The solar arrived for Phoenix (4 115w victron panels and various “make it work” stuff).
The Plan!
The plan is simple. After some long discussions with various people, it seems that the super solar will most likely be used to charge the huge 12v service battery (4 x 12v 92ah) and will hopefully mean that there won’t be such a concern for charging those then.
With a massive 328Ah to hand, I will be able to recharge my laptop and other bits and pieces via an inverter or direct 12v.
I’m yet to work out the maths but I think the amount of amp hours will be plenty to watch TV for hours or check the internet for weather and local information etc.
To recap
There will be 4 X solar panels connected in parallel (pos to pos, neg to neg) and connected to a charge controller.
This controller is first connected to the large 12v battery via an inline breaker fuse.
Phoenix will enjoy free entertainment (stereo, tv), an internet connection with raspberry pi security camera.
Future plans
The future is looking lithium battery for the drive. This will be installed in unison with the existing batteries for drive.
This will allow much further range but also hopefully a way to recharge quicker.
There is a plan bubbling away to have the raspberry pi to monitor and turn on a light (low power led) as nights draw in.
This will give Phoenix the appearance that someone is home and recharge during the daylight hours.
It may even be an Arduino setup yet but more thought is required on that yet ?
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