Batteries, Day 2

I am very happy with my experiment today! At 5:30 the batteries read 13.7 volts as they were still getting a bit of a charge from the remaining sun. I turned on the smaller TV and it's satellite receiver and left it on for the 4 hour test period. The voltage dropped to 13 volts as soon as I turned on the TV. I left it on, tuned to CNN. Four hours later the batteries were reading 12.5 volts or 80% of full charge.

Last winter if we left a TV on for much more than two hours and tried to start the generator the start current for the generator would drag the battery voltage down so far the inverter would cut out. Tonight the inverter stayed on when I started the generator after running the TV for four hours!

Tomorrow I will see if the solar will recharge the batteries and then repeat the test with the bigger screen TV in the bedroom. Like I say, so far I am very pleased.

EDIT: I left the satellite receiver on all night (but not the TV) and when I checked at 10:30 AM the batteries were at 13.2 and by noon they were at 13.7. Very happy with this!