Solar trickle chargers

[George130]

What are peoples thoughts on those small trickle chargers. I'm thinking of getting one for the Defa and one for the wifes car. Been looking and one claims 100ma while the other is a 5 watt panel.

[drivesafe]

Hi George, these solar trickle chargers work well but there is one thing you must be aware of, they are trickle chargers, which means they are designed to stop your battery from self discharging.

They WILL NOT charge your battery, so for them to work, your battery has to be fully charged in the first place otherwise you are just wasting your time.

[Taz]

I think they are well worth the investment, particularly if the vehicel is left unused for a significant time when sulphation can occur. Since they generally run at higher voltages than a car alternator - they really fully charge the battery once the bulk charge from the alternator has done it's job. I was also informed that a 5watt panel is about as big as you should go before needing a regulator. You should be able to connect a 5watt panel directly to your batts with a diode to prevent batt drain when the sun goes down.

[Blknight.aus]

they will charge the battery but are bloody slow at doing so and wont if the battery is less than 70% (bit of a wag at that number) charged or already has existing sulphation.

avoid the ones that plug into the ciggy socket unless your ciggy socket is directly wired to your battery as they wont do diddly.

[Xavie]

I thought they also aided in extending battery life?

We use them on a farm for the paddock bashers which may not be run for 3-6 months at a time and the batteries in those have lasted for 7 or more years now.

[JDNSW]

I have used one on my tractor for several years now - since it often goes for months at a time between uses, it ensures that it always starts.

John

[George130]

avoid the ones that plug into the ciggy socket unless your ciggy socket is directly wired to your battery as they wont do diddly.

I was going to cut the siggy plug off and wire it strait to the batts.



Thanks guys.

[Redback]

Ed, if you can get a 15 or 20 watt panel, they work much better and no need for a regulator as they only put out around 0.8 at most, we have one for our camper to trickle charge the camper battery while camped, we camped at Barrington Tops for 9 days with it trickle charging the battery.

Also ours will actually charge the battery if it's down:D

Baz.

[Tank]

What are peoples thoughts on those small trickle chargers. I'm thinking of getting one for the Defa and one for the wifes car. Been looking and one claims 100ma while the other is a 5 watt panel.
I purchased on Xmas eve a "Solar Generator Briefcase" from K-Mart on special for $92, normally $115, specs are, 2 panels (when opened from briefcase configuration 550mm x 400mm, Output Power 13W, Working Voltage 17.5V, Working Current 0.74A, comes with a regulator, Solar Input 7A Max, Over Charge 14V+0.5V, Over Discharge 10.5V=0.5V. It comes with Extension leads w/battery clamps, Male and Female Ciggy sockets.
It looks like a large briefcase and comes in a cardboard box with 4 styrofoam packing/protection pieces, when I take it away I leave it in the cardboard box for protection. Brand name is Jackeroo, I hooked it up to a 12V battery and it read 1.4V about 5 hours later it was up to 12.3 volts when I disconnected it, so it works, same size (output) panels from Jaycar were around $300 and that was without a regulator, check it out, Regards Frank.

[101 Ron]

I have purchased two Jackaroo briefcase type portable solar panels.
One is running a electric fence and the other keeping the battery topped up on a truck with a N70Z battery.
Both panels are located in position where they only get full sun light for One Third of the day.
I find the electric fence runs OK day and night with out any other input.
The truck battery is always topped up for its occasional use.
The out put of these units by the manufacturer is 13 watt.
My testing has found the best posible out put is .7 of a amp at about 15 volts.
Best out put under normal conditions is .5 of a amp.
The panel is of the amphrous type which means it is not the best output for its size.
I find the panel its self is not the best value.............but you do get a regulator and various plugs and connections to make things easy and this is where you come out in front and the reg is rated for 7 amps.
The reg can be used on a lot bigger panels etc.
I think 13 watt is the minmum for mantaining a vehicle battery especially over winter.
If a battery is dead flat and you try and fully recharge it witha 13 watter in winter it could take more than a month.
I feel usings a 5 watter and especially one without a diode to stop night time drain back is a waste of time.
The best solar panels are the larger ones......60watt and above with a reg and your talking 4amps and a reasonible recharging time and the only problem is it takes a large amount of money.
The cheapest way to mantain and slow charge a battery is a 50 dollar projector 240 volt to 900ma charger and it has indicator LEDs and various quick connect leads etc.

[Taz]

I feel usings a 5 watter and especially one without a diode to stop night time drain back is a waste of time..

I totally agree if your looking for a solar charger, however the post was about trickle charging in vehicles that I assumed were in regular or semi regular use. I can appreciate that it may not suit your application, but if you normally charge your battery prior to storage (via normal running and letting the alternator do it's thing) and just want to keep them in good shape and perhaps to last a period of non-use, then an unregulated 5watt panel would be a cost effective solution.