Small scale Solar panels to power all your stuff.

I hear everyday that the reason people are not installing Solar Panels is because they are so expensive. And this is True.

I had a quote to provide 500 Kwhr/mo Solar Power (grid-tied)  to my house and the cost was $23,000 .... Add another $10,000 for batteries and you are easily up to $33,000.

Most people use 1000 KWhr per month of Electricity so you would need to double that cost to $66,000.  Yes, I agree this is very expensive.  Until they come up with a better Solar Technology most of us will never ever be able to afford Solar Power.

Unless.... unless you take a really good look at your consumption and see if you can reduce it to 300 KWhr / mo .... 10 kWh per day.  Or better yet reduce it to 100 KWhr per months. Is this possible in Canada or in very hot or cold climates ?

If you live in an area that has on average 5 hours of sunshine, with a 280 watt Solar Panel you can be making roughly 250 * 5 =  1,250 watt per day...  1.25 kwhr / day. That works out to 37.5 KWhr/mo .... Can you get your consumption down that low ?  Yes you need to have additional Solar panels and batteries for cloudy days and certain inefficiencies but you see it is possible if you reduce the amount of Electricity you are using.

The way I am approaching this is learning how much each appliance requires to run each day and for how long. When I go completely off the grid I will need a small solar fridge, propane cooking stove, BBQ, about 10 LED lights and battery to power my computer and other devices. Heat will need to be via a Wood stove. I am looking for an old Amish Cook Stove that can also help to heat a very small, well insulated Offgrid House I will build.

In order to learn this I am starting with Small Solar panels and learning what I can charge with each one. So far I am able to charge several LED lights, my computer, a fan, phone, and iPod.

I am now searching for the most efficient Solar powered Fridge I can afford.

$8.79 LightMe Portable 15W 130lm Solar LED Bulb Light, White-1 LightMe https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CL71HHY/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_HgSvyb6R15FEP

$55.99  PowerGreen 21W Folding Solar Charger with Dual USB Port Solar Panel for all 5... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01E6Q4BY4/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_x_omSvybKTTFP56