Solar Panels
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I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for emergency/field day operations and am wondering what sort of experience others have had. The panels seem expensive: about $100 for a 5 watt panel but with battery and a low power draw of the K2, they look like they can sustain operations for extended periods of time.
How does this work in practice ? Is there enough 'juice' delivered to keep a station operational ? How about portability ? Thanks to everyone in advance for your responses. Douglas Todd (KE7GYQ) _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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Douglas,
I purchased a 20 watt Rip Stop Nylon Protected Epoxy Solar Panel from Connecticut Solar 4 years ago and am very satisfied with them. It will put out 1200mA which is plenty and more for charging other cells while operating. Here is the link. They also sell a 10 watt version. http://www.ctsolar.com/Expedition20W.htm You will need a controller which I also purchased from them. Hope this helps. 73 john-n4dsp ----- Original Message ----- From: "Douglas Todd" <[hidden email]> To: <[hidden email]> Sent: Monday, July 03, 2006 1:56 PM Subject: [Elecraft] Solar Panels I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for emergency/field day operations and am wondering what sort of experience others have had. The panels seem expensive: about $100 for a 5 watt panel but with battery and a low power draw of the K2, they look like they can sustain operations for extended periods of time. How does this work in practice ? Is there enough 'juice' delivered to keep a station operational ? How about portability ? Thanks to everyone in advance for your responses. Douglas Todd (KE7GYQ) _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Douglas Todd
<> I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for emergency/field day <> operations and am wondering what sort of experience others have had. I have had very positive results using a solar panel, Douglas. I also have a K2 and a solar panel with rechargeable battery is my main power source for it. I am using a normal 7 AH sealed lead acid battery which resides in the shack. I have a "10W" solar panel. It is a very nice high quality unit made by BP which I bought over the internet for about $125. This matches up nicely with the 7AH battery and the K2 current draw. I use a Don Brown charge controller which I built from one of his kits. I can highly recommend this also (no connection to either). If you search the Elecraft reflector for "Don Brown" and/or "Charge controller" you should come up with info about ordering the kit - as I recall it was only about $25. It will allow charging from either a modest size solar panel or from a power supply. The solar panel puts out about 650 mA in full sun which is about the desired upper limit of the charge rate for this sized battery. The wiring between the panel and the battery is non-critical - I use AWG18 - since the current is limited and you don't care about voltage drop since the open circuit output voltage of the panel is over 16V. I used this setup on Field Day this year but with the K2 turned down to 5W. The battery kept me going all night and the solar panel took over and refreshed things on Sunday. The setup does work - even for contests. Let me know if you would like more info 73 .... Craig AC0DS _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Douglas Todd
This doesn't help any of us now, but http://www.nanosolar.com/ looks
like a company worth keeping an eye on in the coming year or so. Their products should offer solar energy at lower cost. Mike ab3ap Douglas Todd wrote: > I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for > emergency/field day operations and am wondering what sort of > experience others have had. The panels seem expensive: about $100 > for a 5 watt panel but with battery and a low power draw of the K2, > they look like they can sustain operations for extended periods of > time. > > How does this work in practice ? Is there enough 'juice' delivered to > keep a station operational ? How about portability ? > > Thanks to everyone in advance for your responses. > > Douglas Todd (KE7GYQ) Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Craig Smith
Hi
I sell the low power solar controller kits. You can order them from me at Don Brown 19132 Falls Creek Drive Flint Texas 75762 cash check or money order only The low power version will handle from 1 to 35 watts and the price is $20 or $35 for two with one set of documentation The kit includes the circuit board and all parts required to build the controller. You will need to supply a box or build it into your battery box or radio. I also have a high power version that will handle up to 200 watts for $30 or $55 for two Thanks Don KD5NDB <snip> I also have a K2 and a solar panel with rechargeable battery is my main power source for it. I am using a normal 7 AH sealed lead acid battery which resides in the shack. I have a "10W" solar panel. It is a very nice high quality unit made by BP which I bought over the internet for about $125. This matches up nicely with the 7AH battery and the K2 current draw. I use a Don Brown charge controller which I built from one of his kits. I can highly recommend this also (no connection to either). If you search the Elecraft reflector for "Don Brown" and/or "Charge controller" you should come up with info about ordering the kit - as I recall it was only about $25. It will allow charging from either a modest size solar panel or from a power supply. The solar panel puts out about 650 mA in full sun which is about the desired upper limit of the charge rate for this sized battery. The wiring between the panel and the battery is non-critical - I use AWG18 - since the current is limited and you don't care about voltage drop since the open circuit output voltage of the panel is over 16V. I used this setup on Field Day this year but with the K2 turned down to 5W. The battery kept me going all night and the solar panel took over and refreshed things on Sunday. The setup does work - even for contests. Let me know if you would like more info 73 .... Craig AC0DS _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Mike Markowski
> Douglas Todd wrote: > >> I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for >> emergency/field day operations and am wondering what sort of >> experience others have had. I operate a K1 with a 7ah gel cell and a 5 watt solar panel (about $50 from Harbor Freight) with Don Brown's controller. With good sunshine I can operate all day and go home with a fully charged battery. Bob Baxter aa7eq _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Douglas Todd
I use 5 watt solar panels from Harbor Freight
