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Paired with that I installed a 20 amp MPPT solar charge controller, also from Renogy, the RNG-CTRL-RVR20-BT.
The panel is putting out DC, something like 19 volts, and charge controller drops it down to 13-14'ish for charging the house battery. That is it. I am not running any loads directly off the solar controller. It just charges the battery.
So I can't tell you my exact maximum output. It depends on whether the solar controller thinks the battery is low enough to go into bulk charging mode. So far I have seen the panel put out around 110 watts max. Its not the theoretical 200 watts, but it is perfect for my needs.
I am writing 10 months after having installed the panel. Here are my impressions:
- The whole setup has been awesome and I have had 0 issues with it.
- I can charge all my devices and run my propane furnace (DC blower) all night. In the morning my house batteries may be down to 70%. But as soon as the sun comes out the solar panel will have the battery back up to 100% in a few hours.
- During the day, I can leave my radio running and both roof fans going. Each of those draws about 13 watts, so about 40 watts total. Even with that load, the solar panel covers and and still charges the battery.
- It is completely liberating knowing I can be an electric hog and the solar panel will take care of it
- If I were to do it again, I would consider getting a thin flexible panel rather than the rigid one I got. Not for performance, but to save weight on my roof top carrier. The weight is not a deal breaker, but if the solar weighted 10 lbs less, the carrier would be much easier to open and close.
I would definiately recommend this setup to others. I love it. It would be nice to have enough panels that I could start to run A/C A/C (alternating current air conditioning) without immediately my house battery. I simply don't have batteries big enough, nor enough solar to sustain it, nor the interest in dedicating that much of my roof to get the required solar capacity. So long as I am realistic about air conditioning, this solar panel gives me everything I need.
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