Description

Schumacher 18W Solar Panel ASi : The thin film solar module for all your home, farm, and cabin projects requiring reliable power. The SP-1800 is a great choice for Canadians wanting to provide electricity to a remote building on a farm or property, and don’t have the best weather year-round, or sky exposure.

What’s the attraction?

For our Canadian latitudes, thin film solar panels work great. Better than crystalline when the sun heads south for the winter. Why? Thin film Amorphous Silicon solar cells (Powerfilm AS & P3 CIGS cells too) are more sensitive to sunlight, so they start charging your batteries earlier in the day & stay charging later in the evening that crystalline. Crystalline may be more efficient, but that only means a smaller panel for the same power in direct sunlight. An 18W thinfilm solar panel will produce more watt-hours than an 18W crystalline over the course of any day of the year… they just take more room on the roof.

So, if you want more reliable charging in all clear & cloud-cover conditions, go with thin film for your smaller projects.

SP-1800 Features…

• 18W amorphous silicon solar module
• SAE connector on the output cable (see optional connectors below)
• Durable aluminum frame & tempered glass face
• Weatherproof – built for the outdoors
• Environmentally friendly

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SP-1800 Specifications…

Solar Cell Type : Amorphous silicon
Peak Output Power : 18 Watts (per panel)
Voltage (max) : 23.57V (open current)
Current (max) : 3A
Fuse : 5A

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Recommended to Complete Your Solar Power System…

At 18 Watts, the SP-1800 provides a building block for powering a wide cross-section of equipment. Store the power you generate in a deep cycle battery bank. A single group 24, 27, or 31 battery will do just fine, and will charge in under a day for most of the year.
Your best option is to head to your local auto parts or marine dealership so you don’t have to pay for shipping!

You should use a charge controller!
There is no charge regulator included with this kit. We recommend the 7A model from P3 Solar, and it comes pre-wired with the SAE connectors for fast & easy set-up.
Optional Connection Accessories…
SAE 8 ft Extension (16 AWG)
SAE 20 ft Extension (14 AWG)
Ring Terminals (18 AWG)
Ring Terminals (16 AWG)
12V CLA Plug
12V CLA Socket

For larger storage, consider wiring together a pair of GC225 Golf Cart batteries in series (for 12V), or two of the S-480 or S-550 batteries. Just remember that larger batteries mean they can drive larger inverters reliably, but your incoming power production is still determined by the solar modules… so budget your power according to the solar production, not the storage.
For example, you can either budget 100 Watt-Hours of power usage per day, knowing the panels will be able to keep-up. Or if your system is at a weekend cabin, you can use a bigger battery bank and draw more power, knowing that you have all week to replenish the battery.

To get 120V AC from this kit in order to power household appliances, we recommend Samlex AC Inverters. You can also use Magnum or Outback if desired, but remember to wire your system to be able to disconnect the inverter when not needed (stand-by will consume power!)