Saturday, Jun 03, 2017 at 21:31
Nick b
I too have solar panels mounted flat on the roof, some 400w on the van and a further 100w on the roof of the ute. I have 420 a/h of battery to charge during the day, with a daily use in the vicinity of 200 a/h. My wife is on
home oxygen and that machine alone uses around 8 amps for 16 hours/day or 128a/h.
Whilst I am south of the
Tropic of Capricorn then the angle of the solar panels is not conducive to maximum efficiency, and I can still have a requirement run the generator for some hours to replenish the batteries for the night's use. This use can be as much as 6 hours at a charge rate of 35 amps, depending on atmospheric conditions. With the solar panels fitted to the roof then maximum efficiency would only be attained when north of the
Tropic of Capricorn during the Summer months, however there was sufficient efficiency once north of
Alice Springs last week.
As I mentioned in my original posting was that solar panels MUST be orientated directly towards the sun, and continually changed to follow the sun, for maximum efficiency, and even then they are not all capable of their rated output.
Hope this helps.
Regards
Athol
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