battery charging - will a 1 W solar do it?

[flyboy1963]

Ok, there are many electronics experts out there......will one of these little solar thingy's top up my battery, or maintain a charge?
...or do I need more like 5 or 15 watts? ( assuming sun ocassionally!)
I plan to attach it to my canopy cover and leave it connected to the batt, since flying a few circuits once a month in winter doesn't charge up that battery much!

thanks for any advice!

[rebelflier]

My 75 watt solar panel at my hangar only puts out about 4 or 5 amps at 12 (15) volts. I would get the larger one. Make sure it doesn't draw power when there is no sun....

[Ron Lee]

I would look at the specs of the various trickle chargers.

[grenwis]

I used this charger fron Harbor Freight to keep my Odyssey battery charged in a hangar without electricity. Worked great.
http://www.harborfreight.com/15-watt...ger-44768.html

[flyboy1963]

....so the HF unit at 1.5 watts seems to do it eh? Their description call it a 15 watt, but also says it has a 96 foot long cord, so that's all a bit suspect!

Just a caveat, my unit is from Canadian tire, seems identical to other 'Blue planet' brand ones, and weighs only a few ounces....also says it's for 'indoor use'.....(how much sun is INSIDE YOUR house?) I guess the mean inside your Rec Vehicle or garage........
Anyway, I can't leave it on the glareshield.... AND use a canopy cover, so I'll risk the $10 and put it out in the elements.
After 3 months of inactivity, my battery still shows 12.9 Volts, so I hope that's enough to keep it from freezing; it hasn't gotten below about -20 C here for a short time....normal is more like -4.

[WAM120RV]

I have just upgraded my solar charger to a 15 watt unit. I used to have a 5 watt one and it juts did not do the job in the winter months. Purpose made ones come with a diode to prevent back flow during darkness. I also bought a control unit which prevents overcharging, and can be used to power up other things......TV's etc.