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Unread 23-05-2009, 17:54
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Al Skierkiewicz Al Skierkiewicz is offline
Broadcast Eng/Chief Robot Inspector
AKA: Big Al WFFA 2005
FRC #0111 (WildStang)
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Re: Solar Panel Help

Quote:
Originally Posted by artdutra04 View Post
That's a 0.2A solar panel, not 2.0A. It'd make a great trickle-charger, but that's about it.
Agreed,
Actual usable current for this size solar panel is actually much less than the 0.2 amps. It cannot supply enough power to run a pump directly but could be used to recharge a small battery during daylight hours. The biggest problem is the 12 volts AC for the pump. I would bet that the pump is likely a 12 volt DC pump with some diodes internal to allow it to be connected to a 12 volt AC lighting system. Of course the only way to tell for sure would be to open the pump and I am not recommending that. Warranties get voided that way. If the pump was a DC pump, then bypassing the diodes would get you a simple solution to part of the problem.
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Good Luck All. Learn something new, everyday!
Al
WB9UVJ
www.wildstang.org
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Storming the Tower since 1996.