As the house plans are taking shape (see post on latest ideas) we are wanting to again do some solar surveys and this is turning into a bad case of Déjà vu and we aren’t getting anywhere, so here is my plea.

What I’m looking for is a solar panel the size of an A4 piece of paper (21cm x 30cm ) with a data logger on the back. The kit should also power itself from the energy generated & charge a NICAD battery (for when it’s not generating power), record the time and the power that it is producing at any given moment then log this for a maximum of 7 days ( possibly 30 ) so that I can then plug a USB cable into it and get a raw CSV file out of it.

With this data it’ll then be really easy to move the panel to different area’s of the house to determine the best location for a panel plus given we know how much the average power output is for a panel this size, some simple maths will let us scale this up.

Here I’ve even got a diagram for you as inspiration but I’m under no illusion that I don’t have the smarts to build this so I’m assuming I’m missing something here and it’s harder than I think.

If you have something similar PLEASE contact me as this will lead onto a decent spend in solar panels for someone.

PS : Sorry if i sound like i’m a little ratty in this post but the truth is I am!
Looking to move to solar seems to be far harder than it needs to be and while I want to contribute to being part of the solution it seems it’s easier to be part of the problem. Below are the links to the other solar posts i have done and you’ll see the results ebb and flow from positive to negative.

Solar – Is it worth it?
Solar – Round IV
Solar Survey Part II