Air conditioner on solar power

LisaInN.Idaho · #1 07/18/05, 12:43 PM

Anybody else have one? We bought (3 weeks ago) a free standing Sharp air conditioner because even though we live in North Idaho, we get days that go over 100 degrees. The temp drops like a rock at night, but DH and I sleep in the loft and it stays hot for a long while. It really works out well...the only time we need the AC is on hot SUNNY days and it basically jsut runs off the sun. By the time the sun goes down, we just flip it off and sleep in comfort. Its amazing what you can run off a solar system.

seedspreader · #2 07/18/05, 12:45 PM

That truly is amazing!

Hey do you all still update your blog? I lost the address.

LisaInN.Idaho · #3 07/18/05, 12:57 PM

www.misty-river-ranch.com But no, Jim has been running full tilt here and has had no time. I need to start doing it myself.

mightybooboo · #4 07/18/05, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaInN.Idaho

Anybody else have one? We bought (3 weeks ago) a free standing Sharp air conditioner because even though we live in North Idaho, we get days that go over 100 degrees. The temp drops like a rock at night, but DH and I sleep in the loft and it stays hot for a long while. It really works out well...the only time we need the AC is on hot SUNNY days and it basically jsut runs off the sun. By the time the sun goes down, we just flip it off and sleep in comfort. Its amazing what you can run off a solar system.

I agree,AMAZING! How many panels do you have,and what is the BTU of the A/C?

BooBoo

LisaInN.Idaho · #5 07/18/05, 02:36 PM

We have 15 panels and I don't know how many BTU's the AC pulls. I asked my husband to check this thread out and reply if his clamoring clients give him a moment. He's the resident solar guy...I just brag when it works and complain if it doesn't (luckily very rare).

Mastiff · #6 07/18/05, 02:39 PM

Interesting... I have seen solar powered swamp coolers but never airconditioners..

LisaInN.Idaho · #7 07/18/05, 02:41 PM

It isn't a solar powered AC, it runs on regular AC with an inverter.

BackwoodsIdaho · #8 07/18/05, 03:29 PM

It is your basic $450 AC unit from Lowes made by Sharp. Uses a 5" flex duct for routing the exhaust air out. We use it in our loft sleeping area which is 12x20. The BTU rating is 9000 but what you really need to look at is the SEER rating which gives you efficiency rating of the unit. 9000 BTU is about right for a 400 sq ft space without high ceilings that doesn't have a kitchen or other heat producing areas. So, the unit is oversized for the loft space. It has a 8.9 SEER rating which makes it above average efficiency. The amp draw per the technical specs is a max of 9.0 AMPS AC when set on "mega cool". In practice, we use just the regular cool setting with mid speed fan which my meter shows as drawing 5.6 AMPS AC.

The solar system is 15 panels on three arrays with peak output of about 2.5KWH. The panels rotate to track the sun which in Northern Idaho starts our charging at about 8AM, and because of our site, we get good solar until 6 - 6:30PM this time of year. We have 12 LH16 Trojan batteries for storage and use a Xantrex TrueSine inverter tied to a remote start backup generator.

jim

mightybooboo · #9 07/18/05, 05:20 PM

That answers that question!

Thanks,BooBoo

Oilpatch197 · #10 07/19/05, 02:47 AM

The panels rotate to track the sun which in Northern Idaho starts our charging at about 8AM, and because of our site, we get good solar until 6 - 6:30PM this time of year. We have 12 LH16 Trojan batteries for storage and use a Xantrex TrueSine inverter tied to a remote start backup generator.

What kind of Pannels are these that actually "track" and "rotate" to the sun?

BackwoodsIdaho · #11 07/19/05, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oilpatch197

The panels rotate to track the sun which in Northern Idaho starts our charging at about 8AM, and because of our site, we get good solar until 6 - 6:30PM this time of year. We have 12 LH16 Trojan batteries for storage and use a Xantrex TrueSine inverter tied to a remote start backup generator.

What kind of Pannels are these that actually "track" and "rotate" to the sun?

LOL, the panels in an array that rotates to track the sun's position. Look in Backwoods Solar's website (www.backwoodssolar.com) and check the mounting hardware section, specifically zomeworks