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the roof of my van has no flat surface for a solar panel. i ordered a flexable solar panel and should be in next week, i will try putting that on the roof instead of the glass panels as you see in the video.
I do need to clean up the wire mess though.
thanks for the input
Cool Video, i just got a 12V 30W solar panel which i plan on using in my camper trailer. Im planning on doing the same thing that you did in your van. where did you get the charge controler that is in between the panel and the batery? Also how do you power your TV? Inverter? Sorry about all the questions im just interested and you have experience. also i agree with terrytrooper, lets see an updated video with some cord managment.
Great job…I want to do the same with my conversion van! Actually…I got a little confused with all the wires…could you make another video for us Solar noobs showing the wire hook-ups and what gage wires to use?
Keep up the good work!
Has anyone tried to use one of them emergency battery jumper, they have a 12 volt charge controller and 12 volt battery for very cheap.
I have one I’m testing under a bulb and some solar cells from solar walkway lights. I’m trying to go ultra cheap.
I just bought a 12 volt solar panel for kicks, wanted to experiment with it. The thing is I don’t know what to do with it… I’m a solar panel noob, what can I power with this panel?
Also, how do I figure out how many watts it produces?
to measure the watts you need a volt amp meter. you need to measure the current (amps) accross the leads coming out of the solar panel in the sun of course. the formula is Watts = Volts x Amps . if you get .5 amps or 500 mAmps then multiply 12 volts x .5 amps to get your watts. depending on the amps you get will be the max you can run a 12 volt item such as a fan or light or charge a 12 volt battery with it. the sunlinq i bought is a 12 watt or 800 mAmp (.8 amps).
I just bought a Brunton Solarport 4.4. It can charge anything USB, Cigarette lighter, or AA and AAA batteries. Cant wait to try it out. The panels you have how would you rig something up to charge off them?
i have also purchased simlar solar charging devices that can charge 5v to 12v devices. they have their own intenal battery that the solar panel is charging , then the battery in the unit is charging cell phones, mp3 players, etc. how long and how much you can charge is depending on the amperage of the battery inside the unit. my panels in this video is for charging anything that requires 12 volts only. i would need a step down transformer to charge less voltage requiring deviecs.
def clean that wiring up and make a battery box that has ventilation to the outside air.. and if you put a camper ceiling vent to suck the hot air out you probably wouldnt need to run 5 fans and it would free up a lot of power for other things. I also just had the idea to put a small wind generator on the roof so when you drive to your camp you can get wind power on the way
shit! a LOT of cables! You need to clean that up before you get a short somewhere and a fire! .. Why not make a real installation with neat cabeling and put some mounts for the panels on your roof.. When you camp you just quick fix the panels on the roof and connect them to the car system by some contacts mounted on the roof or side of the car or something .. would be a real nice system!