Solar Power

Does anybody use a Solar Panel for charging up their batteries? Mainly the house battery. If so, what watts, make, and how well does it work. I would like to be self sufficient without having to use a generator or driving every day to keep my fridge and electrical devices running. Thanks...captainkettel...

Does anybody use a Solar Panel for charging up their batteries? Mainly the house battery. If so, what watts, make, and how well does it work. I would like to be self sufficient without having to use a generator or driving every day to keep my fridge and electrical devices running. Thanks...captainkettel...

I have a 75 watt BP solar panel and 2 optima blue top batteries (hooked up in parallel). Under "average" conditions I can park for 3 days and run the fridge/freezer (Engel 45) continously, and use the lights, fan, water pump and inverter (800watt) sparingly. Solar panels are expensive, but a good long term investment.

Cheers
Mark

I put an 80-watt panel on my Eagle. It's big, about 4x2 feet. It charges my auxiliary battery so that I can use a stereo, fan, coffee maker, DVD player and lights. Your refridgerator will eat up about 160 watts/day, and an 80-watt panel will give you only about 55 watts/day. So, in short, you really can't power your fridge solely from roof-mounted panels. Unless, of course, you drive a part of each day and run your fridge off of your alternator.