here in Texas. Signature Solar. They carry rack mountable batteries in 12, 24, or 48 volt. They have incredible reviews and I’ve yet to see a bad YouTube video about them, even from the guys that tear them apart to see how they are built. They also carry everything else from off grid inverters to charge controllers to many different kinds of solar panels.

https://signaturesolar.com/eg4/

[91cavgt]

To get a better idea of what size setup you would need, like Pedernal stated, we need to know what all you want to run, and also how frequently it will be used. Is it ok if you limit your power consumption or do you want to have it all be able to run at the same time?

[CDavis]

I would prefer to be able to run everything at once if I could. If not the main things would be furnace, a couple of window units, and water heater. I will be using this quite a bit during deer season but only 5-6 days a month other months. I would like for my freezer and fridge to store will I’m gone.

[FCoDxDart]

If you are running a 22kw generator and using 90% of it you will need a pretty hefty system to keep you powered at any given time. I'd reach out to enphase and see what kind of system and price they can set you up with. Unfortuneately the batteries/night power will be your limiting factor. For a camphouse setup with a small heater and small a/c you could get by with 10-15kw system and have a 30kwh battery system in place to keep you powered through the night and cloudy days.

With that said this system will cost roughly 40k+. That generator setup will be far cheaper in the long run if you aren't using this place as a second home.

You can build it yourself for far cheaper but you will want a good company to set up your batteries because that is the most crucial part to work smoothly.

[91cavgt]

I would prefer to be able to run everything at once if I could. If not the main things would be furnace, a couple of window units, and water heater. I will be using this quite a bit during deer season but only 5-6 days a month other months. I would like for my freezer and fridge to store will I’m gone.

The furnace and water heater are going to pull a large amount of power!! It is possible to build a large system that would handle those, but price wise, it would probably be cheaper to switch those over to propane units. The same goes of it has an electric stove and electric dryer. If you are concerned about propane consumption then I would look at a propane tankless water heater. This way you wouldn’t have to worry about turning the water heater on and off each time you come and go. Would doing these things be possible?

[91cavgt]

For example;


If you did not replace the electric items in the home to propane then you would be looking at something like this as an entry level basic system:

https://www.candertrade.com/products/20-kw-on-off-grid-complete-solar-system

This setup runs $30k and is rated at 20,000 watts so it would be about the same as your current generator. It comes with 32 batteries that weigh 130 pounds each!!! Plus, these are sealed gel batteries, not lithium. That is just over 4,000 pounds in batteries alone!! You would not be able to put those inside the mobile home!

[91cavgt]

Now here is an example system that would be able to power your place IF the electric appliances with propane ones;

Off grid 12k watt inverter and MPPT charge controller that can handle 7k watts of solar. $2,300

https://signaturesolar.com/growatt-48v-12kw-250vdc-split-phase-off-grid-inverter/

460 watt bifacial solar panels(one of the most efficient type of panels available now). 15 of them for $3,735

https://signaturesolar.com/bluesun-460w-half-cell-bifacial-solar-panel-silver/

48 volt 100 amp/hr lithium batteries with a 7,000 cycle lifespan (19 year lifespan if they got drained and recharged once a day). $1,500 each 6 of these for a total cost of $9,000

https://signaturesolar.com/eg4-lifepower4-lithium-battery-48v-100ah/

Add another $2k or so for wiring, solar panel mounts, and a rack for the batteries and you would be at about $17,000. This is $13k cheaper than the 20kw system with MUCH better batteries.

So the question is how many appliances could you switch out for the $13k difference?

[CDavis]

Now here is an example system that would be able to power your place IF the electric appliances with propane ones;

Off grid 12k watt inverter and MPPT charge controller that can handle 7k watts of solar. $2,300

https://signaturesolar.com/growatt-48v-12kw-250vdc-split-phase-off-grid-inverter/

460 watt bifacial solar panels(one of the most efficient type of panels available now). 15 of them for $3,735

https://signaturesolar.com/bluesun-460w-half-cell-bifacial-solar-panel-silver/

48 volt 100 amp/hr lithium batteries with a 7,000 cycle lifespan (19 year lifespan if they got drained and recharged once a day). $1,500 each 6 of these for a total cost of $9,000

https://signaturesolar.com/eg4-lifepower4-lithium-battery-48v-100ah/

Add another $2k or so for wiring, solar panel mounts, and a rack for the batteries and you would be at about $17,000. This is $13k cheaper than the 20kw system with MUCH better batteries.

So the question is how many appliances could you switch out for the $13k difference?

Thank you very much for all of your help! I think I could switch out my my water heater, and stove pretty easily to propane. As far as the dryer goes I will be using that sparingly so would it be a possibly to run the generator if I am going to run the washer/dryer?

[91cavgt]

You could get an electrician to rewire the breaker box so the washer, dryer, and possibly the furnace could be only connected to the generator. You could use a small space heater just to warm one room up during the winter time. A 10k watt solar setup would be able to handle that load with no problem. Personally, I’m the winter time I use a 250 watt, 400 watt, and 500 watt space heaters to supplement the gas heater in my RV. Unless the outside temps drop into the 30’s then these keep a 41’ RV comfortable.

[CDavis]

Okay, any recommendations on who can install a system
Like that?