I watched the movie "Off The Grid" made by Les Stroud from the show Survivorman, and i was just wondering...?

Question

He used solar panels to charge up some batteries to run lights and computers and stuff like that, i was just wondering if solar panels could really power an entire cabin or would he need a back up generator?

Answer 1

Yes, solar panels can provide all the power needed--at least under normal circumstances. You just need to have enough of them and of batteries for storage.

In practice, a backup generator would be a good idea, o fcourse. You could get an extended period of overcast skies and cold weather, for example, when the solar energy wouldn't be sufficient.  Either that or jsut have a lot of overcapacity in your system.

In practice, the designs for this sort of system are loooking at approaches that would still be connected to the conventional power grid (the electric utility).  NOrmally the system will supply all the home's power---and acutally send power back to the electric utility, drawing on it only on rare occasions.  This is already being done by some people in California (the state has regulations that allow/require electric utilities to buy excesss power from people with solar energy systems).  Its actually fairly simple--it jsut requires the right electrical circuity and a special meter that will record power flowing into the grid, rather than jsut what a home draws from the grid.

Answer 2

Solar panels can power up anything depending on how many panels you have, and how much power you're using. For someone like Les, I'm sure its so much more than enough. Personally, I plan to put panels on my roof, but I'm also wanting a wind turbine just as a back up.

Answer 3

depending upon his electrical needs a few solar cells could supply more than enough power. particularly if he is not trying to cook or heat water with electricity. I have about 9 sq feet of solar panels on the roof of my RV and they provide plenty of power to run my furnace and lights at night.

Answer 4

I have friends who live off the grid and have solar panels to charge batteries. They also use a propane refrigerator to keep from draining to keep from draining the batteries Propane lights are used sometimes and they have a generator to operate power tools and the well pump. They estimate that the solar panels provide 85% of their electricity.