Solar and wind on one battery?

[Iain C]

Simple question...(prompted by the Maplin cheapy solar panel)

Can I wire both a forgen wind generator, and a solar panel, to the same battery?

The Forgen does not have any kind of regulator or similar...just a fuse which is supposed to pop in extreme wind!

Thanks

 

[macd]

Can I wire both a forgen wind generator, and a solar panel, to the same battery?

The Forgen does not have any kind of regulator or similar...just a fuse which is supposed to pop in extreme wind!

I'd imagine the Forgen needs no regulator because its output is so meagre. Waste of space.

The broad answer to your question is "yes" but with qualifications. Depending on the size of your battery bank the input will need regulating if much more than a trickle. What is your intention: just to keep the batteries topped up while on your berth/mooring? Or to cope with your needs whilst aboard? If the former, I'd be inclined to settle for just a modest sized panel. If the latter...how long's a pice of string?

 

[elton]

Simple question...(prompted by the Maplin cheapy solar panel)

Can I wire both a forgen wind generator, and a solar panel, to the same battery?

The Forgen does not have any kind of regulator or similar...just a fuse which is supposed to pop in extreme wind!

Thanks

Marlec sell a charge controller for about £50 that will allow you to connect both.

 

[VicS]

Usual rule of thumb regarding regulators for solar panels is that you do not need a regulator if you have less than 1 watt of solar power per 10Ah of battery capacity although a regulator is usually recommended for panels over 10 watts regardless of battery capacity.
you dont say which of Maplins cheap solar panels you are thinking about.

You do not say which Forgen you have, presumabaly one of the vertical axis ones, 500NT or 100NT, rather than the big Forgen 8500 or what capacity battery you have.
A regulator is not normally required, at least for the vertical axis types which supposedly sense the resistance change in a battery when it is fully charged. Maybe the same applies to the 8500.