Hello from artist in Eastern PA with off-grid studio in a barn

[Mr_Bill]

Hi everyone, Mr_Bill here. I'm probably one of the oldest people on here and get up to all kinds of projects for my own enrichment and experience. I live in eastern Pennsylvania, USA, and have an art studio in a barn that's off the grid. I'd like to build a small solar electric system to provide lighting, recharge power tools, and, when I occasionally get around to cleaning the place up, run a shop vac. I'm reasonably handy with tools, but have no experience whatsoever in electronics. However, just as with my artwork and carpentry, I don't let things like that hold me back.

My barn was built in the 1870s, about 12 miles from where it now stands, on the back corner of my property. In the summer of 2002, another guy (who knew what he was doing) and I (who didn't) and a high school kid, dismantled the building with a small amount of help from a crane, and moved it to my field, where we reassembled and renovated it. Since then, the building has been an ongoing project.

I've been following Will's YouTube channel for quite a while and feel reasonably confident that I understand the function of various components of a solar system. I'd even go so far as to say I could probably assemble one by working along with one of his demonstrations. I joined this forum to gain a deeper understanding before investing in a lot of hardware. Looking forward to learning from everyone and someday having enough experience to help others. Peace and Love from Pennsylvania, USA.

 

[svetz]

Welcome to the forums Mr. Bill!

Probably the best advice I can give you is to plan out everything before you buy anything. Deals always return, but once saddled with a bad buy it can end up dictating the rest of your experience. Post your designs and folks will generally be happy to give you alternatives or suggest ways to save $$.

The first thing to do is an energy audit as that'll give you an idea for the size of your system. From there you'll want to decide on if you want batteries or not (not needed to recharge tools, but useful for lights).

P.S. Please say hi to Spot for us

 

[John Frum]

I live in eastern Pennsylvania, USA, and have an art studio in a barn that's off the grid.

Welcome.
I really like your place.

 

[chrisski]

Which side of the hose is south facing? Looks like the tree line and shading could make the project challenging.

 

[Mr_Bill]

Welcome to the forums Mr. Bill!

Probably the best advice I can give you is to plan out everything before you buy anything. Deals always return, but once saddled with a bad buy it can end up dictating the rest of your experience. Post your designs and folks will generally be happy to give you alternatives or suggest ways to save $$.

The first thing to do is an energy audit as that'll give you an idea for the size of your system. From there you'll want to decide on if you want batteries or not (not needed to recharge tools, but useful for lights).

P.S. Please say hi to Spot for us

Dear Svetz,

Thanks for the advice! I'm not in a big hurry to buy anything and meanwhile am here to learn. I'm thinking of starting small, as my needs are minimal. I've run the studio for all these years without electricity at all, so even a few lights will feel like a luxury.

 

[Mr_Bill]

Which side of the hose is south facing? Looks like the tree line and shading could make the project challenging.

I'm putting the panels out in the field on the ground. There's plenty of sunlight out there, next to the garden! Thanks for the comment.

 

[Mr_Bill]

Welcome.
I really like your place.

Thanks, it's a great hangout. There's always something that requires attention e.g. patching holes made by woodpeckers, building a wood shed, etc. It'll be nice to get some lights inside when I learn more.