Now the sun's coming out...

I've got a small solar panel on Grumble:

I think it's a good idea if you leave the vehicle standing for a while.

In article , Mother writes

Thanks Martyn. It looks neat & tidy. Are you happy it's waterproof, etc., and do you think you get a good enough charge rate? I know they are supposed to work fairly well, even on dull days.

I used one years ago in Nepal that produced a whopping 10A on sunny days. It was far from cheap though, and the departmental manager stupidly connected it to a very expensive wet NiCad, which it knackered in about 4 months. Had it been charging lead-acid, it would have worked brilliantly. We sent him some Cyclons when I came home...

Regards,

Simonm.

Do solar panels still have the deterioration problem? I fitted a solar powered water fountain the the pond at our old house - the panel was probably about the same size as yours, on the shed roof. It jetted water about 6' vertically at first, but after a season, it was more of a half-hearted trickle. The pump seemed fine, I think the panel was losing efficiency, but I never tested it.

David

In article , David French writes

The ones I'm considering have a 10 year guarantee and a "20 year performance guarantee on the cells" so they might well have improved. I haven't researched prices yet though, so I might be in for a nasty shock!

Regards,

Simonm.

Twas Fri, 05 Mar 2004 17:47:31 GMT when SpamTrapSeeSig put finger to keyboard producing:

where are these then??

-- Regards. Mark.(AKA, Mr.Nice.) ___________________________________________________________ "To know the character of a man, give him anonymity" - Mr.Nice.

In article , Mr. Nice. writes

Cheltenham:

Regards,

Simonm.

Don't you get worried about putting your foot through it martyn?

Alex

Erm... I put it there in a moment of pure stupidity. It will actually be going soon and will be replaced with a larger cell, on the front end...

Degradation is an issue - which is why I got the (at the time) expensive one. However, keep it clean and it'll do for a good few years. One point, measurement is impossible as you'll never get the same sky conditions - why I bothered keeping a log is beyond me...

I'm looking at getting a bigger cell - or one of these 'roll up' jobies - s'posed to be designed for marine use and a lot more robust...

Totally - impressed actually.

It'll put enough charge in a battery to start a 3.5L V8 101 at around

These things are the wotsits, you can bend them (gently ! ) and jump on them too.