Renogy 100w 12v panel to run Engel 12v Fridge

No you can NOT hook it to the load side of the CC...... Unless you want to have problems.... ONLY hook it to the battery.... I'm not sure how long it will work with such a small system but that's how you learn....

I would recommend as much as you can. Adjust everything by how many panels you have room for. More is better in the long run and how many clouds days you have in a row......

If you are going to go any higher than 200 watts I would recommend an MPPT charge controller. Since they are a big jump in price I would get a larger one than you think you will need in case you want to add panels later. Get a good one that allows for over paneling (you can hook up 3x the charging capacity of the controller) especially if you have a lot of cloudy days, and get one that works with 12 and 24v systems (most of them do) in case you upgrade in the future. MPPT controllers can work in serial or parallel connections and convert higher amps or volts into whatever the battery uses so that none of the power is wasted. For example your battery might need 14.5v (or whatever) to charge and if your panel is putting out 18v a PWM will just throttle back the power (it gets wasted) however a MPPT controller will convert the higher voltage to a lower voltage, but at a higher amperage so your batteries charge faster.

Personally, I prefer the 150 watt panels over 100 watts. They are small enough to lift and move around while climbing a ladder (good DIY size) but require less installation, cabling, etc than using 100 watt panels. They are also the largest size that are practical to ship or fit into a sedan, etc.

Personally, I wouldn't hook anything up to the load side of a charge controller other than lights. I prefer to hook things directly to the battery.

I have 3 solar arrays and learned something each time so they were progressively more efficient. A lot of this was not due to poor planning but rather I kept adding on as finances allowed. My favorite array is four 150-watt panels connected in series with a 40 amp MPPT controller. It was the highest amp controller I was able to afford at the time. I live in a rain forest and we do get sunny days but most days are cloudy so I need to be over-paneled. You may need to be as well if you are using the system for refrigeration.

Thanks Terracore!!! Great Info very much appreciated!

hi ricaldrich,

I would expect the load terminals to handle their rated load, period the end or renogy is crap, period. If it won't send it back.
The use of the load terminals come with battery protection called low voltage cut off, depending on the load the LVD (low voltage disconnet) can be set say to 12.0v or whatever to save the battery with a reconnect of 12.6, 13 or whatever.

If the controller does not preform as advertised junk it, send it back. ...

luckily you are not trying to operate a 120v appliance via an inefficient inverter!!!!

"I tried the Renogy Rugged Power Pack I ran the fridge overnight, It was still running but there were no bars left on the RPP. They say in the listing that it will run a 30amp mini fridge for 3 days so I thought a 12v Engel would be a cakewalk. "

Ricaldrich, the battery in that power pack is only 300 watt-hours. That might sound like alot, but when you convert to amp-hours as batteries are more often described, it is less than 25 amp-hours. If the Engel averaged 1.5 amps, then that eats up 25 amp-hours in just 16 hours. That is why your power pack only ran the 'fridge for a day.

I guess it wasn't the best idea after all??