Have an added room on side of house that gets cold in winter But four large windows that get the afternoon sun Figuring a Flat Panel 400W Electric Heater set Low One or Two 12 Volt Batteries Inverter/Charger Two or Three 100W Panels Any foresight into problems with this idea And how much time does one figure to get out of two 12v batteries heating at 400 watts. Might do three But I am thinking solar exposure time is about 4 hours
400 W Heater powered by 12 Volt Battery Charged 2x100 W Solar Panels
Mar 31, 2015
2 Replies
Other than the obvious (fire, etc.) the cost of the battery will be significant. Even deep cycle batteries won't last long if cycled every day. Be *very* careful with the charging profile or they won't last long at all.
Phill B-
Ideally three one hundred Watt panels illuminated for 4 hours would provide 1200 Watt-hours of energy. This energy would last 3 hours at a
400 Watt rate.Divide 1200 Watt-Hours by 12 Volts to get 100 Ampere-Hours. One big 12 Volt battery might be enough. Expect it to weigh 50 to 70 pounds.
However, people who have dabbled in using Solar Panels to power things tell me it never works as well as predicted!
You might do better with a solar water heater. Capture heat in the daytime and feed it to a radiator at night! Also consider eliminating the large windows and insulating the new walls.
Fred
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