Simple Solar Update - Inexpensive Lead-Acid Battery

I was able to purchase this "Lawn and Garden" Lead-Acid battery for less than $20 at Wal*Mart. So, I thought it would be worth experimenting with since its size and capacity will probably reduce the number of times I need to charge it (compared to the smaller gel cells I featured in my previous video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHbx_Qhc8mU). The battery is rated at 275 "Cold-cranking" amps, which isn't of much value to me since I'm not starting a motor or anything. Although it doesn't say, a quick internet search suggests this battery is rated at about 18 amp-hours - which puts it at about one third the cost of a comparable gel cell. Problem is, it's probably not rated for much of a deep discharge since lawn equipment provides a continuous trickle charge. Nevertheless, I'll keep experimenting with it to see if it's cost-effective. I use an in-line "Watts Up" meter to monitor the voltage. So far, I've allowed it to drop below 12 volts (the QRP radio gear I power with it is very voltage tolerant). With a half day of full sunlight I'm able to bring it back up to well over 13 volts - which last many days of lower power communications on my amateur radio station.

In the video I also mention that I'm now using Anderson "Power-Pole" connectors to eliminate a lot of the clip leads I've been using. Actually, I've been using these connectors for over a year now but just got around to introducing them to my simple solar stuff. They're great connectors and seem to be growing in popularity as a low voltage standard. Although not seen in this video, at times I have used a charge controller, or simple diode, to keep the batteries from discharging into the solar panel when it's cloudy and I can't be as attentive...

This video is in contrast to the one I made later during January of 2009. At that time it was a month after the winter solstice so the panel was pointing almost directly towards the horizon. For this particular video, recorded a month before the summer solstice, the panel is aligned almost straight upward to catch the fullest amount of solar radiation - in stark contrast to its winter orientation. Either way, the theme remains simple, and inexpensive - capturing the right amount of sunlight to charge a battery to power my amateur radio station and some other related equipment.

Here's a link to my personal solar power page:
http://www.rogerwehdell.com/solar.html

And here's a link to a page about my amateur radio station - the place I use most of the solar power I generate:
http://www.rogerwendell.com/qrp.html

05-25-2008