Carver Owners Forum

As many of you know I installed a 400 Watt solar panel system on the Holodeck. I made 2 sets of panels in. Series to join in Pharrell, so if 1 set failed, the other would function. Anyway, we gave it a whirl My house bank is 2 6V GC batteries wired in series to make. 12. We took off yesterday afternoon for a mooring to see what it could do. During the moon lit night, the controller was kicking 1 - 1.5 amps. In the AM, the batteries were down to 80%. Before solar we were at 70%. Running were lights, water pump, 12V fans, original refrigerator on 12V and cell phone chargers. By 11:30 this AM the batteries were back up to 100%! It was a partly cloudy day, so not optimum conditions. At the peak the controller was pumping put 26 Amps. Then as we neared closer to 100% it cut back to less. I was leary to try to see if as claimed the controller would shut off when another source was present, but when I started the engines, the controller cut right back to 0 amps. . We are looking forward to trying these ion a sunny day and a week trip. My verdict: IF you have the real estate (Flat Hard top) install some panels. MPPT controller, 4 100 watt panels.

I'm impressed that you made two sets of panels in series to join in parallel for added redundancy.

It's great to hear that even in partly cloudy conditions, your solar panels could recharge your batteries and power all of your electrical equipment. It's also great to hear that your MPPT controller could detect when your engines are running and switch off accordingly.
If you're interested in optimizing your solar panel system even further, you may want to check out Yenex products. They offer high-quality solar panel accessories to help you get the most out of your system.

yes, I did the redundant thing. That way if one panel goes out there is still 1/2 the system running.

I recently went through the process of getting solar panels installed, so I thought I'd share my experience. I was hesitant at first, mainly because of the upfront cost and not being sure if they’d be worth it in the long run. But after doing some research, especially on solar ireland, I decided to go for it. The installation process was surprisingly smooth. The team was professional, and it only took a few days. Once they were up and running, I noticed a significant drop in my electricity bills. It feels good to know that I’m doing my bit for the environment too.