Solar panel charging.

Post by **IanD** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:56 pm

OK, here is what I am thinking. This year I am parking my boat at a local marina and unfortunately, I do not have access to an electrical outlet. The thought of dragging my trolling motor battery home every evening is not at all pleasant. I could go to the gym and work out or take the S.I.L. with me everytime (he is built like a freakin bull).
I was thinking of rigging up a solar panel to recharge the trolling motor battery. Does this sound feasable? What size panel do you think is needed? Any other special considerations to think of? Has anyone ever tried this method?
Comments and input appreciated.
Ian

Post by **jiggy2006** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 9:33 pm

never used one but you looking for something like : ebay.ca -> Item number: 130079301504 ?

Post by **SteveO** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 10:09 pm

Ian - this is doable - solar panels are meant to be hooked up to deep cycle batteries. I have no practical experience with solar panels yet. I need to do the calc to figure out how long it would take you to charge up. If you fish once a weekend, you are probably fine. However, it is going to be a little pricey.

If the lugging is your main concern it might be worth considering two small batteries. It will be cheaper and you won't have to worry about cloudy days etc...

Many factors here...

http://www.solar4power.com/solar-power-basics.html

Post by **IanD** » Wed Feb 14, 2007 12:31 pm

SteveO wrote:Ian - this is doable - solar panels are meant to be hooked up to deep cycle batteries. I have no practical experience with solar panels yet. I need to do the calc to figure out how long it would take you to charge up. If you fish once a weekend, you are probably fine. However, it is going to be a little pricey.

If the lugging is your main concern it might be worth considering two small batteries. It will be cheaper and you won't have to worry about cloudy days etc...

Many factors here...

http://www.solar4power.com/solar-power-basics.html

Steve,
I am usually out once a weekend. During the week the boat will be stored on its trailer at the marina. No problems when I am away for a weekend or a week of fishing as I have a hookup at the lodge and can plug-and-play right at the dock. For arguments sake, the boat will be parked for 5 days without being touched. A cover will be over the boat during that time and I was thinking of placing the panel on the cover and let Mother Nature do her thing. No problems with exposure to sun light.
Like you say, I have to figure out how long it would take to charge a battery and what size of panel would be needed.
Thanks for the link. It looks like it will help with the calcs.
Ian

Post by **OTRA** » Wed Feb 14, 2007 2:29 pm

Hi,

Both Cabelas and Bass pro shops carry the type solar panels you're looking for: the smaller ones are for maintence, i.e. a trickle charge; the larger ones will charge a weakened battery. You will also need to make sure there is some type of shutoff circuitry so that you don't overcharge the battery.

Post by **karma** » Wed Feb 14, 2007 9:53 pm

I've been doing a bit of research into this for my RV. What I've learned is that the smaller pannels, (under 30 watt) can trickle charge a battery, which is good for topping up but not useful for charging batteries that have been significantly drained. If your going to get a panel that can put out at least 8 amps, like a 130 watt pannel, you will need a charge controler so that you don't fry the battery. Panels of this size can run you $500+, and the controlers are about $50. You would want to find a way of locking it to the boat for security. Or, you could see about mounting the panel high up like on a shed roof out of sight and then just run the leads down to your controler and battery and just leave the panel up there for the summer.
HTH