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  • Total cost of my current solar system consisting of harbor freight solar panels

    Published: Saturday, January 6th 2024 05:04:44 PM - EST

    Updated: Wednesday, January 10th 2024 10:06:49 PM - EST

    Written by: jbick


    Category: SOLAR


    A brief outline of the costs for my solar system.

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    Total cost of my current solar system consisting of harbor freight solar panels by jbick

    My solar system has been in operation since late June of 2023. It seems to be still fully functional, batteries appear healthy. Here is an outline of what I got for what I paid. The total cost of my solar system cost $317.00.

    I already had 1 previously used car battery but I had to purchase another battery to put them into parallel (to store more electricity). My solar system consists of 5 solar panels, 2 charge controllers and 2 car batteries. This system produces about ~220 watts when the sun is out.

    What I do with my solar system

    My solar system operates 48 ft of LED light strips at night, a wireless access point 24/7 with plans to incorporate security cameras.

    Breaking down the costs

    • 100 WATT Thunderbolt Panels @ 109$/pc X 2 = $218
    • 30 AMP MPPT Charge Controllers @ 15$/pc X 2 = $30
    • 595 CCA Car battery @ $69/pc x 1 = $69

    Costs not counted

    The original 45 watt solar panel kit was already in place since 2010 from a previous project. They still produce electricity so why not incorporate them into this project? They were a part of a $250.00 kit at that time, from harbor freight. Additionally, I already had the one car battery so I only had to purchase 1.





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