Solar can power much more than your house. Among the newest creative solar applications is a solar-powered van that has been creating excitement as it travels around England.
The van, designed and manufactured by the UK company SunGift Energy, has been cruising around visiting shows to show the public the power of solar.
Fitted with nine solar PV panels, the van has much less ‘roof space’ than most houses, yet it is capable of generating up to 20 kWh of electricity per day.
“The van does stand out, and it has certainly made people stop and stare,” said Gabriel Wondrausch, managing director of SunGift Energy. “But behind its crazy looks there is some exceptional technology that demonstrates how we could all live more sustainably, save money, and have significantly less reliance on fossil fuels and energy companies.”
The real beauty of the solar van, which boasts a 2.25-kW TrinaSolar PV system, is that it feeds electricity into the latest energy management technology and battery storage. The solar van’s 24-kW battery can hold enough charge to power a small house for up to three days.
“The solar van is a real working model that generates electricity, it has been designed to enable us to supply power to remote locations, events or even emergencies where power cuts have occurred,” added Gabriel. “It may look just like a fun piece of marketing, but it is a reflection of significant advancements in the market that will see the emergence of SMART battery storage solutions, where households will be able to generate their own solar electricity, store it in their homes, and then a sophisticated system will work out which appliances need it the most.”
This type of solution is already available in countries like Germany where solar PV has been around for years, so SunGift has been working with solar panel manufacturer BenQ to prepare the technology for use in the UK.
The solar van is available for organizations to borrow. For instance, it will be sited at many events and locations including Exeter Chiefs rugby games.
The SunGift Energy solar van is a standard VW Crafter. The system comprises:
• 9 x 2.25-kW TrinaSolar 250-W panels
• A SMA Sunnyboy inverter and Sunny Island energy manager connected to domestic distribution board and sockets
• Enough battery storage for 24 kWh of electricity. This is enough to run a small UK house for three days without sun.
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