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Q: Why does it make sense to use a solar top?
A: Depending on where you use it and how often
you use the vehicle it can significantly increase the amount of
drive time you can get out of a single "on grid" charge. A solar top
basically is a charge on the fly device but can only produce a
fraction of the electricity that can come out of the grid. So as the
daylight hits the panel it creates a small amount of amps that go
back into the battery pack but it should be realized that even a
basic golf car uses battery energy faster than a solar panel can
generate energy to put back into the batteries. There fore the duty
cycle of the vehicle is very important to consider when evaluating
potential use of solar canopy tops on a golf car or utility vehicle.
Q: What area's of North America are best for a
solar roof?
A: This is a very difficult question. There
are 2 considerations for solar power generation. The amount of
sunlight exposure in a day and the temperature at which a solar
panel is receiving that sunlight. So in tropical area's where there
is no winter there is generally allot of daily exposure to sunlight
but at higher temperatures so that type of area is great for amount
of available "power generation time". However, in area's such as
Canada there is certainly less daily sunlight exposure time but it
is at a cooler temperature in comparison therefore the speed of
which the "power is generated" is increased from the cool
temperature! This is typically overlooked in the electric vehicle
market. The fact is that solar energy is produced faster at cooler
temperatures than at warmer temperatures assuming the light exposure
is the same in both scenarios. Therefore, it is probable that in the
month of January for a solar top in Southern Ontario, Canada to
produce more energy than one in Orlando, Florida assuming both
panels were of the same size and technology and were left in the
same amount of sunlight for the same amount of time! Canada is
actually a very good climate for solar power production.
Q: Can you charge a vehicle fully with a solar
top never having to plug it in?
A: The short answer is no from a logical
approach but technically yes from theoretical approach. Basically it
would take about 3 to 4 good sunlight days in a row to charge a 48V
vehicle up from discharge as long as it is not used on those days.
Practically the investment in a solar top would not make sense if
the vehicle was only being used every 3 days because the payback
time to cover the cost of the top would never attainable! But in
theory yes it can be done.
Q: What are the best weather conditions for
using a solar top?
A: Believe it or not a nice cool sunny January
day in winter is perfect. In other words a sunny day at
approximately -15 C (5 F) will produce energy at an optimal rate for
a solar top. So cooler temperature means faster production as long
as the sun is available. Even an overcast day in the cool weather
will produce a respectable amount of solar power!
Q: Can you use a solar top in winter time?
A: Yes and the heat from the energy being
created will melt snow on the roof depending on the amount of
snowfall and the angle of the top! The angle of the top is discussed
further down.
Q: How does it make financial sense to
purchase a solar top?
A: Current market values of solar technology
makes it is hard to justify the cost. The best possible way to
financially justify solar energy to charge an electric vehicle is
not by having a solar roof on the vehicle itself but rather by
plugging the vehicle into a receptacle that draws it's power from
solar created energy if that is available. The reality is that in
order to match the same amount of power required for a charger to
charge even a golf cart it would take a solar roof about 12ft x 20ft
in dimension or larger! Therefore the current solar technology
cannot charge a battery pack in the same time that a proper charger
could.
Q: What type of duty cycle makes sense for a
solar top?
A: For more on duty cycle
click here. The best generally described
duty cycle for a solar canopy top on an electric utility vehicle is
when the vehicle's use is always outdoors, and the vehicle will be
parked intermittently in an open area (for example not in the bush
or forested area) most of the time assuring the sun can fully cover
the solar panel. This simply insures that the solar canopy is in the
sunlight more often than not. In saying this be aware that a solar
canopy does not work at it's peak unless ALL of the solar panel is
exposed to sunlight. Even if only 10% of the solar panel is in the
shade or covered by leaves it may equate to the panel only working
at 30 to 50% capacity. This is greatly understood by many. Being
used on a farm is generally an ideal application for a solar roof.
In such an application you may not need to plug the charger in for
many days consecutively.
Q. How should a solar top be
protected and why? A: A solar
top should be protected by tempered glass. There are many reasons
for this. Consider what vehicle drive thru sometimes, branches,
hale, heavy rain, sap from leaves, other types of granular or gritty
debris. The tempered glass resists all of this and protects your
investment in a solar top. Scratching the working surface of a solar
module can drastically reduce it's operating efficiency. All solar
cells need to work together within a solar panels rated voltage and
if they can't they become very inefficient. The scratches from
branches or running water channels from rain can damage a solar
panels working surface greatly. BEWARE of peel and stick solar
panels for these reasons.
