diy solar

diy solar

Looking for resources to learn about general electronics, electricity, & and circuitry

Dzl

Unofficial Forum Librarian & Perpetual Newbie
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Dec 10, 2019
Messages
5,110
Location
West of the rockies
I have learned a lot about solar, batteries, and electricity since joining this forum, but I'm lacking a depth of understanding of the fundamentals of electricity, and I have almost no practical hands on experience.

I'm looking for some resources to learn the basics, and understand 'the how' and 'the why' of things on a broader conceptual level.

Something in between all the 'these are volts, these are amps, this is resistance' videos, and the very specific resources designed for electrical engineers or electrical professionals.

So I'm wondering what resources you all recommend.
 
Last edited:
I learned when I was about 6 years old by playing with all the experiments on one of those Radio Shack 100-in-1 kits. I think they would still be great for all ages to learn with, as most people learn better with a little hands-on while doing the reading.

Something like this:

 
I learned when I was about 6 years old by playing with all the experiments on one of those Radio Shack 100-in-1 kits. I think they would still be great for all ages to learn with, as most people learn better with a little hands-on while doing the reading.

Something like this:

Lol I had one too I might buy one of these just for sentimental value.
 
Please allow me to pitch @Will Prowse book!
Mobile Solar Power

Thank you for the suggestion, but the book is not what I'm looking for. Its valuable for what it is, but I consider it more of a beginners practical guide specific to solar power. Its a valuable resource, but I'm looking for something a little broader and a little less basic.

I own the book, and value the book, and I'm sure I will use it extensively when I get around to actually building my system, its perfect for that, but right now I'm seeking something that gives me a bit more in depth conceptual understanding.

Will has a great ability to explain complex, dry subjects in a simple easy to understand and interesting way. What I am looking for are other resources that can supplement what I've learned from his videos and this forum, at a similar level to some of his more in depth or advanced videos (or probably slightly more in depth), and more broadly applicable to electricity and electronics in general.

I learned a lot first through Will's videos and a bit from his book, then found this forum and learned a ton from the smart, creative people here, I've read and reread the excellent Marinehowto article on LFP and the NordkynDesigns series on LFP and watched the 6 part marine electrical seminar from Pacific Yacht Systems. All of which I would highly recommend! And anytime I hear of a component I'm not familiar with I try to google it or youtube it and learn about it, but I've struggled to find resources that weave it all together (at least a level I can wrap my head around). In terms of solar basics, I've found AM solar and Amy at the AltE store have some good (basic) info.

I learned when I was about 6 years old by playing with all the experiments on one of those Radio Shack 100-in-1 kits. I think they would still be great for all ages to learn with, as most people learn better with a little hands-on while doing the reading.

Something like this:


I was actually kind of thinking that some kind of tinkering kit or some simple projects to learn would be good. Nothing compares to practical hands on experience and the knowledge gained through doing, and trying, and messing things up, and maybe eventually succeeding.
 
Last edited:
Check this out.

I may be interested in taking one of these courses with you as a learning experience.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dzl
Check this out.

I may be interested in taking one of these courses with you as a learning experience.

Just had a brief look, a handful of those courses pique my interest and at least a few of them are time commitments I could possibly manage! These are some of the broader topics that jumped out to me:

Introduction to Electronics (33 hrs)
Linear Circuits: DC Analysis (26 hrs)
Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There (19 hrs)
Introduction to Converter Circuits (26 hrs)
Introduction to Systems Engineering (32 hrs)

and these are more specific but would be interesting:

Interfacing with the Raspberry Pi (11 hrs)
Interfacing with the Arduino (11 hrs)
Building Arduino robots and devices (23 hrs)
 
Just had a brief look, a handful of those courses pique my interest and at least a few of them are time commitments I could possibly manage! These are some of the broader topics that jumped out to me:

Introduction to Electronics (33 hrs)
Linear Circuits: DC Analysis (26 hrs)
Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There (19 hrs)
Introduction to Converter Circuits (26 hrs)
Introduction to Systems Engineering (32 hrs)

and these are more specific but would be interesting:

Interfacing with the Raspberry Pi (11 hrs)
Interfacing with the Arduino (11 hrs)
Building Arduino robots and devices (23 hrs)
Maybe we could get a DIY solar study group going. I will look tonight all those look interesting.
 
So, @Dzl , two months later.... what did you learn? I read the first 4 chapters of a great book on procrastination if you are interested in a link to it. :)
 
I have learned a lot about solar, batteries, and electricity since joining this forum, but I'm lacking a depth of understanding of the fundamentals of electricity, and I have almost no practical hands on experience.

I'm looking for some resources to learn the basics, and understand 'the how' and 'the why' of things on a broader conceptual level.

Something in between all the 'these are volts, these are amps, this is resistance' videos, and the very specific resources designed for electrical engineers or electrical professionals.

So I'm wondering what resources you all recommend.

If you really want to understand the fundamentals of electricity, Feynman can explain it better than anyone : https://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.edu/II_toc.html

Heavy on theory but Feynman makes it digestible.
 
So, @Dzl , two months later.... what did you learn? I read the first 4 chapters of a great book on procrastination if you are interested in a link to it. :)

Well I'm still a lightweight when it comes to the fundamentals, its hard to find a middleground between practical hands-on 10-15 minute videos and/or articles, and full on college courses or NEC prep classes.

On that note, I just found this video (40 minutes) from the Solid State Workshop, which is in my opinion a perfect balance between depth and clarity for beginners like myself. I think it is probably the best conceptual explanation I have come across, none of it was new knowledge for me, but the author explains it in a way that is very easy to understand without making it too simplistic.

Some other resources I've found very useful in learning the fundamentals:
The Engineering Mindset
Simply Electronics

For the more mathematically inclined there is the Organic Chemistry Tutor's electrical playlist

On grounding (Code heavy but still a lot to learn), Mike Holt's videos (such as this one and this one)

Beyond that, to be honest I haven't found much, I've learned a lot but its all been in bits and pieces hear and there, but in terms of good resources I'm still searching.

I've also been endeavoring to learn some of the basic math, and making a little bit of headway (thanks to some help from @FilterGuy @BiduleOhm and some other helpful folks here :))
 
This book was recommended but I don’t remember where.


It’s on my wishlist for now. Good reviews but no first hand knowledge here.
 
Back
Top