Going green not for reasons of saving the earth may get few brownie points with adamant green believers but hey, brownie points and me have always been strangers. Odds are pretty good I won’t score brownie points with those selling DIY instructions for making solar panels either because that information will be provided through a series of no cost blog posts here.

In the course of these posts the information and explanations will be kept as non-technical as possible. My experiences include beginner hobby electronics projects which at least provides a good mathematical background and practical electronic soldering experience. Add basic woodworking and metal working/machining to that and I’m confident building my first solar electric panel will be a learning experience and hopefully of benefit for a few Rantsville readers as well..

OK let’s start with a couple definitions as they will be used throughout this series:

Solar Cell: As used within these posts refers to a photo-voltaic cell which is capable of generating approximately .5 Volt when exposed to bright light. The surface area generally determines the amount of current (amps) the cell generates in bright light.

Solar Panel: A number of solar cells linked together so as to increase the voltage and wattage output. For example if you link 2 cells in series, each producing .5 Volt at 3.5 Amps the resulting output is 1 Volt at 3.5 Amps.

That’s the down and dirty basics. The intention for the first solar panel project is an experiment to help determine the number of panels will be needed to maintain sufficient charge in a bank of batteries in order to operate a power inverter for the appliances we want to use without relying on an electric company. Individuality will dictate what those requirements are, thus I will not even attempt to define appliances you deem necessary that we may not. To begin with all I need is a test subject.

Over the summer much spare time was devoted to converting the powder coated steel framework of a Harbor Freight tarp covered storage structure into serviceable winter storage for my ‘95 Goldwing. Price was right and the work exhausting but it’s a sturdy structure with both mine and my brother’s bikes inside. An extension cord can be strung through the back yard for lighting but I prefer not to do that to prevent the cord from falling victim to our snow blower. Over the winter light will be needed when accessing the shed for whatever work we need to do, plus a couple of motion sensor flood lights to keep honest people honest.

The absence of snow blower fodder while still having lights, minimal security and (not necessarily scientific) data collection easily justifies this solar panel venture. Wednesday when my check gets banked I’ll buy 36 solar cells from an eBay seller. Properly configured they will provide 18 Volts at 60+ Watts in bright conditions. I’m curious to know if that will be sufficient for the shed.

Part 2 to follow.