have you used a solar battery charger?

[Anonymous]

Has any one out there used a solar battery charger? In Canada we have a comerical running from Crappy Tire about them, do they work and how well? They make it seem like you just set it up and forget about it. I like the idea of not having to rember to charge the battery every few weeks this winter. Any help would be great thanks.
Ian

[whodatpat]

I can't ofer any advice on the solar charger other than it is prety basic technology, and about time someone thought of somthing like that as a trickle charger for poor climate conditions. However, If that is really the name of the tire company, I would probably stay away from there crap.
Patrick

[Sandy]

We had a small travel trailer permanently set up on some bush property a few years ago. In it was a car battery to power some 12V lights and all we had on it was an old solar panel on the roof. I don't remember what amperage it was, but it kept the battery charged all year round. We'd ski into the trailer in the winter to check it out and the lights would still come on bright and the battery never froze. It goes down to -30C here most winters aleast a couple of times. That battery was still working good 10 years later when we sold the trailer. I'm convinced they work great as long as the amperage is enough. It doesn't take much to keep a battery topped up

[fast eddie]

On a VW Westfalia forum, somebody had mentioned that VWs get shipped from Germany with a small solar panel sitting on the dash to keep the battery charged for the trip, and if you ask reeeeeallly nicely at your local VW dealer, they might just give you one. Or sell you one. Might help if you drive a VW, so borrow your friends brand new Jetta for the trip.

[Anonymous]

Lots of roadside emergency phones and monitoring equipment use solar cells to keep the batteries topped up. The biggest problem with solar cells is keeping them clear so they can see the sun. They don't seem to mind cold temperatures. (That's what's powering the Mars rovers, and it's freaking cold there.)

For devices whose only source of power is the solar cell charging a battery, a smart charger is important. However, just to provide a trickle charge to keep a battery from sulfating, a simple panel should be fine.

I'm thinking of putting up something like that to keep the batteries in my bike and my wife's scooter alive through the winter. Problem is I live in a lake effect snow area, so we get a LOT of snow. I'm thinking of putting the panel at the top of a pole attached to my shed, so if it does get covered I can whack the pole and shake it clear.

Dave

[Planecrazy]

On a VW Westfalia forum, somebody had mentioned that VWs get shipped from Germany with a small solar panel sitting on the dash to keep the battery charged for the trip, and if you ask reeeeeallly nicely at your local VW dealer, they might just give you one. Or sell you one. Might help if you drive a VW, so borrow your friends brand new Jetta for the trip.

This is true. I bought one off Ebay for around $15 bucks and it works great! 4watt (if I'm not mistaken). I haven't used it on any regular basis, but I DID bring it along on the Brown County trip last June as a "backup" in case anyone's charging system gave up the ghost. I figured that the minimal power necessary to keep a GS running could be suppied by the panel in an emergency... Luckily never had to test that theory!

Oh, one other thing ... the VW panels are NOT rated for use outside, so if you want to use them for other than inside a windshield you'd have to seal up all the seams...

Steve 8)

[gremlin]

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=44768

i use one like this charger on my bike. keeps the battery up. I can go on vacaton and come back and the bike is still at full charge.

[Anonymous]

Brunton (Brunton.com) makes a bunch of different solar panels. Getting a medium sized solar roll and putting it across the pilion seat/luggage rack could work ok.

[fast eddie]

Jeez, provided I could ride on sunny days only, sounds cheaper than replacing a stator or RR!!

[Anonymous]

Years ago I work for a company that made game feeders with solar panels to keep the batteries up. I know that they wuld work for years on 12v gel cell batteries. To get the most out of the panel face it up at about a 45 degree angle facing south. This will get the most time per day of sunlight on the panel.

[Anonymous]

Wow,

you people blow me away onece again with the input. The VW way looks good and cheap I'll take my brothers Golf to the dealer soon. I'm putting the battery in the basement and I'll have the panel by one of the windows to catch the sun so it should work. By the by it's Canadian Tire but it's known as Crappy Tire because some of the tires and auto work they do can be less that great.
Thanks again.
Ian

[Planecrazy]

By the way, Ian, the VW panel comes with suction cups on each corner so in all probability you'll just "stick it" on the window and it's done! Just make sure to use a drop of water (or spit) on the suction cup to make a good seal, and make sure the window is spotless before you put the panel on ... you don't want it falling off the window halfway through the winter and breaking!

Enjoy,
Steve 8)