Tuesday, July 29, 2014

something solar 7

Linked up the next piece of the something solar puzzle...the inverter.  Testing it out running my refrigerator via a 100' extension cord.  My only complaint so far is that the cooling fans in the inverter are rather loud - hence the name "WHISTLER", I reckon.    FYI - all this stuff is being located in proximity to the shipping container I will eventually move into - the long cord is for testing purposes only.  95,107,70,0,B

14 comments:

Steve said...

Curious how much line loss you're getting with a 100' extension cord running a fridge. Is the cord getting hot, or did you go with a heavy duty extension cord like a 10 gauge or 12 gauge? How many amps/watts does your fridge draw? This should be interesting...

Just Me said...

Nevermind the 100' extension cord for a fridge. What size wires are you using from the batteries and what voltage is your battery bank? If it's a 12V bank, you'd be pulling over 100 amps to get 1600 watts and those cables just don't look up to the task.

Rev.jimmyleebob said...

Somehow I'm resisting the temptation but I make no guarantee

Larry G said...

propane and 12 volt do seem to be reasonable alternatives but perhaps John has other priorities that preclude those.

I'm always fascinated by the concept of the 3-way fridges in campers myself.

I wonder how the costs compare - propane vs solar panels.

rj said...

There are differences in living in a mild to cold wet climate versus a mild to hot dry one. Solar would be one of those differences plus utility electricity is significantly cheaper in Washington State than Texas. Land prices are about the only thing less expensive in rural Texas in large part because of the lack of abundant water and much less soil fertility.

S. Cooper said...

It amazes me how people who have issues with the way John chooses to live his life get all upset when someone questions their way of life! Oh the hypocrisy of some people! If you don't like something don't read it! And you have one morsel of decency in you, you won't use profanity on the blog of someone who doesn't use it himself. ~Sherri

Unknown said...

When are the builds for the shipping containers going to happen?

Margery Billd said...

:-) All this technological science is fun, interesting, and innovative and apparently is working well for the area. Steady as one goes.

Marlin Andrus said...

In the desert southwest, solar is in my opinion the best way to go because of inconsistent wind and many,many days of sunshine. Plus propane is a producer of greenhouse gases we do not need, and cost between the two should not be considered.

just.Bob said...

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Doug said...

I see that my post was deleted..i am sorry if I was in the wrong

John Wells said...

No problem Doug. Nothing personal, but when I get slammed by an internet troll - I delete all their comments without even reading them and unfortunately - I also delete all other comments that mention the troll.

WhyR said...

Reading these comments today is like happening on the scene of an explosion and trying to put the pieces back together to see what it was that exploded.

Under The SC Sun said...

Don't feed the trolls...

Keep up the splendid work, best to you John and the Field Lab critters too.