Deep Cycle Batteries & Solar Power

Optima D31M Blue Top Batteries: This is one of the best Deep Cycle Batteries I have found. As you can see they are set up in parallel so that the batteries will give me a lot more discharge time than just having one or two batteries. You will notice all four batteries are at 12.17 volts, not bad considering I haven’t had much sun light to recharge them because of all the snow storms here in N.W. Indiana this Feb. 2010.

Deep Cycle Batteries can withstand repeated deep cycles that is to say [cycling the battery to as low as 10.5 volts] without premature failure. Deep cycle batteries are recommended for applications such as trolling motors, car audio, winches, recreational vehicles, boats, trucks, cars,garages, homes, cabins, shelters, apartments, etc.

The D31 series is Optima’s most powerful single-unit deep cycle battery. Like all Optima batteries, the D31 series deep cycle batteries offer exceptionally high CCA for their size and boast 75 amp hours of current storage for long deep-cycling run times. The D31 deep cycle batteries will not off-gas in normal operation, but for complete safety in enclosed spaces their overpressure vent will accept a remote venting tube. If you have room for a D31 series battery, then gets some. They represent the best performance/cost value on the market. They’re stellar performers in virtually any deep cycle battery application, and their SpiralCell AGM construction make them tough as nails.

Optima Batteries 8052-161 D31M BlueTop Dual Purpose Battery

Why You Will Want An OPTIMA Deep Cycle Battery:

1. Delivers higher peak amps faster than conventional batteries
2. Provides up to twice the life of conventional batteries
3. More consistent voltage across the discharge curve
4. Superior cold and hot weather performance vs. conventional batteries
5. Available in models with SAE posts, stainless threaded studs, or both
6. Spill-proof, even if the case is physically ruptured
7. Will not off-gas in normal operation, eliminating corrosion
8. Over 14x more shock and vibration resistant than conventional batteries
9. Provides more power from a smaller package
10. True zero maintenance
11. Holds charge better during periods of nonuse
12. Operates in any position without spilling
13. Offers proven durability & performance
14. plus I haven’t seen any corrosion by the SAE post or the stainless threaded studs.

You'll Need To 
learn about Amp-Hour Battery Capacity so here we go.

• The capacity of a battery is measured in Amp-Hours [Ah] and is specified at a 20 hour rate.This means a battery with a 100Ah capacity will operate at a discharge rate of 5 Amps for 20 hours. (5A x 20h = 100Ah).If the battery is operated at a higher discharge rate, it will produce less than the rated capacity.
• For example, a 100Ah battery operated at a 10 hour rate (10A) will produce approximately 93Ah
• If this battery is operated at a 1 hour rate (100A), it will produce approximately 60Ah of capacity.

Charge Controllers & Solar Power: Things You Will Need To Know

The Sunsei CC-10000 10-Amp Charge Controller

Now that you got the Solar Panels you will need to hook them up to your Deep Cycle Optima AGM Blue Top Marine Batteries. But be for you hook up the Solar Panels to the Batteries, your going to need a Charge Controller so the Solar Panels do not overcharge your batteries and damage them or make them explode. So if you got one SE-1500 you connect the output of your solar panel (s) to the input of the Sunsei Charge Controller as shown on left. Then from the output of the Sunsei Charge Controller (Battery Icon) to your Batteries or if your just starting battery. Then as the Solar Panels start making sending DC current to your Batteries the Charge Controller will light up with a Green LED light indicating that your receiving power to your batteries. I really like the LED feature. Sunsei CC-10000 10-Amp Solar Panel Charge Controller For SE-1500, SE-4000,SE-6000, SE-8000 Panels

Now I own (4) Sunsei SE-1500 Amorphous Solar Panel that can produce 1.5 Amps each, a total of 6 Amps combined so the Sunsei 10 Amp CC is sufficient

for this set up. If you make a Solar Generator that will create more than 10 Amps then you need to goto a higher Charge Controller like the Sunsei CC-25000 25-Amp Solar Panel Charge Controller For Sunsei Solar Panels. Just make sure you have a Charge Controller for any Solar panel that can create 12 Watts or more. Now when your done with that, your now ready to hook up to your Battery or Batteries. And soon you’ll have your own clean quiet Solar Generator charging your Batteries.

