How Many Solar Panels To Run a Fridge/Freezer?

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In this video, I'm answering a question many of you have asked: How many solar panels are needed to run a refrigerator and freezer? Or how many panels are needed for a solar powered refrigerator. If you've ever wondered about the specifics, such as how many solar panels to run a fridge or can a 300 watt solar panel run a refrigerator, you're in the right place.
From my own testing, I show the power consumption of a fridge and its freezer section, guiding you through the process of calculating the daily and idle consumption-details often overlooked but crucial for an efficient off-grid setup.
Through this video, you'll gain insights into:
The exact energy usage of a refrigerator, including a breakdown of my fridge's consumption, rated at 75 Watts, with a freezer, to understand how much solar for fridge setups is actually necessary.
The inverter's idle draw, a key factor in calculating total energy requirements and determining how many solar panels for fridge setups are optimal.
Detailed steps on sizing the battery for your system, ensuring that you're prepared even when the sun isn't shining, answering the critical question of how many solar panels to run a freezer and fridge 24/7.
We'll also delve into the math behind choosing the right number of solar panels to keep your fridge running smoothly, considering variables like days of autonomy and the type of batteries that offer the best long-term value. Whether you're curious if a 300-watt solar panel can run a refrigerator or you're planning a comprehensive off-grid system, this video has you covered.
By the end of this video, you'll clearly understand how many solar panels to run a refrigerator. Ensuring you're well-equipped to make informed decisions for your off-grid solar power system.

[@cleversolarpower]

🎁 Free Diagrams: cleversolarpower.com/free-diagrams/ 📖 My Best-Selling book on Amazon: cleversolarpower.com/off-grid-solar-power-simplified

[@conanmarcfortunato6581]

hi, can you share the energy meter that you use to measure the fridge power consumption

[@tobiaswedel7245]

We got a similar type of fridge with freezer. The power consumption is between 17 and 19 kWh per month. I got 2x 400watt panels and a 25.6v (24v) 200ah lithium battery. Here in the middle of Germany we can run the fridge independent of the power grid from the end of February till the beginning of November. Greetings

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks for sharing Tobias!

[@johnbeton4058]

​@@cleversolarpower You sound like someone from Belgium.

[@smardigitalvideo]

What kind of inverter.o share the list of material solar panel converter inverter batteries thamks

[@tobiaswedel7245]

Inverter is a ECTIVE SSI10. 2x Canadian Solar 400w panel's. Battery is a LiTime 24v LiFe 200ah

[@cleversolarpower]

@johnbeton4058 That's because I am

[@Kizito-pn8on]

Thanks for this opportunity to everybody, because not all of us have this knowledge. You give straight away all your answers, wonderful channel

[@outbackeddie]

Great video. I calculated the power needs of my freezer a few months ago after using a Kill-a-Watt for a week, but I totally missed the idle power draw factor. Due to my far north location, there's no way I can economically power my freezer with solar power year-round, but if I can manage to power it during the summer months that will be a big help. I don't worry about the winter months since I can just put the freezer food outside where it is almost always well below freezing (often subzero temps).

[@reltech]

You can make up a 12V thermostat with relay to switch on the inverter. If you know what you're doing you may be able to wire it into the fridge sensor. Downside is that you might not be getting the fridge light.

[@tobbleboii5988]

this might not be an option for you at all, but moving your fridge outside might save some power if the temperature difference between the fridge and the surrounding air is cut in half, the power consumption should be (slightly higher than) half of what it used to be but i do realize might not be something you can just do that easily

[@richardwebb6267]

Batteries. You must store everything you can get.

[@junkerzn7312]

Note that the 2000W inverter shown in the video is probably massively overkill just to run a fridge. It does depend on the fridge's surge load, but I can run my home fridge with an 800VA Victron Phoenix inverter and that one has an idle consumption of around 10W. That's in "normal" operation mode, not "eco" mode. You basically want the smallest inverter that is still able to deal with the startup surge of the equipment. -Matt

[@stuartgray5877]

I always thought it would be "cool" to have a fridge that could sample the outside air and use IT to cool the fridge when it is cold enough outside, instead of electricity.

[@Rpol_404]

Very good analysis and guidelines. One thing that is missing is a decent set of panels will still provide some power - even on a cloudy day. I’ve read anywhere from 10% to 20% (100-200wh for a 1k system). So you might not need the 3 day buffer, but I still like his recommended headroom.

[@cleversolarpower]

You are right, i did not include this in the calculation to make it easier to digest.

[@EscapeTheMatrix......]

EXCELLENT Video! - Anyone who cant understand this straight forward guide, are not in a position to be living off grid or desigjing their own system without someone helping/doing it for them.. Just subscribed! Ps. In England only need about 40,000watts solar and about 20 batteries for the 1/2 day of sun every 2 weeks!😅🤦 Cheers from London 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇬🇧

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks for the sub! England is not great for solar, but it can work great with net metering (grid tied).

[@EscapeTheMatrix......]

@@cleversolarpower no worries. Yeah tbh trouble is that the grid tied is a con over here. Personally I think unless you can go fully independent of the grid it's bit of a waste of time tbh from the people I know.who did it and then had them removed after a couple of years as either wasn't saving money or was costing them more than before by the time they paid for the solar set up. It's always one of these "schemes" and it's a scam in UK. I would do it independently but you need a large array and big battery bank so need a lot of room, no good for a smaller house or small gardens which often the case in England in more built up areas.

