90W Solar Charger

Really depends on the weather Laurie.
If fine clear days and you keep the panels moved say 3 x a day to align best to sun, then that 90 watter should put out ~ 5amp/hr.
Your fridge ?? Maybe 1.5 to 2 ?? (This too depends on size, how it's used, ambient temps, etc.)

A few LEDS aren't a bother, nor average phone recharging, not sure about laptop charging.
Technically you should be able under fine conditions to run the fridge and still keep battery topped off ok.

Your battery will run down a little overnight, and recharge next day after using a moderate amount of power overnight.

What size aux battery do you have ?
My 100 amp/hr AGM battery will keep me ok for a few days running the fridge and leds.
I'm about to order and 80w Projecta folding panel, so when early camped I can set up the car facing the sun, shade the interior as well as get a bit of charge into car or Arkpak battery.

Hi Laurie

Regardless of what size solar panel you get, make sure you do your homework, as not all panels are what they claim.

There are some very cheap units on eBay, that are not worth the time of day.

I went through the process of getting a good solar panel recently, and with the sound advise from a couple of members that realy knew whst they were talking about and went for a Kickass solar panel out of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. They are top quality, very well made and extra heavy duty cabling. They are not the cheapest by a long run, but this was a genuine case of you only get what you pay for.


Cheers



Stephen

What is the brand name on the fridge Engel, Waeco etc and how old is it this may help to figure out how much power it draws and yes you are definitely better off using a deep cycle battery the brand I use is Supercharge Allrounder you can buy them at Autobarn my previous one lasted just over 5 years I would probably look at a 105ah storage capacity or larger only costs $209 which is a good price there are other brands but I have only tried this one and have been happy with it and they have stores all over the country. It is a combination deep cycle and cranking battery so you can run your fridge and if your main starter battery fails you can use it to run your car there a very good versatile battery.

Thanks for all the posts and follow ups Fellas! I've been busy all day and didn't see the replies till just now. I'll try and address the questions here.

It's a Weaco fridge, a few years old. Three litre or maybe 3.2 litre.

I'm going on a trip from 5 May for three weeks to the northern Pastoral District of South Australia, around Woomera way and a little further north.

I have some diet problems which dictate that I need to eat fresh meat the day it's bought or else have it well frozen.

I'll be a week or so camping in two spots on a sheep and cattle station with no trip to the shops. In this time I'll keep the fridge at -18 deg C, I guess, or at least down to say -10 deg C. Any suggestions here?

I'll put some ice from home in the fridge and with the fridge set on -18 deg C while I travel, all should be well when I get to the station. I expect that while traveling 10 hours a day the battery will be no problem. Correct?

Next I'll be at Andamooka town for a week or so and can walk down to the supermarket each afternoon for a frozen lamp chop. This is when the fridge can be set to 2 deg C. It will be nice to have some fresh milk rather the UHT.

After this I'll go out to Lake Torrens for a couple of nights so can take a few frozen chops with me and keep them frozen.

The solar charger I'm looking at is the Ridge Ryder, $299, 90W one from Supercheap. In the current catalog they have a price of $269, ending Friday. On Saturday only they have 20% off store wide. This will be 20% off the $299 price, about $240. You'd pay that for an eBay model.

Yes, I now know the battery is not the best choice. When it chucks it in I'll get a deep cycle one.

I'll be making my own yogurt and I suppose this will be OK frozen, though I'll need to freeze it in small packs. Maybe thaw a pack overnight, ready for breakfast.

I'll make fresh bread in the camp oven every day or two. Keeping bread and toasting it on the second day is not a problem for me.