Please continue to the next post about Deep Cycle Batteries:

My Journey Into Solar Energy

The Sunsei SE-1500 Amorphous Solar Panel When I first started out learning about Solar Cells and Solar Panels I came across words like photovoltaic, monocrystalline, polycrystalline, amorphous. Well I want talk about Amorphous Solar cells and panels. I will touch on those other words eventually, but for now I want to share with you all I know aboutAmorphous Solar Panel. Amorphous Solar Panels is one of the newest Solar technologies out there today.

What is so new about them? Well, first of all they do not need to be in the direct Sun light to work. It works on cloudy days, in the shade, and under 3 inches of snow. They do not work at full capacity without direct sun light, but at least you get some amps out of them daily. Unlike the Polycrystalline and Monocrystalline panels which need direct sunlight to work. On the left is a picture of my four Amorphous Solar Panels which creates 6 amps in direct sunlight and 2-3 amps on less than sunny days.

Now because these SE-1500 Solar Panels can create a lot of amps you need to make sure your batteries never get over charged so you will need a to charge controller even if you buy one SE-1500 Solar Panel. This is very important other wise the SE-1500 Solar Panel could damage your battery without a CC. You can find out more about Charge Controllers in my next post called (Charge Controllers & Solar Power: Things you will need to know). This Solar Panel is a very good product. As you can see I own 4 of them and there great. I got them on my roof and they are tough against, Wind, Rain, Snow, Hail and very cold temps. I bought the Sunsei 10A Charge Controller cause this Solar Panel will damage a Battery without it.

The Sunsei SE-1500 22.5-Watt 15-Volt Solar Panel Battery Charger

• The SE-1500 Sunsei solar 22.5-Watt 12-Volt charger is a powerful solar panel, providing reliable, renewable energy as an alternative to noisy and expensive diesel, propane and gas generators. It replaces the daily power consumption of 12-Volt lighting systems and appliances.
• The weatherproof solar charger provides immediate trickle-charge when exposed to daylight, even on cloudy days. It is ideal for use in your boat, cabin or RV and it can also be used for charging small backup power systems.
• Its “Plug-n-Play” feature allows connection of multiple panels in seconds without tools or rewiring.

The solar panel comes with 1-multi-purpose adapter set, which includes a cigarette lighter adapter, a female cigarette lighter adapter, a battery clamp, a terminal ring connector and a wire connector. It also comes with a set of mounting screws and an extension wire connector. This solar panel requires a charge controller (sold separately). It is 39.4-Inch by 13.8-Inch by 1.2-Inch in size and weighs 9.5-Pound; it comes with a 10-year warranty that’s not bad. And it comes with an LED light showing you it’s on. You can get it at a great price too.

FreeSolarandWind teaches people about Affordable Solar & Wind Energy, where to buy them and even install their own a Solar Power System that is clean, affordable and long lasting. So get ready to hear everything you will ever need to know about having your own portable,affordable Solar Energy System for every day use or for a quiet, emergency back-up, power system.

• First things first, I want you to follow me now as I tell you of my Journey Into Solar Energy. Not long ago, Huricane Ike hit Galvaston and Houston, which led to a major power outage down there in Texas, in 2008 A.D.
• Later that year in Indiana, USA we experienced flooding of thousands of homes. And there was no power for them for many days, and while thinking about how addicted I was to using Electricity all the time I had an epiphany, I thought, that if something where to happen to my power I would be at the mercy of the Electric power company. So I thought, what could I do to not be effected by a power failure. I have always been interested in Solar and Wind Power for like 25 years back into the 1980’s but they seemed very costly and you needed someone to install them and well I didn’t have the money back then to really invest in my own Clean Solar Energy System.
• But it was 2008 now so I started searching on the internet like you are now and read many things that really caught my eye. I was amazed at the advances Solar and Wind Technologyhad achieved. Solar had become affordable and easier to use for the average person, I made a discovery that made a MASSIVE impression on me.
• And that was Amorphous Cells had come along and it was cool. What was cool aboutAmorphous Solar Panels is that they worked on cloudy days! What! I said “Cloudy days?” that was fantastic. They also worked under 3″ inches of snow! I was like, no way.
• But yes way, the technology had finally caught up with the idea. Don’t get me wrong the USA has been using Solar Cells and Panels on just about every Satellite, Probe, Space Station and Space Ship since the 1950’s. But they were very expensive back then and time needed to pass by, so the price could come down. Well there I was, amazed by thisAmorphous Solar Cell Technology.
• And I was determined to somehow incorporate this new and affordable technology into my life. But how ? Well I looked at some Web Sites that sold Amorphous Solar Panels and they were just out of my price range.
• Let me remind the reader, that I was only making $12.00 per hr. back then and rent, and other bills needed to be paid and so I only had a little extra money to work with each month.
• Due to the amount of funds I was working with I had started thinking small. And as I researched, I discovered a whole new branch of the Solar Energy ideas, and that wasPortable Solar Panels or Mobile Solar Panels. Here was another great advancement that Solar Industry had achieved. I was taken back by all the small Solar Panels and Solar Devices that were out there. It was now a matter of choosing which product would suit my needs.

