To figure out what size solar panel batteries charge controller and inverter you need follow the simple steps below.
Calculating solar panel and battery needs.
For example you have calculated that the total battery capacity needed is 500ah for a 12v solar.
Calculate how much energy is needed.
100 watt portable solar panel.
5 hours of direct sunlight x 6 amps generated hour 30 amp hours day.
Let s say you have a 100 watt load that needs to be operated for approximately 10 hours in that case the total power required could be estimated simply by multiplying the load with hours as given under.
As when you are preparing yourself for a trekking in the wilderness it s very important that you know how to calculate battery capacity for the solar system you can ensure maximum power generating efficiency from your solar panels.
100 watt solar panel approximately 6 amps hour in direct summer sun no clouds here s an example of our calculation of how much the solar panels are generating to recharge our rv batteries.
100 watts x 10 hours 1 000 watt hours.
100 watts x 10 hours 1 000 watt hours.
Batteries needed 100 3 1 15 0 8 431 ah.
E wh battery voltage v x total battery capacity needed ah.
For simplicity let s assume you have a 100 watt device that you want to power with free solar energy for 10 hours each night.
After estimating daily usage we need to consider which type of battery will work best as they have unique performance characteristics and are sized differently.
Check out our off grid load evaluation calculator.