Solar for beginners

[David B.]

Removing badging on cars held on with double stick tape is easily removed by using dental floss and a heat gun. I would think that using WD40 would also work with the dental floss or with a plastic scraper.
Dave & Paula

[Huck]

From the RNG bendable solar panels recall

About 1500 sold. 11 reports of overheating with 3 reports of property damage.

11/1500 = .0073 or .7% reported with overheating problems

3/1500 = .002 or .2% with reported property damage

It would be very helpful to have the details. I really, really don't want to remove mine!

[gordon2]

Originally Posted by Huck

...

It would be very helpful to have the details. I really, really don't want to remove mine!

I don't blame you, and they might be fine (if firmly attached all around) for all I know.. but you should contact Renogy, they are pretty good about getting back to you (at least they did when I asked a technical question). Of course with the potential liability, they might just tell you to remove them. Period.
And with the potential liability, I think I would. Plus the recall claims you get free replacements. So time to upgrade to the newest panels!

As for removing the VHB tape, see this.

[BrendaLeeFree]

I believe I've asked this before, but has anyone tried, successfully, to use the Goal Zero Yeti 1250 to power up their camp, with a/c? Goal Zero Yeti 1250 Solar Generator | Power Packs | Goal Zero

[Paul O.]

When you boil this down to the basics, this is just an extra battery, in a fancy package. It is not a generator!

Ideal for: Laptop, Mini Fridge, TV, Backup, Emergency, Lights <--- that is not much in terms of energy requirements.

I would not expect it to do any more for you than upgrading your Scamp battery or adding a second one, and a solar panel. There is no magic bullet here.

[Lawrence]

Originally Posted by BrendaLeeFree

I believe I've asked this before, but has anyone tried, successfully, to use the Goal Zero Yeti 1250 to power up their camp, with a/c? Goal Zero Yeti 1250 Solar Generator | Power Packs | Goal Zero

What Paul O said.

I checked the specs on the Yeti, as it does seem like a cool unit. From what I've found it has a 100Ah battery, meaning a max capacity of ~1200WH (as DC), and a 1500W surge capacity.

The power demands of RV AC units vary but, for the sake of a reality-check calculation, let's assume a typical small AC which draws 1000W when running and 2000W on startup.

It's unlikely the AC would even start (the Yetis' surge capacity is too low) and, if it did, it would run for an hour or less, especially given the loss inverting DC to AC and because it's not a good idea to draw the battery down low.

It's possible to buy 100Ah batteries for a lot less than the price of the Yeti. But even if one did that, you'd need a quite a number of batteries to get useful AC run time -- and a large solar array to recharge.

As once was said... lunches are never free! When it comes to energy, at least.

[BrendaLeeFree]

Originally Posted by Lawrence

What Paul O said.

I checked the specs on the Yeti, as it does seem like a cool unit. From what I've found it has a 100Ah battery, meaning a max capacity of ~1200WH (as DC), and a 1500W surge capacity.

The power demands of RV AC units vary but, for the sake of a reality-check calculation, let's assume a typical small AC which draws 1000W when running and 2000W on startup.

It's unlikely the AC would even start (the Yetis' surge capacity is too low) and, if it did, it would run for an hour or less, especially given the loss inverting DC to AC and because it's not a good idea to draw the battery down low.

It's possible to buy 100Ah batteries for a lot less than the price of the Yeti. But even if one did that, you'd need a quite a number of batteries to get useful AC run time -- and a large solar array to recharge.

As once was said... lunches are never free! When it comes to energy, at least.

it stinks that our renewable technology is just not *there yet". We just purchased a generator-I feel so mixed about it but it's nice to know we can go off grid when we want to with GAS. Wishing it was with wind or sun though!

[Paul O.]

Enjoy the generator, use it sparingly and be happy.

Unfortunately we read so many posts here revealing how high the expectations have been raised with regard to the so called renewable energy sources. A dose of reality is in order here. Small portable solar panels are good for charging the batteries for various low power devices. They do not pay for themselves in terms of energy cost by any means, but they do in terms of convenience.

There is no comparison between running LED lights or a tablet computer and an air conditioner. The power requirements of an air conditioner are ten thousand times greater than a phone or a tablet computer.