What can a 200 watt solar kit run?

With the rising popularity of solar power, many homeowners are considering installing solar panels on their roofs. A common question that arises is: what can a basic 200 watt solar panel kit power in your home? Here is an in-depth look at what appliances and devices a small 200 watt solar system is capable of running.

A 200 watt solar panel kit consists of one or more 200 watt solar panels, along with the accompanying mounts, wiring, and inverter or charge controller. These small solar kits are designed to provide supplemental solar power for RVs, boats, sheds, cabins and tiny homes. They can also be installed on rooftops to provide solar electricity for a portion of a home’s power needs.

The amount of electricity that a 200 watt solar panel system can produce in a day depends on several factors. These include:

• The number of sunshine hours in your location
• Orientation and tilt of the solar panels
• Efficiency of the solar panels
• Efficiency of the inverter/charge controller

As a general guideline, you can expect a 200 watt solar panel kit to produce about 1-1.5 kilowatt-hours of electricity per day. However, this can vary significantly depending on your climate and other factors. Locations with abundant sunshine like the Southwest U.S. will produce more, while cloudier regions will produce less.

Appliances and Devices a 200 Watt Solar Kit Can Run

What appliances and devices can a small 200 watt solar power system realistically handle? Here are some estimates:

Lighting

Energy efficient LED light bulbs are one of the most practical uses for a starter solar kit. A typical 10 watt LED bulb running for 8 hours per day uses about 0.08 kilowatt-hours (kWh). A 200 watt panel can run:

• Up to 15 LED light bulbs (10 watts each)
• Or an equivalent combination of lower wattage bulbs

This is enough to provide lighting for a small off-grid cabin, shed, tiny house or RV.

Laptops and Cell Phones

A 200 watt solar system produces enough power each day to easily charge multiple laptops, cell phones and tablets. For example:

• Laptop: 50 watt-hours per charge, 4 charges per day = 0.2 kWh
• Smartphone: 5-10 watt-hours per charge, 1 charge per day = 0.01 kWh
• A 200 watt system can charge 10 laptops and 100 smartphones per day.

Televisions

A single 200 watt panel can run a smaller energy efficient TV for a few hours per day. For example:

• 32″ LED TV: 50 watts while running x 5 hours = 0.25 kWh

This would allow for a couple hours of TV watching per day. A larger or less efficient TV may be too much for this size solar kit.

Fans and Small Appliances

Some smaller fans, appliances and electronics can also be powered:

• Box fan: 50 watts x 8 hours = 0.4 kWh
• Electric clock: 2 watts x 24 hours = 0.05 kWh
• Radio: 5 watts x 8 hours = 0.04 kWh

Limited use of these types of devices is possible with a 200 watt solar panel system. Higher wattage devices like space heaters and air conditioners are out of reach unless you expand the solar capacity.

Refrigeration

Running a refrigerator or freezer becomes tricky with only 200 watts of solar power. A low-wattage dorm or RV refrigerator may work intermittently, but is not recommended. For example:

• Mini fridge: 50 watts x 8 hours = 0.4 kWh. This would allow for limited use per day before depleting the battery.
• A larger household refrigerator would quickly overload the system.

For refrigeration it’s best to upgrade to at least 400-800 watts of solar capacity. This enables regular and reliable usage of an energy efficient fridge or freezer.

Sizing a Solar System for Your Needs

When sizing your solar system, it’s important to calculate your actual power requirements and get adequate solar capacity. As a very rough estimate, 200 watts of solar can handle lighting, charging, and limited appliance needs for a small off-grid building or RV. For a full home backup system you typically need at least 2-10 kilowatts of solar panels, depending on your home’s energy use.

To properly size your system:

1. Calculate total watt-hours consumed per day for lights, appliances, etc.
2. Factor in power draw, runtimes, and inefficiencies.
3. Get enough solar capacity to meet your needs, accounting for winter solar production.
4. Include extra panel capacity as a safety factor.

Online solar calculators can help with these estimations. They provide recommendations on how many solar panels are needed based on your location and energy usage.

Expanding the System Later

One advantage of solar power is that it’s modular and expandable over time. Many homeowners start small with a basic 1-3 panel starter kit like this 200 watt system. Once the initial system is installed and operational, additional panels can be added later to increase solar production as needed. String inverters and solar charge controllers are designed to handle expanding capacity.

So while a 200 watt solar kit has limitations, it’s a low cost way to get started with solar power. The system can then be built up gradually by adding panels, more batteries, higher wattage inverter, etc. This makes solar power affordable and accessible even for homes with smaller energy budgets.

Conclusions

A 200 watt DIY solar panel kit can provide supplemental solar power for small cabins, sheds, RVs and other applications. It’s capable of running LED lighting, laptops, phones, TVs and some small appliances and fans. But its output is too limited for larger devices like refrigerators.

To determine how much solar you really need, calculate your total daily watt-hour consumption. Size your system based on your actual usage and location. Start small if needed, and expand the system over time by adding more solar panels. With appropriate sizing and expansion capabilities, solar power can be a practical solution for all types of homes and budgets.

Device	Power Draw	Daily Usage Time	Daily Energy Use (kWh)
10W LED light bulb	10 watts	8 hours	0.08
Laptop	50 watts	4 charges	0.2
Smartphone	5 watts	1 charge	0.005
32″ LED TV	50 watts	5 hours	0.25
Box fan	50 watts	8 hours	0.4
Mini fridge	50 watts	8 hours	0.4