Testing out one of the cheapest solar panels on ebay with MC4 connectors

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  • čas přidán 26. 03. 2020
  • Testing out one of the cheapest solar panels on ebay with MC4 connectors
    £39.48
    www.ebay.co.uk/itm/50W-12V-Se...
  • Jak na to + styl

Komentáře • 160

  • @ReviewsandTech
    @ReviewsandTech Před 3 lety +8

    LOL, I just bought a very similar solar panel that ;looks just like this and states that it will provide 250 watts of power. I paid $70 and it also came with a controller and some cables, OMG what a joke! I am so sending it back to the seller ASAP! Thanks Mark for making this video as well and have an awesome day too.

  • @spudnickuk
    @spudnickuk Před rokem +4

    Thank you for sharing.
    This shows a basic setup that hits the nail on the head.

  • @ParedCheese
    @ParedCheese Před 3 lety +6

    The robin seemed to be enjoying it.😁😁

  • @gencouple
    @gencouple Před 2 lety +3

    Many thanks Mark, just what I was looking for.

  • @manuelmichaca3310
    @manuelmichaca3310 Před 3 lety +3

    Thanks for the video. I just got one similar to that, so it was a relief to see it work

  • @fidelcatsro6948
    @fidelcatsro6948 Před 3 lety +10

    true test would be to connect a 10amp ammeter from one of the panel lines to the input of a 50watt 12v bulb as load for a minute or so (without any battery or controller connection) and see how many amps going through at full shiny day to see if its really capable of 50watts...

    • @VMUKUMAR
      @VMUKUMAR Před 3 lety +1

      .50mah I bought a fake one haha

    • @fidelcatsro6948
      @fidelcatsro6948 Před 3 lety +2

      @@VMUKUMAR i bought a 100watt solar panel for almost 200USD few yrs ago...you can take a 10 amp ammeter and connect it directly for a few seconds to the panel in the hot sun to test short circuit current...it should be around at 3amps or so for 18v panel..do not connect longer than few seconds for you to read the meter because it it technically short circuit and it will heat up the panel

  • @paulhaywood5197
    @paulhaywood5197 Před rokem +6

    I think if the cable is to long, voltage would be lost. I was told every metre looses 1 volt. That's on low d c voltage, and amps. The gauge of cables also plays a factor, ie the resistance. Good idea to check out information on the tube. Thanks for your demonstration, good video, Paul.

    • @MrMeltedwellies
      @MrMeltedwellies  Před rokem

      Thanks for the info paul

    • @jimmybrad156
      @jimmybrad156 Před 11 měsíci

      The lower the amps (current, I) the lower the voltage drop (volts, V).
      So the fuller the battery, the less it will pull from the panel, the less voltage drop you'll get, so for keeping a battery floated it won't make a great difference, unless your cable is really thin and long and your battery is a long way from full and the panel is in full sunlight.

  • @HansenHa
    @HansenHa Před 9 měsíci +3

    You don’t need to use a converter if you have to charge the battery for your laptop you can use the 12 V

    • @tptoodle
      @tptoodle Před 2 měsíci +1

      but how would you connect the laptop to this type of a setup?

  • @stu-j
    @stu-j Před 2 lety +2

    I want one to run a 12v heater for my small workshop. Buy have it connected to a 12v car battery all the time so I can even run the heater for a few hours in the evening.

  • @chrisneedham5803
    @chrisneedham5803 Před 4 lety +4

    Nice piece of kit and not a bad price 🍷🍺👍

  • @lawrencedavidson6195
    @lawrencedavidson6195 Před rokem +5

    I have had many different sizes/wattage small panels for experimental reasons. That is a 15-20 watt panel. Greetings from Jamaica.

    • @paulpaid
      @paulpaid Před rokem +1

      Kingstonian here. What's your current setup?

    • @lawrencedavidson6195
      @lawrencedavidson6195 Před rokem +1

      @@paulpaid 650 watts of panels. I need to upgrade inverter to pure sine wave and a bigger battery bank soon. I am not using all the power the panels are making.

    • @pinchasjm
      @pinchasjm Před rokem +1

      I need some used 250 watt solar panels

    • @elchuppacabre
      @elchuppacabre Před rokem +2

      Greetings from Guantanamo Bay.

    • @lawrencedavidson6195
      @lawrencedavidson6195 Před rokem

      @@paulpaid I got my 1000 watt Renogy pure sine wave inverter a few months now and i'm very pleased with it.

