solar powered freezer

while i have power available in the road at my property i have yet to hook it up. i have also made a 50/50 promise to my self. for every $0.50 i spend on grid electric i will spend $0.50 on some sort of solar power either solar electric or solar thermal. to date i am about even, but i am in the process of stepping up on the solar side. with the recent production of GF beer brats, i need a big freezer. here is a great chance to do some good solar wise. i decided to power my freezer strictly on solar energy. i have spent a lot of time researching for the best set up. i have looked at the dedicated 12/24 volt chest freezers and while they are nice. they are small and not cheep. for now i have settled on a large chest type with energy star ratings

the whole set up is going in a small trailer i built from an abandoned pickup truck. it will include the freezer charge controller inverter batteries and solar panels. i have gone over board on the panels and controller and will be able to upgrade with extra panel in the future. here is the break down i settled on. to be ordered in the morning

19.7 cf chest freezer 435kwhpy Kenmore 16082 in stock locally
3x 135w kyocera panels
Blue Sky Energy SB3024iL MPPT Solar Charge Controller
batteries i have on hand for now
inverter wil1 be an old xantrex 1000w with charger i have on hand


while this system is much larger than i need just for the freezer. it will give me some extra power to run my laptop and some lights at home (current lighting is propane and small batteries like D and AA) i will also be able to run my laptop while at the market or a digital picture frame with a slide show. the charge controller includes a 20amp load controller. so along with converting the energy from the panels into a charging voltage for the batteries it also has a n out put that can be used to run small stuff. it can also function as a programmable dusk to dawn light controller. i am thinking i might try and program it to run some light for a few hours after dark and a few in the morning during winter to keep the chickens laying. i have always wanted to run some lights to keep egg production up in the winter but could not justify burning the fossil fuel. now i can do it solar powered. i will put up some pictures when i get it all together. freezer batteries and inverter should go together tomorrow but it will take a week or so to get the panels and controller. till then i can plug it in a few hours a day at a neighbors house to keep the batteries charged and freezer cold