I've set up a Pecron E3600 battery and a PV300 solar panel in my shed to power some small LED lights for both aesthetic and practical purposes. However, I noticed that the three exterior lights drained around 70% of the battery in just one night, which seems excessive. Even though the solar panel charged the battery back to about 50% (considering it was overcast), I'm frustrated that this setup isn't sustainable. I'm wondering: 1) could something be off with my current settings? 2) should I invest in another solar panel or a battery expansion? I'm new to all of this and I'm not sure which option would be more beneficial in the long run. I also plan to look into connecting the lights to a WiFi switch for better control over scheduling or motion detection to conserve power. Thanks!
1 Answer
First off, you might want to fully charge your Pecron battery and then discharge it completely to see how it responds. Sometimes the charge indicators can be off and this might help you pinpoint if that’s your issue. Also, consider switching to 12V lighting if that's feasible; it can save a lot on power since inverters draw a fair amount of energy just to be active. Those larger units typically draw about 1% of their capacity just to run!
That's a good point! But how do I keep the inverter from running all the time? I don't want to unplug it regularly. Would a WiFi plug help, or would it just keep drawing power?