Portable solar with eye towards upgrade

[No.15]

Hi all
I am looking to dip my toe into a solar setup. Right now I would like to have a setup that keeps the TT batteries charged while in storage.

I was thinking of getting this set from Renogy and adding my own controller.
http://www.renogy-store.com/100W-12V...tcs100d-nc.htm

The reason I want to add my own controller is 2 fold.
1. The one they sell with the kit is not water proof
2. There is a strong chance I will permanently mount this and I only want to buy the controller once.

Does anyone have any suggestions/comments on what controller I should get with the eye towards the future?

Thanks

[alano]

The two 50W Renology panels are equivalent to one 100 W Renology panel. So with this in mind you should consider the Blue Sky 2024iL controller with the IPN Pro remote, shunt kit and temperature probe. This setup will allow you to expand to a total of 400 W and includes a battery monitor - which in my opinion is essential if you're serious about taking care of your battery.

You could plug in the portable Renology panels into the Blue Sky controller for the time being and when you're ready you can mount them on the roof and add a few more panels if you choose.

[AWCHIEF]

I have the Renogy 100 watt suitcase. I upgraded the controller to a 30 amp and added another 100 watt panel that I had on my sailboat. At this time I do not want to deal with a detailed permenant installation. My current set up meets all my current needs. Somewhere down the road I may permenantly mount solar or not. Everyone has different priorities and budgets.