[@hebrew984]

Agreed

[@fibber2u]

Lucky fellow obviously you live on the sunny side of the city.🤔😎

[@SuperDarkrock]

That's nice, in Florida I run my house on a pack of matches and a coat hanger. Cheers.

[@henkmeiring01]

Very straightforward informative explanation.Everyone that runs household should watch this video.Very difficult to get correct size solar system for appliances that cycles on and off.

[@user-wt5bf4rw7e]

One system to run everything including the heat pump. Why power each appliance individually?

[@Matthew_Loutner]

One word about inverter sizing: I recommend buying one with the same rating as a standard wall socket. That gives you the opportunity to plug in any household appliance in the future without having to buy another inverter. I use a 2000 wh inverter for every appliance I have.

[@vincentrobinette1507]

Be sure and get a true sine wave inverter, NOT a modified sine wave inverter!

[@Matthew_Loutner]

@@vincentrobinette1507 I am using a modified sine wave inverter and have not had any problems except for my clocks do not keep time correctly. But I do agree with you that a person is better off with a true sine wave inverter.

[@notconnected3815]

I tried a 300W inverter on my 75W fridge. It turns out, that the compressor needs higher currents during start up. So my inverter always went into overload. A 800W inverter works now, but it also gets very noisy in that moment. So more than 1000W would be recommended.

[@Matthew_Loutner]

@notconnected3815 Refrigerators that have the new-style rotary inverter compressor do not have a high start up surge. The conventional style refrigerator does.

[@notconnected3815]

@@Matthew_Loutner Oh, i didn't know that. So someone who is planning to build such a system should measure the peak current of that particular fridge before choosing an inverter. Thanks for the tip!

[@clemarkstheone.]

Well explained and illustrated. Thanks.

[@bruce-le-smith]

very helpful, thank you. I liked the walk through of the calaculations, that made it easy for me to understand

[@808pathfinder]

I like your style, am hooked. KEEP-ON KEEPIN-ON

[@shagsheep8832]

Something that was missed is the defrost cycles with upright freezers. Newer upright fridge/freezers aren't so bad compared to older models. But the most efficient combo could be an inverter fridge and a basic chest freezer (no defrost cycle").

[@larryperry2094]

I run my ancient half size fridge on 6 HF solar panels and 2 100ah li-time batteries. I have my system wired in a 24 volt configuration and a rich solar 40 amp charge controller. I have had to run the generator a couple times but it has been very minimal. When you have a smaller system and are off grid or just don't want to use wall power or a generator it pays to watch the weather and learn your own personal equipment. Also going to a 24volt system is the best,easiest and cheapest way to go. 24 volt also has a little bit better conversion efficiency. I started with 12volt and can definitely vouch for the efficiency factor of going to 24volt.

[@sebastian19745]

Actually, a fridge and a freezer are not the most power hungry things around the house. Those that cook and heat water with electricity have it tough. Very good info, thanks. I will sent the video to all my friends that ask me how many panels and battery capacity they need to run theirs house totally off-grid.

[@cleversolarpower]

Indeed, heating and cooling are the most power-hungry. At least with cooling, you know there is sunshine, too. Thanks, Sebastian!

[@sebastian19745]

@@cleversolarpower I am really glad I found your channel, you explain all verry well, easy to understand and follow the flow. Thank you.

[@WotchTheWerldBern]

@@sebastian19745 Agreed. And a pleasure to hear things described without the abrasive 'up^speak' of which westerners have grown so fond.

[@DC-te1gw]

pay attention to the fridge compressor start up wattage needed as that can be 4kw, so you will need a 4.5kw inverter just to get that compressor running. once it is running it will constantly use a much lower wattage.

[@plymouth5714]

The only problem is that they would need to be completely off grid - if you are still connected to the mains and you have a power cut the solar generation automatically shuts down - otherwise the electricity workers can't get a totally dead power line to work on! (You'd think they could get a system to auto disconnect from the grid until the power came back on so we could carry on using our own generation!)

[@postiemania]

Very informative video, I appreciate your attention to detail. I have a UPS system of 6200 watts and 5100 watt hours of battery (4 X 102Ah) @12.5v so it is a 50 volt system. Inverter uses 50 watts an hour idle current. I will add more battery power next. Thanks for the video.

[@utubeape]

Great work. i can see it really makes sense to keep a fridge in a cold place, so that it requires less power in the winter when solar is a problen. I imagine opening the fridge door less in colder weather too

[@fibber2u]

Surely you just keep the air-conditioning on full blast!🤔 That'll keep it cool in summer.

[@moonhand8311]

Your videos are brilliant. Very clearly explained, and superb 'problem solving' scenarios. I am subscribed!

[@cleversolarpower]

Welcome aboard!

[@justicator]

I've been slowly working on my offgrid system and one of the challenges for me is location and number of panels. My local government requires a lot to mount panels on my home DIY, so I have free-standing, movable panels, but this is not ideal as it takes up more usable space on my already limited size lawn, and is an eyesore to my spouse and neighbors. I currently only have 400 watts of panels, and might reasonably be able to increase that to 600 or 800 maximum. I have way more space in my basement where the storage batteries are, so my strategy is going to be to increase my battery capacity and potentially remotely charge some additional batteries from another location or from my car alternator if needed to top up or extend my runtime in the instances where my panels will not be able to keep up with the demand over a longer period of time.

