Solar Panel Array Sizing

Welcome to the Saco Solar Store Array Calculator. This calculator is designed to help you size a system for off-grid use.

Start by filling out the first tab, titled Solar Panels. This tab will calculate how many Solar Panels you need, based upon you load(how much electricity you consume).

Once you've completed this tab, move on to the other tabs labeled Charge Controller & Battery Bank.

Determine the size of the solar panel array you will need.

Step 1:

How many kilowatt-hours (kwh) does your home/location use per month?

(This value is usually printed on your electric bill. If you don't have a bill, or don't know your consumption,
click on 'load calculator' at the top of this page to go through the steps to determine this value.)

kilowatt-hours per month

Step 2:

You need to determine the minimum number of sun hrs per day during the winter.

Select the State-City Closest to your location (currently only US states are provided)

Minimum sun-hours for the winter times

Manually enter the minimum sun-hours for your location.

Step 3:

The total wattage of Solar Panels that you need is:

This value takes into account losses due to system inefficiencies.

Step 4:

How many solar panels do you need? That depends on the panel you choose.

Select the wattage of the panel your interested in, and see the results below:

To use this form, simply list all of your appliance that use electricity. These are items like Refrigerator, Range, computer, stereo, lights etc..
For each appliance, enter the number of that appliance that you own (Qty), the power is uses (Watts) and the number of hours a day (Hrs/Day) you use the item.
We have a provided a list of common appliance and their power consumption at the bottom of the page.
Load Calculator
Use this form if you don't know what your power consumption (kilowatt-hours) is.
Name:				Date
	Appliance*	Qty	Watts (Volts x Amps)	Hrs/Day	Watt Hrs/Day
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20

	Total Watt Hrs Per Day:
	Total Kilowatt Hrs Per Month (30 Days):
	(write down this value and enter it into Step 1 of solar panel sizing calculator)


* Help! I'm not sure of the wattage of my appliances.
Select the appliances from this drop down menu. To the right will appear typical wattage values for the appliance you selected. However, for the most accurate information look on your appliance to find its wattage rating (or it amperage rating and then multiply that by its voltage to approximate its wattage).




					Watts