Solar power

This was the hardest bit to figure out-- serious pain in the butt. I did a lot of searching online and found a number of resources including RV Solar, AM Solar, ICP Solar(Insane Clown Posse Solar-- ha, ha), US Solar Radiation Resource Maps and the best one, Mobile Homestead.

Also, my books on solar helped:

 "Independent Energy Guide: Electrical Power for Home, Boat, & RV"
 Kevin Jeffrey

 "RVer's Guide to Solar Battery Charging: 12-Volt DC 12-Volt AC Inverters"
 Noel Kirkby, Barbara Kirkby

It really took me days but I finally figured it out. Here it is:

Equipment	amps@12v	x	hours/day		amp hours used
2 bed xenon lights (10-watt)	2.40	x	4		9.60
1 kitchen florescent light	1.40	x	1		1.40
1 toilet florescent light	1.40	x	0.5		0.70
2 couch xenon lights	2.40	x	4		9.60
3 ceiling flourescent lights (30-watt)	4.20	x	1		4.20
Cooling/Heating ceiling vent fan	5.00	x	2		10.00
Forced-air furnace	5.00	x	2		10.00
2 oscillating fans	3.00	x	2		6.00
Microwave oven	125.00	x	0.1		12.50
Juicer	15.00	x	0.1		1.50
Toaster oven	120.00	x	0.1		12.00
Laptop charger	1.50	x	1		1.50
Phone charger	0.20	x	0.2		0.40
Battery charger	1.00	x	0.2		0.20
Inverter loss	1.15	x	8		9.20
Total amp hours used					79.44

So, this means that since I live north and the sun will be weaker, especially this winter, I need more battery capacity (2 -12V, 225AH, gel-sealed 8G8D) and I need about 500+ watt charging capability. Plus, I need a power inverter for 110v appliances and I need a charge controller with meter readouts.

After much searching (story of my recent life) I found a place in AZ called, guess what, AZ Solar. They have a complete kit that includes two 110 watt solar modules and flat mount kit, lag bolt mounting hardware, electrical terminal package, 50 feet of sunlight and water resistant tray cable, weather tight fittings for the solar junction boxes, solar supercharger, 1500 watt power inverter kit with inverter leads, plus installation instructions and live tech support. For the pretty low price of $1665.00 (believe me, it can get expensive quick especially with purchasing separate components).

So... still not up to my battery charging needs. And I'm a bit worried about the weak sunlight up north in the winter. So I looked into adding a wind turbine to the system. That way I could power off two different sources, hopefully covering my bases. The Air-X 12VDC is 12 volts, 400 watts; KWH per month @ 12mph 38, start-up wind speed 7mph, maximum wind speed 110 mph for $555.00

I am hoping that this will cover me but I can always cut out microwave/toaster oven use (just use the propane stove) and I already own a 1200w gasoline generator that I will carry with me. Hey, I could drive around and let the wind turbine go! As long as I'm not going faster than 110mph...