Solar Controller

[Annabanana]

Hi all, thanks to the sage advice on another thread, I bought this solar panel and a controller and a new battery (due to comedy of errors last boondock trip.) The panel arrived on time but not the controller. If I need to charge up the battery this trip without the controller, is it safe as long as I keep monitoring the battery with a volt meter? Thanks in advance!

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[A32Deuce]

I would not!

[Flybob]

X2 Not the best idea, especially if you just bought a new battery.

[TheGerman]

The panel has an operating voltage of 18V so no. That's the whole purpose of the controller, regulating the voltage to the battery.

[prairiecamper]

Not a good idea, I certainly wouldn’t!

[Skyliner]

It depends on the panel capacity and the amperage of your battery bank.

For example: I had I a 100 watt unregulated panel (no solar controller) I'd have no problem hooking it up to 660 amp hours of battery capacity.

However, an unregulated 100 watt solar panel on a Group 24 battery would be iffy and put battery at risk of boiling and venting and overcharge.

[Annabanana]

Thank you everyone!

[tomm1947]

My 2018/19 currently on order from factory comes wired for SOLAR. That being said, there isn't a controller prewired in the unit is there? So basically all that is preinstalled is the plug/jack that the solar panel would connect to,right? So where do the wires from said plug/jack go to in the unit? Thanks

[Flybob]

If you are serious about boondocking on solar, you will most likely need to upgrade even the installed wiring. The gauge is marginal for heavy use and unless FR changed, they add Zamp compatible connections which are non standard configuration. May not be a negative, just be aware.

[Annabanana]

Hi again, all! Since my controller didn't make it in time, I went with a friend's advice and got a 2.5w charger at the local megamart. This one: https://smile.amazon.com/NOCO-Batter...+solar+charger

My intent was only to keep from draining the battery from very basic use - no extras, simply what it takes to run everything. I didn't need to run the fan but for a few hours. Didn't use stereo or anything else. It did the job, even increased amps at night! I arrived with a full battery and left with a 60% charge with mostly sun during the day.

I was going to return it after the trip, but I figured out an added bonus - I live in a second floor apartment and carrying the battery up and down for each trip was a "drain" on me. So, I am keeping it in my SUV wired to the charger which I put in the window. It should charge it up great in between camping trips. My A frame is in storage that isn't 100% secure so didn't want to invite a stolen battery and charger.

I'll still go with the original 100w I bought going forward so I can boondock to my hearts content, but wanted to share just in case this helps someone needing just some basic bumps of voltage on shorter trips. My friend who uses this on weekends has a much bigger unit and a family and it works great for them, too.

Thanks again, everyone, for the awesome advice and info!