My _beloved_ local government doesn't give a shit where I put panels on my property but after cleaning the panels on the roof a few times and those on the ground level... I will be getting those buggers off the roof very soon. The occasional brooming is way, way easier at less than 2m above ground. And they cool better. Just a thought...

[@jonathanteoh6717]

Thanks much ! This is SO easy to understand !

[@katebygrave]

Excellent video, well thought through and presented.

[@cleversolarpower]

Thank you!

[@mountainmarauder2575]

Excellent!! I live off grid and my solar and wind run a 5000W (surge to 10,000W) modified sine wave inverter from a bank of surplus aircraft NiCad 12V batteries. We use propane for the fridge and that allows us to just turn off the inverter at bedtime. One of the problems we have run into is the startup load for the electric freezer on another portable system. We were using a 1000/2000W modified sine wave and had to go up to a 2000/4000W just to handle the start load. When it's running the load meter shows only about 45 watts. Also there are some appliances like blankets and heating pads that will not work on a modified sine wave inverter. I don't recall if he said the inverter was a pure sine wave or not.

[@user-ob8qt3ty5j]

Does inverter have its capacity

[@mountainmarauder2575]

@@user-ob8qt3ty5j Yes the 5K/10K is way more than we need for daily operations.

[@DGQ1Q2]

so well explained.

[@covecarpentry]

Great job as usual.

[@JOATMOFA]

Rather divide the daily required power by the usable battery power than multiplying it : e.g. You said : 1080Wh x 1.2 x 3 days = 3888Wh (x 120%) Rather : (1080Wh ÷ 0.8) x 3 days = 4050Wh (÷ 80%) Other than that, this is a brilliant video!

[@luimackjohnson302]

Thank you for sharing this informative video! Greetings from Madang, Papua New Guinea!

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks!

[@plymouth5714]

We recently had solar panels fitted, ten in total on an east west facing roof (five each side). Never looked too much in the past as you definitely needed a south facing roof with the older type panels. We have two upright freezers, a fridge-freezer and a fridge. When the sun is shining the panels run all of those plus a 2Kw ceramic radiator. Also had a 8.4Kwh storage battery fitted in the attic, again after a good sunny day the battery will continue powering everything up to about 10pm. On a cloudy day the panels still reduce any mains consumption by around 20p per hour. The first full month after they were fitted our overall consumption dropped by 25Kw. Now all we need is the ruddy SEG agreement to come through!

[@RiDankulous]

This is a wonderful video! I see some campers and RVs have typical home refrigerators and they pay for it, of course. If using shore power mostly, that can make sense, or if they have huge solar / battery systems. I see a lot of vans have about 4 solar panels. That's a far cry from the 11 that would be required. If I was a van guy I'd get something like dometic designed for low power consumption. My biggest expense would be the laptop. I could get away with low power settings. The numbers you give allow me to accurately compute power usage here and see how many panels would be needed. Typically I run 15W according the Battery Info software in Linux. That could be off by some amount, of course. It can get to 30-45W. I can tweet my usage to make it less. Ty for info!

[@cleversolarpower]

You can also get a more efficient inverter for the fridge. A 1200W victron phoenix inverter uses about 10W idle. Since phoenix inverters are low frequency, i think you should be able to power a 75W fridge with the 500-800W inverter.

[@RiDankulous]

@@cleversolarpower Ok, thanks for the tip.

[@ksenyxths]

Well explained, but I think you missed the part where the fridge runs directly on solar energy during the day. For instance, if the battery is fully charged, the inverter utilizes solar energy to power the fridge. Consequently, the fridge only draws power from the battery during periods of low sunlight. It's feasible to operate the fridge using only half of this system, although it naturally depends on the area where the PV panels are installed.

[@cleversolarpower]

You are right. But that would make the calculations unnecessarily complex. This is aimed for people new to solar and would be overwhelming. Thank you for your feedback.

[@AliGsa-iw2tq]

😢😊😅😅​@@cleversolarpower

[@willgarrod9907]

We got 4 (100watts) facing east and 1(100watt) facing west. It runs out big fridge freezer and outside lights for 10months in a year. In December and Jan we charge out AGM battery bank at midnight during the cheap rate. The whole thing saves us about £70/yr

[@doncoday4775]

Thank you

[@perfectomartinez3526]

What inverters are recommended? Thank you for the video and comments.

[@notconnected3815]

Good question. I have an 800W inverter, and it seems to get at it's limits in the moment the compressor starts. Thankfully my inverter has some short term overload capacity. Even if the fridge only consumes 75W in AVERAGE, during compressor start up it need's much more. First i tried it with a 300W inverter and it did not manage to handle the start up currents. It went into overload protection mode. The 800W does work, but it sounds very loud during that moment. I kept the 800W, but i would recommend more than 1000W. Maybe someone else here has tried it with a bigger inverter?

[@anthonympakakota8189]

Thank you for your clear and concise explanations. Just a comment regarding this video. I noted you presented here that your total measured fridge energy consumption for Feb was 4,288 Wh, and it is displayed in the video diagrams as 4,288 kWh. The presentation displayed the unit at 4,288 kWh. My question: Should it be 4,288Wh, 4,288 kWh or 4.288kWh? appreciate your clarification.. thanks.. Great video BTW... enjoying watch them.

