Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 1 Electricity from the Sun A Brief Introduction to Photovoltaic Energy Systems

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 2 Generating Electricity from the Sun Advantages ▪ Portable ▪ Environmentally Friendly ▪ Silent ▪ Free and Abundant Energy Source

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 3 Example Applications Water Pumping (both livestock and residential) Dugout Aeration Sign Lighting (warning flashers, billboards) Urban Gardens (fountains, waterfalls, accent lights) RVs and Houseboats Cabins and Cottages Remote Homes Campgrounds

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 4 How Do Solar Electricity Systems Work? Use a Water Pipe Analogy ▪ Volts = Pressure ▪ Amps = flow ▪ Battery = Pump How Much Electricity ▪ Watt = Volt * Amp = flow at pressure ▪ Watt·hour = energy for a time ▪ Amp·hour = current for a time

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 5 How a Photovoltaic Cell Works

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 6 How Much Energy from my Photovoltaic System? SaskPower sells kW·h = 1000 Watts * 1 hour This means: ▪ A 1000 W hair dryer for 1 hour ▪ A 100 W light bulb for 10 hours ▪ A 10 W night light for 100 hours A mid-sized solar panel delivers 50 W in bright sunlight ▪ 6 hours of sun produces 300 W·h ▪ Can also be looked at as 25 A·h at 12 V A mid-sized battery stores 250 A·h ▪ Solar panel can fill this battery with 60 hours of sunshine ▪ 100 W light bulb can empty it in 30 hours ▪ It takes 120 hours for a 25 W compact fluorescent to drain this battery

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 7 Insolation Map

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 8 Components of a Photovoltaic System PV modules Batteries Charge controller Inverter Protection

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 9 RV Systems Why install an RV kit? What size of system do I need? Why include an inverter? Marine systems are similar

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 10 RV/Marine Systems – Battery Maintenance A Battery Maintenance System Consists of a small panel, wire, blocking diode, and mounting hardware Prevents charge loss in an idle battery Prolongs battery life significantly

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 11 RV/Marine Systems – Weekend and Part Time Use Weekend use systems provide power for: ▪ Lights, radio, fan ▪ TV/VCR ▪ Battery maintenance System Components: ▪ Solar panel ▪ Charge controller with meter ▪ Mounting hardware and cables ▪ Optional inverter to provide AC power

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 12 RV/Marine Systems – Full Time Systems Full time systems provide power for: ▪ Kitchen appliances (small microwave, coffee maker) ▪ TV/VCR, radio, hair dryer, laptop computer ▪ Pumps, furnace fan, battery maintenance ▪ Lights System Components: ▪ 1 or more large solar panels ▪ Charge controller with meter ▪ Mounting hardware and cables ▪ Inverter to provide AC power ▪ Charger to replenish batteries when ashore

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 13 Urban Garden Accents Solar Direct Fountains Golf Course Fountains Standalone Accent Lights Area Lighting

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 14 Cabin and Remote Home Systems Under what circumstances does it make economic sense to use PV? What a complete home system looks like What size system do I need? Grid intertie?

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 15 Cabin and Remote Homes – Small System For summer weekend use System consists of: ▪ 2 solar panels ▪ 2 batteries (6V marine or golf cart batteries) ▪ Charge controller

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 16 Cabin and Remote Homes – Small System System powers: ▪ A few compact fluorescent lights ▪ Small pump ▪ Coffee maker ▪ Portable CD player These devices operate from DC power. Those designed for use in RVs and boats would work in this system.

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 17 Cabin and Remote Homes – Larger System For year round use as a full time residence System consists of: ▪ 12 solar panels ▪ Wind generator ▪ 4 batteries (6V heavy duty deep discharge) ▪ Integrated Power Panel ▪ Backup generator

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 18 Cabin and Remote Homes – Larger System System powers: ▪ Compact fluorescent lights ▪ Pumps for pressure and septic systems ▪ Small kitchen appliances (microwave, toaster, coffee maker, etc.) ▪ TV/VCR ▪ Computer ▪ Front load washing machine ▪ Efficient refrigerator ▪ Circulating pump for in-floor heating system

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 19 Cabin and Remote Homes – Other Considerations Build efficiently ▪ Reduce heat and electrical loads first ▪ Then add renewable energy supplies ▪ Top up with conventional systems, if necessary Use wood for heat Use solar thermal for heat Choose efficient appliances, especially refrigeration Consider wind generation

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 20 Narrows Project The Narrows Campground in PA National Park is located 20km from the nearest power line Perfect location for clean, quiet Solar Energy Essential services such as light, water and power are taken for granted Sixty-four 64 Watt Uni-Solar Shatterproof Panels provide 4 kW of power to the Narrows Campground Uni-Solar shatterproof panels were chosen to reduce the possibility of damage from vandalism

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 21 Narrows Project

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 22 Narrows Project Pumps deliver well water to a purification system, storage tank, and pressure system for the park water supply Dusk to dawn lighting is provided at each washroom building, skylights reduce daytime lighting requirements Motion controlled state of the art T8 fluorescent lighting with 3M specular reflectors provide efficient lighting for the washrooms and filleting shack at night The original Coke machine was replaced with one that uses one fifth as much energy

Saskatoon Wildlife Sports and Leisure Show, March 6-9, 2003 Slide 23 Where Do I Get Help Designing My Solar Energy System? Kelln Solar is a Saskatchewan based manufacturer/distributor of solar water pumps, fencers, RV systems, cottage and residential systems, and photovoltaic panels. We are Canada’s largest distributor of the UNI-SOLAR photovoltaic product line. We have a design guide available, and are currently customizing it for Canadian applications. Find us on the web at See our booth downstairs. Natural Resources Canada has some good publications on solar energy systems. They are located at