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Post Info TOPIC: What Flexible Panel?
Whenarewethere


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RE: What Flexible Panel?
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Before you wire up each panel, test them & benchmark them. Also wire the panels so you can individually test panels later on in situ to be able to trace faults.

With an amp meter on your setup you will soon get an idea of their typical output at any point in time over the day & will see if the system is down a bit.



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Weven


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Thanks for your replies gentleman, I will try with the 1225a BCDC with my 200Ah AGM setup, but having stated that at some stage I would like to go 300Ah's which would probably need a DC/DC upgrade.
Will let you know when I am up and running.

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Whenarewethere


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Brenda and Alan wrote:

Newer solar panels are now more efficient  and 200 Watt panels of good quality run about 1.1 Sq Mt area.

Alan

 200w / 1.1m˛ = 182W/m˛ which is at the upper end.

 

The 100 watt panel as discussed is 0.545m˛

 

182 x 0.545 = 99.2 watts

 

The actual cell coverage is about 84%

 

99.2 x 0.84 = 83.3 watts for the panel

 

Let's see if testing shows the panel is closer to 100 watts. If it is I am sure other will buy them.



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Whenarewethere


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I recommend a couple of panel meters. The voltage is for the batteries & the amp meter is the raw voltage from the solar panels (this was temporary for a test with the 6 x 20w panels in parallel). My controller provides the output via Bluetooth to the phone. The analogue meters you can read as a glance. I have compared them with my DC clamp meter & they are spot on.

IMG_3534.jpg



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Weven


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Thanks for all the help people. I am going to try the 20amp charger keeping in mind I may have to upgrade in the future as I have 300 Ah of AGM.

My panels are not ideal as 2 will be flat, 2 will be angled one side and the 5th angled the other side. Now depending on the van position catching morning sun, midday and afternoon, will be interesting if it can keep up with charging demands. I thinking I may end up with the Victron www.mygenerator.com.au/victron-smartsolar-mppt-100-50-charger-controller.html, The Bluetooth would be nice. Time will tell.

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BrianD


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I have a Renogy 50 Watt flexible https://solwiser.com/am-best-flexible-solar-panels/ . This has proven to be a highly popular choice for RV and boat owners or anyone who needs to install panels on a curved surface where fixed solar arrays may not be possible. They do also recommend them for boating.

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BrianD


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https://solwiser.com/am-best-flexible-solar-panels/

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Jaahn


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Hi smile

BrianD might genuinely have a Renology 50W panel and finds it good, but he does not even say he owns one ! Or possibly he could be a professional spruiker getting a kick back for joining forums around the world and putting a post up with a commercial link. You make your choice. His profile says his location is NY. So not a GN in Australia.

The site solwiser has this disclaimer at the bottom of the page ! I think real members of this forum might be better information. Don't you just love the WWW these days and advertising and influencers.

 AFFILIATE DISCLAIMER

 Solwiser.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Jaahn



-- Edited by Jaahn on Thursday 7th of October 2021 12:59:02 PM

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Whenarewethere


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There are enough of us who have posted numerous pages of data on our setups. Which others may or may not agree with.

vs

A link from someone out of the blue.

 

 

I know which one has no credibility.

 



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Mike Harding


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Whenarewethere wrote:

I have compared them with my DC clamp meter & they are spot on.

How do you know your clamp meter is accurate?



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peatop


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Mike Harding wrote:
Whenarewethere wrote:

I have compared them with my DC clamp meter & they are spot on.

How do you know your clamp meter is accurate?

 I just want to know "what came first? the chicken or the egg?" he tested his clamp meter with his mutimeter that ofc he tested with the clamp meter.



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Whenarewethere


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Like comparing 7 air pressure gauges.



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peatop


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I bought a new multimeter some years ago and in the instruction it told you how to calibrate it however I only had one at the time so tested it against the car battery, yep close enough lol



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Whenarewethere


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Most of the measurements I am doing a simply relative.

Check each panel see if they are acceptable.

Use heavier cable & see if I can squeeze a bit more out.

Check the amps for air compressor to calculate wire gauge for the run.

 

I have 2 cheap multimeters 10amp max, both work very well for the price. A couple of 10amp panel meters. 2 Victron MPPT Bluetooth controllers 10 & 20amp. DC clampmeter.

Over the years, double checking the readings & cross referencing, they are all plenty good enough for the task.

 

As compared to someone who says a solar panel works perfectly because they simply plugged it in. A bit like most reviews, probably never seen a multimeter in their life & don't know what a fuse is.



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50L custom fuel rack 6x20W 100/20mppt 4x26Ah gel 28L super insulated fridge TPMS 3 ARB compressors heatsink fan cooled 4L tank aftercooler Air/water OCD cleaning 4 stage car acoustic insulation.
Jaahn


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Hi smile

I have several meters multi and panel. As I no longer go to work I thought I would get a personal calibration unit a couple of years back. This is one currently sold on Ebay. https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/163897196659

It provides 4 voltages, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, 10.0 V and has a rechargeable battery from a USB port. It has a designed 'calibration chip' in it and a circuit designed to provide stable repeatable voltages. Beats guessing and with a calibrated voltage meter, you can run currents through a 1% resister to check current accuracy.  

Jaahn

 

Image 21 - VOLTAGE REFERENCE MODULE AD584KH 4-CHANNEL 2.5V-10V VOLTAGE TESTERS W/ CASE



-- Edited by Jaahn on Saturday 9th of October 2021 02:36:58 PM

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Mike Harding


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I have done a lot of work around calibration over the years; it is a complex and much misunderstood subject even to most engineers.

Fortunately, for most domestic work, then providing your measurement equipment is within +/- 10% it doesn't generally matter.



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