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks. I'm in Europe so that's how we put our commas and decimal signs. I will adjust in the future to fit us standards because most of my viewers are from there.

[@masonwestling6406]

Your calculations are only enough to recharge the battery- if there is no load. You are also STILL running the refrigerator. That daily power draw also needs to be added to the panel capacity.

[@markirish7599]

Brilliant video

[@GaryArbaugh]

Thank you so much for these informative videos! We are slowly building our system with the hopes of one day being off grid. Currently we have 1800W solar panels at 24volts, 3 each 24volt gel batteries and a 3500W inverter... but we are still wanting to learn more about the capacity and what we can run continually on what we have. Thank you again!

[@plingboy6223]

look up, lithium phosphate batteries. wth good bms they cant last more than 15 years.

[@sdrc92126]

In a solar system, everything is powered by batteries and an inverter, not directly from the solar panels. Look up PVWatts online solar calculator. I have been offgrid for 10+ years and found it accurate.

[@chairmanemelogu6393]

I love your presentation, thank you. Please may i know which app i can use to make presentation so i can use it for my solar adverts for clients.

[@cleversolarpower]

I use videoscribe

[@timothyly06]

Good share Bro!

[@charleskutrufis9612]

Thank You

[@jacobuszwanenburg1629]

Good luck I’m on a boat in the caribe. The heat loss is amazing and a lot of battery power used for refrigeration. Certainly way more than your % lol without opening it at all

[@d-rot]

Hardly surprising that a boat fridge isn't as thermally efficient as a household one.

[@briandalrymple9986]

Most inverters have a switch to turn off the stand by function. Utilise this switch into the fridge controller circuit, and when the fridge compressor is not needing to run, disable the standby on the inverter. When the compressor needs to run, just pony an auxiliary contact to turn the inverter to run state. The battery will still charge, but the panels will not need to overcome the standby current while charging on a non-standby state.

[@johnhanley2431]

To extend your idea further. Most modern refrigerators will hold temperature for many hours. Put the inverter on a timer that turns off the inverter at 10 PM and back on at 6 AM. Then cycle on and off during the day. That can reduce standby inverter losses by 50% or more.

[@SimpleLivingForever]

Wow, this video is so awesome in detail calculation. Thank you so much

[@angelavore6705]

Ty❤

[@alkiou3613]

That's a great way to calculate your solar system, in a way that's plenty for your essential loads.

[@metamud8686]

So in the end, you still don't show how MANY solar panels are needed. I know that depends on how much the panels are rated for, but you're the one that comes up with the title. Then you gotta show.

[@PeterSedesse]

?? Because anyone who followed the math so far can easily do that final math problem based on the panels they buy. If you need 1200w of solar panels and you can't calculate how many 200w panels you need, you should probably just hire someone because you definitely won't get the solar controller or inverter right.

[@perfectomprg]

You need 3

[@jimjasper9851]

I’m sure he said 1,100 watts, therefore given a standard solar panel normally generates 250w, so you will need 5+

[@bustersbashers2280]

And this is why most people are not subscribed…!.!.!

[@czarcoma]

He already did the heavy lifting, you can do the last computation yourself depending on what panel system you're buying.

[@chriswhinery]

There's a couple of tricks they won't tell you when building off-grid solar to maximize power at minimum cost. But, you'll have to think outside of modern convenience. First...set your panels up facing East and West with solar breakers that get flipped at noon. You'll pick up 6 to 8 extra hours of sun per day. Second... only use heavy draw appliances when the sun is out. Turn off the fridge at night and during heavy clouds. It will stay cold a long time. With these strategies, you can run that fridge with two 300w 10a panels each way, and 6 -12v batteries in a 24v pattern.

[@cleversolarpower]

That sounds like a big inconvenience. Why flip the breakers on at noon and not just leave them on? Why run the risk of spoiled food when you turn off the fridge?

[@chriswhinery]

@@cleversolarpower Because a refrigerator is insulated and is fine for 12 hours. Why drain your batteries? That seems a lot more inconvenient.

[@timwhite3030]

Excellent video!! Just wondering if you have a way of calculating the loss from the Solar controller. I also get bogged down in calculating the panel output when converted to the controller output. For example if my panel puts out 100w @18v how many watts does the controller put out at 12.5v? This is important to figure out how many panels I need to charge the battery.

[@cleversolarpower]

I believe most MPPT's to be 95% efficient. 100W/14.6V=6.84A*0.95=6.5A

[@Matthew_Loutner]

Your charge MPPT controller is going to output 14.4 volts -- not 12.5 volts.

[@dirkschneider5879]

Thanks great video but I am still confused with the battery sizes. I have 2x12v 110 AH batteries which I can use in serial or parallel mode having a 12 v or 24 v battery system. But the capacity still stays the same? Right? I need some help, thanks.

[@cleversolarpower]

I recommend watching my videos about batteries in series and parallel. If you connect your batteries in series you will get 24V 110Ah, if you connect in parallel you will get 12V 220Ah. Mind your inverter, because it will work on either 12V or 24V. I recommend 24V because your whole installation will be cheaper. Check my video about 12V, 24V or 48V systems.

