Solar panels Recomendations please

[AndrewJo]

Dear All I am thinking of buying a solar panel to put on my motorhome our intention is to go full timing next year around Europe from March onward We have no itinary but intend to go where fancy take us We have A Burstner 690I 4 birth approx 7m long It already has 2 100amp leisure batteries & I intend installing a 100 or 110 watt solar panel The problem is I have seen various types of panel on sale & they tend to be either be Photovoltaic or Monocrystalline My question is what is the best system & can any one recommend an installer & what is Photovoltaic & Monocrystalline Regards Andy & Jo

[johnsandywhite]

:-D Hi Andrew&Jo. Photovoltaic is just a name for a Solar Cell. Monocrystalline, Polycrystalline and Amorphous are types of Solar Panels. Amorphus are usually used in smaller and less efficient panels. The theoretical efficiency of monocrystalline cells is slightly higher than that of polycrystalline cells, but there is little practical difference in performance. We currently have 2 x 125 watt Monocrystalline Solar Panels controlled by a Solar Boost 2000E controller which converts the normally higher voltage created by Solar panels into extra amps for charging batteries. ;-)

[colin]

As above don't forget to fit a controller or you will wreck batteries after a few sunny days.

[Mel E]

As a start, list all your electrical items on board, how many amps they consume and how many minutes/hours they are used each day. Multiply to get amp-hours and add together For example: Pump: 6 amps for 10 minutes = 1 amp hour per day, say TV 45 watts = 45/12 amps = 4 amps, say for 4 hours = 16 amp hours per day. A solar panel delivering 100 watts does so at about 16.5 volts to push the charge into the battery. (Some controller can reduce this to 14 volts, but most do not do so.) So: 100/16.5 = 6.0 amps. But this is only under full, overhead sun at right angles to the panel. Fixed on the roof, you never get this, and in winter or at 0900 or 1600 when the sun is lower, you get much reduced input. As a simple approximation: Amp hours generated in winter = max output x 3 and in summer = max output x 6 so you'll get 18 amp hours in winter and 36 amp hours in summer. (This allows for a 'normal' mix of cloudy, overcast and sunny days. Obviously you'll do better in Morocco in winter and less well in Scotland.) An alternative to the straight solar panel mounted on the roof is the Alden panel mounted on a device based on an automatic satellite dish, which automatically tracks the sun and keeps the panel at right angles to the sun'd rays. Comes with a 100 watt panel and gives about the same output a 3 flat 100 watt panels but costs only about twice as much as one - and uses less roof space. Sold by Roadpro and can be fitted by various companies including Van Bitz.