Solar in the shade

We remote a 160W system from iTechworld, truthfully even in tree canopy we get a very good charge rate. Here is a link:

http://itechworld.com/collections/solar/products/folding-solar-panel-kit-160-watt

Also keep in mind your camping style as well. We like the trees so we don't get the best performance due to the sites we typically camp at. We would be in trouble if we stayed like that a week or weeks at a time. But we normally don't stay in one spot for more than 4 days.

The solar on the roof sitting in pretty shady spots didn't keep up with our needs everyday, but when we were on the move it did a great job of bring our batteries back up to full or nearly full.

I now know more what to expect. If we are going to camp too long in one spot I will probably seek out a little less shade, but I doubt we will need full sun ever due to our pretty low power needs. If that would ever change I might try a portable panel or two down the road.

Being based in the Northeast shade is the rule, not the exception. I, too, opted for a portable set-up - 100W "suitcase" from Renogy. I've got about 25' of cable from the panel to the rig, so I get pretty good range to move it around to harvest photons. ST

Solar has it's place and it isn't in the shade. You would have to be pretty conservative to even have a larger array of the right type of panel cover your needs.

I still think a higher voltage system will do better in these marginal conditions.
I have moved toward looking at sunny or partial shade sites more than full shade.
I want utility power if camping in the snow.
Even two hours of sun can bring a good harvest of energy.

Still some conditions you have to rely on extra battery capacity and conservation. Solar is not the end all solution yet.

Shady or cloudy means very little output. I have a 800watt system and camp year around here in Northwest Washington. Sunny - 40a output - cloudy nearly nothing. I carry a Honda EU 1000 to recharge batteries when the sun doesn't shine in non-serviced State Park sites. We have a coach mounted Onan QD7500 but seldom use it.

The need to park in the sun for solar to work efficiently is seldom mentioned by the solar only advocates.

Jim

Hi,

While you will not get full wattage in shade conditions it is possible to have some power harvested, particularly if the panels have diodes between every cell. I find I get about 1/3 of the total output in leafy shade at solar noon. In June that amounts to about 6 or 7 amps per hour.

Or course, on December 21 solar output is going to be pretty darn low. About 17 amp-hours from 256 watts of solar for a daily total.

I'm still torn about adding to or starting over from scratch.

Solar is fairly useless for camping in the woods as the OP suspects, but in the shaded driveway it just might have enough output to do the battery maintenance, which doesn't require much.

I set up a portable solar system on mine with 50 feet of cable. I can move the panel to a sunny spot when the roof is shaded.