[@laurentnyawakira2607]

I am happy about this video, if someone knows better, he (she) can advise me. I want to move to an off grid area and want to use all the home appliances + 2 freezers. Do you think a 10kw solar set can help? Kindly advise. Thanks

[@Ekanselter]

Excellent information. Am I correct that 'idle current' would typically be much higher on an unnecessarily oversized inverter for the applied load? Secondly, would 'Efficiency losses' likewise be higher in the same scenario? ie: Running an inverter for extended periods at 10% load?

[@notconnected3815]

You need to oversize your inverter. Because 75W is just the average consumption. Every time the compressor motor starts it needs higher currents. In my experience you would need a 1000W inverter (or more) for a big fridge like this.

[@CharlieMacklin1]

Very good

[@billb945]

My 20 year old 18 cu ft fridge uses 1.8 kwh per day. Matches the online estimate. A new one uses approx 1.2 kwh/day but the payback time is hard to justify replacing a fridge that is working fine. 1.2 kwh would be easier on a solar generator system to run it for several days (or even 24/7) in the Winter in Ma.

[@lindabarrett6978]

Great explanation. Thank you.

[@22balogh22]

I found a brand new Liebhr 24 inch full size fridge at the brick (Canada)for a cabin i have,, it was missing some of the front covers and door handles and I got it for $500 , according to its spec sheet it uses 0.789 kwh over a 24 hour period , 288kwh annually , its power specs are 183 watts at 2.3 amps which I think is amazing for a fridge this size,, I have power at the cabin but we arent always there so I am trying to put together a solar backup when the power goes out strictly for the fridge(Shuswap was devastated by a huge fire recently and power was out for weeks)

[@cleversolarpower]

Yes, Liebhrr fridges and freezers are efficient. They cost a lot more, but if you are off grid it will save you money in the long term.

[@EverinMalpica]

Great Video! What you will need to no waste the solar power energy ones your battery's are full? What you need to install to use this excess power to decrease the grid usage?

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks! I suggest adding more batteries. But if it's really worth it to add more batteries in a properly sized system? Especially if you are connected to the grid it might not be worth it. Are those few extra kwh a few dozen times a year worth spending $1000's on for additional batteries?

[@briancase3936]

I followed along and the calc’s for my rig came out to 2300W solar and almost 800ah of lithium batteries! I have 1300w solar and 400 ah of lifpo now. I should probably add 2 more batteries, but I also have a generator if I have too many cloudy days, I just don’t like to run the generator if at all possible.

[@cleversolarpower]

I have made a video dedicated to sizing your system; go check it out for more information.

[@patodeweloperka]

5:05 Are you sure "Solar Radiation" is a sun hours per day? The title states it's kWh / sqm / day. PV panel doesn't get 100% of solar radiation but efficiency is about 20% then the real power production will be: 3.47 kWh/sqm/day * 20% = 0,70kWh/sqm/day. As one typical panel is about 1,7sqm you need more than 6 PV panels to cover your scenario of 3888Wh. In reality it will be even worst because clear sky in winter without clouds, snow, fog is not common but this PV calc is based pure on globe geometry and angle of sun without taking weather into account.

[@waltsailing2009]

Yep! There is flawed analysis in the video. It appears he forgot solar panel efficiency…19-21%…

[@a675432100]

He already used the worst sunny month of the year as a basis of calculations, which includes all the risk factors you have named

[@diySolarPowerFunWithRay]

What program do you use edit your videos and add those writing animations? Thanks, Great video by the way.

[@cleversolarpower]

Hey Ray! Nice to have you on the channel! I use videoscribe for my videos and audacity for my voiceovers.

[@danielking2944]

I’m constantly monitoring my power consumption and am surprised how little power it takes for baseline operation of my home. If the water heater or air conditioner is not running, the typical load is around 750 w. We have two refrigerators and one large upright freezer. I use contactors controlled by timers to run the water heater when the solar can’t keep up. While electric clothes dryer is the biggest load, it doesn’t run as often as the water heater. We try to use it after 8: pm when electricity is free on my contract with Reliant Energy in Texas.

[@cleversolarpower]

Free electricity after 8pm? Sign me up!

[@isleidyll286]

We have a 522 cubic liter (about 20 cubic feet) refrigerator operating in a room with the temperature between 25 and 30°C. This is in the Philippines without air-conditioning. We used Wattmeter and found a refrigerator power consumption of about 3 kWh per day. On a sunny day we can both run the refrigerator and recharge our batteries from our six 200w panels.

[@cleversolarpower]

That is a lot of power! Do you have an old fridge and is the grill at the back of the fridge free of any dust? Check if there is ice inside the fridge and run the defroster if needed. Some fridges get warm because there is ice buildup in the fridge.

[@isleidyll286]

This refrigerator seems to have the evaporator built into the sides of the refrigerator, which become hot when the compressor is running. There are no evaporator tubes at the back of the refrigerator.

[@llothar68]

Thanks I am in the Philippines too. How much is the heat loss nowadays on the panels. That killed the use of solar 20 years ago in Thailand

[@isleidyll286]

@@llothar68 recently, our weather has been exceptionally hot and sunny. the power generation from the solar panels seems excellent. Perhaps it would be somewhat better if it was somewhat cooler, but overall the panels are doing well in the 100°F weather we are having.

