about 10 hours ago - No comments
Question by : Is there anyone in California who wants solar energy and doesnt know where to get it? Hi i have a lot of questions in regards to solar energy, and im really interested in it for the sake of California. Is there anyone who feels the same way i do? please include your
about 1 day ago - 3 comments
Question by : how large must a solar panel be to power a train? If the schematics of a solar train were drawn, what would they look like? Would the train be large or small? Where would the panels be placed? And if so, how large must the panels be to fit the roof? Even
about 3 days ago - No comments
Question by Ashley J: How much solar energy (kJ) would have to be…? How much solar energy (kJ) would have to be transferred to a 145.0 foot length of asphalt highway that is 49.0 feet wide and 25.0 centimeters deep in order to raise the temperature 5.00 oC ?The average density of asphalt is 721
about 4 days ago - 2 comments
Question by : How do I make my own solar panel? How do I make my own solar panels and generate my own power cheaply. The commercial one’s are just too expensive. —————————————— Answer by mugikuyuIts very easy but the entire process is quite lengthy. You will need to purchase some materials and then assemble
about 5 days ago - 2 comments
Question by elrodvoss: What Solar Panel Efficiency would replace Coal? A friend sent me an article that a company called Fraunhofer has produced solar panels that can achieve 41.1% efficiency. Now taking into account the fact that solar do sent work during storms or night and greatly reduced during winters, what % do you think
about 6 days ago - No comments
Question by Jake P: Are there any Universities that have programs about solar energy? I wanted to know if there are any Universities in North America that have programs that teach about solar energy and using it for electricity in a home (mainly installation). —————————————— Answer by Dr. Clandestine:)Many dude, they have a nice supply
about 1 week ago - 1 comment
Question by GorgeousLilThing: I want to conserve energy, Is there anyone out there who knows how to make solar panel the simple way? What are the key materials needed to create a solar panel and the simple steps to assemble it. What would be the desirable size of the panel enough to run a desk
about 1 week ago - 1 comment
Question by : why not people use solar energy for their daily need? I am observing that normally we need electricity for lighting purpose then why not people use solar energy for lighting in each room. —————————————— Answer by DifdiMost people are not millionaires. Solar energy systems equal to what you can get via normal
about 1 week ago - 2 comments
Question by : What is an issue or something interesting about the solar panel technology? I’m hoping to do a science fair project on solar panels. Since energy has been a large issue lately, I was hoping to research on this topic! What are some things that I can possibly do or experiment on? Thank
about 1 week ago - No comments
Question by jayB: Are there any grants for converting homes and or swimming pools to solar energy? my pool is heated by gas.I can’t afford to heat the pool with the price of gas. also I would like convert the houses to solar energy. I need to become absolutely energy efficient with solar energy with
(out of 8 reviews)
about 1 year ago
Review by L. Anderson for 20 Watt Black Frame Mono-crystalline Solar Panel and Battery Charger
Rating:
Location:
K55, Baja California, Mexico
Purpose:
Reduce dependence on buddy’s noisy & smelly gas generator during weekend trips to beach shack. Week of rest after every usage.
System [June 2008]:
-> 60W total [~3.5Amps]. Two 20W [18Vmp] panel & two 10W [18Vmp] panels of the same mono-crystalline construction. [16AWG]
-> Morningstar MPPT 15 Amp Charge Controller. [14AWG]
-> Two [2] new 12V ~100AH deep cycle batteries [parallel ~200AH, 1/0AWG]
-> 700W AC inverter [4AWG]
-> 3.5KW gas generator to 6Amp AC batt charger for extra charging capacity when needed
Current Load:
-> Three [3] 12V x 26W fluorescent fixtures
-> Two [2] 12V x 15W fluorescent fixtures
-> One [1] 12V x 11W fluorescent fixture
-> One [1] 12V x 13W fluorescent fixture
-> Yamaha 2.1 speakers, 25W
-> Dual-port 12V car cig lighter adapter for mobile phone/iPod chargers.
Notes:
Panels are fixed @ slight SW & angle of ~35° from horizontal due to wind concerns, more than output, but very close to local latitude of ~32°. I was at the Baja house when the winds started the raging fires in SoCAL [2007], it was bad.
Voltage reads 20-24+V @ 3.4-3.6 Amps pre-load between 10:00AM & 3:30PM in June. Current load is lighting- OFF & ON 3-4 hours per night. Usually only one or two is ON at any given time. Lights work very well, almost like normal house. iPod is self-powererd to Yamaha 25W 2.1 speakers on inverter for 2-6 hours during day. Currently, we must use generator for TV/movies/games.