Here is were it gets exciting:

So as I kept learning about all the new Solar Technologies and where I could buy some. I had just happen to be surfing on the Web and ran across a site that had small Amorphous Solar Panels for sale and that they called them Coleman Solar Chargers: The Coleman™ CL 400 Trickle Charger was the first panel I ever bought. I quickly read the easy installation instructions and there I was mr. clean energy.

As you can see on the left there is my GEO with my Solar Charger on the dashboard. It keeps my battery fresh with the power of the Sun. No more dead batteries, ever again. It has been worth every penny I spent on it. You can get the Coleman CL-100 72000 1.5-Watt 15-Volt Solar Panel Battery Trickle Charger

or you can get the larger size charger theColeman 72002 CL-600 9-Watt 15-Volt Solar Panel Battery Charger / Maintainer What’s in the Box 1 Solar panel, 10-inch power extension cable, cigarette lighter adapter, battery clamp connector, instruction manual, and 4 mounting screws.

Product Description:

The Coleman Solar Charger CL-300 provides immediate charge when exposed to daylight, even on cloudy days. It charges your 12V RV, car, boat or truck batteries so you can run small appliances such as fluorescent lights, coolers, small TV’s, Radio’s, Cell phones, GPS’s or laptops. And many other things. I actually have a Coleman™ CL-300 in my Jeep on the dashboard too. Keeping my battery fresh, and I have never had to jump start my Geo or Jeep since I bought them.

What kind of solar cells/panels are there?

Mono-Crystalline Solar Panels

Mono-Crystalline Solar Panels, are basically a one piece Solar Panel, thus the prefix Mono. They are more expensive than other solar panels. However, they are more efficient than other materials. They are easy to identify too . Here is a photo of some on the highway on the left. I found a great deal on some: Sunforce 37015 60-Watt Solar Panel –Crystalline, you will need at least a 10 amp Charge Controller with this panel.

Poly-Crystalline Solar Panels

Poly-Crystalline Solar Panels are cheaper than Mono-Crystalline Solar Panels, but less efficient. And they are made up of many different cells. Photo on left. Here’s a great deal I found: you will need at least 25 amp Charge Controller with this panel also.Sunsei 71015 SE-24000 400-Watt 16.5-Volt Solar Panel Generator

Sunsei CC-25000 25-Amp Solar Panel Charge Controller For SE-16000, and SE-24000

Amorphous Solar Panels, Solar Rolls & Solar Portfolios

Amorphous technologies has been developed to reduce the amount of light absorbing material required in creating a solar cell. Thus it is highly efficient,works on cloudy days and under 3 inches of snow. I really like this product. Not to mention that Amorphous Cell Solar Panels can be bought in a

Flexible Solar Roll I personally own a 9 Watt Brunton Solar Roll.

Brunton SolarRoll 9 Watt Flexible Solar Panels now if you buy this Flexible Solar Roll you do not need a Charge Controller because it is under 12 Watts.

Deployed and Fold Up Portfolio Style Brunton SOLARIS 52 CIGS Foldable Solar Panel (Black/Silver, 12 Volt) you will need at least a 10 amp Charge Controller with this panel also.I recommend: Sunsei CC-10000 10-Amp Solar Panel Charge Controller

And they come in a Rigid Style as shown right and like my 4 SE-1500 panels I have shown you above.

Please continue reading the next post about Charge Controllers:

Tap Into The Sun and Wind It's Free

All About Getting Started In Solar & Wind Energy

How many of you have had questions about how to get started with Solar or Wind Energy? I am sure a lot of you have. That is why I created this blog, so I can help anyone who is trying to learn about Solar or Wind Energy. And how easy, fun and liberating it can be.

I have three goals I want to accomplish:

• I want to educate every one who comes here about Solar and Wind Energy and how fun it can be to have Clean Energy.

• I want People to discover a use for Solar and Wind Power in there lives.

• I would like to show people how to obtain an affordable, renewable, clean, green Solar or Wind energy backup system right in there own apartment, home, garage or camper with various products I use and recommend, and show them where they can go online to purchase the items they need, like I did.