[@oz2pe]

​@@llothar68Now there are solar panels everywhere in Thailand, but i only get around 350Watts out of a 450Watt panel when it is 45°C (113°F) in the shadow

[@BRBodin]

The BMS on the battery bank need to be able to take 1110Wh charge too... on a 12V system that would be roughly 92A.. Also need to calculate loss in the inverter too..

[@barnowl6807]

My fridge with top freezer uses 210 W during normal running. When the frost free cycle kicks in it requires 900 watts for about 10 minutes. Size your system for peak loading or you may have surprise shut downs.

[@cleversolarpower]

That's a huge power draw for the defrost cycle! Never seen it this high.

[@henkmeiring01]

900 w is possible for defrost Because elements that heats up evaporator.Maybe possible to install lower wattage elements.But in general far better to use cooling system that fit with solar.Cheaper

[@robertkattner1997]

How about a wall oven in the winter?

[@realx09]

The entire point with sizing the solar system is - if your demand requires full roof of panels and gigantic battery (or set of) …you have to decrease the demand. You don’t need a whole cow and three deer chopped up sitting in your freezer. + you don’t need many other things that consume power

[@cleversolarpower]

True, or get a more efficient freezer to store the cow and three deer.

[@BobBob-il2ku]

Can we go off the energy star label then divide by 365 to get the daily watt hours used?

[@cleversolarpower]

You can, but I would add some extra because those are recorded in ideal situations. Just like you would never get the mileage out of the advertised values for a car.

[@HarukiYamamoto]

Can you make a video on inverter sizing to power a 3kw induction motor that has inrush current? I have a 270kg ribbon mixer with a 3kw motor that I want to connect to a solar system but I’m not sure how big of an inverter I should use that will handle the inrush current.

[@cleversolarpower]

I believe you should measure the inrush current with a meter. I would also opt for a low frequency inverter (the heavy ones). You most likely need an 8kw victron multiplus, but i could be wrong.

[@johnhanley2431]

The starting current is typically 5 to 7 times the rated current. Only low-power motor loads are supported by inexpensive inverters. Without more details, the smallest inverter would be 12 KW (with a good surge capacity) and I recommend 15 KW - 18 KW as a realistic minimum. I am assuming a 220/240 volt system.

[@crissgen]

Thanks for the video, my fridge consommation is 16W =1.6A , I tried it with my power station (bluetti E55 )then doesn’t work at all

[@cleversolarpower]

1.6A at 110V? That would be 176Wh*8h per day= 1408Wh/day. The bluetti E55 has 550Wh of storage, so yeah, will not work.

[@ralfsxm851]

Living on my boat in the Caribbean I threw the fridge and chose not to have one. With an average temperature of 28 - 30 C° inside the boat the fridge sucked current like crazy and even heated the boat up. I do not need ice cold drinks. Water with the temperature of the environment is okay for me. For the longer turns canned food is a must.

[@cleversolarpower]

It would be interesting to see how you keep food fresh on a boat. Thanks for sharing your story!

[@ralfsxm851]

@@cleversolarpower Cruising near the coasts I buy small amounts of fresh food on a daily base like fruit, vegetables, eggs, bred etc.. For longer turns canned food, survival food, pasta, soups etc.. If I we wonna have a party someone brings ice cubes for the cooler box. That's it

[@GerbenWulff]

I've done some math of my own and realised that it is a lot cheaper to get a small battery that can keep things running overnight and run a generator in case of bad weather. Instead of 4 kWh storage, just get 1 kWh and a generator. It also means you can make do with half the solar.

[@cleversolarpower]

Yes you can, but you will have to start the generator quite often then.

[@ronayling1979]

I did it differently I used a voltage switch connected to a 12v battery charger, feeding a 100 amp hour battery and 5 100w solar panels if the battery volts fell below 11.5 then the charger switched on, when the battery volts rose above 13.8 the charger switched off the solar panels were connected across the battery 24/7 as is the 150w inverter, that way there is no interruption to the supply to the fridge freezer, ie if there is a time when the panels can't fully charge the battery ie some winter days and at night then the charger takes over, its a sort of mains assisted solar supply, that way the number of panels and size of battery is not to critical

[@stevenjohn350]

excellent..

[@romeomax101]

Could three 100Ah 12.8V batteries, parallel also work in that scenario?

[@residentboejiden5796]

I have 1400 watts worth of panels and i run my fridge when i can on my circuit but mostly i run only a few lamps and a kerosene heater

[@matthewprather7386]

Less sun hours in winter will typically correspond to lower house temperature which will reduce energy usage per day. Thus, your solar sizing seems rather conservative (worst case). Otherwise, solid analysis.

[@llothar68]

Only when you use aircon, which is rare in Europe

[@geoffreykaila]

When using Lead-Acid batteries, how do you make sure that you do not go beyond the set 50% maximum depth of discharge (DoD)?

[@cleversolarpower]

A low voltage disconnect, or visually with a battery shunt.

[@richdobbs6595]

Depending on your circumstances, that might be overkill on the number of solar panels. Is it necessary to fully recharge you battery in one day after 3 days of cloudy weather? Maybe in Houston or Baton Rouge, probably not in Denver or Phoenix.

[@cleversolarpower]

It depends on your risk tolerance. If need be, you can use a generator to recharge the battery. This is for totally off-grid with 3 days of autonomy. You can repeat the calculations for your specific location.

