Quote:I'm assuming that currently roof based solar panels are plugged directly into the mains box a house
PV (Photo Voltaic) panels produce low Voltage DC.
PV systems can be grouped a number of ways but lets consider this grouping of 4.
1] Power supplied at DC, usually used to charge DC batteries. Power is then drawn off the batteries at DC to power small devices (low voltage lights / radios etc). Entirely separated from the 230V mains power.
2] Grid tied system. Power from the PV is inverted up to AC and synchronised with the mains to reduce your electricity bill, these systems usually need the mains to create the sign wave for them to lock onto and don't do anything if the mains fails. As a result these are not the systems that preppers want.
3] Off-grid systems. Arguable a sub-set of type [1]. PV charges a bank of batteries and these batteries are inverted up to 230V a.c. to power normal AC appliances.
4] Duel system: A combination of [2] and [3] where the PV power is useful both before and after a mains failure. This is the most useful system for preppers and not surprisingly is also the most expensive.
Quote: for me I would only be using it for the freezer and fridge
Unfortunately that's a big *only*. The power consumption of fridge and freezer are significant, lighting (assuming you use energy efficient lamps) is small in comparison.
None of us should even be considering using PV for heating or cooking as the power requirements are unrealistic. I did an article on solar that you can find in the site archives.
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