Advice on Solar Power Inverter

[BriansBrain]

Hello all

I am looking at increasing Radio Brian's power
But... I need to keep all the costs down.
So...
I'm after some advice on the Type of Solar Inverter I need.
Which make or model or version would be best for Brian.

Location: South Gran Canaria Spain = plenty of Sunshine
Requirements: Power a Single Phase AC 230v FM Transmitter.
Consumption: Continuous +/- 1000w 16hrs a day 8:00 > 00:00.
Use 100% of available power from solar panels in the daytime.
Share the load with panels and the power grid when cloudy.
Use 100% of the power grid at night.
NOTE: Without any Batteries

Thanks in advance.

 

[Kelly A]

There are several inverters with automatic transfer switches that can automatically transfer back to the grid when the power from solar panels/batteries fall below a certain threshold. Problem is: even though you plan on only taking advantage of solar power during the day, you'll still need a battery (storage) source large enough to accommodate the entire calculated load when a cloud goes over, not too mention just smoothing-out the voltage fed to the inverter. The inverter needs a constant DC voltage. Just solar panels alone won't be enough, even during the daytime sun. If you're trying to do this on a budget, I'd recommend going with lead-acid batteries, but keep in mind, if you charge and drain the batteries down (cycle) daily, they won't last nearly as long as the more expensive lithium polymer batteries.
If you REALLY don't want to use batteries; then the only other option would be to build a solar panel array to just sell power back to the utility during peak sun (about 3 hours), then just operate your sandbox radio station purely off of utility power. The solar will be there just to offset your utility costs. From a cost/benefit perspective, the juice probably won't be worth the squeeze.

 

[Anton P]

If you got net metering option with your power provider then get grid tie inverter and enough panels to offset your energy usage. You will need about 5 kWdc of solar panels to offset 1 kWac load 24/7. Consult local solar installers in your area.

 

[Kelly A]

If you got net metering option with your power provider then get grid tie inverter and enough panels to offset your energy usage. You will need about 5 kWdc of solar panels to offset 1 kWac load 24/7. Consult local solar installers in your area.

Good point about the panel efficiency. Solar panels are (best-case) about 20% efficient. When you calculate your total load, you'll need to account for that. The wattage rating of panels are assuming best-case: Clean panels and perfect sun alignment with the panel array.