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Solar ?
- Thread starter Jdlvt
- Start date
-live wire-
- Joined Dec 22, 2017
- 959
Welcome, jdlvt. Here is what you need to find out:
1. Current draw. how much power does it consume? You need a multimeter for this. I recommend a getting ragu one off amazon if you do not have one and are willing to spend a little for one. They make good products that are very easy and nice to use, but they are on the cheaper end.
2. Series or parallel connection? Or series + parallel? Look at the tabs. A picture would be great. This determines the required voltage. Power = voltage * current. So you actually need to know the current draw and voltage to determine the power needed. Standard D cells are 1.5V but may be lower as they discharge. They are done for at .8-1V. So x in series = 1.5*x total voltage.
And once you know the power needed you must find a solar cell that can supply a minimum of that power. You may have difficulty finding solar cells that are the right voltages. And if part is shaded, the voltage may drop. So you will want some kind of a DC regulator to supply a constant-ish voltage. And I strongly recommend some sort of energy storage (rechargeable batteries, etc). If it is not sunny, do you not want it to work at all?
1. Current draw. how much power does it consume? You need a multimeter for this. I recommend a getting ragu one off amazon if you do not have one and are willing to spend a little for one. They make good products that are very easy and nice to use, but they are on the cheaper end.
2. Series or parallel connection? Or series + parallel? Look at the tabs. A picture would be great. This determines the required voltage. Power = voltage * current. So you actually need to know the current draw and voltage to determine the power needed. Standard D cells are 1.5V but may be lower as they discharge. They are done for at .8-1V. So x in series = 1.5*x total voltage.
And once you know the power needed you must find a solar cell that can supply a minimum of that power. You may have difficulty finding solar cells that are the right voltages. And if part is shaded, the voltage may drop. So you will want some kind of a DC regulator to supply a constant-ish voltage. And I strongly recommend some sort of energy storage (rechargeable batteries, etc). If it is not sunny, do you not want it to work at all?
I guess that's 12V .... I can't imagine it's many watts or the batteries would die very quickly perhaps about 1 W ....
On eBay there are all sizes of small panells and all sorts of voltages .....Very cheap
Here's one 6V ...2W only 1.97 english pounds including delivery!!! ......
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Solar-Pa...823035?hash=item467b63683b:g:0bMAAOSwj-Ba4ZFr
Three of these in series should do it ...or look for a 1 or 2W around 18 V .... if not enough power you can always buy another and put them in parallel .... put pannells of the same voltage in parallel ...voltage is the same but power adds ..... put panels in series and the voltage adds and power adds , try different combinations to see what givers the best result voltage wise
On eBay there are all sizes of small panells and all sorts of voltages .....Very cheap
Here's one 6V ...2W only 1.97 english pounds including delivery!!! ......
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Solar-Pa...823035?hash=item467b63683b:g:0bMAAOSwj-Ba4ZFr
Three of these in series should do it ...or look for a 1 or 2W around 18 V .... if not enough power you can always buy another and put them in parallel .... put pannells of the same voltage in parallel ...voltage is the same but power adds ..... put panels in series and the voltage adds and power adds , try different combinations to see what givers the best result voltage wise
You have to take into account starting current.
https://www.myodesie.com/wiki/index/returnEntry/id/3032
Regards, Dana.
https://www.myodesie.com/wiki/index/returnEntry/id/3032
Regards, Dana.
MisterBill2
- Joined Jan 23, 2018
- 27,507
If the motor is small then it will not have a problem with starting, although it may take a while to spin-up to the normal speed. If removing any one battery stops the fan then it is indeed a series connection and the fan is 12 volts. if the supply voltage is a bit low then the fan will spin slower, no other problems.
