Solar power to power Approx 200W LED grow system

TH1RTE3N
TH1RTE3N Registered Users Posts: 1
edited January 2018 in Solar Beginners Corner #1
I currently have 2- 45W LED grow lights, 2- 15W LED grow lights, and 2- very small fans. I purchased a 20W/12V panel and I have a 12V/9.5Ah AGM Battery. Was looking at a 2000W (1000W Continuous) inverter and a 10A charge controller. Does this sound right? Any help would be appreciated.

Comments

  • mcgivor
    mcgivor Solar Expert Posts: 3,854 ✭✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2018 #2
    Welcome to the forum 

    Without all relevant information such as load run time and accurate power consumption of all loads including when used, very small fans for example is not a known, it is impossible to calculate, with any accuracy what is required, but what you've outlined is definitely WAY too small in terms of battery and PV to accomplish any useful energy and definitely too small to run a 1000W inverter. Solar power is not cheap when storage is required  (batteries ) if grid is available  use it, because it's almost impossible to beat it in terms of cost.
    1500W, 6× Schutten 250W Poly panels , Schneider MPPT 60 150 CC, Schneider SW 2524 inverter, 400Ah LFP 24V nominal battery with Battery Bodyguard BMS 
    Second system 1890W  3 × 300W No name brand poly, 3×330 Sunsolar Poly panels, Morningstar TS 60 PWM controller, no name 2000W inverter 400Ah LFP 24V nominal battery with Daly BMS, used for water pumping and day time air conditioning.  
    5Kw Yanmar clone single cylinder air cooled diesel generator for rare emergency charging and welding.
  • littleharbor2
    littleharbor2 Solar Expert Posts: 2,039 ✭✭✭✭✭
    +1, what mcgivor said.  That battery will only run your inverter for a couple minutes before it is depleted. If you are serious about doing this off grid you need a much smaller inverter and much more solar and battery. Not a single component you have will work.  How about natural sunshine for growing plants, it's free.

    2.1 Kw Suntech 175 mono, Classic 200, Trace SW 4024 ( 15 years old  but brand new out of sealed factory box Jan. 2015), Bogart Tri-metric,  460 Ah. 24 volt LiFePo4 battery bank. Plenty of Baja Sea of Cortez sunshine.

  • Estragon
    Estragon Registered Users Posts: 4,496 ✭✭✭✭✭
    +1 on what Mcgivor said.

    Also, I would suggest checking into the "native" power needs of the LED lights. They're often 12vdc using small transfomers to allow 120vac to power. If possible, running them without incurring inverter and transformer losses can save a lot of power. Some LED lights also have poor AC "power factors", which can result in them taking up to 2x the AC power than DC output would suggest. Using DC directly avoids that issue.

    Small fans are also available which use 12vdc.
    Off-grid.  
    Main daytime system ~4kw panels into 2xMNClassic150 370ah 48v bank 2xOutback 3548 inverter 120v + 240v autotransformer
    Night system ~1kw panels into 1xMNClassic150 700ah 12v bank morningstar 300w inverter
  • softdown
    softdown Solar Expert Posts: 3,812 ✭✭✭✭
    As others have said, a non-stop drain of 200 watts would require a very significant solar array and battery bank. Think ~ten times the panels and ~fifty times the battery.


    First Bank:16 180 watt Grape Solar with  FM80 controller and 3648 Inverter....Fullriver 8D AGM solar batteries. Second Bank/MacGyver Special: 10 165(?) watt BP Solar with Renogy MPPT 40A controller/ and Xantrex C-35 PWM controller/ and Morningstar PWM controller...Cotek 24V PSW inverter....forklift and diesel locomotive batteries