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I am new to solar. I am considering using solar panel to charge battery which would then drive DC LED lighting in evening. I would like to avoid any DC->AC inverters or transformers.
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Then use 12 volt LED'sMSEE, PE -
There are many 12V "camper, marine, automotive and RV" LED & Flourscent lighting systems.
Just be sure you don't dont leave a light on while charging, Solar charging voltages can read 16V, and will fry LED's designed for 14V automotive use. After the sun goes down, and the solar is not charging , the battery is a normal voltage, and lights are fine.
You WILL need a 12V charge controller. You can get cheap piece-o-c&%# controllers on ebay, or real ones from RE vendors, such as our boards host http://www.solartown.comPowerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
|| Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
|| VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A
solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-ListerComment
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Where would you buy you lighting? The local RV place has some items but their pricey. Any favorite on-line sellers?Comment
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12VDC 5W LED bulbs
Hello, I made myself the 5W 12 Vdc LEd bulbs that I show in the photos, If you dont find anything that fit your needs I can help they cost me $18 USD each. RegardsComment
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You have to tell me more than that, toget my intrest, Lumens, Color, Power .....Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
|| Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
|| VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A
solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-ListerComment
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After the sun goes down, and the solar is not charging.Comment
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Look around on some RV forums as MANY have replaced the old 12vdc single bulb light in their trailer, with the new very low consumption LED replacements. I did it on all my dome lights on my 27 foot trailer, and it made a huge difference in battery consumption. I run my Honda generator quite often with the led lights on, and it has not seemed to hurt them any. Even with the generator,,, running the on board battery charger on the trailer, so I am sure those LED's are getting the 15 -16vdc charging voltage as the trailer has a "bulk charger" that charges 2 batteries pretty fast! Oh,, buy the LED's from ebay as they are ever so much cheaper. Yes,, when you buy lots of 10 for under $20 you might get a bad one in the batch from China. But hey, at those prices, who cares! Mine have lasted a Long time so far too!
Here is a link to one site talking about LED's in it it has links to ebay listings for 10 pack LED's. Mine look very much like those, and they are so much brighter than the stock bulb, and use about 1/3 the power!
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We got a couple of RV reading lamps with LED bulbs, like this;
Then I found these and ordered six for half the price;
They come with regular 20W bulbs, so I ordered a variety of LEDs to try various lumens and beam patterns for a couple of bucks each. They also only come in chrome. But a touch of paint will make them match any decor.
The LED bulbs I have all say 8-30 Volts. So using them while charging should not be an issue.
Now I need to find a 12V LED strip light...
Edit: I have finish my delve into 12V LED light bars (Search for bars, not strip lights, which will get you light strips and ropes for decorating). Overall, I wasn't impressed with the pickings. I think I will look for other options for lighting the power corner of the basement. Perhaps a socket with a pull chain, and a screw-in 12V LED...
On the voltage, some said 12/24, one said 10-30, and the others said 'suitable for vehicle". So running them while charging should not be an issue.Comment
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Re: you can try DC 3V LED
DC 3V LED is another solution, use 3.7V Lithium battery and 5V Solar panel, no need transformer
You can find separate system example in this websiteComment
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I've used several of these
LED's for different projects (also in Warm white) They are VERY bright, only 2.2 watts and
have a driver module that powers them from 8-30V AC or DC.
Hook them up to the LOAD terminal on many charge controllers. Many controllers can control the LOAD terminals in a Dusk-Dawn or timed night mode.
LED_module2.2W.jpg
Wiredco also has LED light strips tooPowerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
|| Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
|| VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A
solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-ListerComment
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