Solar Power
Oasis Montana
Home-Office System
Carries Big Part of Dealer's Load
Having sold these
alternate energy goods for 10 years, Chris Daum of
Oasis Montana Inc. of Stevensville finally installed a system in January.
Nine years ago she purchased eight MSX60s (Solarex 60W modules) and had slowly
been acquiring the other basic components.
They sure looked
fine in a pile in the garage. And while she didn't think the world was going to
come to an end because of Y2K, she planned to have a back-up system in place by
Jan. 1, 2000, "just in case"; however, a very bad bout of the flu put
the actual installation off until late January. “Let me tell you, the sun
(here in January on the western side of the Divide) sure didn’t put much
power in my battery bank," she said. Some days her 480W array put a total
of 150 watts into her sixteen 6V batteries. She got the batteries in mid-December,
and wanted to bring them up to a full state of charge as soon as possible.
 It
took 2 1/2 weeks until the LED on her Trace C40 regulator was "solid green"
(indicating full charge status). But as of May, the system is running her ConServ
'fridge, a compact fluorescent light, and computer (with printer, scanner) three
to six days a week. “Funny thing about this solar stuff,” she said.
“It seems to require relatively sunny conditions.”
 Daum’s
system components: Eight MSX 60 watt modules, two 4X mount structures, 70A breaker
box with breaker and SOV (surge protector), ground rod, class R Fuses and holder,
Trace C40 Regulator with digital volt meter, 16 Surrette (Rolls) 6V, 438 amp hour
batteries, custom cables (including inverter cables, all of which she made herself),
safety disconnect, 110A class T fuse, Trace DR1524 inverter, and of course, wire
runs, wire nuts and basic miscellaneous stuff. She bought a QO breaker box for
my AC distribution center, with a line to her refrigerator, computers, and upstairs
to the stereo/TV “entertainment center.” She still needs to add a line
in her garage to have a solar-powered outlet there. She also has a line on her
back deck for the boom box. She built a battery box out of plywood, sealed and
stained it (figuring if she had to look at it for 8 to 10 years, it may as well
look nice), with a long stack that vents any battery gas.
Daum asked
herself how she could sell alternative energy to someone if she couldn’t
sell it to herself.
 “There's
a great future of solar, wind and fuel cell technology fast approaching,”
she said. “I am glad to be a part of it, and will do my best to promote the
cause. And I encourage you, the 'end user' to see what options exist in your part
of the world, whether it be financing options, efficient electrical devices, or
by purchasing green power.
“One thing
I've learned about life in general is there are always more options than you think.
You just need to explore the possibilities.”
Oasis
Montana Inc. photos
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