Cruiserdrew
On the way there
If you ended up buying the bluetooth charge controller from Victron, it gives you a nice read out of panel output and battery voltage on the phone app.
Anyone installed a slide out solar panel system mounted to the underside of their roof rack? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter alia176
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If you ended up buying the bluetooth charge controller from Victron, it gives you a nice read out of panel output and battery voltage on the phone app.
LS1FJ40
SILVER Star
I haven’t yet. With a 160w panel the 75/15 should be adequate, correct?
Cruiserdrew
On the way there
Will be fine. The interface was upgraded with the last update. But you get the idea.
alia176
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #24
Drew alluded to this already but let's take my 28 panel 6.5kw PV system at home as an example. There's a tree that *will* cast its shadow on couple of the panels during the low sun in the winter. Remember, that sun is low on the southern sky during winter so casting a shadow is super easy. When this happens, that entire string of 16 panels become *null*, as in they produce near zero amps. Hence I have a system that pulls those panels out of the equation during winter months and return to service in the summer months. That's why homeowners need to be wary of natural and man made obstructions that create shadows on PV panels. Even small things as several large bird poops can render a panel, eventually the entire string, useless.
Anyway, way too much info for some and not enough for others!
Cruiserdrew
On the way there
Ronny Dahl recently did a video about the different types of panels and how shade affects them they are all affected to some degree, but certain ones will have massive loss from having just a little shade, while other types cope better with it. I have a monocrystaline 100 watt panel that I got from Richie. @RFB but I am waiting to get a few other things done before I mount it.
fj62max
Wildlife Customs
I don't know Ronny Dahl, but I agree with him. My research led me to believe the monocrystaline panels are much less affected by partial obstruction than the polycrystaline panels. Polycrystaline panels are a bit more efficient but much more affected by partial blockage and the kind used in house sized arrays. Monocrystaline are the kind we usually put on our trucks.
