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Subject Topic: Solar panel 100W phone charging possible?
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PersonAlphonso De Lard
25/1/2017 at 5:01pm
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Hi.

We're getting a 100W solar panel fitted to our van, as we're going "off grid" for a week this year (for the first time), and I want to keep the battery fully charged whilst the van is in storage...

My question is, will I be able to charge two or three smartphones using the leisure battery (daily), for a week alongside using the lights, water pump etc.

If so, how? Do I need to buy an inverter for the 12V plug in the van?
If not, does anybody have another method of charging their smart phone or tablet?

Thanks in advance,
ADL

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2019:
Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
Wyatts Covert
Chestnut Meadow


PersonLlaniDavis
25/1/2017 at 5:21pm
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Fit a 12v plug and charge the phones from that, juts like you would do in the car.


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PersonJTQU
25/1/2017 at 5:22pm
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Yes with no trouble at all unless you caravan in midwinter and fall very unlucky like getting a snowed in roof.
A way with most smartphones is simply to use a USB adaptor in a 12-volt "cig" outlet.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Mobile-Phone-Chargers/Charger-Adapter-AiPower-Adaptive-Charging-Technology-Blackberries/B00M6Q83B4/ref=sr_1_1/253-1214211-1583223?ie=UTF8&qid=1485364582&sr=8-1&keywords=usb+12volt+adapter

I assume here your phones tablets etc charge via USB even if you need to buy a standalone lead. Note the Amps required and buy an adaptor with excess capacity like the example shown; there are various amperage units available, this one is arguably OTT.


PersonPaul_B
25/1/2017 at 5:23pm
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Have you got a car charger? if you have use that in the car or buy an adaptor for the caravan



PersonAlphonso De Lard
25/1/2017 at 6:03pm
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Excellent - thanks. That turned out to be easier than expected.

Guessing it's best to charge the phones during the day whilst the sun is high, or does charging a couple of phones overnight make little difference to the leisure battery?



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Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
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PersonWendy106
25/1/2017 at 6:42pm
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We tend to charge our phones in the car while we're out and about. Don't forget if you're charging overnight, the leisure battery will be draining and there's no sun to replenish the battery. If we do charge from 12v we just use the cigarette lighter type charger. Another thing to do to minimise the drain on your battery is to fit LED bulbs in the caravan, and if watching tv at night, don't bother with lights at all. Also, get a 12v tv rather than using an inverter to run a 240v, as running 240 through an inverter drains the battery much quicker. We did 8 days in Northumberland last year completely off grid, and a friend of ours did 5 weeks around Scotland without hooking up at all.


PersonJTQU
25/1/2017 at 7:07pm
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The amount of power smartphones and tablets take is pretty small in the scale of things. Say they can have batteries up to 4000mAh at 3.7 volts. If done efficiently about 1.25Ah from a 12 volt caravan battery. Say the van's battery is 100Ah so a workable 50Ah, taking 2Ah charging a tablet overnight is not likely to be critical. Given good sunlight the 100Watt panel will yield at least 6 Amps so 20 minutes will have put that back into the battery.
There is a good argument of charging these things overnight, it allows all day, and all possible sunshine, to put the power back via the solar system.

Edit: as Wendy has said you can always charge these portable things in the car if off for a ride; you are likely to take the phone so take the opportunity to recharge it at the same time.

Post last edited on 25/01/2017 19:11:36


PersonWendy106
25/1/2017 at 7:40pm
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You're right, they probably don't take much power, we just err on the side of caution. I do charge my phone at night, but make sure the tablet is already fully charged, as himself gets a bit paranoid sometimes when we're off grid, especially if the weather forecast is looking grim. So I need one or the other charged so I can read my Kindle😀.
Also, our panels (80w) were quite old, so maybe not as efficient. Just changed our caravan and had a 120w panel installed on the roof, haven't tested it yet but will probably be a lot more efficient and mean less checking of the battery meter.


