Costing Example

The design of SmartSPR has evolved over the past few years and various combinations of pumps, solar panels, batteries and solar charge controllers have proved to be successful.  A typical configuration is outlined below with ball park price estimates.  Depending on the circumstances, this configuration should be capable of pumping more than 1500 litres/day, enough to serve the peak Summer demands of 25 ~ 30 cattle.

• 60W 12V solar panel (A$70)
• Mounting hardware for the above ($A30)
• 18 AH 12V AGM Battery (A$60)
• 10A solar charge controller (A$20)
• 19 litres/minute 60 psi pressure pump (A$90)
• SmartSPR (A$50, say)
• Concrete enclosure for pump etc (A$55)
• Check valves and filter (A$75)

             TOTAL:   A$450, say

The above list accounts for the items in a solar powered pump installation.  It is important to understand that these expenses may be dwarfed by the cost of pipes, drinking troughs, float valves, header tanks and miscellaneous plumbing items that may or may not be necessary to complete a real world livestock watering system.