  • @ANTHONYBOOTH
    @ANTHONYBOOTH Před rokem +1

    is the output negative not common to the battery negative then? - if so, then I think that ground common circuits will simply need their own fuse + optional ammeter in series with the positive rail... - I just ordered a 30 watter off ebay, - wondering if all those phat cables are provided..... (my battery grounds are universally common as well as all dc circuits....)

  • @Gr8Brit
    @Gr8Brit Před 2 lety

    I'll be getting a more expensive one but is the box like a junction box where I wire light and possibly a fan

  • @gencouple
    @gencouple Před 2 lety +2

    Mark, Given I have two batteries on my campervan, one for the campers engine and the other a leisure battery. Which battery do you recommend I feed via the solar panel?

    • @jamesmccarthy9493
      @jamesmccarthy9493 Před rokem

      That depends on how it is set up and what you use it for. If the camper sits for months on end without running to charge the cranking battery, trickle charge it so the motor will turn over next time you hit the key.
      On the other hand, if you use the "leisure" battery more often, the more wattage available the better! But it needs to be charge controlled with a decent quality charge controller that has a load circuit capable of around 7.5 amps (12v fridges etc.).
      I have both for my set up that comprises of two deep cycle batteries at around 105ah (lead acid) connected in parallel for the "leisure" battery, 400w solar and 15 amp controller, this also charges via relay isolator directly from the alternator/cranking battery. One cranking battery 900cca 12v, with a 40watt solar trickle charger that has an inbuilt thermal overload switch.
      My setup is not ideal but copes sufficiently for a family of 4.5 camping for 2/3 nights in tropical Qld Australia. That includes running a big 12v refrigerator and fans, lights and charging devices. Occasionally powering a Bluetooth speaker or similar. The idea is to use the excess power from the solar and keep the batteries at a state of charge, batteries are century batteries that are all 5 years old. Regularly topped up with distilled water.

  • @Ryuuken24
    @Ryuuken24 Před 3 lety +1

    This is not a 50 watts panel but, close to 25W ish, none of these panel are a 100% equal output but, this one will charge up a 12volt battery at 1.4 amps, that is not bad value if it works 12 hours a day for one battery.

  • @VerifyIT
    @VerifyIT Před 3 lety +13

    Nice connection tutorial, but is it pulling 50W of power? Or even close to that?

    • @parkerbohnn
      @parkerbohnn Před 3 měsíci

      It looks like a 40 watt solar panel.

  • @geofcapes2642
    @geofcapes2642 Před 3 lety +4

    The 13.7 v was the panel output
    Nice video 😎

    • @HarksModding
      @HarksModding Před 2 lety

      13.7 display on the controller is the float voltage its to stop it over feeding the battery. 13.5 is better and what i have mine set on.

  • @restage13
    @restage13 Před 4 lety +10

    First conection to Battery and
    2 Connect the solar panel .

    • @thrashfan4ever
      @thrashfan4ever Před 3 lety

      you forgot the charge control mppt you have to have a fuse block at least a 60 or higher u should watch will browse tutorial as well and cables to go from mppt controller and i t hank it goes solar panel battery then charge controller then inverter butt i could be wrong will browse has great tutorials i am going to get me a back up inverter and a couple of solar panels for my amps and computer

    • @capodad2u
      @capodad2u Před 7 měsíci

      Many of these cheap Chinese mppt controller can be connected directly to the PV first.

    • @capodad2u
      @capodad2u Před 7 měsíci

      Also get a boost mppt controller and you can directly plug in and charge your e bike batteries very efficiently.

  • @eddt430
    @eddt430 Před 2 lety +9

    Howdy great vid. Just wondering how the solar panel is holding up? 👍

  • @alyssadziminski7034
    @alyssadziminski7034 Před rokem

    How do I hook up a generator to my breaker box?

  • @tazfitfood4077
    @tazfitfood4077 Před rokem +1

    Good review, thank you

  • @stevegurner8676
    @stevegurner8676 Před rokem +7

    You ALL WAYS connect the charge control to the batteries first that way the charge control unit will know what sort of batteries you are using
    you risk compromising the system if you do not

    • @neillroy
      @neillroy Před rokem

      He had me at.. Hmm must read the instructions LOL

  • @weriesblack1375
    @weriesblack1375 Před 4 měsíci

    The controller limits what power output it has so a 20a will output more then a 10a so aslong as the panel and controler is in range and it wont over charge the controler your good google what you need but general rule of thumb i go with is 10a controler x 12v gives the maximum size solar panel it will handle obviously bigger panel is more power but the controler output limit is what goes to the battery. Hope that helps.

