Where to Start

1. Estimating your off-grid solar power needs
2. Choose Your Supplies Carefully
3. Purchase a Solar Panel
4. Get a Small Battery with a Battery Box
5. Buy a DC Input
6. Invest in an Inverter
7. Attach Meter and DC Input
8. Mount Your Components
9. Wire Everything Together
10. Test the Parts

Estimating Your Off-Grid Solar Power Needs

You need to estimate your energy usage. Look at all the appliances you want to run with your generator. From there, you can calculate your energy usage in watt-hours.

For example, if you want to calculate how much a small fridge consumes each day, you need to multiply the watts by the number of hours of usage. Here is the formula: watts x hrs = watt-hours (Wh).

When calculating your energy needs, you need to determine the amount of power required to run your appliances and the power needed to start them. Some appliances require three times the general running watts to start them up. We call this surge power or surge watts.

With solar generators, surge power refers to the maximum amount of electricity the system can provide to an appliance in one burst. Make sure the wattage you build for takes into account surge watt requirements. Otherwise, many of your more power-hungry appliances won’t turn on when plugged into your generator.

Of course, your energy needs also will change depending on the setting where you’re most likely to run the solar generator. Consider the following:

Your Energy Needs for a Camping Trip

If you’re taking a mini-fridge, lights, battery chargers, and mobile devices, a 2000-watt generator should be sufficient.

Of course, you might not need that much even, especially if you go camping to unplug. But it’s always better to have too much power than too little.

You can determine your estimated energy needs and use that to decide what capacity solar generator and battery you require.

Your Energy Needs for Home Back-Up Power

The average Australian household uses an estimated 18 kWh per day. Your energy consumption may differ drastically from the average. For instance, if you lived alone compared to a family, this would likely be much less. Also, you can easily lower your power consumption during a blackout by only using the essentials.

Choose Your Supplies Carefully

Research is so important. Ensure you chose quality items that promise durability and efficiency.

Purchase a Solar Panel

Once you’re clear on how much energy you need to generate and store, you can start researching which solar panels will be the best fit. There are many factors to consider when making this decision, including

• Composition: Monocrystalline, polycrystalline, or thin film?
• Construction: Portable, rigid, or flexible?
• Rated power: How much energy do you need your solar panels to generate during peak sun hours to meet your needs?

Get a Small Battery with a Battery Box

The most common battery types are lithium-ion and deep-cycle lead-acid. Lithium-ion options are highly efficient and lightweight but also pricier. Lead-acid batteries are cheaper but contain toxic chemicals, have shorter lifespans, and are far less efficient.

Your battery box will keep the battery safe and transportable.

Buy a DC Input

You need a DC input so the system can transmit the DC from the solar panels into your solar power system.

 Invest in an Inverter

The inverter converts the DC power captured by solar panels into AC household electricity.

Attach Meter and DC Input

Here, you can use a drill to attach the meter and DC input to the top of the box.

Mount Your Components

Get everything into position, ready to be wired.

Wire Everything Together

Connect negative poles first and make sure only to handle one wire at a time to be safe. Next, connect the DC inlet to the battery just as you did with the first wire. Finally, connect the solar panel to the battery.

Test the Parts

Is everything in working order?

Build Your Own Solar Generator with Portable Solar Panels 

If the process of building a solar generator from the ground up — including wiring all the components, buying compatible hardware, and testing everything — sounds too complicated, you can still create a DIY setup, but in fewer steps. All you need to do is purchase a portable power station and portable solar panels.

This customisable solar generator setup is easier to build since all you need to do is plug and play. Look for a portable power station and solar panels sufficient for your energy needs. You can find power stations in varying capacities from 288Wh to 25kWh, and solar panels in varying designs, including portable, rigid, and flexible solar panels.