Solar Power

 These are some solar panels at my granddad's house.  There are (4) 12 volt panels wired in parallel.  As you can see, there is a rain barrel in the background.

 There is also a small 12 volt panel at the top connected to a HAM radio.

 These are (8) 12 volt gel cell batteries connected in parallel to produce 12 volts but more amps so it will power the AC inverter for several hours.  He has a simple car power inverter connected so he can plug in lamps, fans, or other miscellaneous low power devices in his shop.  It's not enough for power tools, but it will definitely come in handy for powering lights during a long night of working in the shop or for powering fans on a hot summer day.

 This is the charge controller connected to the (8) 12 volt batteries.

This is the charge controller for the HAM radio.