  • @anthonybiancone3780
    @anthonybiancone3780 Před 8 měsíci +2

    Did you connect the solar panel Before connecting the Battery? That is a big NO NO.... Also a lot of comments have no idea what they are talking about.

  • @gnarly706
    @gnarly706 Před 4 lety +3

    Need about 200 watt or 300 watt solar panel to run fridge with inverter.

  • @waynesmith3318
    @waynesmith3318 Před měsícem

    I have read the instructions and installed quite a few charge controllers and all of them said to connect your fully charged battery bank to the controller first, then connect the solar panels or you risk damaging the controller. But what do I know.

  • @iraja333
    @iraja333 Před 2 lety +1

    Thankyou🙏

  • @zabby533
    @zabby533 Před 2 lety

    Arrow pointing to batt means batt voltage, you should of shown the arrow pointing to panel to see the output of the panel?

  • @greatrivermaple8120
    @greatrivermaple8120 Před 4 měsíci

    Hello! We have this same unit (ours is a 40A), but I can't get something to work and was wondering if you could provide insight. Everything is seemingly connected correctly. However on the main screen I don't see the solar panels that should show up on the right hand side and the battery is not being charged. Is there something I did wrong? Is it not functioning properly? Thanks

  • @727jetjumper
    @727jetjumper Před 3 lety +4

    how many watts is the panel supplying?
    On the controller, the "Load" (lightbulb) output, is where you connect those things you want to power.

  • @kenchan5774
    @kenchan5774 Před 7 měsíci +1

    I have the same controller, same 18W panel. But even under the full sun for 4 hours, I still cannot raise the battery bar indicator.
    How long did you take to full charge your big battery??

  • @petermurphy5302
    @petermurphy5302 Před 3 lety +6

    Thanks for the video. I've just bought a second hand 100W panel and am gathering up the other bits and pieces. You'd said you could run a laptop but I was thinking of even trying to plug my washing machine (on cold wash) into the inverter. It says online that would be about 250 watt hours so I'm guessing a medium deep cycle battery could do that. Would you agree that would be feasible once or twice as an experiment?

    • @MrMeltedwellies
      @MrMeltedwellies  Před 3 lety +1

      Hi Peter not sure is it a portable washing machine !!

    • @petermurphy5302
      @petermurphy5302 Před 3 lety +1

      @@MrMeltedwellies just an ordinary one but if a 100ah battery at 12 v is 1200 watt hours and you can use half of it to protect the battery, then on paper, a 250 watt hour wash cycle would be fine, no?

    • @Cornz38
      @Cornz38 Před rokem +2

      @@petermurphy5302 No, the startup current of the motor can be huge. Even my 1kw pure sine inverter wont run a lawn mower, let alone a washing machine.

    • @mitsuoo1012
      @mitsuoo1012 Před 7 měsíci +1

      At 30% more watts and that's what the washing machine will draw on start up.

  • @thomaslucas159
    @thomaslucas159 Před rokem +1

    I bought a similar solar package recently and it didn’t come with everything in your video, same charge controller, smaller solar panel,

  • @mxartesano
    @mxartesano Před rokem

    What cable type are you using?

  • @neillroy
    @neillroy Před rokem

    Mark, thanks for the video. Did you ever find out the real wattage of the flexi panel? . I'm beginning to hate on line sellers

  • @gnarly706
    @gnarly706 Před 4 lety +11

    Volts × Amp = Watts.

  • @tptoodle
    @tptoodle Před 2 měsíci +1

    thank you for the video. i was thinking of buying this unit from aliexpress for my motorbike as a trickle charger. I am guessing that would work, right?

  • @twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048

    Can you do a video to show how to set the limits to stop over powering the battery

    • @MrMeltedwellies
      @MrMeltedwellies  Před 3 lety

      when you fit the charge control unit it does it all for you hope this helps

    • @twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048
      @twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048 Před 3 lety

      @@MrMeltedwellies does it?? 🤔🤔 I thought you had to manually adjust it....so that's reassuring to me
      One more question....would a single electric camping hob be ok to run off it plse? It's 750w with a UK plug
      Could I take the plug off and hook the wires up to + & -??

    • @twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048
      @twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048 Před 3 lety +1

      Do I need to buy an invertor aswell plse and what would you say is the biggest device or appliance I could use if using a 12v inverter to 4000w plse? I need to buy what's needed ASAP plse so ANY HELP TO A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS would be most appreciated 🙌🏽🙏🏼

    • @b3owu1f
      @b3owu1f Před 9 měsíci

      @@twisted_sista_bmccleanmiss6048 The output can power something.. but honestly you'd be best to buy a pure sinewave inverter from Victron, make sure you got good clean output.

