Solar power

lightnin · Post by **lightnin** » Sat Jul 28, 2012 6:35 am

I'm hoping some of you may have a bit of experience to share.
I'm thinking very seriously of making s solar collection/charging unit for my pier and boat lifts.
I don't want to run electricity out to my pier... there's no shade so lots of sunlight.
It shouldn't take much to run LED lighting. I don't want to use those LED lawn lights.

1) solar panel -- car battery window unit? I think the one I have is 15 to 20 watts

2) charging controller --amperage?

3) battery --gel cells?

4) day night controller something like this

5) LED lights 12V -- maybe something like these

I guess I'll really have to measure the current used then decide how bigga battery to last a
couple nights then proper charger then Solar panel.
Just hoping someone has done this before and can toss out some do's -N- dont's
I just don't wanna start off on the wrong track.

tomsalwasser · Post by **tomsalwasser** » Sat Jul 28, 2012 7:31 am

Great question, I'll be following along. I need to do this too but I also need to charge the 2 12 volt batteries (series, 24 volts) that run my electric trolling motor.

Best,
Tom

Billdit · Post by **Billdit** » Sat Jul 28, 2012 9:37 am

I installed a 45 w unit with deep cell battery and converter on our chicken coop, hoping to run a couple lights and a fan. It has trouble keeping up with a phone charger alone here in sunny SC. Cost was around $250. Maybe this is why solar companies are doing so well...

lightnin · Post by **lightnin** » Sun Jul 29, 2012 3:01 am

A closely related question.
Looking for 110v LED replacement bulbs I need to know the common base screw type in the US, E 26 or E 27?

keakap · Post by **keakap** » Sun Jul 29, 2012 3:09 pm

Billdit wrote:I installed a 45 w unit with deep cell battery and converter on our chicken coop, hoping to run a couple lights and a fan. It has trouble keeping up with a phone charger alone here in sunny SC. Cost was around $250. Maybe this is why solar companies are doing so well...

Seems to me you should be able to do more with a 45w panel. Methinks your biggest liability (against effectiveness and production) is wrapped up in one word: "converter".
Suggest eschew AC.
consider: used batteries (motorcycle, for instance); LEDs; 6 or 12 volt DC fans...

you'd be amazed how many weeks (yes weeks) you could run a 10 unit string of LED landscape lights off an old discarded motorcycle battery with one dead cell, before even needing a re-charge. (Cycles need 12v, but LEDs just go with what they can get.)

Lotsa possibilities.

But when you start to include converters/ inverters, your efficiency starts to go down the terlet.

lightnin · Post by **lightnin** » Sun Jul 29, 2012 4:09 pm

[quote="keakap"]Methinks your biggest liability (against effectiveness and production) is wrapped up in one word: "converter".
Suggest eschew AC.
consider: used batteries (motorcycle, for instance)]

I said charging controller, that's to control the charging of batteries not converter which methinks is like a power inverter.
Charging batteries with to much current results in shorter battery life in many types of batteries.
I think I'll end up with a deep cycle marine gel cell battery and the chargers recommended for them are slower trickle type.
I don't want 110VAC just 12VDC all I want to run from it is LED lighting that way I can get the most bang for my ampere.

The biggest drawback I can think of is bugs drawn to lights resulting in spiders taking advantage of that.