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Energy for Christmas

As I grow in age, maintaining energy becomes more of a problem but it's not that sort of energy I'm talking about today.

I'm talking electricity.

Having been shocked at each and every power bill I've received over the winter (despite having a wood-burner for heating), I'm seriously considering the option of buying into solar generation.

Unfortunately, I'm probably too old to see a bunch of expensive solar panels pay for themselves before I take the big dirt-nap but that doesn't mean it's not a good idea anyway.

So is solar a good idea and do you really need to go "the whole hog" and cover your roof in slabs of silicon to benefit from the power of the sun?

Given the cost and the fact that I'm unlikely to see them pay for themselves during the remainder of my time on the planet, I doubt I'll be investing a huge sum in the traditional manner on solar.

However, there are other reasons to introduce at least a little solar-generated electricity into your life.

We've all got a USB power-bank or two laying around and I've even got one that has a solar panel on the back of it. According to the sales-pitch, this power bank can recharge itself when left in the sun so it's great for emergencies and will save you money in the long run.

Sadly, this particular unit (which cost me $12 at The Warehouse several years ago) doesn't actually deliver on the promises made for it.

When I measured its capacity, there was only a paltry 2000mAH of capacity from the interal lithium battery and because they used a super-cheap lithium-polymer pouch battery, it has already "puffed", making it more prone to igniting and diminishing its actual capacity even further.

What did I expect for $12 I guess.

The solar panel is a very low efficiency one and I calculated that it would probably take four or five days of sunshine to actually recharge the battery if you opted to use that option. Even worse however, is the fact that the whole damned thing is black so placing it in direct summer sunlight sees it heat up to the point where you can't actually pick it up. I'm sure that also primes the battery to spontaneously combust at the slightest provocation.

In short... it's a great idea that has been very poorly implemented.

So is there better option for a micro-solar energy setup that will at least provide enough power to run a radio, charge your phone and tablet or perhaps provide some emergency lighting in the event that a CME or other disaster takes out the mains for several days or longer?

Of course there is.

You can now buy "solar generators" which are actually just big power-banks (usually with about 200-300 watt-hours of battery). These things have USB outlets for charging your devices as well as an inverter that will supply 300-600W of AC at 110 or 240 volts. That AC outlet won't boil a jug or run your fridge but it will power a decent range of low-power appliances or devices that you may want to use when the grid fails.

Best of all, most of these devices can be recharged using separate solar panels.

By not integrating the solar panels into the powerbank itself they avoid the problem of overheating the battery and other electronics. You can throw the panels out on the lawn and keep the powerbank inside or at least in the shade.

Whether you're planning on doing a bit of hiking or camping, or just want a bit of backup at home in case of civil emergency, one of these devices sounds like a good idea and I may buy myself one for Christmas.

I mean... who doesn't like cool bits of tech under the tree?

For more info, the YouTube channel Project Farm recently posted an interesting shoot-out between several brands of these things... albeit 110V versions designed for the US market.

Perhaps the first thing I'd do with mine is hack it to boost the battery storage capacity.

On second thoughts... maybe a bigger inverter would also be worthwhile.

Damn it... maybe a totally DIY solution is in order.

Stay tuned!

Carpe Diem folks!

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