Winter Storage- Anyone use Solar/Sun Battery Charger?

[b. hilliard]

Hi-
I'm hoping to get the positives/ negatives (no pun intended) on using a solar powered battery maintainer for the winter. Does anyone have advice or recommendations?
Thanks-
Brian

[charleskieffner]

we use juan on our super secret stealth elk/deer/quad hauler/bike hauler/ college kid hauler/ 18 ft trailer to keep battery charged for lights inside trailer.

purple photovotaics are latest greatest. yep purple. usfs uses same to power various gizmos thruout forests. can pee/poo on them, shoot them w/30.06, stand on them etc. and they still make power. when dark clouds out or rain has diode to disallow power drain.

this juan we have is 5 ft tall by 24". bought it from el prezidente of arizona solar society fer 300 bucks years back.

powered everything up at lake powell for 2.5 weeks on 26ft boat. kept batteries maintained, reefer/ice maker/lights going.

how do i know all this? cuz i have been playing w/solar fer years here in the land of DEL SOL! arizona. fer further inquisitive info go to arizona public service.com and check out their solar farm next to ASU in tempe,az.

the hot ticket is the thin juans(mine is in alum frame), these can be found at any marine store(west marine). blow boaters(sailbotes) use them extensively. very thin and can be laid on hull and stepped on, pee'd on shot with 30.06 etc.

they aint cheap. can get with battery connect terminals and or ciggy plug in.we have both and it goes from vehicle to vehicle to boat to trailer.

great for going to baja as back up to keep batteries charged on vehicles.

the bigger the better as far as making electrical "go-go" juice.

[BratRice]

Speaking from personal experience using wireless, environmentally friendly solar power is just as easy as it seems. Just as soon as state-of-the-art solar plates are exposed to daylight (even under clouds or snow), they''ll begin generating free power. Through clear glass or directly under the sun, solar chargers capture daylight, converting it into DC (low voltage) electricity. Since they are maintenence free, you just let them do their work....worry free! With various power levels to suit every need, solar chargers are the ultimate answer to your automotive battery needs.

Hope this helps -

[3.2 CAB]

I have used them for many years on various vehicles. One important thing to watch for is the actual voltage/m-amp, output capacity. I have seen some that really don't make the cut, being they don't really put out enough DC voltage, to overcome the normal power drain on a battery, that a lot of later model vehicles have, from clocks, on board computer, radio, etc. First you will need to find out your vehicles normal, voltage drain, to make sure you get a solar charger that can overcome this normal drain. If you plan on disconnecting your battery, and then using a solar charger to maintain your battery, you won't have the constant drain, to contend with. I have seen some that are quite reasonable in price, if you do not need a high output model. I have one from Harbor Freight that I have been using for about 6yrs on my 18hp riding mower. It does a great job, but there is no drain, while it is just sitting. I think I bought it when they had them on sale for about $10.00, and as long as there is no power drain while just sitting, or if it is just the battery out of the vehicle, or if it is disconnected, it will work fine as a maintainer and keep the battery fully charged, and they do have circuitry to prevent overcharging built in. Good luck!!

[petrolblue83911]

out of pure ignorance on this, do you mount the cell/panel outside?-and run a line into the vehicle-wherever it may be stored?

[ZOA NOM]

Originally Posted by petrolblue83911

out of pure ignorance on this, do you mount the cell/panel outside?-and run a line into the vehicle-wherever it may be stored?

Yep, simple as that. Also, I would suggest disconnecting the battery from the load of the car, which will reduce the work of the charger.