100 watt Solar decision

Brettmm92 wrote:
Are you saying that welders used to run off batteries?

Welders as we know them today did not exist. So folks who wished to weld would use batteries to do so.

Brettmm92 wrote:
there's a potential risk of batteries malfunctioning and expelling that much energy?

yes--but more of a chance that wires might wear through the insulation and "short out". That is why fuses and circuit breakers are used. What I am saying is there is a LOT of potential energy and it needs to be treated with care and respect.

Brettmm92 wrote:

Is there an easy fuse or breaker setup that won't take any cutting up a wire? Like one that goes from the end of the charge controller wire and bolts to the battery? I'm wanting to not splice or cut up wires if theres another way.

There may be such devices. My catastrophic failure fuse(s) are fastened to the battery and then wired to the house is connected. My system has two battery banks, so I can do either/or/both/none

Brettmm92 wrote:


And I was thinking having a setup of panels that lay flat on the roof but could be adjusted to around 45 degrees when no longer traveling to get better direct hit of sunlight would be superior even though it adds an extra thing to set up.

Studies have been done. The average RV'er who installs tilting panels gives up on doing so after seven times. Imagine a high wind, and rain. Are you prepared to climb on the roof to prevent the panels from being ripped off?

It is far easier, and much less expensive to simply add an extra panel with a fixed flat install. (And no roof climbing needed).

Brettmm92 wrote:
And would the batteries I plan to buy between 300 and 400$ for two high quality GC 6 volts be worth all that money? They are still lead acid and need to have maintenance but I could get three 12 volt 27DC batteries from wally world for cheaper than that (slightly over 300 with core charge). But everything I read seems to point out GC batteries being superior.

I am not a fan of six volt batteries wired in series. However, if there is space for only two jars, it is often cheaper to use golf cart batteries than 12 volt deep cycle units. True deep cycle 12 volt are Expensive with a capital E.

The link you have is to Marine batteries. These are NOT deep cycle jars. It is quite possible to use them, if you are prepared to have many of them. In fact I did so--but I had 7 group 29 12 volt. There was one more for the engine. I chose them because I had a specific need for high amperage draws. They lasted nine years because I had solar and was willing to lay in the snow to service them.

My next batteries will be SiO2. If your pockets are deep enough go 2 of those which would give you 180 amp-hours of usable capacity compared to just 112.5 amp-hours from golf cart batteries.