PersonAlphonso De Lard
25/1/2017 at 10:14pm
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Thank you all. We will have a 100W panel, no TV, and I think most of the lights are LED already, so we should be good. I'll not be with them all week, I'll be home for a few days, with the car, so they'll be totally reliant on the van for charging their phones, and maybe ipads.
Thank you for all your help with this, great advice as usual..

-------------
2019:
Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
Wyatts Covert
Chestnut Meadow


Personchrisn7
25/1/2017 at 11:50pm
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Check out the control panel for the proposed solar panel. Ours has twin USB ports on the front.

Another solution is that if your van has CBE electrical fittings, you may have a blanked off one, so replace it with something like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/CBE-C-line-Modular-Twin-Socket-x/dp/B01AMVNGK2

Or,if you have a single CBE 12v socket, replace with a double fitting to add a USB outlet, as you already have a 12v supply and ground handy.


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PersonJTQU
26/1/2017 at 7:48am
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Quote: Originally posted by chrisn7 on 25/1/2017
Check out the control panel for the proposed solar panel. Ours has twin USB ports on the front.

Another solution is that if your van has CBE electrical fittings, you may have a blanked off one, so replace it with something like this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/CBE-C-line-Modular-Twin-Socket-x/dp/B01AMVNGK2

Or,if you have a single CBE 12v socket, replace with a double fitting to add a USB outlet, as you already have a 12v supply and ground handy.


Have you any knowledge of the parasitic current drain this places on the 12 volt system when not actually charging?
That is an issue that has put me off doing that as introducing an isolating switch for when it is not in use, rather spoils the simplicity of going that route.

Thanks.


PersonAlphonso De Lard
26/1/2017 at 9:19am
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Although I like the idea of built in USB charging points, I'll stick with a car charger. Adding a fixed solar panel is enough of an upgrade for this year

-------------
2019:
Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
Wyatts Covert
Chestnut Meadow


PersonJTQU
26/1/2017 at 9:41am
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You will like Camping Brantôme Peyrelevade though you might already know that. There no doubt you will be on the EHU as over the last 20 odd years they have let the trees really take off, challenging all but the biggest of solar arrays, and my satellite dish!

I will this morning measure the parasitic drain that leaving a Duracell dual USB adaptor inflicts on the system; often wondered so this thread has incited me to delve.


PersonAlphonso De Lard
26/1/2017 at 9:45am
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Does that run on 12v?
Be good to know if, or how much, it drains the battery, without actually having anything connected to the USB chargers. It'll be good to get the family into the habit of removing the charger when not in use -> has taken me months of training at home to get phone chargers at least switched off at the socket when they don't have a phone connected...
Looking forward to Brantome, perhaps not the drive down though, that's for a separate thread nearer the time...

-------------
2019:
Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
Wyatts Covert
Chestnut Meadow


PersonJTQU
26/1/2017 at 10:36am
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Turned things over but can't place my hands on the Duracell adaptor, too cold out there. I have found two RING RMS16 which give up to 2.5A output, and a non-labelled really cheapo 2.1 Amp twin, and have now measured them all.

The RING units without any load both take 11mA, the cheapo takes 13mA.
So these things are not a real concern if inadvertently left plugged in by oversight. So leaving in 4 days will only sap a bit over an Ah off the battery. I have not bothered reading their in use current as it all depends on what state of charge and size of the batteries in the units attached at the time. I have little doubt the Duracell being a quality unit will be of a similar order; irrelevant in sensible terms.

The RING is a neat unit though bulkier than the Duracell I have [unless the grandson has pinched it!].

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Automotive/Ring-RMS16-Twin-USB-Set-40/B00KQHVBXW

http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/duracell-48a-twin-usb-in-car-charger-a20uq?cmpid=ppc&gclid=CJav-KfP39ECFckaGwodAeAOOA

Post last edited on 26/01/2017 10:40:36


PersonAlphonso De Lard
26/1/2017 at 10:45am
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I have two of these in the car already, Veetop 4.8A

One of them will be sure to get moved sideways into the van next time we use it, mid Feb I think....

-------------
2019:
Wye Meadow Camping
Dornafield
Wyatts Covert
Chestnut Meadow



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