Quote:
Originally Posted by Sasquatters
Can you give more information on this? I am still learning so it is all a bit confusing
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Your charge controller should have little to do with what you can draw from your battery. I do not use the "output" or "device" connectors on the charge controller to draw from- I go straight to the battery. To me, a charge controller's limits have only to do with PV input.
I have both a Renogy 40A MPPT charge controller and a Victon Energy 100A charge controller. Your 60A charge controller is, frankly, wasted on a 12V system. Bump up to 24V and then use step-downs in parallel to meet your 12V needs. What's this about an alternator?
Quote:
Originally Posted by JDOnTheGo
Remember that some items (like computers) draw more power when battery is low than they do when near full.
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This is
all items and due to Wattage = Voltage * Amperage. As the batteries deplete, voltage drops. If your appliance draws 14W, it is going to do it at 14V (full) with 1A, or 12v with 1.16A, 10V with 1.4A and on. Higher amperages require thicker wires and will heat those wires more, therefore is less efficient.
I can't help but note your picture of your panels:
When any part of a panel is covered, it is going to produce close to nothing for you. If you plug two 10W panels in series (20W) and cover a single cell of one panel you're going to see close to no production from both panels- this is because one will block the other. If you plug them in parallel you'll see 10W. This is why parallelization is highly desirable if you're going to have mixed coverage.
So for your panels, keep in mind:
2x 10W (10V, 1A) panels in parallel makes for 20W (10V, 2A).
2x 10W (10V, 1A) panels in series makes for 20W (20V, 1A).
Running your panels in series is more efficient as voltage drop from cable runs will affect you less. The drawback is you'd better keep every panel in a series in the clear.
As for the original question, I'm buying a pair of the Dometic Dual Zone chest fridge/freezers. They're incomparably more efficient than anything I've seen- even my current 600W system will run them in perpetituity with ease.