Amp hours
I'm trying to determine whether my current solar system is adequate or if I need to add more panels/batteries. Currently I have 2 6 volt lead acid batteries. I have 300 watts of panels 40 amp con...
Forum Discussion
Twistedlarch wrote:wopachop wrote:
Been meaning to disconnect my solar and cycle my batteries. Will get some rough numbers for ya tonight or tomorrow.
So no generator right? Like others said your only real variable will be how much heater you can run each night. One of the portable propane heaters might really come in handy. Or a small genny if you can make noise at night/early morning.
I do have a little Yamaha Genny for back up.
Brian
I have a pair of Honda 2000s as backup power. We also have a pair of group 31 AGMs, and 420 watts of solar.
We were out last week, and on one day the clouds were so thick that we didn't get any charging all day. We went into the evening at a negative 28 amp hours. The next day was partly cloudy (-58 amp hours according to my Victron BM-702) and by evening when we like to watch tv (using a pure sine wave inverter) we were fully charged.
My normal draw is 1.5 to 1.75 amps. This is with the fridge on, and ready to do anything we want, but us not using anything.
Conventional wisdom here says to have one watt solar to one AH of battery. That wasn't enough for us. After 9 nights, we never needed the generator. I told my DW that I want to add another 400 watts of solar, and she agreed after that experience. We did OK last summer with 300 watts of solar, but we didn't use the furnace, this time we used it normally. We also set it at 60 overnight.
All of that being said, we use everything we want to, lights, tv whatever. We don't waste power, but don't scrimp to conserve it either. I actually did a power audit, but in the end just went by trial and add more solar then trial again. :)