Q: Should a solar
top be angled or flat? A: The
best is for a solar top to have just a slight angle for rain or snow
to run off. The snow will melt and needs to go somewhere as the rain
needs to run off somewhere. The trick here is the angle should still
be able to accommodate receiving good sunlight contact even when the
vehicle is in the position where the angle is in the opposite
direction of the sun.
Q:
Do you still need a charger if you have a solar top?
A: Yes. The odds of you always being able to get
enough sunlight to keep the batteries charged for your duty cycle is
extremely rare. You will be able to go longer between full charges
yes. This is where the cost is calculated. How much money will you
save by not having to plug into the grid for charging and how often.
Typically if you never have to plug the vehicle in then you probably
do not need a utility vehicle at all really.
Q: What should one consider before purchasing a solar roof for an
electric vehicle? A: Consider
what you are trying to accomplish by having one.
If the idea is to save money then it is
probably not a good investment at the current market costing
conditions. Using the charger to charge the vehicle from an outlet
that is powered by solar or wind power makes sense in this case.
If the idea is to portray an image for lateral
reasons then it may make good sense. A business for example. A
housing contractor that builds smart homes that run off of solar or
wind power may have a model home in place for a few years or do
allot of outdoor trade shows. A solar top would certainly portray
and send a positive message about that business in this scenario.
In some cases people find it rewarding to help the
earth as much as possible. Hats off to those people who do and that
in itself is a very strong reason to have a solar top/canopy.
Q: Is solar power
good for batteries? A:
Absolutely. Solar power from a solar panel module is like trickle
charging for lead acid batteries. A trickle charge is a gentle way
of charging lead acid batteries but it takes a very long time to
fully charge lead acid deep cycle batteries. When lead acid
batteries do start to get old and tired it is partly because
(assuming they are being maintained properly) they can only handle
bulk phase charging so many times which is why battery manufacturers
do have an estimated rating of charge cycles that their batteries
can withstand.
Q: Golf
course fleets; Do solar tops make sense?
A: As stated above. The best money spent on solar
at a golf course regarding golf course fleets is to spend the money
on a solar or wind powered system to capture natural power for use
to charge golf cars when required. Outlets that the chargers plug
into should run off of this captured power. Why? It is all math.
Example: A fleet of 50 golf cars at a golf
course. Average price of a 48V solar top
system installed on each car is approximately $1400 (this includes
charge/controller for the solar module). Equate. 50 golf cars X
$1400. = $70,000.00 The average golf car
fleet lease is 3 years so this $70,000/3 = $23.333.00 annual cost
for the 50 fleet solar tops per annum based on a 3 year term lease.
Before comparing the money spent per year by a
golf course on charging a fleet of golf cars one must establish what
the portion of a golf courses energy bill, (the average cost per
kw/h will need to be determined in your area), is spent on charging
the golf cars only. If it is less than the $23,333. cost for the
solar tops per annum in this example then there is no financial
gain. If it is more than the $23,333. in this example there may be
some gain or savings but there are peripheral costs to consider as
well. On average how many golf car
canopies need replacement from damage at the particular golf course
per year? Factor this number into the annual cost of solar tops. Any
golf course will tell you that this is a realistic cost of doing
business at some golf courses and the fact of the matter is that a
good solar top will have tempered glass protecting the active module
and when this glass breaks it will cut into the active panel and
create serious damage rendering it potentially ineffective.
The real comparison should be the example of
costs mentioned above compared to what it would cost for a golf
course to have a solar, wind or combination of, installed on the
golf course and power charging outlets from that with a relative
rotation of charging for the fleet of golf cars (i.e. for a fleet of
60 golf cars, charge 30 each on days 1,2 and 3 allowing the stored
energy to build back up each day). With this scenario there may also
be the opportunity to sell energy back into the grid that the golf
course does not need. Ontario does have such a plan.
There are golf car electric drive systems that
are made to be much more efficient than what is commonly used in the
market. Skylar-EV has a golf car available that can get 3 to 5, 18
hole rounds of golf in on a single charge. Such a system may only
cost approximately $300 to $400 more per golf car vs. a $1400. solar
canopy. Coupled with the solar, wind or combination of both and the
correct rotation of charging days for the fleet of golf cars you may
only have to charge your golf cars 2 to 3 times per week and never
have to worry about damage to the top of the golf car while enjoying
the savings for much longer than the 3 year lease of the golf cars!
Now that makes financial sense!
Image may also be a way to justify the cost of a
fleet of solar top golf cars by effectively creating lateral reasons
that may benefit a golf course or municipality. Sometimes these
lateral reasons are worth it more so than the financial costs
directly related to the upgrade! |