Expansion:
Another 20W panel for 80W total went in Dec 2008- another 80W will conclude a 160W system. Goal is 3 to 4 times per month…lighting, music, & occasional 26″ 60W LCD using 15W DVD player & 25W 2.1 speakers for movies when surf is flat. [~700-800 Watt-Hours/day]
about 1 year ago
Review by John Beukers for 20 Watt Black Frame Mono-crystalline Solar Panel and Battery Charger
Rating:
Don’t expect 20 Watts from this product. This is the second purchase of the Extreme Power Corp’s 20W Solar Panel. The first unit did not meet the specifications defined on the label attached to the rear of the panel so I purchased this second unit to determine if the first unit was faulty. The second unit performed the same way. Here are the details:
I tested the two units at 1000W/Sq. Meter in the sun (Calibration by Davis Weather station solar sensor) at 25 degC and 55 degC into a resistive 16 ohm load (VPmax/IPmax). Here are the results, spec. values in parenthesis:
Open Circuit Voltage 19.4 volts (21.18V)
P Max at 25deg C – 16.5 Watts (20 Watts)
P Max at 55deg C – 12.8 Watts (Not specified but usual operating temp)
Voltage at Pmax – 14.45 at 55 deg C (17.5 at 25 deg C)
Short Circuit Current at 55 deg C 1.0 Amps (1.33 Amps at 25 deg C)
I reported these resulte to Extreme Power Corp but there has been no comment. Two points to bear in mind. 1. – There is a tendancy to overspecify solar panel performance and 2. – Specifications are for performance at 25 deg C and no solar panel operates at this temperature.
The maximum power output under any load conditions that I can get from these panels when cool (immediately after exposing to the sun) and at 1000 W/Sq. is 16.6 Watts.
In operation do not expect more than about 14 Watts from these panels – if that is ok then the product, although misprepresented gets a pass.
John Beukers
2009.05.19
about 1 year ago
Review by William Yerazunis for 20 Watt Black Frame Mono-crystalline Solar Panel and Battery Charger
Rating:
The panel took about a week to arrive; the packing was “wierd” (bubble wrap wrapped
around the cardboard! ) but it was intact.
The frame is aluminium, however the backing is plastic and the front side is glass
(not Tefzel). The whole thing is sealed with copious amounts of silicone rubber.
The wierd part of this panel is that it’s _not_ exactly a 12-volt panel. In
full noonday sun, it puts out 20 volts open-circuit, at 1.03 amperes. This is
somewhat higher in voltage and lower in amperage than many would prefer; you will
need a charge controller at the very minimum as this _will_ cook a 12-volt
battery if used for a long time. Be sure your charge controller can handle
it- most charge controllers are rated for 16 to 18 volts input and this panel
puts out 20 volts or a bit more.
The panel comes with a pair of 6-foot wires (with something written on them
in Chinese), one red, one black, and permanently attached to a box centered in
the back of the panel. The other end of the wires go to a pair of alligator
clips, but as warned above, don’t just clip these onto a lead-acid battery
for long term use unless either the battery is really big or you have a
charge controller.
A downside: lead-acid batteries typically charge at 14 volts; any additional
voltage is wasted. So, this panel loses about 30% of the energy produced
if the charge controller is not an active (buck-boost) or maximum power point
tracking (MPPT) controller.
On the up side, the 20 volts open circuit stayed pretty solid even when
the sun went behind clouds; what dropped was the amperage (down to 0.2 amps
when the array was shadowed, down to 0.1 amp when the sun was _behind_ clouds.
But the voltage stayed up, which means that even on a cloudy day your panel
will get something into the battery, maybe only 10% of a good bright day but at
least something. I think (but am not sure) that this is because it’s a
monocrystalline panel.
about 1 year ago
Review by Alan Abbott for 20 Watt Black Frame Mono-crystalline Solar Panel and Battery Charger
Rating:
I like this product. It is simple. Out of the box in early January in northern Illinois I got 15-16 volts and 0.2 amps from this panel. That’s what I expected for this latitude and time of year. I’m relieved to have exactly what was advertised on the Amazon website. I just wanted a panel to charge up a 12V battery and see what I could run on it. By all descriptions this panel should work, we will see. For the money, I have not seen any other panel with a 20 watt peak output.
about 1 year ago
Review by G. Craig for 20 Watt Black Frame Mono-crystalline Solar Panel and Battery Charger
Rating:
I purchased four of these solar panels. Three of the panels worked correctly right out of the box. The fourth one did not work, and upon some inspection, I found that one of the solder joints to a wire was not soldered. The solar panel had no power output. I repaired the solder joint myself, and now the fourth solar panel works correctly. Overall, I am very satisfied with the way these panels function. In the sun, they perform as expected. I will probably buy more of these solar panels in the future and would recommend them to anyone wanting a compact, powerful solar panel.