Autonomous power supply of the house with own hands

Autonomous power supply of the house is the provision of the required amount of electricity for a residential or suburban area without power interruptions and voltage drops. The question of the independent creation of an autonomous power supply system is relevant for people living away from city life.

Such a need can arise for a number of reasons:

• The difficulty of connecting to an existing power supply network;
• No stability of the supplied voltage;
• Power interruptions.

Electricity, which is necessary for normal life in a country house, must be developed indefinitely, regardless of external factors. When choosing the source of energy, a preference should be given to a renewable and environmentally friendly and human option.

Requirements for autonomous power supply

The autonomous power supply of a private house depends on the total capacity of electricity consumers and the nature of their "needs". Most often, among the energy consumers are:

• Home heating system;
• refrigeration equipment;
• conditioning;
• Various large and small household appliances;
• Pumping equipment that provides water from a well or well.

Any type of electricity consumer has its own capacity. However, the requirements for the power network are the same for everyone. This is, first of all, the stability of the applied voltage and its frequency. For many consumers, the sinusoidal form of the AC voltage is also important.

The next stage is the determination of the required total capacity, which should be provided by the autonomous power supply of the house, as well as the technical characteristics of the power supply. Specialists recommend overestimating the total capacity by 15-30%. This is done to ensure the growth of electricity consumption in the future.

Further it is necessary to be defined with the technical characteristics on the basis of which the system of autonomous power supply of the house (SAE) will be built. They depend on what function the SAE will perform: fully autonomous power supply or backup power supply. If the system plays the role of "safety" for the supply of energy resources, it is necessary to establish the duration of the EPS in the absence of a centralized power supply.

An important factor in planning the system of autonomous power supply of a private house is the financial capabilities of the homeowner. The project budget determines how expensive the equipment will be, and what part of the work is to be done by one's own hands. It is known that independent execution of works will cost much less than payment for the services of specialists attracted from outside. In this case, it is necessary to take into account the availability of necessary equipment and skills of working with it, as well as the level of technical education of the homeowner.

Advantages

One of the main advantages of EPS is the lack of a charge for energy consumption. This is a significant saving in the conditions of suburban life. Autonomous power supply at home, in contrast to centralized, does not have any social norms for energy consumption.

The quality of electricity depends on the correct calculation of the total capacity at the design stage of the system and the commissioning of the necessary equipment. Due to this, there is no risk of voltage drops or power outages. Do not be afraid that a sudden jump in power will disable home appliances. The quality and quantity of electricity will be exactly what was planned initially, and not the one that the nearest substation can provide.

The equipment of the SAE is quite reliable and rarely fails. This advantage is maintained with due care and proper operation of all elements of the system.

Special programs are being developed, which make it possible to sell surplus electricity to the state. However, this should be considered in advance (at the design stage of the EPS). To do this, it is necessary to prepare the permit documentation, which confirms that the equipment generates electricity of the declared quality and in a certain amount.

Autonomous power supply of the house has one more undoubted advantage: complete independence. Whatever the cost of electricity consumed, the homeowner will always have its own energy resources.

Autonomous power supply of a country house: disadvantages

Despite many advantages, the EPS has a number of disadvantages, including not only expensive equipment, but also high operating costs. Before choosing the instruments and materials, you should carefully calculate everything in order to ensure that the equipment does not fail before it has paid off.

If the autonomous power supply of a private house has ceased to function for some reason, do not wait for the electricians on duty from the local substation. Everything will have to be taken care of by oneself - to call specialists and pay for services to repair the EPS. In order for this not to happen and the equipment has served as long as possible, it is necessary to regularly invite specialists for preventive inspection and maintenance of the house's autonomous power supply.

Choosing an alternative energy source

The main problem of autonomous power supply at home is the choice of an alternative energy source, which at the moment is not so much. The most common types are:

• Gasoline and diesel generators;
• solar panels;
• Wind power;
• hydropower;
• Accumulators.

Each of these sources has certain characteristics and characteristics, which should be carefully read.

Generators

This is the simplest and cheapest way to provide the house with the necessary amount of electricity. The device operates on the principle of burning fuel. If it is a question of autonomous power supply at home, the generator assumes the creation of a sufficient base for storing fuel. In stock should be at least 200 liters of diesel fuel, gasoline or other combustible substances. In this case, gas generators differ favorably. For their uninterrupted operation, a connection to the gas pipeline is required, and the problem with the storage of fuel is eliminated automatically.

Solar cells

Autonomous power supply of a house on solar batteries is quite common in Western countries. There are several methods for converting solar energy into electricity:

1. Photovoltaic cells are used to concentrate solar energy. With the help of special mirrors, the sun's rays are generated in a certain direction or they heat the liquid passing through the steam turbines of the electric generator (heat engine).
2. Photo cells - the energy accumulated by photocells on the roof of the house is a constant current. In order that it can be used in the household, it is subject to mandatory conversion to alternating current.

Autonomous power supply of the house by own hands with the use of solar batteries is the most effective and economical option. This equipment has been around for 40 years. However, depending on the weather conditions, electricity supply during the day may be interrupted.

Wind power

If weather conditions do not allow the use of solar panels, wind power can be an alternative option. It is taken through turbines located on high towers (from 3 m). Autonomous windmills transform energy using installed inverters. The main condition is the presence of a constant wind with a speed of at least 14 km / h.

Hydropower

If there is a river or a lake near a country house, you can use water sources of energy. Hydropower on a small scale is the most real and profitable option for self-contained power supply at home. The use of one turbine is not considered an ecologically and socially dangerous phenomenon. Microturbines are easy to operate and have a long service life.

Accumulators

For a fully-fledged power supply at home this option is not suitable. Batteries are used as an emergency power supply or as an addition to alternative energy sources. The principle of operation is quite simple - as long as the network has electricity, the batteries are charged, if the power supply is interrupted, the batteries give energy through a special inverter.

Scheme of autonomous power supply at home

The general scheme of the EPS consists of sequentially arranged elements:

1. Primary source of electricity - the above-described solar batteries, generators operating on various fuels and others can be used.
2. Charger - converts the voltage from the primary source to the values necessary to ensure the normal operation of the battery.
3. A rechargeable battery - used to store and deliver energy.
4. Inverter - designed to create the desired voltage.

All these elements are an integral part of the autonomous power supply at home, and they can not work without each other.

Mounting of the SAE

It is quite easy to run an autonomous power supply at home with your own hands. To do this, you need the components: several batteries that are connected in parallel, a charger and an inverter to increase capacity. When there is electricity in the network, the batteries accumulate energy from the charger. If the electricity is turned off, the batteries provide power to the inverter.

Manufacturers offer a wide range of inverters, designed for consumers with a certain capacity. From these indicators, the number of electrical appliances that can operate from this source depends. The more the amount of equipment in the house, the greater the total capacity of the batteries. If the capacity is incorrectly selected, the batteries will discharge more quickly.

These are the most common options for creating an autonomous power supply at home. The cost of such systems is quite large, especially if we take into account the cost of fuel for generators. The most acceptable in this regard are considered free energy sources, such as sun, wind and water. Worth such equipment is much more expensive, but it quickly pays off and has served for many years. Mount SAE with their own hands is quite simple. It is necessary to strictly follow the instructions and adhere to the scheme.