Solar - Permanent mount or portable?
As I work through the process of upgrading batteries, either a 4-jar bank of Lithium 100Ah 12V, one 300Ah + a 100 Ah, or two 200 Ah, I'm also researching the addition of more solar panels to the roof ...
Forum Discussion
Pianotuna,
I can appreciate your caveats, and they are worth considering, but, how often might it rain ? I'm less confident about roof panel's usefulness in the shade when, with 1 or 2 portables, I can easily aim at the sun, should the charging be needed. Yeah, the panels are potentially cumbersome, and storing them could be a challenge, but then, if I can store them safely - one already is conveniently tucked away - I would, I think, have only one more to find space for. This could prompt me to seek out panels of a size where I CAN store it conveniently.
It would also be interesting to learn if there's a means of tilting the roof panels from the ground, since climbing on the roof at my age probably isn't the safest approach, but then, securing these panels would seem to require a hands-on approach. Still cogitating this dilemma...
As for the batteries, I'm definitely leaning toward two 200Ah Li's, though I have room for the four wet cells that will come out. Others have suggested keeping all batteries at the same size and Ah...
What I'm needing more clarity on is the panel voltage, why higher might be better, how it would function with existing panels which operate at lower voltage. Mono vs. polycrystalline is also not clear to me, though a little research will solve that... some of which, by the way, suggests an MPPT Controller north of 80 amps for the panel wattage I envision...
I can appreciate your caveats, and they are worth considering, but, how often might it rain ? I'm less confident about roof panel's usefulness in the shade when, with 1 or 2 portables, I can easily aim at the sun, should the charging be needed. Yeah, the panels are potentially cumbersome, and storing them could be a challenge, but then, if I can store them safely - one already is conveniently tucked away - I would, I think, have only one more to find space for. This could prompt me to seek out panels of a size where I CAN store it conveniently.
It would also be interesting to learn if there's a means of tilting the roof panels from the ground, since climbing on the roof at my age probably isn't the safest approach, but then, securing these panels would seem to require a hands-on approach. Still cogitating this dilemma...
As for the batteries, I'm definitely leaning toward two 200Ah Li's, though I have room for the four wet cells that will come out. Others have suggested keeping all batteries at the same size and Ah...
What I'm needing more clarity on is the panel voltage, why higher might be better, how it would function with existing panels which operate at lower voltage. Mono vs. polycrystalline is also not clear to me, though a little research will solve that... some of which, by the way, suggests an MPPT Controller north of 80 amps for the panel wattage I envision...