  • @videomentaryproductionschannel
    @videomentaryproductionschannel Před 2 měsíci +1

    You Need to plug in the Battery First Not the Solar Panal thats really Important so the Computer can set up , Read the Manaul

  • @andyjack2368
    @andyjack2368 Před rokem

    nice cool how much AMP solar charger have may i asked ? i have one it is 30A solar charger how much watts is your panel may i asked

  • @TheIskorpitx
    @TheIskorpitx Před rokem +1

    I like this video , do you recon this will keep my battery fully charged while parked during winter ?

    • @MrMeltedwellies
      @MrMeltedwellies  Před rokem +1

      So long as you get some sun mine did Petar

    • @TheIskorpitx
      @TheIskorpitx Před rokem

      @@MrMeltedwellies I’m only worried about cooking my battery as I’m not sure does have a protection of overcharging , if you can advice me will be great as at the moment I have to start my car every day because if I let it sit for 2/3 days the battery goes flat , car was driven 2 months ago for last time :)

    • @MrMeltedwellies
      @MrMeltedwellies  Před rokem +1

      Hi Petar if you have a charge control unit fitted you should be fine as its protects your battery

    • @frigglebiscuit7484
      @frigglebiscuit7484 Před rokem +2

      @@TheIskorpitx the 13.7 it showed when he pressed teh button was the cutoff voltage for the charge controller. it will stop the battery from charging at whatever its set at.

  • @stewartrogers494
    @stewartrogers494 Před 3 lety +3

    always hook battery fist to controller only after hook up solar panel to charge controller also shad solar panel before hooking up ....S

  • @zakariabinabdullahkurakura3870

    For hi Speed charger make 3x 12vsolar penal series...hi ampere...

  • @jefersonnl
    @jefersonnl Před 3 lety +1

    What does a controller like that understands as "float charge"? Mine(model identical to yours) would start upping the voltage at the start of the charge(early morning, 6 AM), than, as it gets to 14.4v(midday), it will keep it there until the end of the day(6 PM), even if I don't discharge the battery during the night, and even as the battery is pulling less than 200mAh of current from the charger. Shouldn't the charger go to "float charge" and try to keep my battery stable, from 13.0v to 13.7v (adjustable), when it is no longer getting usable current from the charger? Isn't that the dictionary definition of "float charge"? Ps: My inverter only turns itself on at 6 PM, so it can't be blamed for any "current leak", all the power produced by the solar panel during the day hours has only the battery as its consumer.

    • @oilpond
      @oilpond Před 3 lety

      yeah but i doubt this old guy understands that hmm did you set it correctly and sought the problem?

    • @jefersonnl
      @jefersonnl Před 3 lety

      @@oilpond Yeah, he doesn't understand it. And no, I haven't solved the problem. I even built a microcontrolled telemetry unit to measure voltages and currents and log it for months(in fact, it is logging even now, I have millions of rows of data I can go trough and analyze). Nothing came from it. Things are close to ideal conditions and even so, the charger wouldn't turn to float charge mode. I concluded that these cheap chinese charge controllers are just mere voltage regulators. On the web I came across other people having the same issue. It's PWM for sure as it relies on the technology to control voltage, but it is not a true charger. It's only capable of charge stages 1 and 2. Any decent 14.4v power supply plus a high current schottky diode will give you that. Lucky me I drain the battery during the night anyways so it's pretty much hungry for a charge during the day, as it drinks well from the charger as it provides the amps, otherwise I could have lost it to boiling a long time ago. I have a circuit in mind that can do true 3-stage charge of a lead acid battery. One day I'll commit it to a circuit board, right now I'm too busy for that.

  • @julianashuro914
    @julianashuro914 Před 3 lety

    How much is the kit

  • @dollymakercreativity3544

    I would love to be able to charge my mobility scooter like this, on ebay i see Mobility Scooter Solar Panel Battery Charger 10w 10 watt 24v 24 volt +2.5m lead, they say you get a trickle of a charge would I be throwing my money away by getting one.

  • @alabamaoutdoors4468
    @alabamaoutdoors4468 Před 3 lety

    Brand of kit and $$

  • @miguelrivers9626
    @miguelrivers9626 Před rokem +1

    What about the USB’s ?? Can u take charge from there

  • @sdfhjjtfkkk6720
    @sdfhjjtfkkk6720 Před 3 lety +1

    How many volts is the solar panel?

  • @michal1344
    @michal1344 Před 3 lety +2

    Pity you Didn’t measure current in Ampers.

