A common misconception in renewable energy storage is that you can use any type of battery to store the energy. While you could do this it's not the best way to store your hard earned electricity. There are different kinds of batteries and all are designed to do something different.

The one type of battery that you should not use is your standard car battery. While these batteries do hold a lot of power they simply aren't designed to be used in renewable energy. A storage battery needs to be something called a 'deep cycle' battery.

What this means is that you can discharge the battery up to 50% - 60% without really harming the battery. A standard car battery is not a deep cycle battery as it's designed to provide a lot of power to start your car and than be charged back up by the alternator. They might work for the first couple deep discharges (discharging the battery below 50%), but after that they will start to fail.

We know that we need a deep cycle battery, but what kind of battery will be a good fit for you? There are a couple options actually. RV batteries as well as golf cart batteries are designed to be deep discharged. The good part about golf cart batteries is you can often get them for free by contacting the golf course in the spring when the perform maintenance on them.

The batteries aren't completely dead they're just switched out as regular maintenance. They usually have at least 3 - 5 years of life left in them.

RV batteries on the other hand you probably won't get for free, but they are one of the best options. They are true deep cycle batteries and usually have a higher capacity than golf cart batteries (they hold more power). I would start out with golf cart batteries and as money permits add in RV batteries.

The holy grail of battery storage is fork lift batteries. These are giant batteries that hold a ton of power. It's also possible to get these for free as well. Businesses swap them out as regular maintenance practice (even though they aren't dead). Simply calling local businesses could net you a few of these. If they are dead you can use a desulfator on them to bring them back to life most of the time.

If you're just starting out start with golf cart batteries or fork lift batteries and as time and money permits add in RV batteries. The great thing about renewable energy is that it's modular so you don't need to buy the entire system right away, you can add in parts as you go.

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