Solar power question

[MacGyver]

I have a solar panel, ICPGLOBAL.
They dont seem to exist any more....

My question is: The panel I have is a roll up panel, then has a lead off of it. It ends with a plug, but no way to connect it to a battery.....
Do these things just connect to a battery? Or do they have another piece between it and the battery?

Mac

[Shawn]

Jason,

No, do not connect it directly to the battery. You will have two problems in doing that.

1) You will overcharge the battery and reduce its service life. Get a charge controller.
http://www.emarineinc.com/products/SunGuard-SG4.5--4.5A%7B47%7D12V-charge-controller.html

2) With no reverse polarity diode protection when the sun isn't out your battery will be discharging through the solar panel. Charge controller takes care of this too.

Do it right, get the charge controller.

Shawn

[NateD]

I second the SunGuard charge controller as well IF you leave the panel attached 24/7 (some of the cheaper ones are very inefficient). If you are just going to attach it every once in a while when you're overnighting or something, I don't know if I would bother. But if you are going to hook it up and leave it at the slip for a week, then I would add one. If you consistently overcharge the battery it is going to fry and cost you $80+ to replace. The charge controller costs $30. Simple math on that one.

If you don't want to wire your panel in permanently add a cigarette outlet type plug to the end of it, and wire the charge controller to a cigarette lighter type receptacle. Then you can easier remove and store the panel while sailing.

[MacGyver]

Charge controller, thanks guys!

I knew it had to be something there..... The panels I have seen on boats I work on must have had em built in as the panels were bigger and had the ability to connect right to the battery.

This panel however has no such clips, and I knew had to be missing a item.

A customer (Stand up guy, buys stuff he doesnt need, then donates it to us, some items missing parts like this panel) had this in a pile O Stuff and I snatched it up excitedly.........

I didnt want to burn my 100 dollar Group 31 battery up, especially since I just bought it this year.

I am very good at wiring so I will look to see if it has some wiring diagrams and test polarity of the solar panel, then connect accordingly!   Thanks alot!

This puts me back on track, maybe next year I wont have to worry about charging the battery so much.

Mac

[Salty19]

Edit:  I removed skip's comment about wiring advice.  Do not direct wire panel and battery as suggested.

Definitely go charge controller.

[skip1930]

skip's commit was put forth by someone else...Brackish I believe said a true reading can't be got straight from the cell. So take the reading when attached to the battery. Or word to that effect, of course your going to get battery voltage plus something from the cell. Check the water, most cells have a diode so the battery won't 'power the cell', check the polarity + and -, check the out put 12+v to 14+v like on a car?, or limit the output with some do dat -->[1) You will overcharge the battery and reduce its service life. Get a charge controller. http://www.emarineinc.com/products/SunGuard-SG4.5--4.5A%7B47%7D12V-charge-controller.html]<--, and let the sun shine.

What solar panels of limited surface areas don't give you is amperage. And amps are what you burn when the battery powers anything...volts aren't all that important. It's amps. Usually it's a charge of 300 or so milli amps. Or just about nothing. You get what you spend your money on.

And remember when ever electricity travels through water you will make hydrogen and oxygen gases. Ventilate.

[skip1930]

I should have prefaced the above post by simply stating that the mf'g. of solar cells, the kind from Harbor Freight, read cheap, are just a cell with a wire coming out having two alligator clips attached to the wire. One clip red. One clip black.

Every product made and sold generally has been looked at in terms of a liability insurance stand point in this sue happy country. The cell with two clips has passed muster...at least in a limited fashion.

skip.

[crazycarl]

stopped by rural king today looking for a suitable tarp. 

found a rigid framed 5 watt solar panel approximately 14"X14".

the package stated it had an "over charge prevention" feature.

$23 plus tax.

think i'll pick a couple of these up and experiment on an extra battery.

our compac came with a "uni-solar" panel.

it's semi rigid.  does a nice job of keeping my extra deep cells up to par. (trickle charging)

I plug it in once a week for a day and unplug it at night

here is what the label on the back reads, perhaps someone with greater knowledge will be able to decipher this...

Max Power:                 10.3 w
Current Max Power:     0.62 A
Voltage Max power:     16.5 V
Short Circuit Current:   0.78 A
Open Circuit Voltage:   23.8 V

Model type:                 USF-11
Max System Voltage:   30 V
Series fuse:                 1.5 A

[brackish]

skip's commit was put forth by someone else...Brackish I believe said a true reading can't be got straight from the cell. So take the reading when attached to the battery. Or word to that effect, of course your going to get battery voltage plus something from the cell. Check the water, most cells have a diode so the battery won't 'power the cell', check the polarity + and -, check the out put 12+v to 14+v like on a car?, or limit the output with some do dat -->[1) You will overcharge the battery and reduce its service life. Get a charge controller. http://www.emarineinc.com/products/SunGuard-SG4.5--4.5A%7B47%7D12V-charge-controller.html]<--, and let the sun shine.

What solar panels of limited surface areas don't give you is amperage. And amps are what you burn when the battery powers anything...volts aren't all that important. It's amps. Usually it's a charge of 300 or so milli amps. Or just about nothing. You get what you spend your money on.

And remember when ever electricity travels through water you will make hydrogen and oxygen gases. Ventilate.

Say what!!!!!  I'm not qualified to say any of that