The mean, green, V8 recharging machine

As a result of being jumped by a ZS at work I have installed two solar chargers to the windows of the garage. I was going to plop them on the garage roof but  not  sure they were water tight. Wired in two permanent connections into the battery taking it up through the boot base handle so I don’t need to lift the boot base. I am getting 3w which seems to be okay to keep the battery charged. There was some discussion on the forum about whether there is enough charge going through to have an effect. I can report the car is starting up first time after not using it for three weeks. On checking the battery with a mains charger the battery is running at full capacity, so using two does seem to work.

I have been using the chargers since May 2007 with no adverse effects and with the shorter winter months there seems to be enough daylight to keep it  topped up. The chargers have a one way diode to stop the charge going the other way at night but you will need to be careful to not start the car while it is all connected up as this will blow the diode.

The chargers at the time of writing cost £19.99 each, but Maplin’s do have offers during the year and if enough of you want one we could attempt to see  if we can get a discount. Post on the forum or e-mail me if you are interested.

If you use your car daily then the above  should  not  apply, I’m a leisure user and need to be confident the car will start up when I have the need.