Solar Panel deal

[OneMoBear]

We're almost all dressed up with no place to go!

This looks pretty good to me under the circumstances. Yes, that is snow in the background (as in NO sun today).

Malinda

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by OneMoBear

We're almost all dressed up with no place to go!

This looks pretty good to me under the circumstances. Yes, that is snow in the background (as in NO sun today).

Malinda

Just a tip......Although a volt-meter may tell you if the solar panel is a dead player or not (as in zero volts.....no continuity), it has very little practicl value other than that.

I always suggest that anyone with a solar array needs to have some way to monitor amperage output. Your typical multimeter will not read DC amps.

Some people have gone ahead and installed expensive amperage panels that will also keep track of input, out-go and give you a pretty decent score as to how many amp-hours may still be in your battery (through a mathematical calculation). I had a similar panel on my sailboat but find them a bit over-kill for a small RV with a small solar system (just my personal take on it). Some people just love gadgets......

However, I would suggest that you do have something to tell you the quality of output from your panel.

I have found this device to be invaluable to me, extremely accurate and relatively inexpensive.
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...5&blockType=G5

[scrubjaysnest]

Originally Posted by OneMoBear

We're almost all dressed up with no place to go!

This looks pretty good to me under the circumstances. Yes, that is snow in the background (as in NO sun today).

Malinda

From the pics that looks like my fluke, mine will do a 4-20mA output besides a 1 A input.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by scrubjaysnest

From the pics that looks like my fluke, mine will do a 4-20mA output besides a 1 A input.

This one will do .01A to 400A. It's the only one that I know of that will do that. I've compared it with shunt type inline ammeters and it is extremely accurate.

It's hard to see the decimal point in the pic above but it is reading 47.2A as the output of my converter.

[scrubjaysnest]

We got our solar panels from UL Solar on ebay. $429 including a morningstar sunsaver 10 controller. The only down side is 12awg wire. Shipping was free.
Communications wasn't very good.

[B_and_D]

If you don't mind, would you please share the details of your purcase? It sounds like the costs have really come down since I last checked on prices.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by Wavery

If anyone is thinking of solar panels, this is a GREAT deal:
http://cgi.ebay.com/80-Watt-solar-pa...item335aaf4bcb

I purchased 2, of these same panels from this seller (@ $240 each) and I can't say enough about them. At @ $209 (incl S&H) they are a steal.

1, 80W panel may be adequate for some, especially if it is not permanently mounted and you are willing to "Chase the Sun" with it. I permanently mounted 2 of these and have had quite impressive results and I'm NOT a power mizer....

This guy's prices fluctuate, depending on his inventory. If you are thinking solar, I'd grab them at this price.

What a different time this is in the "Solar world".

I just came across this post from 2010. I was thrilled about 80W solar panels @ $209 each ($2.61 per watt). Yesterday, I bought 2 NEW, 320W solar panels for $100 each ($0.32 per watt).

At 66"x 40", they probably wouldn't be a TrailManor match but it just shows how much solar has gone down over the past 13-years.

[Bill]

You are so right! Back in 2002, when my first TM was new, I paid $600 each for a pair of 80-watt Kyocera panels, and I had to drive to Flagstaff (300 miles round trip) to get them. I was more than happy to do so. Two or three years ago, I sold them to a non-RVer for $100 for the pair, and considered myself lucky to get that.

Bill