A SOLAR DORM AT PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY
by cliff champion
this post is about how i was able to solar power all of my personal electronics in my dorm room at college without driving myself insane trying to figure out complex wiring and electrical work.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE
SOLAR GENERATORS FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE ANYTHING BUT SCIENTIFICALLY INCLINED
if you're anything like me, you're extremely interested in using practical renewable energy, but don't have the time or energy to spend on all of the scientific, electrical, and all together confusing details. lucky enough for us, there is an extremely simple way to make a solar generator that doesn't involve tons of wiring and other factors that can drive you out of your mind. i've messed around with a lot of configurations for small scale solar generators and this is by far the easiest. however it should be noted that it's going to run you anywhere from $450-$550 dollars to make this all work. now i know that i mentioned that this is targeted towards a crowd that might be interested in solar powering their dorm and you might be wondering, "what college student has $450-$550 dollars at their disposal that hasn't already been spent on many a saturday nights out on the town?" i prefer to answer this question with a question. how much do you spend on things like ipods, computers, cellphones and other expensive electronics? if you can afford to buy things that drain tons of electricity then you should be willing to dish out the cash to power them with clean electricity. in other words, if you're fortunate enough to be able to afford those luxuries then you should take it upon yourself to be responsible with how you power them! that's just my little philosophical spin on things. :-)
WHAT TO BUY FOR YOUR SOLAR GENERATOR
my solar generator works great after its been set up! i can power all of the things in this photograph. (excluding the recycled cardboard speakers which need no external power source and can be found at www.muji.com and the solio which is a portable solar charger. check it out at www.solio.com) i can power my light (cfl bulb), printer, ipod, computer, cellphone and gameboy.
STEP 1
you need a solar panel that has the male component of a dc connection. i would recommend this one sold by the alternative energy store. click on the link below to see what kind of panel i'm referencing.
http://store.altenergystore.com/Backup-Power/Go-Po...
this panel has an output of 20 watts which suffices for my personal electronics.
this panel in specific runs for $234. however, i asked the benevolent santa claus for this baby. it was a beautiful moment when i saw it under the christmas tree. but for those of you who don't celebrate christmas, see if you can finaggle someone to give it to you as a birthday present, or perhaps a "just because" present. it takes a huge amount of the cost out of the equation.
STEP 2
you need a battery, inverter, charge controller, and a charge monitor. lucky for us, these things can all be found in one amazing package of american convenience and simplicity. (patriotic no?) it's technically used for a backup power source for RV enthusiasts, outdoorsy types, and people who can never be "too prepared" for an emergency. they're made by xantrex and duracell. both work great. i'm going to list a few links of different types of back up power packs just to give you a few different power/pricing options.
http://store.altenergystore.com/Backup-Power/Xantr...
http://store.altenergystore.com/Backup-Power/Xantr...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TKHMWK/sr=8-1...
amazingly enough, amazon.com has tons of different "power packs" to choose from. just type the word into the search box to see which ones they have. however you have to make sure that the power pack is able to charge from dc connectivity. you need to be able to plug the panel directly into the dc outlet and be able to charge it up. otherwise you'll have two completely useless and very expensive items just sitting around. so call amazon to ensure that the one you're buying has that capability. the links i posted above all are compatible with the panel. so those ones are safe bets.
STEP 3
buy a regular old power strip. (some people call them surge protectors) but basically its one of those power strips that you can plug multiple electronics into at a time. it just makes charging your stuff a lot more organized.
STEP 4 (OPTIONAL)
if you're going to be wiring your panel from a distant place, you might want to get dc cable extension cords. here's a link that sells 12 foot cigarette lighter extension cables. these worked out nicely for me. just make sure that if you do use the extension cords that you seal them with electrical tape to keep out water from rain.
http://www.cetsolar.com/cigplugs.htm
HOW TO ASSEMBLE YOUR GENERATOR
(i swear it's easy to do.)
STEP 1
take the wire from the panel, and plug it into the dc outlet on the power pack.
STEP 2
place your panel in direct sunlight, weight it down somehow to make sure the wind won't knock it around and you're good to go. however, there are some technical complexities that go into getting the optimal angle and positioning for your panel. but in short, this is the most basic functional way to charge up your power pack. once you've allowed it to soak up some good rays, you can plug your power strip into one of the standard outlets on the pack and begin charging your stuff. but read below if you want to get the most out of your panel.
HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR PANEL
i'm going to give you the most watered down method of getting a good angle for your solar panel. it's designed to give you an optimal tilt year round so that you don't have to change the angle with each season. here's how.
STEP 1
find out the latitude of where you live. wikipedia is a great site because you can just type in your city and it will give the latitude and longitude of your area. for example, pepperdine is in malibu california, and malibu's latitude is 34 degrees. so measure to ensure that your panel is 34 degrees in relation to flat ground and that's how you get your optimal tilt.
STEP 2
get a compass and find what direction "true south" is relative to your panel. once you've found "true" or "magnetic" south with your compass, face your tilted panel in that exact direction.
STEP 3
try to find an area relatively free of anything that might shade your panel or get in the way of it and the sunlight. it just lessens how much power you'll get on a sunny day.
PICTURES ON THE BIG DAY OF THE INSTALLATION OF MY PANEL
a perfectly angled solar panel stand made out of scrap wood and screws by the amazing people at the pepperdine housing office.
my panel once it was drilled onto the stand.
wiring of the panel being sealed with electrical tape.
me on the left with the crew. needless to say i'm a happy customer.
SPECIAL THANKS
my parents and brothers for putting up with my wacky solar experiments and for supporting me the whole way through
the pepperdine housing office for going above and beyond the call of conventional duty to make this thing work, specifically: jim brock, scott reynolds, frank villasenor, ivan vigen, and kenneth mcklem
my friends for not making me feel too nerdy whenever i get excited about this stuff
