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Solar Water Pump - SUPER simplified introduction

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EdibleAcres

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I will try to share some very basic notes here as a jumping off point for you to explore lifting water in simple ways with sun power. Of course the solutions can be more elegant and detailed, but this video is meant to be very simple for folks just getting started...
The pump type we like:
search '12v DC bilge pump' online
We have worked with many types, the 500 gallon per hour 'Rule' bilge has been excellent, but most we've tried have worked. Available on ebay, or local marina shops, etc, they can cost as little as $20 and run VERY well on variable energy.
Solar panels look on local craigslist, facebook marketplace, etc to see if there are used ones around. The bilge pumps generally run on 12V, so look for a 12V based solar panel (most common). Offgrid folks, local solar installers, maybe road crew people all may have smaller panels around that they'd sell you cheap or just give you... Start there!
The bilge pump you end up with should indicate how many watts it would like to run, that is the size solar panel you want, ideally even more wattage... Eg... bilge says '25watts' look for at least 25 watt or ideally up to 50 watts to run it super easily. Make sure you get 12V bilge and 12V panels to have them work properly.
Wiring Black is negative, red is positive, or there are or + signs available on the solar panel... You want to always connect black to black, red to red. If you want super simple wiring, you can twist together the two black cable ends so they are matched, and then use an alligator clip or even a rock to push the red and red sides together when the pump is under water... Bilge pumps can run dry a bit so don't get stressed about that, but ideally you run it underwater.

Don't overthink it, don't get all new perfect stuff, learn with simple components and only add more if you need to. You got this. 10 years in and I'm finally upgrading our system with better wiring, some new tools, etc, but it all worked fine super scrappy and simple for many many years...

Please comment with questions below and hopefully folks can help each other out :)

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Happy growing!

posted by beswyming0n