Solar crunch time! Please review my plan.
I would like begin my first post with a big thank you to all who have shared their knowledge and experience on this forum. Without that, I probably wouldn't be entering the solar jungle! I hope yo...
Forum Discussion
Considering that your solar cost will be just over a $1 per rated watt, it really does not make sense to spend an additional $100 for a MPPT controller. It would cost less to expand the solar system by 100 watts, and then you will overall have more than 20% more energy.
I think that at 300 watts, it is sized properly. You will be able to use the furnace a lot, and with LED lights they do not present a significant load.
I would recommend a 100 - 300 watt inverter. It can be handy to charge a laptop, or run a small TV set, or something. Even a 150 watt can run a small flatscreen TV and DVD player.
I have #10 wire to a pair of 120 watt solar panels. While that wire is a 'little small' for a full 14 amp load, the distance is not 1,000 feet, so it really does not matter much. I only have about 20 feet of the small wire between the panel and controller.
That said, you will have a pair of 10 amp panels, so #10 wire to each is what I would do, because #10 is not 'good' for 20 amps, that would place a more significant voltage drop. The single advantage of the MPPT controller is that you could run 24 volts into most MPPT controllers with 12 volt output, so you can run both panels in series, having about 38 volts enter the MPPT controller at say 8 amps, with about 17 amps going into the 12 volt battery.
Have fun camping!
Fred.
I think that at 300 watts, it is sized properly. You will be able to use the furnace a lot, and with LED lights they do not present a significant load.
I would recommend a 100 - 300 watt inverter. It can be handy to charge a laptop, or run a small TV set, or something. Even a 150 watt can run a small flatscreen TV and DVD player.
I have #10 wire to a pair of 120 watt solar panels. While that wire is a 'little small' for a full 14 amp load, the distance is not 1,000 feet, so it really does not matter much. I only have about 20 feet of the small wire between the panel and controller.
That said, you will have a pair of 10 amp panels, so #10 wire to each is what I would do, because #10 is not 'good' for 20 amps, that would place a more significant voltage drop. The single advantage of the MPPT controller is that you could run 24 volts into most MPPT controllers with 12 volt output, so you can run both panels in series, having about 38 volts enter the MPPT controller at say 8 amps, with about 17 amps going into the 12 volt battery.
Have fun camping!
Fred.
