Battery charging, connected or not?

[Fraser64]

A couple of questions regarding batteries and charging

 

I'm considering leaving a small solar charger connected over winter, are they any good (apart from the obvious issue with lack of sun) I take it the wattage rating is a sign of how much umph they give.

 

and does it do any damage charging a battery while its still connected to the car?

 

Thanks.

[Pete Lewis]

Yes they can work , if low light wont charge as much most output relies on light input so often in dull

there is less than the battery needs to charge , im no expert on these ,

 

charging on car is fine providing you dont have a radio memory clock or tracker sucking small voltages

best these are 'off' for solar power

[dougbgt6]

There was a thread on here last year regarding solar panels.The guy bought the kit from Maplins I think. It works. Best to disconnect the battery to avoid the "woops I left the light on T shirt" There should be enough daylight even in winter, a neighbour has solar panels on his roof and reckons he's still making money in the winter. However, a small panel will have low levels of current, so best to get the wire between panel and battery as short as possible. I disconnect my battery by November and reconnect around March, works for me. 

[Paul H]

I use a 42w solar panel and regulator and this works fine all year .

Regards

Paul