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Posted

I have a 5 kva genrator ... a meccer inverter etc etc ... made a plan to get things to work.

But now at a point where i need to come up with a cheap solution for light during load shedding.

I have 3 magneto LED lanterns (bought from game for R199 on special a couple years ago) positioned in the bedroom ... passage and kitchen. They generate a lot more light than i expected ...for the price and the duration they last on battery power ... i am super impressed. We even use them on site for lighting in roof spaces etc ... I could run power points to each light and leave the switch on standby mode (that would require an electrician @ R650 per plug point chased into the wall)

When the load shedding started again it got me thinking ... a cheap solution for load ... I thought of a small inverter or UPS connected to a battery using 230 volt downlights ... because i couldnt find a pure sine wave unit in my workshop ... I tried a modified/ square sine wave unit ... too much flicker ( iam sure someone will recomend a pcb to reduce the flicker) 

I came up with what i think is a cheap solutions with no losses going from 12 vdc  to 230 vac via an inverter 

A 5 amp charger ...  18 amp/hr battery (regal sell the box complete) ... 5 m strip of 12 volt DC strip light (cool white) ... a hand full of DC connectors and some 0.5 mm twin flex.

I recently replaced a few faulty linear LED lights ...so i am gonna remove the fault leds and controls and replace with 12 VDC strip.

Battery = 18 amp/hr gel (216 w/hr)

voltage = 12 VDC 

lights = 4.8 watt/m (using half a meter) 2.4 w per light

Duration required = 4 hrs 

An exo 7 receiver with 7 relays ... one on board and the other 6 extenernal (rather than addition switches) because it requires 12 VDC ... the 4 buttons can be configued to switch all 7 relays

5 metre strip s of 0.5 mm ripcord with DC plugs ...for ease of installations (long enough to reach all the rooms in the house ... i could make a few shorter)

All this for around R 12-1500.

calculations:

216 w/hr /2 = 108 w/hr (50 % discharge) 

10 lights @ 2.4 w = 24 watt 

24watt * 4 hrs = 96 w/hr required 

Am i on the right track ... any advise or input would be apprieciated. 

Next to add a small solar panel small enought that doesnt rqeuire a charge controller ... as the budget allows. 

There are solar panels and fancy inverters etc in te pipeline ... but for now ...i need to keep things simple. 

Posted

I did this before going the full PV/inverter route, and left it in place as a backup.

My system is powered by a sealed alarm battery that is permanently charged with an adjustable power supply set to 13.6V.

I used caravan lights in the bedrooms and trimmed LED strips to suitable length & mounted them against the living rooms & bathrooms ceilings. These battery operated wireless switches use an inline relay (powered by the same 12V feed) to turn them on & off.  I mounted the backup system's switches next to 220V light switches.

There's plenty of light available, and by adjusting your battery size as required you'll be fine.

  • 1 year later...
Posted (edited)

What is the capacity of the battery that you use? I want to make something like this for my house, and I can't decide on the battery's capacity.
I got some really colorful smart LED lights from https://www.vont.com/product/smart-strip-lights-led-strip-lights/ and need to install them somewhere inside the house. I want to use a battery to connect them to electricity because it would be too difficult to look for a socket nearby or connect the LEDs to the house's electrical system.
So, I need a battery that I will not have to recharge too often, and that will be able to provide the LED with electricity every day.

Edited by IsaMorphius

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