[@khalidrashad-xu8xe]

We normally switch the fridge off before sleep , never had a problem. It is also better to run the fridge on mains when the sun is not available rather than buying expensive batteries.

[@cleversolarpower]

True, but if you are off-grid you don't have the grid available.

[@forgottentechnology]

By having an secondary frig during colds months in a unheated area you can reduce the overall cost of the system! I use this system 5 months of the year!

[@AnonJohn143]

In diagram 1 on the left-hand side, red box. Energy usage is not 4288 kWh it is 3 decimals out for a week's consumption. Just a typo. Correct me if wrong. Having said that, i would have guessed 2 solar hours on 4k system. His figure of 4 takes into account factors I didn't know about. Good vid :)

[@cleversolarpower]

Thanks! It has to do with the European notation of the comma and decimals 😉

[@nutbastard]

@@cleversolarpowerSure, but in other parts of the video you use . instead of , for decimals. Pick one, us dumb americans will figure it out but maybe be consistent?

[@AnonJohn143]

@@cleversolarpower I didn't actually know that. Had assumed decimal notation was universal. As one would if just reading English texts. Tickled me when i then looked it up. Got me thinking about all the times I must have missed it in the past... ;) Brilliant, Thanks again.

[@twiddler71]

What size fridge in CU do you have? I know smaller fridge should use less power, and also top freezers I think are more efficient. Plus if it has an ice maker, that will consume more power. Thanks

[@Matthew_Loutner]

Larger fridge use less power because they have more insulation and high-efficiency compressor. You can get between 10 and 14 and do well.

[@twiddler71]

Interesting. I'll keep that in mind. Thanks@@Matthew_Loutner

[@cleversolarpower]

6.1cu ft or 174 liters with a 0.5 cu ft or 14l freezer section. Brand is IKEA FÖRKYLD

[@twiddler71]

That might be a bit too small for my needs. Thanks@@cleversolarpower

[@markdennis6914]

Thanks for the clear analysis, just need to replace the comma with a period, its not 4,288 KWh, it should be 4.288KWh. Am I wrong?

[@johnridout6540]

Most countries use a point or a space to separate thousands. Most countries also use a comma as the decimal separator.

[@markdennis6914]

Good to know, I stand corrected, I know some people that need the exact info in this youtube, will pass on.

[@cleversolarpower]

I'm from the EU, so I switch them up. I should do a better job since most of my viewers are from the US. Thanks for pointing this out.

[@panagdimi]

As a general suggestion and based on my own experience, I enjoy the style of your presentations but I have trouble following along with all the information you are providing and ultimately knowledge retention is low. Can you recommend an online primer / tutorial that those of us who are engineeringly challenged can read up in order to increase our understanding of the subject matter? Thanks!

[@cleversolarpower]

I recommend going to my website and clicking the 'start here' button on the top navigation bar. cleversolarpower.com

[@panagdimi]

​@@cleversolarpower

[@panagdimi]

​​@@cleversolarpower

[@M.j498]

Thanks for information fridge AC and solar panel system😅❤

[@cleversolarpower]

Most welcome 😊

[@tonybrock5288]

Bear in mind: when you add food to the freezer it will suck up a LOT of power initially to cool it down! Only when all your food is frozen will it consume the stated power. So allow for a big margin if you have some "turnover" in your freezer.

[@cleversolarpower]

The load analysis included loading food in the fridge. However, don't place hot food in the fridge.

[@tonybrock5288]

​@@cleversolarpower Ok. I didn't see it explicitly in your calculations. So, people just need to be aware of taking this into account and add some leeway. I made this mistake, literally a couple of days ago, and had to revert to mains power for a day, until the batteries caught up again. I'm running on Solar PV which is fine for the odd cloudy day but I stocked up the freezer and then also unfortunately had a couple of cloudy days. 😥

[@clarahchipuru9052]

Thank you Hie to get it

[@IqbalPeerbhay-pz3jt]

In a solar system your storage is the most important equipment that's stores power to run your fridge..that's your Escom.Batteries has a depth of discharge meaning once a certain amount of power is utilized the whole system switches off till the next morning when the sun shines and allows the panels to recharge your batteries.All the inventor does is inverts DV voltage to AC voltage.A fridge compressor draws 3 times the rated amperage when it starts up which will drain the battery power.Do proper calculations before investing in a solar system.

[@dalefmurphy]

If I base the power requrements on the least power-production month in winter, this will produce excessive unused power in the most productive month in summer, that will exceed my Inverter's capacity. Is this a problem? How is the excess power generated by the solar panels shedded?

[@cleversolarpower]

Producing more power in the summer will make your batteries fully charged during the summer. Charging will stop when the batteries are full. The charge controller will stop this, acting like a switch. The inverter has nothing to do with it as it only takes power from the battery.

[@renelefebvre53]

Une solution pour économiser un peu de puissance: Récupérer le contact travail du réfrigérateur pour démarrer le convertisseur DC==> AC seulement quand le frigo a besoin d'énergie. Il faut sortir le convertisseur de l'état "stand-by" quelques secondes avant de connecter le compresseur. Un simple relais temporisé ou un Arduino fera ça pour bien moins de 20 W . De plus en hiver, ( et en été aussi ) il faut moins de puissance pour produire du froid si on ventile bien le radiateur derrière le frigo . On peut aussi rajouter une isolation autour du frigo pour diminuer les pertes.

