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Subject:Re: Calling all solar gurus
From:Frank Condelli
Date:Mon, 29 Jun 2009 06:35:15 EDT

In a message dated 28/06/2009 2:05:20 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
LISTSERV@GERRY.VANAGON.COM writes:

        You need more info on the  fridge.  You need a better more powerful
output panel.  You will need  a battery to store energy for the night.  You
will then need a  controller.  The solar panel will not run the fridge but
charge a battery  which is running the fridge.  So, the solar panel must
keep up with  the power use during the day or whenever the sun is shining on it
plus keep the  battery fully charged so it has full capacity when the solar
quits working, when  the sun goes down.  Older solar panels will not
produce much power in low  light, newer technology panels will produce power even
in moonlight.  You  will pay more for this advantage.  Dirty panels will
produce less than  clean ones so bigger is better unless you want to clean it
every morning, could  be a problem if mounted up on the roof.  Panels can be
fragile or  indestructible, you will pay more for ones that are
indestructible, glass panels  will break if hit with let's say a coconut, camping on the
beaches of  Mexico for example.   AND, remember the sun does not shine
everyday  even in MEXICO !   Well, on the Pacific coast between November and
April it does a dam good job of shining every day.  So.......you need to do  a
lot of homework then a lot of searching to find the best panel for your
needs  that fit your budget, not easily accomplished.  See here what I have and
 have used for two years now.   _Vanagon Westfalia Solar  Panel_
(http://frankcondelli.com/solar.htm)     Works fine for me but is on the fine edge of
not  working mostly because the battery I'm using does not have enough
storage  capacity and when in low light levels does not produce much power, panel
is old  technology, hence the cheap price I paid.

>>>>Calling all solar  gurus<<<<<

Cheers,

Frank  Condelli
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
'87 Westy & Lionel Trains (_Collection for sale_
(http://frankcondelli.com/trainsal.htm) )
_Frank Condelli &  Associates_ (http://frankcondelli.com/busindex.html)  -
Vanagon/Vanagon Westfalia Service in the Ottawa Valley
_Vanagon Stainless Steel Exhaust  Systems_
(http://frankcondelli.com/exhaust.htm)
_BusFusion_ (http://www.busfusion.com/)  a VW Camper  camping event,
Almonte, ON, June 11 ~ 14,  2009