Solar should be packaged with consumer appliances

slazer2au

This isn't that good of an idea. While it seems like a good idea as we skip the loss of DC solar panel to AC mains to DC appliance.

Currently each appliance* you have runs at 110/240 AC and will transform down to whatever DC voltage the device needs.

Solar panels produce DC voltage somewhere between 12v to 52v.

Plugging in a device that expects 12v into a 48v line will blow something up.

*Some appliances like washing machines, fridges, toasters, kettles don't always use DC some will still step down the voltage to something more usable.

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Adding solar panels to building is fine, but why do you want to bundle appliances and electricity?

Sounds like you’re introducing a lot of complexity for unclear benefit.

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You would increase the cost/complexity of every appliance.

It’s easier to just have the solar inverter and battery system independent of the equipment. It’s relatively inexpensive to retrofit a home for an auxiliary power source. The complexity is when you tie into the grid.

Some appliances are solar ready. Some hvac systems and pool systems accept direct solar panel connections.

If i weee i charge, i would require all homes to be able to support solar panels and a battery system. The cost to do so at time of construction is insignificant.

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Except batteries are heavy and expensive? Which appliances can feasibly be battery powered for a practical amount of time?

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The power can easily be addressed in a buck boost topology and matched to the machine in question much better than a general system for the home as it would remove any need to worry about the standard voltages. Match to the appliance's needs directly. Then use a small step down wall wart like plug pack to boost the battery as a hybrid option if needed during the down cycles.

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If i weee i charge

It took me a solid minute trying to figure out what the typo was. It's actually TWO typos!

If i were in charge*

In charge of what exactly is still unclear however.

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Im going to speak from experience here that adding solar to my house was fairly easy and fairly cheap. The caveat being that i did it all myself. An understanding of basic electrical concepts and watching a few videos of how to mount the panels and bingo. What would have cost me probably 30k to have a contractor do i did myself for under 7k. Modern AIO inverters are a godsend along companies like SanTan solar who have fantastic deals on batts and panels. The biggest hindrance to us all are going to be the local nimbys and code nazis.

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Another thought I've had that warrants a separate comment: Why in the hell arent we wiring DC circuits into houses? Almost everything converts ac to dc these days via a power supply. Why not cut that out and have a larger more efficient main dc rectifier at the panel and run that to USBC ports around the house?

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Too many failure points. Cheaper, more efficient, and more strategic to have houses with SOME kind of solar power generation built in.

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we both know i wouldn't be in charge of correcting typos.

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I like my windows and am not going to get up on the roof to mount a panel and send wires down each time I get a new appliance (oh, and what happens if I replace an appliance that was bundled with a panel with another?)

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Refrigerators, microwaves, and LCD TVs come to mind.

A refrigerator uses 300 to 800 watts. That is 2-4kWh a day

Microwaves use 600-1000 watts. 6.1 kWh per month if used 15 minutes a day.

TVs use like 100 watts. 4.55kWh a month with 1.5 hrs of watch time a day.

All 3 are big enough to accommodate an appropriately sized battery to mitigate their draw. Having a decentralized battery mesh system coupled with solar main power does have some advantages, but I find it hard to say that it would be more advantageous than a centralized system due to cost and complexity.

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A 3kWh battery is like >$1000? Wouldn’t this double the price of a fridge?

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It would be really nice if there was a way to easily daisy chain panels. By easy, I mean mount to the roof, plug into the end of the existing set of panels, no electrician required. Then if you got a new appliance you could just add the new panel to the old one and carry on.

But yeah, expecting the general public to add a solar panel every time they get a dishwasher is unrealistic.

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Adding batteries to appliances is nontrivial. Large batteries are a fire risk, which is why home batteries are usually outside on a fireproof wall.

If you put batteries in a dishwasher, they would need to be fireproofed.

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DC power is very inefficient at low voltages. It’s hard to get 5v to stay steady at distances over about 10 feet

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Oh fair enough. Amd i guess you wouldn't want to pump 30v or whatever and use a buck converter because now all we have are heat generators.

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My (large) fridge hasn't even pulled 1kWh today. Modern fridges are impressively efficient.

I'm steadily electrifying my life - and adding solar panels as I go.

Solar is already super modular and if you package the panels, then you rob the consumer of the ability to pick a panel that works for them (physical size for example, but where you live will also have a big impact on capacity requirements). Also, solar panels have a lifespan that exceeds most consumer appliances. I just replaced a ten year old stove but my solar panels have a 25 year warranty. The replacement cadence is very different.

jrs100000

And the batteries wont last nearly as long as the fridge should. Do you just toss the whole thing when it starts defrosting every morning at 2am?

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I think the idea is to have the battery as an accessory that you can add-on.