(http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=41144). They go for $50.-. Once and a while they are on sale for about $35.-. They seem to be well made. They have an aluminium frame and an o-ring type seal. At the moment I have 3 on my roof for a total of 15 watts. They are not roll up panels but they are priced right. If you go to their main web page and enter solar for a search item you'll see a lot of solar panels for sale. Roger, W1EM -----Original Message----- From: [hidden email] [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Douglas Todd Sent: Monday, July 03, 2006 1:56 PM To: [hidden email] Subject: [Elecraft] Solar Panels I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for emergency/field day operations and am wondering what sort of experience others have had. The panels seem expensive: about $100 for a 5 watt panel but with battery and a low power draw of the K2, they look like they can sustain operations for extended periods of time. How does this work in practice ? Is there enough 'juice' delivered to keep a station operational ? How about portability ? Thanks to everyone in advance for your responses. Douglas Todd (KE7GYQ) _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Don Brown-4
On Mon, 3 Jul 2006 14:38:59 -0500 "Don Brown" <[hidden email]> writes:
>I sell the low power solar controller kits. Just want to add a testimonial for Don's solar charge controller kits. We used one at Field Day to run a 12 A-hr battery (RS Jump Starter) with a 15 watt panel for the K2, and also with a set of three 15 watt panels and a 100 A-hr marine battery to run the inverter for the logging computer - gotta figure out a better, more QRP friendly logger - maybe cellulose fiber graphic panels coupled with a manually vectored graphite character generator - I'm told they support the full ASCII set and have integrated error correction. Anyway, Don's kit are great - good parts, good boards, and good instructions, at a good price... The usual disclaimer... no pecuniary interest, etc... 72 Jim N5IB _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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I just got a copy of the ARRL book Emergency Power and I am
impressed! That stuff may be old hat to some of you, but I'm a real noob at this and it looks very good for getting up to speed. Lots of basic stuff like Don't let shadows fall across your panel and more advanced stuff like charge controller theory and schematics. Let me get my k1 done then I may well build or at least buy a no- frills K2. 73 de Alex NS6Y. On Jul 3, 2006, at 3:23 PM, <[hidden email]> wrote: > On Mon, 3 Jul 2006 14:38:59 -0500 "Don Brown" <[hidden email]> > writes: >> I sell the low power solar controller kits. > > Just want to add a testimonial for Don's solar charge controller > kits. We > used one at Field Day to run a 12 A-hr battery (RS Jump Starter) > with a > 15 watt panel for the K2, and also with a set of three 15 watt panels > and a 100 A-hr marine battery to run the inverter for the logging > computer - gotta figure out a better, more QRP friendly logger - maybe > cellulose fiber graphic panels coupled with a manually vectored > graphite > character generator - I'm told they support the full ASCII set and > have > integrated error correction. > > Anyway, Don's kit are great - good parts, good boards, and good > instructions, at a good price... Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Roger Marrotte
You might find a better bargain with Northern Tools. Thier 15 watt panels
go for $66 http://tinyurl.com/leu53 and the 5 watt panels go for $39 http://tinyurl.com/jd9nc 73 K2CG Chuck Gehring _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Douglas Todd
I use some of the panels from Harbor Freight. They are okay - have a
bunch of 5 watt panels and a few months ago I hooked up some of their 15W panels. Not sure how the 15s are gonna do yet, but after 5 years outside in the Kansas City weather, the 5 watters are working - but they need some work. Lots of rust in places I dont want rust, and some sort of mold/fungus is starting to grow inside the panels. I don't think these panels are meant to be continuous outdoor panels. For a solar controller, I use one of the CirKits controllers: http://cirkits.com/. They work very well and can handle up to 20A. Not bad for $50. My whole station, minus the computers, is solar powered, including my HTs. I will point out that unless you have plenty of panels - somewhere on the order of 2X the power you use - you want to really keep an eye on your power management. No sense having the batteries in there if there if they are constantly empty. $100 seems really high to me for a 5W panel. Especially since all it will do to a K2 is let it be a receiver. You might want to also check out Home Power magazine: http://www.homepower.com. You can always download the last issue for free there and check panel prices that way. I also got to thinking about something - some states give rebates on solar systems (mine is not one of them). Depending on the rules, you may be able to really cut your solar price that way, though I doubt having something that you only use to go on FD would count. On 7/3/06, Douglas Todd <[hidden email]> wrote: > I'm interested in using solar panels to power the K2 for emergency/field day operations _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
FS: Elecraft KX1 - ATU - 30m - paddles
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I currently have a KX1 and a K2/100. I decided to force myself to build a
homebrew QRP rig by the end of the year, and in order to move this process along, I am selling my KX1. I can't bring myself to sell all my Elecraft gear so the K2 will stay - though I will sell off the 100 watt amp section (any interest?). Anyway, this brings me to posting my KX1 for sale. Sadly, but I think it's ultimately going to help me achieve my homebrewing goal, something I've been dreaming about since being licensed about 18 years ago. KX1 serial number 1046. with paddle option with antenna tuner option with 30 meter option with all manuals Build quality is excellent. I'm an experienced builder and electrical engineer. Prior to it I built three K2's and two K1's. I used Elecraft recommended solder, a fine tipped temperature controlled Weller soldering station, and applied minimal amounts of solder and as a result the board is clean and neatly constructed. I'm proud of the build. The KX1 works perfectly. Build quality details: http://www.photogs.org/out/kx1/kx1.jpg overall view: http://www.photogs.org/out/kx1/kx1all.jpg Price is $490 which includes shipping within the U.S. via USPS Priority Mail. Payment by US postal money order. Thanks, --Andrew, NV1B _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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