Solar Question
This is not a RV application but there seems to be a lot of solar knowledge on here so I thought I would ask. I run a 12V system in my remote cabin for LED lights and RV size water pump and CD play...
Forum Discussion
Shadow Catcher wrote:
The problem with wooded and shady is the panel(s)do not produce enough voltage to actually charge the battery. I made a mistake when I purchased a 66 cell 185W high voltage panel on Ebay meant for a grid tie system which will put out no load 70+V. This required a MPPT controller that will convert that high voltage into usable current. What this means is that I get usable current from sun up to sun down and with shade. I have seen 17V from a full moon and typically 36V in a shaded camp site. The Morningstar SunSaver MPPT controller is about as bullet proof as you can make a solar controller.
Ditto here, I went with high voltage grid tie panel for the same reason plus watt for watt they seem to be cheaper. We use that same sunsaver mppt controller and a 230 watt high voltage panel and in treed, cloudy, even rainy conditions its still putting out 25-30 amp hrs per day at 30+ volts. More than enough to maintain 2 batteries IMO. The only other issue is snow, you'll get zero charge if the panels are buried :)
