Sunforce 15 Watt Solar 12V Battery Charger (Solar Panel) and 7 Amp Charge Controller

Kind of a long title, but I wanted the topic to be searchable, which is hopefully what brought you here.

I previously installed a Blue Sea Systems Dual Battery Automatic Charging Relay (see earlier post and page). In the setup, although not required, the wiring diagram shows how a secondary charging source, such as a solar panel, could be linked into the system to supplement the stock alternator.

It is actually a very simple undertaking once you decide where you want to mount the thing. That was my biggest delay.

The Review:

Sunforce does a great job of making this thing ready to use right out of the box.
A charge controller (sold separately) is strongly recommended to prevent overcharging and potential damage to your battery. The packaging very clearly states what is and is not included. Thoughtfully (and thankfully) essentially everything you need is in the box and the one exception is, again, very clearly noted, and in all likelihood is collocated in the immediate vicinity at your local retail location. For me, this was West Marine. If you are an online shopper, the 7amp charge controller will likely show up in the pop up window stating "Customers that purchased this product also bought:"

Ample length of wiring is provided from the body of the panel to the pre-wired adapter plug. A host of connective wiring harnesses are provided if you choose to plug directly into the cigarette lighter plug or if you intend to wire directly to the battery as I did.

Instructions are easy to follow and there's not much guesswork to how to make your connections, which are not numerous at all.

For my custom mounting, I used an assortment of rubber grommets and washers obtainable from a hardware store in the plumbing and gardening sections. I wanted to dampen vibrations and to provide some measure of water-tightness to the penetrations I was making into the top of my bed rail toolbox. The manufacturer does provide stainless steel screws, but I tucked these into my hardware drawer, opting instead for some #10-32 machine screws to through-bolt the panel to the lid. I then used a conventional hex nut and then a nylon locknut to make removal (i.e. theft) a bit more challenging. I'll probably also put a dab of silicone over the screw heads or something to make backing out the screw with a screwdriver a bit more challenging. A determined thief, however, would simply be able to take a Sawzall (or reciprocating saw) to the little rubber stand-offs I made and pass the blade through them and the bolted attachments and make off with the panel. I figure after all of that effort, go ahead buddy. I'll buy a new one.

I was a little nervous about whether or not it worked, as I started and finished my install a bit late in the evening. No sun for testing.

I did like that they provided a little plug in, LED tester so that you can confirm operation. Well, once the truck was out in the light of day, a quick check of the charge controller confirmed all I needed to know: the little "Charging" indicator light was illuminated and my batteries were being topped off and maintained by the sun.

Construction quality is good. The product felt durable when handled during installation.

Why I like it?

With my current setup, I liked that it will afford me the ability to run by CB and Scanner radios without having to idle or draw power from the main starter battery in Accessory mode. I can keep both topped off with the ACR and use the second battery and this panel essentially isolated/independent from the main electrical workhorses of the truck. I caught it on sale at West Marine and immediately went from window-shopping to installing. If you catch it for under $100, you should definitely pick it up.

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