PV Gap

Clara Said:

How to charge a solar panel?

We Answered:

Just to clarify the terminology here, solar panels can be used to charge batteries. The solar panel produces electricity from the sun but you do not "charge" the solar panel.

So I'm assuming you have 3 1.5 volt rechargeable batteries connected to a solar panel in some kind of integrated unit. The batteries are probably wired in series giving you a 4.5 volt output from the unit which you can use for powering LED's, portable radio etc. The solar panel may have about 12 solar cells wired in series, each producing up to 0.5V in good sunlight, but the amount of current they produce depends on their physical size, the sun's intensity, the load being supplied, and the type of solar cells.

If it has the cheaper "amorphous silicon" solar cells, they will actually produce some useful output on cloudy days and charge your batteries slowly. However if they are more expensive crystalline cells they will only work with good sunlight, but then they will work very well and charge your batteries relatively quickly..

If your batteries are not charging enough on a cloudy day you could connect a mains-powered 4.5V charger to the output terminals of your unit. However you may need technical expertise to make this work because of the possible presence of internal blocking diodes. You also need to ensure the mains charger has appropriate power ratings and the connection to your unit is made safely, + to + and - to - .

I hope this helps.

Loretta Said:

What kind of solar panel do I need to power a 130W electric motor?

We Answered:

Interesting question?
How many volts, how many Amps? How often does-it work???
Motors sometimes have high inrush current.
Solar panels are about 2Watt per 50 square inch of surface!
So 130W * 25in2 is about 24 square foot.

Dean Said:

How do I integrate solar panel technology into any electronics?

We Answered:

Well u really cant do any technologies easily because it would have to be a direct current device or else u would need an inverter which would change it to alternating current but those can be expensive and with a mini solar panel its not worth it. But a DS is direct current so thats not a problem u would probably want to get 2-4 mini panels with an output of 3 volts then put two in series if u only have two and if u have 4 then put two in series and then put those in parallel then u need to open the battery compartment and soder the red wires from the panels onto the positive of the battery then the black wires onto the negative of the battery then sucure the panels to the DS cover ie hot glue and if u have 4 panels then put two on the bottom two on the top and to charge it open up the DS in the sun

Alma Said:

What about imbedding a small solar panel on the roof of a vehicle & running on both solar and gasoline?

We Answered:

While it's a great GREEN idea, it's a bit impractical.
All horizontal surfaces of the vehicle would need to covered in solar panels. Vehicles would have to pared down to hundreds of pounds instead of thousands, and some other option would have to be offered in regions where clouds are in competition with the sun.

Not to mention, what does one do at night?