PV Gap

Sean Said:

where can i find a complete diagram of how a solar panel works?

We Answered:

There's a fully illustrated guide in this book I bought at http://www.freepower4u.com

I just used that book to help me BUILD a solar power system (batteries, solar panels, inverter, disconnect, etc) for the grand total of $197.

I'm using it with some deep cycle batteries which charge during the day and can run my fridge all night... so I'm guessing it would run your air conditioner.

It's a great little guide which I highly recommend.

Casey Said:

wiring diagram of solar panel to battery to inverter?

We Answered:

The solar panels are wired through a regulator to keep from over charging the batteries and a diode block to keep the batteries from discharging back through the panel(s). The batteries are connected to the inverter directly - ideally through a relay that stops the batteries from being drained too far, although this may be built into the inverter. Inverter wiring is independent of panel wiring - you can take power out with the panels disconnected.

Gene Said:

How do you make an actual battery out of a solar panel?

We Answered:

A solar panel absorbs sunlight and converts it to electricity but they don't typically store that energy. But you can attach it to a battery or a bank of capacitors.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photovoltai…

In the article above it mentions several manufacturers. Give them a look, they might already make what you're looking for.

Courtney Said:

can i connect a series solar panel to a Parallel solar panel?

We Answered:

You cannot increase the power or watts. Power = Watts = amps x volts. You can increase the volts by wiring in series, or increase the amps by wiring in parallel, but the watts output by 2 panels, regardless of how they are wired, will not increase. See the example:

Two 180W panels, 18V 10A each.
Wired in Series = 36V x 10A = 360W. Wired in Parallel = 18V x 20A = 360W.

Wiring in parallel = the pluses are connected to each other and the minus are connected to each other.
Wiring in series = the plus from one is wired to the minus of the other.

Stephen Said:

add solar power to ac current coming out of the wall plugs?

We Answered:

WOW!!! DANGEROUS!!!!!!

NO! you need to first take the DC voltage from the solar panels and convert it to AC

Next you need the AC from the solar panels to be sine wave (NOT A MODIFIED SINE) and then you need to sync the output from the solar panels to the grid.

This requires a control panel.

It would be far simpler to have an automatic change over from your solar panel (battery bank, power inverter) to change over when the grid falls.

Randall Said:

Make Home Made Solar Panel?

We Answered:

There is some rediculously poor generator of electricity that you can make up with chemical compounds like cadmium sulfide that I stumbled across on an internet search, but basically the answer is "not worth the effort" You can't make semiconductors, which is what solar cells are, at home.

Ronald Said:

Solar panel construction?

We Answered:

We have diagrams on how to connect solar cells in series and in parallel on our products page. Sign up for our news letter and get free access to the products page. We also have a down loadable list of solar cell suppliers where you can purchase a number of different sizes and shapes of solar cells.