Deployable Solar Panels
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STAR
(Solar Tactical Advanced Recharger)
Double STAR: (pictured left)
176Wp and 220Wp Models
72" x 36" Fully Deployed
18.5" x 12" Folded
16lbs
Single STAR:
88Wp and 110Wp Models
72" x 18" Fully Deployed
12" x 18" Folded
8lbs
Wp = Watts Peak
5" Monocrystalline Cells
Anti-Glare Coating
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STAR vs the Competition
110-Watt Single Star vs Thin-Film Competition
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4kW in the Field at Ft. Irwin CA
Put the Sun to Work with thin Laminate Solar Panels
When deciding what kind of solar panels to put up on your roof, remember that not all panels are the same. The most common solar panel seen today is the glass-encased crystalline panel that is made up of a metal backing, solar cells, and a glass panel sandwiched on top to protect the cells. The average efficiency (conversion of sunlight to electricity) of crystalline panels is around 15% and these panels weigh about 35 pounds each. We offer common crystalline panels and have begun to manufacture a new line of laminate solar panels that weigh half as much (18 pounds) and are much thinner. These new panels can blend in with your rooftop and do not require any special metal mounting rack attached to your roof like typical crystalline-glass ones do. The laminate panels are professionally 'glued' to your roof and will easily last for decades.
We manufacture our own solar panels using a process called lamination. Solar lamination is much like laminating a piece of paper or a poster except with a much bigger and more powerful laminating machine. The solar panel laminator acts as a giant press that laminates a thin durable piece of aluminum, or pane of glass, with solar cells.
Unlike traditional crystalline panels whose solar cells are simply sandwiched between glass and a metal backing, laminate solar panels are one solid piece of metal or glass with the solar cells physically compressed into the material.
To the right is a picture of our laminator and below it is a glass panel and an aluminum one. We can manufacture solar panels as big as the top of a pool table and as small as a portable 2 x 2 cell square (as seen below in all black and aluminum).
The average price for our laminate panels is $8-$12 per Watt (not including the substantial federal and state rebates available). Feel free to contact us for an exact quote.
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110-Watt folding STAR model
Remote, Hybrid power location in the USA
Tactical Wind Turbines
 | Quickly deployable on-demand wind power |
 | 400W turbine combined with 2 x 60W solar panels |
Residential and Commercial Wind Turbines
Install a small Wind Turbine and save 50%-90% on your electric bill
Installing a small 3-5kW wind turbine is an easy way to bring power to rural homes and businesses. Our towers range in height from 50 to 85 feet and can be set up in about one day.
Before thinking about harnessing the wind, consider the following factors that determine whether your location is appropriate for a wind turbine:
- There is enough wind in your area to warrant a turbine
Consult the wind resouce map below to see how much wind potiential is in your area
- Tall towers are allowed in your neighborhood
Check with your local residential board if there are any restrictive covenants about height limits on your property. The tallest tower we currently offer is 85'. A taller tower has better access to consistent wind energy.
- You have one or more acres of land
Wind Turbines are perfect for rural homes with one or more acres of property. They can be set up far enough away from your home to hardly be a disturbance.
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Lithium-Ion Batteries
Power your Laptop for a full 24 hours on one charge
For those who ever wanted to have reliable power wherever they end up, our smart Lithium Ion battery packs are the solution. One 25 pound sleek-designed case will be all the power you need when there's no wall socket in sight. The case is about the size of a laptop carrying case and is airline checkable.
The pack can be charged from a typical 120V wall outlet or from a 24V source. Best of all, these batteries can be easily charged from a direct current (DC) voltage from solar panels. When connected to a solar array, the battery will run a laptop indefinitely.
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Deployable Systems
Power When and Where you Need it
Already being tested and used on military bases like Ft. Irwin, CA, our Deployable Renewable Energy Power Stations (or D-REPS for short) offer both the advantages of free energy from the sun and wind as well as the portability to take your power station with you. These systems are great for everything from powering mobile command centers to emergency medical stations and disaster relief centers. In the future, expect to see the unused rooftops of commercial buildings as the next real estate for renewable energy systems like the D-REPS.
Currently, the D-REPS can put out 10 to 50 kilowatts of continuous power - depending on the size of the roof-top or the available ground area. Primary power comes from a hybrid connection of both wind and solar with a small fossil-fuel generator as back-up. These can be run in a stand-alone environment or in a grid-tie connection.
U.S. Army testing D-REPS at Ft. Irwin, CA
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Building the D-RREPS in NY, attached to the A-Frame are the Power Inverters, Charge Controllers, Solar Trackers, and Solar and Wind Connections
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The Complete System: (1) Diesel Fuel and (2) Small Tan Back-up Generator, (3) The brains of the system including the Power Inverters, the Solar Trackers, and all of the connections to the solar panels and wind turbines, lastly is the (4) pallet of batteries to hold the charge
A close-up on the case that holds the batteries that store the solar and wind energy.
An inside look at the battery bank.
Wayne and Bobby hard at work getting a trailer-mounted DREPS unit ready. Note that the larger left container is the brains of the operation (it holds the charge inverters, datalogging software, and solar trackers) while the right container houses the battery bank that stores the collected energy.
Hugh is detailing the capabilities of the DREPS at a demonstration. Note that he's holding a small metal square. This metal-backed square is actually a laminate solar panel. A slightly larger picture can be found
here. More pictures of the new laminate solar will come shortly.
In the above picture, the parts to note are the two stacked black boxes which our the two Outback charge inverters. They are straddled by two light grey fuse boxes on either side. The white box on the right houses the Datalogger which measures critical system components like the Current Load on the system, the charge remaining on the Battery Bank, the outside Temperature, the GPS location, and more.
