Hello all! First of all, I don't have Toyota Prius. But still my question is closely related to Prius itself. I have a Nissan car. But I want to install solar A/c in it which is not available readily in the market. Therefore, what i was thinking, I could install Prius compressor in it and run with electric. But due to voltage issues & low wattage from solar cells (I'm gonna use it like 2-3 hours a day only), I'm gonna put Prius HV battery in trunk and put solar panels on roof top. Due to space limitation, I can install only 3 panels 100W each. I need suggestions from experts here. Anyone tried or thought of any stupid idea like this before?, it gonna work or any specific hardware suggestion or any improvement. P.S: I'm not a technical guy. Therefore, all stupidities in the current post should be ignored and elderly advice required.
A non-technical guy should NOT be taking on a project like this. Systems like that are not available for good reason: NOT practical.......not even close. Forget it and move on to something else.
Virtually impossible. Prius electric a/c is high voltage (200v 3 phase ac). Rooftop solar would takes days or weeks to build up enough charge to run it for a few minutes. You would also need all the complicated software and inverters to switch from dc to ac voltages too. What you want has already been done by Toyota and other hybrid makers, is immensely more efficient via their gasoline generators, and comes with long warranties. Sell the Nissan and buy one of them.
Most people severely underestimate how much power it takes to run an AC. It would be a lot easier to rig a solar exhaust fan.
A very odd post. Why go through all of this when you can put in a 110v A/C unit and run it from solar charged batteries through an inverter. I think getting a 200v, 3 phase compressor to run from a 12vdc solar panel is going to be very difficult. Exit smiling.
Thanks all for your precious comments. Ok, I need opinion on next option then. Compressor: I found something on Aliexpress. It say DC24V, 580W, 6052 BTU, Rated speed 3300 rpm. Battery: Normal car battery 12V, I will check for higher watts available. And the solar cell : 2x150W. (Compressor is 24V, so 2 batteries 12Vx2, plus solar cell also 12Vx2)
I don't think people here try these options as we already have a built in and very efficient (gas) generator for generating electricity for a/c. I think you would find more folks who have experimented with installing a/c and solar panels in RV (recreational vehicle), camping and living off-grid internet forums. GOOD LUCK!
agreed, we have a 200v battery, a high voltage compressor, and a gas engine to recharge the battery. not much experimentation going on here over the years, and no solar installations that i recall.
You can see from the pictures just how many solar panels are needed to run this thing. Not really practical for a car. This is why a hot air fan exhaust is what's usually used for solar powered cooling. () But on top of that, there's also something you haven't considered yet. All air conditioners must have a hot side and a cold side, or they won't work at all. In a car with built-in AC, the hot side is in the engine compartment, which is insulated to keep the engine heat out anyway. In a RV, the hot side is outside on the roof, which is also insulated to keep the heat away from the inside. Where are you going to put the hot side of your AC, and how will you keep the heat away from the passenger compartment?
There are NO OTHER OPTIONS to make a solar powered Air Conditioner for a small car. If you are intent on this (Obsessive/Compulsive), do some research on solar powered BUILDING HVAC systems. And then accept the conclusion that you should get a vehicle with factory stock air conditioning.......and be satisfied with that.
Look at the Amazon listing. On the left side of the main image are others. The third one down shows a RV with rooftop solar panels that look to be taking up much more space than a car rooftop can provide..
Also, you will need an evaporator, a condenser, fan motors for both, piping between everything and some kind of control system. I am still not convinced this is not s troll, but since I do like trolling the trolls, I will bite.
