Hello I am new to solar and the DC world. I have 15 years experience with AC systems. I recently purchased a teardrop trailer. It came with a 100w solar panel on the roof. I believe it needs to be replaced. When it is in full sun checking voltage at the charger box ( at the pv terminal) I'm getting 10.8 volts between positive to negative. First I check to make sure the solar was clean. There is very light dust. The only way to see it is dirty is if I run my fingers on the panel. I didnt not clean it. I figure this is an off road trailer and there is no way to keep it 100 percent dust free. I doubt homeowners are cleaning their roof top solar panels on a daily basis either. Writing this out made me think to follow out all the wiring to make sure it hasn't been damaged some how. There are connectors about two feet from the panel. I need to take those apart as well to check voltage there. That would help eliminate bad wiring. I was thinking about changing the current 12v deep cycle out for 2 6v deep cycle (golf cart) batteries and buying a generator. The only big power draw I will have is a 800 watt coffee maker. I will need a pure sine wave inverter to run this. Other load will be lights radio and small fan. I dont have the owner manual to check the wattage for these items. The light are LED should be an issue. The fan is tiny about 6in. The radio shouldn't be bad either. I cant seem to find any systems where people are using 2 6v 180 Ah batteries in series as their battery bank with a solar panel to charge said bank. First question how come this isnt a configuration in common use? 2 flooded 6v batteries are cheaper then I lithium 12v battery. Would my 100w panel charge said battery bank? How long would it take to charge this bank? Am I better off sticking with a single 12v battery?
Thank you in advice for any help
Thank you in advice for any help