Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge  

Go Back   Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge > Kayak Fishing Forum - Message Board > General Kayak Fishing Discussion
Home Forum Online Store Information LJ Webcam Gallery Register FAQ Community Calendar Today's Posts Search

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-16-2015, 12:47 PM   #1
Aquahunter
Crazy Deaf Cuban Redneck
 
Aquahunter's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Descanso, CA
Posts: 158
Anyone using solar charger?

I have been looking at this one:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sunforce-500...oAAOSw3ydVuiqR

I'm thinking of mounting a small waterproof solar charger for my 12v battery, it keep draining on me mid day even with the timer switch on it.

Would like your input or point me to the right direction or if you have one installed on your yak, can I see a picture of it?
__________________
Aquahunter is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 01:07 PM   #2
Starsky
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Lancaster
Posts: 187
1.8 Watts probably will not be able to keep up even with the brightest conditions, you may want to look for something at least 10 watts.

http://www.amazon.com/RENOGY%C2%AE-W...0w+solar+panel

Are you running a Fish finder and pump off a 12v?
Starsky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 01:17 PM   #3
Aquahunter
Crazy Deaf Cuban Redneck
 
Aquahunter's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Descanso, CA
Posts: 158
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starsky View Post
1.8 Watts probably will not be able to keep up even with the brightest conditions, you may want to look for something at least 10 watts.

http://www.amazon.com/RENOGY%C2%AE-W...0w+solar+panel

Are you running a Fish finder and pump off a 12v?
Yes I'm running Lowrance DSI fishfinder/gps and 500 gph tsunsami bait pump
__________________
Aquahunter is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 01:54 PM   #4
Dave Legacy
Senior Member
 
Dave Legacy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Hacienda Heights, CA
Posts: 427
I wonder if you wouldn't be better off running a dual battery setup or just a better battery overall?
Dave Legacy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 02:06 PM   #5
chris138
donkey roper
 
chris138's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Pacific Beach
Posts: 968
Use 6V for bait tank, it will last all day. I bet a solar panel could run a sonar without GPS.
chris138 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 08:14 PM   #6
FISH11
Member
 
FISH11's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Pine Valley when not fishing La Jolla
Posts: 2,641
I had one of those, I purchased to use on multi day trips to help recharge the 12v battery. It worked good enough till the unit overheated and started to melt the plastic, when I left it on the dash of my wife's car for several weeks to keep her battery charged. I would agree that a 6v battery for the bait tanks is the way to go and makes the 12v battery for the FF last for several days on a smaller FF like the Elite 4. My HDS5 though uses up much more power and needs re-charging daily. Harbor Freight sells those and some times are as cheap as $15
__________________
MARK ......... 2016 MALIBU X FACTOR, 2020 SOLO SKIFF (Fishing Kayak on Steroids )
FISH11 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 01:12 PM   #7
yemff
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 75
I cant speak to your idea, but sunforce chargers suck. I bought one and all it did was drain my battery.
yemff is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2015, 01:15 PM   #8
Starsky
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Lancaster
Posts: 187
Quote:
Originally Posted by yemff View Post
I cant speak to your idea, but sunforce chargers suck. I bought one and all it did was drain my battery.
Yea some solar panels will actually drain your battery at night when there is no sun if they are not wired properly with diode or solar charge controller. I use renogy panels on my camper with great results.
Starsky is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 02:57 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
© 2002 Big Water's Edge. All rights reserved.