Thinking about solar?

[MacGyver]

Might be a good time to get started. Amazon has THE lowest price I've seen on the Renogy panels I swear by. Prices change quickly at Amazon, so I wouldn't hesitate to jump on this one. $132.01 is an odd number, but it obviously beats the usual range of $139.99 to $149.99.

http://www.amazon.com/Renogy-Watts-V.../dp/B009Z6CW7O

[toedtoes]

Re: Thinking about solar?

I haven't really done much research into solar, but that price is very good. Just not sure if it's something that would really be beneficial for my uses or if it'd just be something to carry around unused... so, with that, can you answer these questions for me?

Can you share how this would work? What will this panel power? What would be the charging rate for a 12v battery? What else would be needed in order to make it functional?

[terasec]

Re: Thinking about solar?

I haven't really done much research into solar, but that price is very good. Just not sure if it's something that would really be beneficial for my uses or if it'd just be something to carry around unused... so, with that, can you answer these questions for me?

Can you share how this would work? What will this panel power? What would be the charging rate for a 12v battery? What else would be needed in order to make it functional?

Rough very rough count
Is if getting getting full 100w at 12v charge
Can get roughly 100amps added to battery over 10-12 hrs under prime conditions
Factors being drained battery doesnt charge at 12v
Only getting 100w during peak conditions/hrs
Things like led lights/cell phones etc generally draw 1-5/amps hr
Can do your estimates to calculate draw load
So even if you only get 25-50 amps out of the panel its enough for lite useage at night
And to help extend battery useage
Anyone feel free to correct me if i am wrong
As for additional parts would need controller so as not to overcharge battery and inverter to convert it

[MacGyver]

Re: Thinking about solar?

I've never put a meter on my setup, but I do know I've never lost power on any of my batteries. I run half a dozen LED lights, a 12 volt stereo, sporadic use of a mattress inflator (See Electric Hickman), charged the batteries for my Ryobi drill and reciprocal saw as well as several cellphones for my group. I've also run a pure sine wave inverter for a larger stereo and still have never dropped below the 10 volt cutoff for the inverter.

As far as what you'd need in addition to the panel is a charge controller and a battery. I used this controller with the single panel setup. The size battery you'd need would depend on what all you want to power. I have several, ranging from 18 amp/hour to 55 amp/hour.

[Happy Joe]

Re: Thinking about solar?

I typically do weekenders (including 3 day holidays) without bringing or using solar to top off the battery.
I try to limit the electrical draw (normally a 5-6 watt 110 volt 450 to 470 lumen bulb for tent lighting, usually less than 4 hours per night, occasionally a low power stereo for several hours).
I don' try to light up the area after dark (it ruins the ambience, IMO). I have run an air pump for a mattress but that was only done once per trip so was not significant.
I run a relatively small 35 amp hour deep discharge AGM battery, in an emergency it can be charged from the vehicle.
The smallest battery that I have used was a 7 amp hour 12 volt, it was very limited; the largest battery that I have so far used was a 100+ amp hour marine trolling battery it was too heavy to be readily portable, but had more than ample power for us. In the early days I used to use semi-portable (if they have a handle) junkyard starting batteries because they were cheap.. I would guess their capacity at around 30 to 40 amp hours.
To maximize the life of lead acid batteries I found that keeping them fully charged was important and now use a battery maintainer/trickle charger AND monitor the water levels where possible.


If someone needs to recharge their cell phone laptop etc. I tell them to use their vehicle. I could charge such devices but then I would, probably, need to bring and set up the solar panels.
If doing a 4 day trip I consider bringing the solar panels, if camping for longer I bring them.
Since, for me, portability is paramount, we may setup camp a 1/4 mile or more from the vehicle, I sized everything to that end, the penalty is that I need to restrict power usage.
I do not attempt to run icemakers, blenders etc.
I did test using a 12 volt 50 cfm computer fan for possible use in a tent swamp cooler, for desert camping, and found that it can be supported by the battery and solar panels.
I have panels with advertised sizes of; 5 watts, 7 watts, 10 watts 50 watts and up to a dozen 75 watt panels (not really portable); be aware that amorphous panels are known to degrade relatively quickly in constant use... know what you are buying.
It is so easy to connect (one or more) DVMs to monitor a system, at least on initial setup, that I see no reason to guess at what it is capable of. after doing this, I was quickly made aware that the advertised ratings will probably not be met.
I did figure out that to run a 12 volt portable refrigerator I would expect to need a minimum of 100 watts of solar panel and a 100 amp hour battery, neither is small.


Many people expect too much from too small a solar setup, and end up dissatisfied... the key to being well satisfied is to plan the system well, size it to your needs, then to stay within the design parameters, IMO.


Enjoy!

[toedtoes]

Re: Thinking about solar?

Yeah, my needs aren't that extensive. I have a group 31 AGM battery for the RV house battery. With it, I run the water pump (24/7 while on a trip), maybe 1-3 hours of 1 or 2 fluorescent lights per night. I can go 4 days without making a dent in the battery power.

I have my Wagan power pack that I use to charge the cell phone, kindle, and/or laptop if needed, so I rarely run those off the house battery. Everything else is propane. I don't have or use any other household electric devices when camping.

So, my use is very limited. The only time i'm tempted to use more power is in the winter with a portable heater. I have the Mr Buddy Jr that works well, but the electric heater is more convenient (remote control access from bed).

Just not sure a small solar setup can offer me anything more than I already have for my use. My water tank lasts about 8 days before needing refill, the dump tanks about the same. I'm pretty sure I could get 8 days on my battery for what I use. So, would solar be anything more than a "what if" provision?

I think this is why I haven't researched deeper - it just doesn't sound like it will give me anything more than I already have for my current needs... maybe when I start doing longer trips it will become something worth considering.

Thanks everyone for the info!