Solar Panels??
I would like to know what users look for in a solar panel, I am thinking about getting one but I am not sure what the out put should be. It would be used for charging my 12 v battery when we go off gr...
Forum Discussion
The panels you will find will provide either 17.7v or 34v of output. The higher voltage will be better there will be less current loss going from the panel to the charge controller.
The panels put out around 5-6 amps and that is more than enough to charge a battery in 4-5 hours of daylight. Once the battery is fully charged any extra output from the solar panel is wasted.
Generally speaking a 100 AH battery should be discharged no more than 50% and the 50 amps would take up to 10 hours to replace. We use at most 30 amps overnight and a single 100 Watt 6 amp panel would take us back to 100% before noon.
Check your roof and see what will fit. Two that are good for campers are the panels from amsolar.com and the Kyocera 140 Watt panel. Both are narrow and fit more places.
The panels put out around 5-6 amps and that is more than enough to charge a battery in 4-5 hours of daylight. Once the battery is fully charged any extra output from the solar panel is wasted.
Generally speaking a 100 AH battery should be discharged no more than 50% and the 50 amps would take up to 10 hours to replace. We use at most 30 amps overnight and a single 100 Watt 6 amp panel would take us back to 100% before noon.
Check your roof and see what will fit. Two that are good for campers are the panels from amsolar.com and the Kyocera 140 Watt panel. Both are narrow and fit more places.