[@Matthew_Loutner]

When you measure the weekly output of your refrigerator, you want to do that at your highest consumption in mid-july. (January in the southern hemispere.)

[@harryniedecken5321]

The consumption information can also be estimated using the energy consumption label inside of the refrigerator. Roughly 1 kw-hr per day.

[@cleversolarpower]

Indeed, if that is available. I would multiply by 1.25 as a safety margin because those tests are run in lab environments.

[@AlexLepore-xi8qn]

Hi Clever Solar Power, I am the Sales Director of Fortress Power, would you be interested in reviewing and testing our differentiated whole home energy solutions that have built in load shedding and EV charger integration?

[@Ozzy3333333]

My friends 6K solar array installed 5 years ago, averages 60% over the year (3600W), he lives in San Diego.

[@TheeHamiltons]

24h Inverter draw seems ludicrous (80% of total fridge draw!)... isn't there a smart inverter or a timer for the inverter you can sync to sunlight cycles? This would result in an 8-12 hr inverter draw depending on lattitude. Not sure what the dusk to dawn generation actually is... would imagine nextlatitude. If so, could inverter simple be turned off (via timer or on via light sensor)? Great video though, really appreciate the thorough breakdown of everything!

[@daviddogsbody]

If you turn off the inverter you turn off the battery so no power to the fridge. The inverter takes the DC from the solar panels or the DC from the battery and converts it to AC for the fridge.

[@stina646]

I live in southern Norway (59' North) and have an off-grid summer house with a refrigerator without freezer which use little power (was announced as 62kWh /year) , Liebherr TP1720-21 and use a 600W ePever Inverter which have a remote on/off switch. This is connected to an external thermostat to the refrigerator. Then the idle current of the inverter does not influence too much on the total power consumption. Refrigerator is On from Easter to October without any problem running on one 12.8V/100Ah Lithium battery and 550W of solar panels. If can run 4 days of total darkness,but us others have mentioned, som wattage are generated also on clouds days

[@jamesrevell6475]

There are several different quality manufacturers of DC refrigerators and freezers. They generally have much more efficient compressors and are double insulated for roughly the same price as a regular AC unit. I have a DC 20cu/ft chest freezer that runs just fine on 200W solar panel with a single 100 amp/hr battery. I'm not talking about the small portable refrigerator and freezer that plug into your 12v car socket. I'm talking about stationary refrigerator and freezers identical to what you would find in any house. They are indistinguishable from regular appliances.

[@llothar68]

@@daviddogsbody are there no 12v fridges. The computer world tries to get to 12v DC now to save on power supplies, especially in data centers.

[@jamesrevell6475]

The AC to DC conversion consumes more energy than the actual refrigerator. They make DC refrigerators and freezers that consume much less power. I ran my 20cu/ft DC chester freezer on 200 Watts/(1) 100 amp/hr battery with no problems. The freezer was in my garage and I live in FL. I have since upgraded to 600 watts with (3) 100 amp/hr batteries just for piece of mind while I'm out of town.

[@cleversolarpower]

Indeed, but DC fridges are generally more expensive.

[@chrisbingham3289]

The amount of solar energy generated per square meter depends on various factors such as location, time of day, weather conditions, and angle of the sun's rays. On average, a square meter of solar panel can generate around 200 to 300 watts of energy per day, but this number can fluctuate based on the above factors.

[@trustthedogsheneverlies644]

I do this but avoid idle inverter draw with the inverter switched via a thermostat inside the fridge:)

[@sempertard]

Only 10% of my viewers are subscribers. Well now it's 10% + me. subbed...

[@cleversolarpower]

Welcome aboard!

[@RickySupriyadi]

ahhhh nice

[@boogieknee3781]

You started from a false premise. You are using a compressor. Use a combination of peltiers arranged in series... They only need a teeny bit of voltage....the less each one gets individually the less hot they actually run. You DON'T need batteries. The energy is stored as a temperature differential inside the fridge. As long as the warmer side of the peltier array can radiate its heat to the external section freely,you should gradually drop the temperature inside. I got my original single chip design to freeze condensation within 6 hours inside an insulated box.

[@cleversolarpower]

The problem with peltiers is that it's good for small applications. A compressor is still more efficient than a peltier.

[@boogieknee3781]

@@cleversolarpower Possibly,but the benefit of having fewer points of failure in a much simpler design might make this an avenue to explore as we see further advances. If however, efficiency is key.... Einstein Fridge. Zero moving parts. Sit a sealed bucket in a larger bucket. Fill the gap with large pebbles.Leave the device in a spot where it is shaded but also ventilated. Fill remaining volume with water.(it evapoorates...absorbing energy from the area) Replenish water when needed. (Easiest way I can think of to keep milk cold but it won't freeze anything) 😸no batteries included

[@DarioushAryan]

bravoo

[@Paulstluke]

That’s why most of us prepares have the small fridges for that reason, lol.

[@cleversolarpower]

Exactly

[@thomasgreene8612]

Thank you! But is it 4288 kWh or 4288Wh (at the 0:47 mark)?

[@kaptein1247]

Wh

[@cleversolarpower]

It's 4288wh. The comma is European format 😉