Affordable and Simple Solar Setup for a Tiny Home: Anyone Can Do This!
Today at The Solar Lab, we’re doing something a little bit different. Rather than just review a piece of solar equipment, we want to provide you with a simplified breakdown of a real-world application for solar power by learning how you can put together a simple and affordable off-grid system for a tiny home.
The entire tiny home we went to visit can be found on Airbnb, and it runs purely on solar power. It’s a perfect example of how cost-effective and beginner-friendly an off-grid solar setup can be for small dwellings, like tiny homes, remote cabins, sheds, and more.
This particular tiny home was built and is fully operated by our video editor Josh. Since he built it, it has successfully hosted hundreds of guests without ever having to rely on the grid for power.
Not only did we get Josh to fully explain what he did to provide this tiny home with power, we’ll also uncover what he would do differently next time so you can learn from his experiences.
Designing for Energy Efficiency
Josh fully designed this tiny home with energy efficiency in mind. Knowing that he would not be able to draw upon grid power, reducing the power demands without impacting comfort or the visitor experience was essential.
At its peak, the finished tiny home only draws around 2,000 watts, even with everything running. By opting for solar, rather than needing to pay to have grid access, Josh saved roughly $15,000 and eliminated the ongoing expense of power bills entirely.
To explain how he did it, let's dive into the details of the setup.
Powering the Tiny Home
The entire structure runs off one cable that is connected to an EcoFlow DELTA Pro Power Station. The cable plugs the DELTA Pro directly into the tiny home’s electrical panel, distributing power throughout.
Here’s a breakdown of the power usage:
LED Lights: Minimal power draw at around 9 watts each.
Mini Refrigerator: Uses approximately 50 watts.
Gas Cooktop: Only requires electricity for the lighter and a small fan, making it extremely efficient.
The Bathroom: Includes a GFCI-protected fan and LED lights, along with a gas heater and jet pump for hot and cold water.
Selecting Energy Efficient Appliances
Given that reducing electrical demands was a major goal, the tiny home is outfitted with energy-efficient appliances, including a gas heater with no electrical components and a tankless gas water heater that uses minimal electricity for sensors.
Additionally, the UV light bulb used for water filtration purposes runs 24/7, but it only uses 70 watts.
The EcoFlow DELTA Pro Power Station
As mentioned, the main source of electricity is the DELTA Pro, which is paired with an EcoFlow DELTA Pro Smart Extra Battery. The additional battery doubles the DELTA Pro’s storage capacity, allowing the paired unit to store a total of 7,200Wh.
Rather than needing to worry about the fairly complicated process of installing a multi-component solar power system that consists of separate batteries, inverters, charge controllers, and more, Josh was able to use one of these all-in-one power stations to allow the finished tiny home to make use of the solar power his solar panel array generates.
Not only does the DELTA Pro simplify things, it actually handles the tiny home’s power needs efficiently. With a maximum output of 3,600 watts, even a single DELTA Pro has ample leftover power for charging electronic devices, like laptops, smartphones, Bluetooth speakers, and more.
Even when everything is turned on, the DELTA Pro is able to run efficiently and well-below its maximum capacity.
The Solar Panel Array and Mount
While the DELTA Pro and EcoFlow Expansion Battery contain everything needed to store and access power, the tiny home still needed a reliable source of off-grid power. This is where the solar panel array comes into play.
Josh’s DIY solar array consists of 12 solar panels, each generating 100 watts, for a total of 1,200 watts. The panels are mounted on a custom-built, pivoting stand, which helps optimize sun exposure throughout the year. The panels are connected in two series of six, then paralleled, and grounded for safety.
Why Choose Solar Power?
Choosing solar power for the tiny home was a strategic decision, as well as a financial one.
For starters, the nearest transformer is 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) away, and the required infrastructure to connect the tiny home to the grid would have cost around $25,000. By contrast, the solar setup cost under $10,000.
