Re: Building a Hybrid System (Solar, Wind, Generator, Batteries, etc.)

[Greener]

Here are my two cents…i live off-grid in Ottawa, Canada – defintely not too sunny here…

Hybrid systems do work for all the reasons you said above (sunny in summer, windy in winter). The question from pigden above is relevant, since if you do have 365 d/yr of running water (with enough power), you don’t even need a generator.

You are building a highly redundant system…solar, wind, possibly water, generator, batteries and grid…if you have the grid, why go off it? It will cost you quite a bit of money to put in the batteries and charge controller, and an inverter to run your home. If you have the grid, use it as your battery. If you are worried about power outages, get a generator.

The type of generator you want for your system is not the same as a backup generator. They are also not “last resorts” for off-grid systems, rather, they are integral to the overall health of your batteries. The generator should have an autostart feature, with fuzzy logic – this means that under many different circumstances, it may receive a trigger to turn on – for example – a heavy load with high amp draw, different voltage settings on your batteries, and, most importantly, the generator is used to de-sulfate or “equalize” the batteries every three to six months. My advise is to not cheap out on the generator – it is critical to the health of your batteries.