160W Reinforced semi-flexible solar panel:
This reinforced semi-flexible solar panel has a unique 7-layer construction, featuring an embedded sheet of anodised aluminium fully encapsulated within the solar panel. This additional reinforcement offers greater strength and resilience, making this one of the most robust semi-flexible solar panels available on the market.
In addition to the aluminium reinforcement, the surface of this 160W semi-flexible solar panel is made of strong ETFE material which has a longer service life compared to standard semi-flexible solar panels. As a result, these particular semi-flexible solar panels are extremely hard-wearing and less prone to cracking , delamination and corrosion. The lightly textured coating of this panel creates an anti-reflective surface which allows the panel to absorb a far greater amount of light, thereby increasing efficiency. ETFE material has long been used in applications where durability and high-temperature resistance is required, such as in the Eden Project, Cornwall. You can read more about ETFE and its benefits here.
This panel also features innovative 5 busbar solar cells, which are more efficient than the 2, 3 or 4 busbar solar cells used in most other solar panels, and are able to extract more power from the same surface area.
The semi-flexible design of this panel makes it ideal for curved roofs and surfaces where bonding is preferable (though the panel can also be fixed by bolts or screws). The panel is also incredibly light (only 5.75kg) which makes it an ideal option for all vehicle applications. This panel is also highly resistant to salt water environments and it is also possible to walk on the panel, making it the perfect choice for boats and yachts.
The panel is fitted with 2 x 1m of cable with MC4 connectors on the end which simply plug into the 5m extension solar cable supplied with the kit, to join the solar panel and the charge controller.
20A Dual battery controller:
The kit includes a 20A 12V/24V dual battery solar charge controller designed to charge and protect two batteries independently, with automatic cut off to prevent over-charging. The controller uses PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) technology which increases charge acceptance and prolongs the life of your batteries. PWM technology can also recover some lost battery capacity
This is a perfect solar controller for a caravan / camper van / boat or another system with two batteries (e.g. engine and leisure battery) or battery banks. You can set the initial charging priority e.g. 80% power to go to the engine battery and 20% to leisure battery. When one of the batteries is fully charged the controller will automatically divert all power to the other battery.
Can the unit work with only one battery? Yes, absolutely! The controller will determine automatically if there's only one battery connected and will pass 100% of charging current to this battery. You can add a second battery later.
The unit has numerous safety functions, including protection against reverse current at night (from the battery back to the solar panel), over charge, short circuit, reverse polarity etc. Other features include various LED indicators, battery type selection (sealed, gel, flooded) and an RJ-45 socket for an optional remote LCD meter with 10m cable.
A built-in temperature sensor allows the controller to optimise the charging process depending on the ambient temperature. If you are planning to position the controller far away from the battery, or if the battery and the controller are exposed to different ambient temperatures, an external remote temperature sensor with 3m cable is recommended for this dual battery solar charge controller. To enable connection to the screw terminals of the controller, the green connector block on the end of the remote temperature sensor cable should be cut off.
The solar charge controller is compatible with sealed, gel and flooded lead acid batteries.
Additional items:
The kit also includes a pair of 5m positive and negative solar extension leads (4.0mm² cross section) and 5m of 4.0mm² dual core battery cable for use between the solar charge controller and your battery, making the total cable length between the solar panel and the battery 1m + 5m + 5m = 11m.