In short

by tick (Login tick54)


The solar panel is the key component. I would not recommend anything less than the 5 watt one listed above. If you wish to run a laptop ect. you may need at least twice as much. The amazon link above for the solar panel, I believe, is an excellent price on an excellent product.

I also shortened the cord on my solar panel and added a diode to prevent reverse current flow. Besides running the charger for AA batteries I have also charged small 12 volt lead-acid battery which I then run the depth finder with, by just connecting the panel directly to the battery.

In excellent conditions I can run my depth finder directly off of the solar panel but it will kick out if a cloud passes over. If I connect the solar panel to the 12v battery and then connect the battery to the depth finder, it will run indefinitely.

I am thinking that if you get a holder for 8 aa batteries from radio shack, put in 8 NiMh batteries and then connect this directly to the solar panel and connect the depth finder to the battery pack, the depth finder should work fine and the batteries will keep charged for use in other devices without fear of overcharging and damaging them, for the period of time the finder is normally used. In fact, I intend to do exactly this but havent done so yet.



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Posted on Jan 28, 2012, 6:38 AM

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