When it comes to emergency situations where you need electricity – solar backup power is an efficient and green way of ensuring you have the lights on when they're off everywhere else.
First Things First
One of the first things you need to do for your maintenance department is to know how many watts of power you need. A load analysis is the ideal place to start so that you can not only decide if a solar backup system is worth the extra cost but you'll have an estimate of what size of unit will be needed. Now obviously, you're not going to be able to power an entire apartment complex or hotel but if you have a small facility or business, then solar power may be the way to go.
According to Blue Pacific Solar:
Make a list of the appliances that need power during a blackout that you need to keep running. Refrigerators, special lighting, etc. Only list the essential items, since the system size (and cost) will vary widely with power needed. The amps of individual appliances can usually be found on the back of the appliance, on the name plate or in the owner’s manual. If an appliance is rated in amps, multiply amps by the operating voltage (120 or 240) to find watts. Watts is the measure of power you are looking for. Add up the wattage of all the items on the list that may need to run simultaneously to arrive at the total amount of watts. For example: 5 – 13 watt light bulbs X 5 hours per day = 65 watts. 18 CF refrigerator @ 5 amps x 120VAC = 600 watts x 6 hours per day = 3,600 watts.
How Long Will You Need It?
Another thing to keep in mind when choosing a system size is how long you will need it. Power outages vary depending on the situation so you might want to consider the length of time plus the total of the loads that you need supported.
Read More: Reliable Back Up Power
Speaking of equipment, you will want to have some kind of Asset Management Software in place when you have expensive equipment to keep up with. A Computerized Maintenance Management Software program from Maintenance Care has this, along with other helpful things, like task management and preventative maintenance scheduling.
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