minimum amount of solar
I am considering starting into the solar age. I currently have 4 group 27 batteries and have no problem going for weekends dry camping with our current battery capacity. All of our lights have been ...
Forum Discussion
Basically the more solar wattage to batteyf capacity ratio, the longer the batteries are going to last, total accumulated cycle wise.
Solar is a bit addictive. if you go small as you currently do not need much, well at least run oversized wiring which will not be stressed if you later decide to use more electricity.
While i used to have 3 group 27 marine batteries and 130 watts then 200 watts of solar, I am getting far better service with a single AGM-27 cycled deeper and charged at higher rates.
Flooded marine 27's are not very good batteries to deep cycle in my opinion. They seem to require ridiculous times in absorption to maximize specific gravity and regular EQ cycles when deeply cycled to get a few hundred deep cycles from. More solar allows earlier absorption to be reached and thus more time to be held.
But your usage is light and any solar is better than no solar. I'd just recommend allowing room for adding more solar wattage to whatever you initially install, by using thick wiring from panel to controller capable of carrying more current without excessive voltage drop. Running additional or thicker cable later on is more expensve and more work.
Solar is a bit addictive. if you go small as you currently do not need much, well at least run oversized wiring which will not be stressed if you later decide to use more electricity.
While i used to have 3 group 27 marine batteries and 130 watts then 200 watts of solar, I am getting far better service with a single AGM-27 cycled deeper and charged at higher rates.
Flooded marine 27's are not very good batteries to deep cycle in my opinion. They seem to require ridiculous times in absorption to maximize specific gravity and regular EQ cycles when deeply cycled to get a few hundred deep cycles from. More solar allows earlier absorption to be reached and thus more time to be held.
But your usage is light and any solar is better than no solar. I'd just recommend allowing room for adding more solar wattage to whatever you initially install, by using thick wiring from panel to controller capable of carrying more current without excessive voltage drop. Running additional or thicker cable later on is more expensve and more work.
