Solar Generators a Necessity for Off-Grid Work | solar4POWER™

Solar Generators: A Necessity for Off-The-Grid Work

9/30/2019

In light of severe weather or simply pushing the boundaries of infrastructure, you could find yourself “off-the-grid” either by choice or by surprise. Are you prepared to go off-grid? While it may seem daunting, there is one critical necessity that could sustain your security and success, independent of an electrical grid. A solar generator is the must have tool in your arsenal for tackling off-the-grid work.

Why is a solar generator so valuable? No matter where you are on Earth, sunlight will always be an accessible commodity. Unlike a conventional generator, a solar generator can produce energy throughout the day, storing excess energy in batteries throughout the night or during cloudy weather. Even during cloudy weather, solar panels still work – while they work less efficiency, their reserve power can more than supplement your energy needs.

No other type of portable, off-grid generator can give you the peace of mind that a solar generator can. Of the four main types of generators – electromotive diesel, diesel, gasoline, and natural gas – none have the security of solar panels. Eventually, you will run out of gas. Working off the grid, there is no easy way to replenish your supplies – why not use a generator whose supply replenishes automatically? A solar generator is the only way to truly work off the grid; a gasoline or natural gas generator ties you to the grid by forcing you to resupply a finite resource. The sun’s energy is an infinite resource.

Chances are when you’re working off the grid, you want to conserve resources. Typical generators not only lack this type of efficiency by expending a lot of energy through heat, they also contribute to carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions. A solar generator is a clean, efficient alternative that converts more energy directly to electricity.

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Author: Martin Stavro

8 Comments

Laron Bergstrom link

10/10/2020 08:02:23 am

Will a 400 watt inverter run a refrigerator?

Custom Manufacturing & Engineering link

10/13/2020 10:23:30 am

Thanks for the comment Laron. The information below should answer your question:

A 400W inverter can power a refrigerator but it depends on two conditions.
1) The fridge has to draw less than 400W.
2) The inverter also has to have enough reserve power to allow the compressor to start.

A motor needs a lot more power to start than to run. It has something called lock rotor amps (LRA) and it will be marked on the motor. However, compressors have their motors inside the compressor so the information may not be available.

If the LRA is available, multiply it by the voltage and that much power is needed to be provided by the inverter for about 30 to 60 seconds to get the motor turning.

Inverters usually have two power output values, continuous power and peak power.
- The peak power must be equal to or greater than the LRA power.
- The continuous power must be greater than the current drawn by the fridge when running.

The best way to figure out what the inverter needs to provide is to measure the refrigerator running (the compressor must be running). A Kill A Watt power meter or one similar to it is ideal to measure the power used by the refrigerator. That value is the minimum power the inverter must provide continuously. Multiply that value by at least 6 and that value will be the minimum peak power the inverter must provide.

As an example, say the measured running power is 200W. Multiplied by 6 gives 1200W. So the minimum peak power must be 1200W and the continuous power would typically be at least 600W. So for that refrigerator you would need at least a 600W inverter. For the 400W inverter with the peak power of 800W, the max power the fridge can draw is 800/6 or 133W. Refrigerators draw from 100W to 250W so some smaller refrigerators will run with a 400W inverter.

In selecting an inverter based on the calculations it's always better to go higher in capability to have some reserve power to allow for heating, aging or just a short fall in available solar power. Increasing the inverter power by 20% is a good reserve value.

Hope that helped!

Alex link

5/27/2021 02:33:49 am

Really like your blog and understand the things you have explained in your blog.

diesel generator link

6/18/2021 01:28:13 pm

Useful post! I really need this type of article.. this is very useful for me.

Andrew link

9/6/2021 10:38:25 am

Thank you for sharing. Very Informative article I bookmarked your blog. Hope to read more of your amazing articles

David Ortiz link

12/8/2021 08:57:25 am

Solar Generators are in huge demand. Before reading this article I have a lot of Confusions in my mind and now all the confusions are cleared. Thank you for sharing quality writings about generator.

Mahfuz from site.google link

5/21/2022 09:12:32 am

Hi, it is a fantastic blog that you have published. Really That is helpful to buy a solar Battery.

Arun link

10/3/2022 03:01:48 am

Thanks for sharing informative article, I really like this post.

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