First Timer - Need help designing system for shed

Hello everybody. I recently build a 12x16 shed with a loft and want to add some lighting. I have the option to run power from the transformer that is 150ft from the shed but I really have no need for full service. I decided that my best option was to add a solar panel system. I would like to get some input on what size of system would be the most beneficial and which sellers are the most reliable to purchase products from.

I would like to add 2 - 60w shop lights, 2 outlets for charging power tool batteries/stereo, and possibly a small box fan for the hot summer days. Roof faces south for reference (southern Ohio).

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

First thing you need to do is determine what your total load will be. I would add all of the items power requirements together as in your using everything at once. Once you find out your load, you can then size your battery, panels needed to charge battery in one day, then size of SCC.

I put together a system for lights at our hunting shack. One thing you should consider is if you are running your lights off of the batteries, how many hours do you want to run before you need to recharge? If you plan to pull an all night work session and work all of the next day, do you need the lights to be powered for 20 hours, 30 hours, or whatever. We plan for a 5 night hunt trip with little charging during cloudy days, so we have enough batteries for X lights for N hours and at the end of 5 days still have a bit of power left. Making a system that you can add onto makes sense. Specifically batteries that you can parallel to if you want to increase your ability to carry a load.

Do you have an idea how many hours you want to run your lights without much sun? And will it be next weekend before you need the lights again or will it be tomorrow?

Also try to use LED's when possible.

Brewman said:

Also try to use LED's when possible.

Click to expand...

essential imho for solar systems.

Thank you guys for the replies. I plan on using the lights for no more than 3-4 hours at a time (essentially just when I decide to do some shop work at night). During this time I would probably have a small radio playing, my phone charger, and a small fan. I will add up my expected load so that I can get a baseline for my system.

I run a small inverter that powers 2, four foot LED tubes (2200-2400 lumens each, as I recall) and pull about 45 watts from a 12v battery. I can run those two lights for 10+ hours on 500 watt hours of lithium battery. A radio will be next to nothing. Charging your power tools will be a larger drain, way more than the lights. If you build your battery system with plans that allow easy expansion, start with 500 or 1000 watt hour range and see how it goes for you.

If it's use will mostly be during the day, a large PV set up will power most if not all without anything being pulled from the battery.