SpaceEVDriver
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2021
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- 60
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- Location
- Arizona
- Vehicles
- Ground-based: CA Route 1 AWD, ER
- Occupation
- Planetary Science
- Thread starter
- #1
The crew is installing our solar system today. I will likely add additional panels and batteries over the next few years.
I've been wanting to do this for about 20 years and have finally saved up enough to afford both the electric car and the electric power plant.
We will have about 7 hours of usable Arizona sun per day (winter and summer both, see attached image).
The attached image, taken from the roof, facing south shows:
Anyway, I'm a geek about this stuff and am pretty darn excited.
I've been wanting to do this for about 20 years and have finally saved up enough to afford both the electric car and the electric power plant.
We will have about 7 hours of usable Arizona sun per day (winter and summer both, see attached image).
The attached image, taken from the roof, facing south shows:
- The path of the Sun during the summer solstice (top, orange line).
- The path of the Sun during the winter solstice (bottom, green line).
- The path of the Sun during the vernal and autumnal equinoxes (central, blue line).
- The analemma for the hours between 06:00 and 19:00.
- The analemma is the curve that connects the location of the Sun for a constant time throughout the year. That is, if I were to take a photo every day at precisely 12:00, from the same spot and looking the same direction as when I took the photo in this image, the Sun would fall on that on the line labeled "12:00". You may have seen these in various astronomy photography albums.
- This is useful to know what time of day the Sun may be eclipsed by a tree or other obstruction. At 15:00 time the roof is unshaded in the summer but shaded in the winter.
- 8.2 kW of panels
- 20 kWh of battery backup (AGM, not LiFePO4, but costs are ridiculous for LiFePO4)
- 12 kW hybrid inverter with 2 AC outputs (one back to the grid and one to protected circuits), and includes a generator input
Anyway, I'm a geek about this stuff and am pretty darn excited.
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