Outdoor spaces often lack lighting due to a lack of direct electrical connections. This time, we want to show you how to solar panel in Australia to illuminate your terrace or garden with LED bulbs. This way, you’ll always have power available to listen to music at parties, charge your cell phones, or work remotely during the day. Go ahead and improve your home with HUM.
Step by step
How pleasant it is to be able to enjoy our backyard patio! A good fire pit, a grill, and comfortable furniture are essential. But sometimes we encounter a very common problem: a lack of electricity and, consequently, poor lighting in the evening or at night. Today we bring you this solution: installing a solar panel Sydney. With it, you can have additional lighting points and an outlet to charge a speaker or computer.
About the panel
The system consists of: A solar panel with photovoltaic cells measuring 1.60 m
A solar panel combiner (for when you want to add more panels)
A charge regulator
An energy investor
2 LED bulbs
Cables to make the connections.
The battery that needs to be added is a deep-cycle type and on the assembly line, it goes between the charge controller and the power inverter. The solar panel Sydney converts solar radiation into direct current, that is, 12 V. Through the charge controller, it stores it in the battery (which is not included), and that’s what allows us to have electricity, even when there’s no sunlight. The inverter takes that 12 V direct current and transforms it into 220 V alternating current, which allows us to plug in some appliances.
STEP 1: DETERMINE THE POSITION OF THE PANEL
To ensure proper functioning of the solar panel, you must install it in a location where it receives the most direct sunlight and is free of shade:
It should always face the equator. Since we’re in Chile, you’ll place it facing north. If you were installing this panel in Australia, for example, you’d have to place it facing south. You can install it on the roof of your house, on the ground, in a treeless area of your yard, or even on a free-standing wall. In this project, we installed it on the roof.
To climb onto the roof of your home, you must wear all the necessary safety equipment:
Harness
Lifeline
Reinforced, fitted gloves with free fingertips (to enhance fine motor skills)
Shoes with iron toes and good insulation
Overalls (to protect clothing and skin)
Cap with visor (to avoid being blinded by the sun)
Use a ladder well positioned to the ground
To locate the position of the panel, it must be considered that it has a 5 m cable until it reaches the combiner:
According to this, determine the best location for the panel on the ceiling. The tilt angle is the slope you’ll give the panel. In this case, the mounting triangle comes in three tilt angles: 60°, 45°, and 30°.The degree of incline you should use will depend on your geographic area and the latitude you are at. In this case, we’re in Santiago, Chile, and the latitude is between 32° and 34°. Therefore, if you’re installing this panel on a flat surface, you’ll need to position the mounting triangle as close to your latitude as possible: 30 °. Check the latitude for your location and adjust the tilt accordingly. For latitudes less than 30° and not 0°, the tilt is 30°.In this project the roof is two-sided and sloping, so we used closed triangles, without inclination. Secure the longer part to the solar panel Sydney with the bolts and nuts included in the installation kit, making sure to use the 2 holes per triangle that it already includes for this. Check that the support movement is adequate. If you are going to tilt the panel, screw the bolts and nuts into the holes that correspond to the degree of tilt you need, on both triangles.
STEP 2: CONNECT THE POWER REGULATOR AND INVERTER CABLES
Before attaching the panel to the roof, you need to connect the rest of the system components. You’ll connect the regulator and inverter to the battery:
Take one end of the battery cable, which has two wires, one red and one black. These go into the regulator, in the holes marked with the battery symbol. The red wire goes to the positive terminal, and the black wire goes to the negative terminal. It’s very important to respace into the holes of the regulator to secure them securely. At the other end of the battery cable, remove the terminals and their plastic protector from the nuts, leaving only the washers. This is done because the battery is deep cycle and has no terminal connection. If you are going to connect it to a car battery, do not disassemble the terminals. Secure the collar to the battery with one of the bolts you removed.
Respect the polarities again: red with red and black with black.
Next, take the inverter cable which has 2 clamps. The end with the washers goes into the red and black connections on the inverter. Unscrew the fasteners, place each collar on its corresponding side and screw firmness marked with the battery symbol. The red wire goes to the positive terminal, and the black wire goes to the negative terminal. It’s very important to respect these polarities. Next, assemble the mounting frame, which consists of two triangles that open and adjust to the angle needed to tilt the panel. Connect the clamps to the battery, respecting the colors.
STEP 3: CONNECT THE PANEL CABLES TO THE REGULATOR
What you’re going to do now is connect the regulator, the panel combiner, and the panel: The regulator acts as an intermediary between the battery and the panel to protect it from discharges and to work in an adequate range.
The panel combiner, on the other hand, has 8 inputs for adding other Solar Panel Manufacturer. Connect a 30cm red and black cable to one of the inputs. One end has a female connector for connecting to the combiner. At the other end it has 2 tips, one red and one black, which are used to connect to the regulator. Install the red tip on the positive terminal and the black tip on the negative terminal, screwing to secure. The holes you need to use are those marked with the solar panel symbol. The 5m cable for the solar panel connects to the combiner, fitting it into the input marked “output”.
STEP 4: FIX THE PANEL
With all the connections ready, you just need to go up to the roof to do the final installation: To work safely at heights, re-enforce all the safety measures mentioned above.
For working at height, it’s best to use a cordless drill, which also doubles as a screwdriver. The chuck can accommodate all types of bits, including Phillips, hexagonal, flat, star, and more.
To make this fastening use 4 ½” roofing screws and a hex bit to screw in. These screws have a rubber washer to prevent leaks. The long part of the mounting triangle is attached to the ceiling. Get off the roof and install the components in your patio, in a covered area: Fix the regulator to the wall by screwing it in.Stick the combiner to a wall with double-sided tape, since it is lightweight. Connect the panel cable to the combiner. On a table, leave the battery and the inverter. The charge regulator, which supplies us with 12V direct current, will be on with a green light that shows you that the panel is indeed charging. It also shows you the percentage of battery charge.
Connect the LED bulbs that come with the Top Ten Solar Companies in Australia to illuminate the patio:
STEP 5: CONNECT THE BULBS TO THE BATTERY
You now have all the elements of the system arranged in the covered patio space.
The bulb cable comes with a connector for the charge regulator. Insert it into the corresponding holes (remember to look at the markings on the regulator) and screw it in place. The cable is 7 m long, so you can place the bulbs under the awning, or wherever you prefer. The battery charge is enough to light up for 15 hours.
STEP 6: CHARGE AN ELECTRICAL DEVICE
From the inverter that provides us with 220 V alternating current, you can connect a speaker or charge a cell phone.
The power can last up to 10 hours for a laptop or 18 hours for an LED TV. Thanks to your new solar panel, your patio will be ready for the next party or barbecue! With enough electricity in this space, you’ll be able to enjoy more time with family and friends, listen to music, or work remotely on your computer.