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I am basically void of any solar charging systems. I would like to be able to set up a solar charging station for my sailplane batteries. I would like be be able to charge 6 or so batteries that we use in our glider club. These batteries are of the K2 type and are 12 volt 9.6 AH. I need to know what complete system would be the best for our needs. Panel, controller and any other advice that you could offer.
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The K2 is a LiFePo type battery which will require some type of BMS charging system so a standard battery charger won't work.
You can build a solar / battery charging system and then use a DC to AC inverter if your BMS system requires AC power to work or if your BMS uses 12V DC then you can connect it directly to a larger battery.
You can build a small solar / battery system using a 100 watt panel , 10amp PWM CC and a deep cycle 12volt 55Ah battery which should be able to run a DC BMS or AC inverter for about $400. -
for $100 you can get a deep cycle marine battery and use an ordinary car charger to keep it topped off between weekends.
Or you can get a 200W panel, build a frame for it, figure how to transport it, buy the same $100 marine deep cycle battery and a $100 charge controller, a handful of fuses and a bundle of wire. And if it is a cloudy day, you still get to use the car charger to recharge the battery, because if you let a lead acid battery sit <90% charged more than 24hr, it will sulfate and begin to die.
A "dashboard" 10W solar panel will not be sufficient to do the jobPowerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
|| Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
|| VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A
solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-ListerComment
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I spent about $550 on this system but $250 of that was for the 80watt folding panel which I am sure you can get for less.
It also has a 65Ah Blue Optima battery which is more than you would need so again you can save some $ getting a smaller battery.
The cart, battery box and a 250watt inverter may cost you about $50 so IMO $400 should get you something similar to what I have.
Or you can follow Mike's advice and just get a battery and standard charger for a lot less and just forget the solar part.You do not have permission to view this gallery.
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