At just $10,000, the DELTA Pro, expansion battery, and all of the solar panels needed to build the solar array were drastically more affordable, allowing Josh to save roughly $15,000 on the upfront build costs. Keeping costs low during the construction phase meant that the tiny home could be profitable much faster.
Even if you were starting from scratch, there are DELTA Pro Solar Kits available that neatly bundle everything you need for a relatively low cost. Shop Solar is a great option if you want to go this route, as they carry a variety of different all-in-one kits.
Not only was the solar equipment itself budget-friendly, once installed, it eliminated the potential for ongoing operating costs. Without electricity bills or gasoline expenses, Josh calculated that the solar power system could pay for itself in savings.
Next up, solar power is renewable and environmentally friendly, which proved to be a major selling point for a tiny home that was to be rented for short-term vacations. The decision to go solar also provides visitors with a sense of independence and distance from regular life.
Basically, for an off-grid tiny home, solar just proved to be a practical solution that offered both long-term and short-term savings.
Why Choose Solar Over Gas-Powered Generators?
While Josh considered running the entire tiny home on gas generators, several factors made solar the better choice:
Noise: Gas generators can be incredibly noisy, which is counterproductive for an Airbnb aimed at providing visitors with a peaceful retreat. On the other hand, solar panels and the DELTA Pro system operate silently, helping to maintain the atmosphere Josh was aiming to create.
Low Maintenance: Gas generators also require fairly regular maintenance, including oil changes and air filter replacements. Plus, their gas tanks need to be refilled fairly regularly, which is not something you would want visiting guests to have to worry about. On the other hand, solar panels have virtually zero maintenance requirements.
The Environmental Impact: Solar power is clean and renewable, whereas gas generators emit pollutants. For a peaceful nature retreat, sustainability is a major marketing feature. Plus, guests don’t have to worry about any sort of unpleasant gasoline smell.
Why Choose the DELTA Pro?
For Josh, the decision to go with the EcoFlow DELTA Pro was simply motivated by the unit’s immense popularity. As we have demonstrated ourselves, it’s just a tried and tested system that continues to be one of the best options on the market, especially at its ever-decreasing price point.
The fact it is a plug-and-play system that does not require much space was also incredibly appealing when constructing a tiny home. Since installation, Josh has not had a single issue with the unit, or the panels that it is connected to, making it the ideal power system for a short-term vacation property.
Josh also discovered that EcoFlow carries a DELTA Pro Smart Gas Generator, which allows the paired unit to charge its own batteries automatically in the event of cloud coverage that reduces the efficiency of the solar panels. This is unique to EcoFlow, and was another major draw of the DELTA Pro system.
With that said, the Smart Generator has had some issues where it will not fire up automatically, so it requires a manual pull start. It’s a good backup system, but not quite perfect. We had our own issues with these Smart Generators when we tested them, so it didn’t surprise us too much that Josh encountered a few problems.
Lessons Learned and Future Upgrades
If Josh were to upgrade the system, or rebuild the tiny home from scratch, he says he would increase the number of solar panels to achieve a total of at least 2,400 watts. This would ensure more power on cloudy days and expand the battery bank for greater storage, allowing the tiny home to withstand longer stretches of low sun exposure.
Doubling the solar panels and even increasing the size of the battery bank with another expansion battery would also minimize any reliance on the smart generator, allowing him to reduce gas consumption and maximize solar usage.
Final Words
Josh’s solar-powered tiny home setup saved about $15,000 just on the upfront costs. It also provides him with a sustainable, off-grid living solution that continues to appeal to Airbnb guests.
The main takeaway for us was just how simple the DELTA Pro-based solar setup was to put together and maintain, while still being capable of running a fully functioning tiny home in a completely off-grid location.
As we so often preach, you don’t need to be a solar expert to achieve energy independence. Josh’s highly successful tiny home build is a testament to just how easy it can be!
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