Picked up 45 watt solar system today.

[Gale Hawkins]

For years I have been interested in how solar power systems work so while HF had the 45 watt system (less inverter/battery which we have) on sale for $150 I picked up the kit today for a class project with the twins.

The reviews seemed to indicate it was OK for the price for very light duty needs. One guy used it to power a remote 12v electric gate.

Has anyone ever set up and used one of these HF 45 watt solar systems? If so was it functional up to the stated output limits? Most seem to build their own solar panel rack as the one in the kit is reported to be very light duty.

 

[Phils]

For years I have been interested in how solar power systems work so while HF had the 45 watt system (less inverter/battery which we have) on sale for $150 I picked up the kit today for a class project with the twins.

The reviews seemed to indicate it was OK for the price for very light duty needs. One guy used it to power a remote 12v electric gate.

Has anyone ever set up and used one of these HF 45 watt solar systems? If so was it functional up to the stated output limits? Most seem to build their own solar panel rack as the one in the kit is reported to be very light duty.

I used one of these kits to power the 12V batteries for the refrigerators, while propane they still rely on 12V for the circuit boards.

It worked ok for many years. After maybe a decade, the panels began to deteriorate from the rear. A few years ago, propane prices got high and electric refrigerators got more efficient and we moved from propane to electric (with the addition of a few more solar panels).

For your stated intentions it'll be fine.

Phil
living off-grid since 1977