A Simple Solar Solution
(Page 2 of 3)
August/September 2003
By Laurie Guevara-Stone
SITING THE SYSTEM
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Ely advised Chris and Paula as to how far the panels could practically he mounted from the house, and together the three of them figured out the best location. Paula was adamant about keeping the house's appearance streamlined, which meant leaving the panels off the roof. They also wanted to preserve the home's attractive entryway and didn't want panels visible from the house or the driveway. Eventually, they found a perfect sunny spot behind the house to place the array.
Pole-mounted PV systems have the advantage of being able to be connected to a tracking mechanism that follows the sun from east to west (and, in the case of dual-axis trackers, from horizon to sky). Tracking systems can increase the amount of power a multicrystalline PV system annually produces by up to 25 percent. Although trackers are well-suited for applications such as a batteryless water pumping system, which can use solar energy the second the sun comes up, for many applications it's more economical to add another panel or two than to invest in a tracker. The Banks-Minucci system is the best of both worlds: a polemounted system that can be manually adjusted throughout the day and year. To capture the most from the sun, Chris adjusts the tilt of his panels to different sun angles throughout the year. To follow the sun's arc through the sky, Chris daily repositions the panels. He doesn't think of it as work or an inconvenience, but takes a special enjoyment in what he considers "farming" the sun.
SYSTEM COMPONENTS
PV panels are only one part of a solar-electric system. For the Banks-Minucci off grid application, eight deep-cycle batteries store electricity for nighttime and cloudy-day use. A controller keeps the batteries from being overcharged, and an inverter converts DC electricity produced by the solar panels into AC electricity typically used by home appliances. A 4,000-watt inverter, oversized for their initial system, provides expansion possibilities if Chris and Paula want to add more energy production.
LIVING WITH THE SYSTEM
Unlike grid-connected systems, standalone photovoltaic systems require more owner involvement, and maintenance is essential to keep a system functioning properly. But in the past seven years since the system was installed, Chris and Paula have called Sunsense only a few times with questions or problems.
