Comments on: solar panel rated power 10 W rated v 17.5 open circuit 21.4 v rated current 0.58 short circuit 0.63? http://zeroisthenewblack.com/solar-panel-rated-power-10-w-rated-v-17-5-open-circuit-21-4-v-rated-current-0-58-short-circuit-0-63 Shrinking Our Footprint Fri, 18 May 2012 14:04:06 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: roderick_young http://zeroisthenewblack.com/solar-panel-rated-power-10-w-rated-v-17-5-open-circuit-21-4-v-rated-current-0-58-short-circuit-0-63/comment-page-1#comment-8347 roderick_young Sat, 19 Dec 2009 10:52:42 +0000 http://zeroisthenewblack.com/solar-panel-rated-power-10-w-rated-v-17-5-open-circuit-21-4-v-rated-current-0-58-short-circuit-0-63#comment-8347 That panel is small, and would take weeks to recharge a car battery, which is what you would need to drive the inverter. You would put the panel straight across the battery terminals, with the right polarity. Energy would be wasted in a charge controller at those levels. Also remember that lead-acid batteries such as car batteries lose a lot of capacity at low temperatures. It might be more practical for you to bring a small gas-powered generator. Those little ones can run for hours on a gallon of gas. That panel is small, and would take weeks to recharge a car battery, which is what you would need to drive the inverter. You would put the panel straight across the battery terminals, with the right polarity. Energy would be wasted in a charge controller at those levels.

Also remember that lead-acid batteries such as car batteries lose a lot of capacity at low temperatures. It might be more practical for you to bring a small gas-powered generator. Those little ones can run for hours on a gallon of gas.

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