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Post by Mustang on Mar 26, 2019 9:35:38 GMT 10
120 W folding solar panels $109, free post. 81% Off  link |
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Post by kiwijim on Mar 28, 2019 3:51:36 GMT 10
Hmmmmm The ad said that they are more that 17% efficient......... I think I would want a bit more than that for my money !!!
K.J.
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Post by captivenut on Mar 28, 2019 18:04:26 GMT 10
Happy Dragon solar panels? lol. You get what you pay for!
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Post by snoops on Mar 28, 2019 18:33:31 GMT 10
Hmmmmm The ad said that they are more that 17% efficient......... I think I would want a bit more than that for my money !!! K.J. Most premium panels are around 20% efficient, top of the line, solar farm grade panels are about 25% efficient. That’s about as far as the tech has got, but remember just 10 years ago, high end panels were around 15% efficient. I’d buy these no dramas - I’ve found a lot of cheapies are as good as panels 3 times the price. 👍 Now panels are this cheap, just load up with them - you can’t ‘over solar’ a battery setup. 👍 |
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Post by snoops on Mar 28, 2019 18:39:18 GMT 10
Happy Dragon solar panels? lol. You get what you pay for! Check this video out - 👍 |
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Post by Mustang on Apr 2, 2019 18:43:51 GMT 10
Years ago I paid $2200 for a double folding 160w solar setup. It worked great untill one panel became shattered so I discarded it, then the $300 regulator suddenly gave up.
I checked the panel direct to the battery for a few seconds & it was showing it was OK.
Not wanting to invest in a stay at home heavy panel with another expensive regulator, I scanned ebay.
A regulator showed up "will work with panels up to 80 watts", why not, $29.95 was a fair bit of investment but I decided to risk all!!!!
Works like a charm, it may only be an off/on switch but the battery is topping up fine.
Moral of the story: are we paying excessive markups by known brands?
Cheers
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Post by snoops on Apr 2, 2019 18:50:48 GMT 10
Also worth a look is second hand panels. I bought 5 x 100 watt panels for $100 and they all still produce better than 95% of their dataplate current. Easy to check when buying with a cheap multimeter but you need a sunny day.
If anyone’s interested, set the multimeter to its current setting - most meters have a 10 amp setting and you need to move a lead to a different spot, then connect the leads to the output of the panel - effectively shorting it out - make sure the panel is pointed straight at the sun and see what it reads - there’s a short circuit current reading on the data plate - if it’s better than 90% I’d call it good. You can also measure open circuit voltage (don’t forget to switch the meter back and change the lead). Open circuit voltage is also listed on the data plate.
There are some bargains out there. 👍
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Post by 78466noM on Apr 11, 2019 9:25:38 GMT 10
I brought a 200w solar panel two and a half years ago and a cheap 30amp regulator. The panel cost new $200.00 and the regulator $28.95. I have regulator set at max 13.9v and min 11.8v it is overcast today and still charging at 13.8. Never a problem with charge in battery but for some strange reason about every 3 weeks the regulator will shut down that is no charge to battery and no charge out to led lights etc then i turn off fuse from battery to regulator and fuse from panel to regulator leave 30 seconds turn fuse from battery to regulator on then turn fuse from panel to regulator on all good for about another 3 weeks.
this has had a work out for the last five months as I have been living in van while doing house to sell.
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