On Tuesday, December 29, 2020 at 8:42:19 AM UTC-7, krasw wrote:
Any ideas for Strobl controller replacement? The voltage is not enough for LFP battery. Victron SmartSolar MPPT 75/10 looks good, but according to specs Strobl solar cell voltage is not enough to start the unit (!). Genasun has appalling efficiency.

I put a 10 Watt a panel on my HP16. It averaged 200-250ma charging a 12AH Lead Acid batteries. The real advantage was when I was flying contests or safaris where I left the plane tied down. I could fly about 3 days in a row without needing to charge the battery. If we had a rest day it would pretty much top off the battery. I didn’t use a charge controller, I just used a volt meter. Since I only left it tied down when I was flying almost daily I didn’t figure 200-250 was enough to hurt the battery. But if I didn’t fly for more than a day I would disconnect it.

I loved having the solar panel, most of the time I didn’t need to charge the battery when flying daily. I wish I could come up with a reasonable panel to install on my LS6.

IMO Unless you are leaving the plane outside for extended periods without flying almost daily, my opinion is you don’t need a charge controller for a 20 watt or less solar panel. An appropriately sized and heat sinked Zenor diode would prevent it from overcharging if you did inadvertently leave it connected. If it is connected only when flying then no controller is required.