I have a small summer cabin and I want to be able to run it with solar panels.  Does anyone know of a good do-it-yourself solar energy kit that you would recommend?  Also if you can let me know where to get it or the website where you can order one I would appreciate it.

Just last month, I bought a DIY solar energy kit from Solar Sphere and I’m very very pleased with my online purchase. I never thought running my home on solar power would be that easy. I highly recommend that you try it. Check out their website for more info: http://www.spheralsolar.com/

Well how big is your cabin? And what particular appliances would you like to be powered. Stuff like these will help determine which system or kit will work best for your cabin. And I think companies like Solar Sphere offers free solar evaluation...

Here's another recommended source for package deals:

http://www.affordable-solar.com/ .

For example, Kyocera, 205 watt panels, U.L. Listed, Grade A, 80/90/1 warranty, immediate availability: $3.1 / watt in quantities of 20, plus another $0.1/w for shipping. 

Best regards,

Bill

What size is your cabin and what appliances do you want to power with your solar panels? You can't really decide on a specific kit until you define that.


I skimmed through Solar Sphere's site and they do have some useful information on DIY solar kits. They also have a number of different brands available for you to choose from. Take a look at your choices here.

My cabin is fairly small, around 1000 square feet so hopefully what I would need could be installed with just me and a couple of my buddies.  I appreciate all of the suggestions about sites to check out. I looked into Solar Sphere and plan to give them a call to determine if they have a solar kit that would be right for my cabin.

--Sorry Mods, I did not mean to be salsey.

I agree with Waffelloffel. I bought a DIY solar kit, but made my own solar panels, because I quite enjoy building pretty much everything myself.
I highly suggest purchasing good components as they will be quite a bit more efficient.

Solar Sphere seems to be a decent company to deal with, and when I need more(I am in the middle of installing a solar water heater) I will likely look to them.

Good luck!

I used affordable-solar. They can prewire the inverter/fuse/mppt panel for you. Worked for me. Hardest part for me was actually plumbing the conduit and trying to understand the (annually changing) grounding rules.