Solar panels.

[Marc]

anyone have any experience with them good or bad? I've got a buddy of mine picking me up one of the coleman solar back up systems.

http://www.icpsolar.com/specificatio...?id_article=40

I'm hoping it will extend my deep cycle battery by a couple of days between charges during a week or so hunt in cold weather.

Marc.

[Ronforca]

I have two solar panels on the roof of my camper for a total of around 60 watts.Don't how many Amps.they work real well for me unless it snows The answer is Solar panels and 2x6 volt wheel chair batteries.Hooked up so that they put out 12 volts you have an unbeatable combination.I am using a 12 volt deep cycle but 2 x6 volts are a whole lot better.My next purchase.
Hope that this helps. Ron

[Marc]

Well I picked up the coleman solar panels from costco and so far I'm impressed. They total 45 watts 3amps peak output. I went camping one weekend showed up with 12.7 volts on a friday and left with 13 volts on Sunday. I'm sure that the fall will not supply as much light and energy as the summer but as long as it helps recharge the battery between nights I'll be happy.

I'm going hunting the 7th to the 12th of September here on the Island. Grouse for the first 3 days then bear/deer for the last two. The evenings get a little chilly but not to the point of freezing yet, it will be interesting to see if the solar panel can keep up in those conditions. It will also be interesting to see how long the propane tank will last

Marc.

[rock]

It's nice to have 2 propane tanks specially in cold weather, rig looks nice,

[Freshtracks]

Marc ,

Is that the solar panel on top of the camper. Does it come with that support(up) bracket. Looks like a smart rig.

[Ronforca]

Nice set up .Mine lay flat on the roof of my camper and it does not take much snow to pit them out of commision .

[Marc]

That's the panel on top of the camper, the frame it is on is made from PVC piping so it's fairly light and durable. It came with the kit. I put it up on the camper to get it out of the way from getting triped on during the night.

Marc ,

Is that the solar panel on top of the camper. Does it come with that support(up) bracket. Looks like a smart rig.

[Farmer]

Marc, unless it is quite cold and you run your furnace for long periods, a 20lber of propane should last for your whole trip. If you are out hunting, you won't be using propane anyway.

Good luck,
Gord

[Marc]

Farmer, I'm going to bring a spare 20lb bottle just for insurance and see how long the original bottle last running the fridge, stove, and furnace for a period of 4 nights and 5 days. This should give me a good indication and if it can last that long then I can safely plan for other outings.
It will also be a test for the solar panel to see if it can keep the battery fully charged at the end of the day from running the furnace fan at night, stove fan for meals, and lights in the evening. I should have a good indication by the second evening how the solar panel is keeping up with the power demand.
I can always start my truck and charge the battery if it comes to that but I'm pretty sure that the panel will make up what was lost the night before as you have stated I'll be out hunting for most of the day (furnace turned off) and going to bed fairly early to be rested up for a morning hunt.

I'll post my findings at the end of the trip. This is sort of the test trip to check the endurance of the camper’s battery, propane, and water holding tank.

Marc.

[Marc]

Well I filled up the propane tank from the last two camping trip I had done and in a full 4 days(96hrs) period I had only used 10 lbs of propane.

We cooked 3 meals a day, heated water after every meal to clean the dishes and used the oven a couple of times for fries and shake and bake. I packed another 20lb cylinder of propane just in case I need it as the evenings have been getting a lot cooler and it's even colder in the mountains. This 4 1/2 day trip will defanitely give me an indication on how much propane and if the solar panel can keep up. I'll let you know when I get back.