  • @visarbrestovci9029
    @visarbrestovci9029 Před 2 lety

    can the controller be left outdoors in rainy weather

    • @Legend813a
      @Legend813a Před 2 lety

      No. The controller is not water resistant at all.

  • @MoviePropandReplicasss

    Great video 👍🏻But Are these water proof ?

  • @gnarly706
    @gnarly706 Před 4 lety +2

    I just paid £20 for 60 watts folding panel on ebay.

  • @DAZSAVENTURESINWONDERLAND

    get them on ebay for as little as £24 now with the controller

  • @JiMiGj1234
    @JiMiGj1234 Před 2 lety +1

    hi all, i was wondering if anybody knows if i can keep battery connected at all the time and inverter so i can provide power 2 couple of internet routers 5w each i think, but i don 't know if the solar panel will kick in charging when battery is down or stop charging when is full

  • @pierluigicolotto9570
    @pierluigicolotto9570 Před 3 lety

    With plans from Avasva you can make it really easy.

  • @2310phil
    @2310phil Před 4 lety +2

    price gone up to £55.88 now

  • @orph4nsx
    @orph4nsx Před 5 měsíci +1

    How many watts?

  • @SED05L
    @SED05L Před 4 lety +14

    wow this was rubbish, where was the TESTING?

    • @wattage2007
      @wattage2007 Před 4 lety +5

      He mistook 0.1v for 1v too. Useless.

    • @rudedog2378
      @rudedog2378 Před 3 lety +3

      who says "rubbish" anymore LoL
      I bought one , i'll test it in December
      Post it in 2021, now i'm going to watch Benny Hilll.

    • @gablia2002
      @gablia2002 Před 3 lety

      hey lets test it and not know what the buttons do......
      back to lockdown for you..

  • @HolahkuTaigiTWFormosanDiplomat

    OK

  • @AceDevGames
    @AceDevGames Před rokem +5

    12.6 to 12.7 volt is a fully charged battery if you go over you can start to boil off the lead plates and the battery heats up, best to check you dont over charge the battery, also you can fry the solar box if you connect solar panel without a battery being fitted first.

    • @jimmybrad156
      @jimmybrad156 Před 11 měsíci

      Perhaps open circuit, but a lead acid battery really wants to be floated at 13.6v to charge properly, and ideally charged to ~14.5v every 6 months.
      A quick and rough solution would be to use diode/s to drop the voltage ~0.2-0.7v. Schottky diode/s will be a little more precise than say a 1n400x.

  • @aftereffects00
    @aftereffects00 Před 2 lety

    At least ..its charging :)

  • @raisagorbachov
    @raisagorbachov Před 3 lety +2

    That PWM controller is $10 of garbage. Get yourself a good MPPT controller.

  • @davidbivens2246
    @davidbivens2246 Před 2 lety

    Ummmm, that didn’t go up one volt let alone 2 volts. You meant to say and write MV (MILLIVOLT) 100 and 200 mv

  • @kaikart123
    @kaikart123 Před 3 lety +3

    The controller has pretty shitty efficiency, buy a cheap MPPT board like CN3722 or BQ24650 and you're golden

    • @antomanelven
      @antomanelven Před 3 lety

      actually those controllers are pretty much the same efficiency. there are multiple youtube videos on it

    • @kaikart123
      @kaikart123 Před 3 lety +1

      @@antomanelven PWM controller cannot utilize full power of the PV because the current are tied between input and output. If the input is 18v 10A, and the output is set to 13.8v, the output will also has 10A, that's 76% efficiency. Meanwhile an MPPT controller always utilize buck converter, so their efficiency is theoritically 100% but from parasitic loss they'll ended up being in the high 90% efficiency, with the example above if the input has 18v 10A, the output at 13.8v will be 11.73A. With PWM controller, the higher the delta between PV voltage and output voltage, the higher the loss, that's not the case with MPPT until a certain point like at 10% pulse width when the buck converter itself is breaking down in efficiency. And I have not even talking about the PV MPP curve yet.

    • @antomanelven
      @antomanelven Před 3 lety

      doubt

    • @kaikart123
      @kaikart123 Před 3 lety +1

      @@antomanelven you can doubt all you want, that's the reality

    • @antomanelven
      @antomanelven Před 3 lety

      no

  • @mitsuoo1012
    @mitsuoo1012 Před 7 měsíci +1

    Hahahaha I run my fridge freezer off a 100wh marine battery. You don't seem to know much about systems but ys running fridge of inverter would kill battery much faster. My Qlpic9ol drews only 45w.

  • @kevintabol7642
    @kevintabol7642 Před 2 lety

    Hey can you get me a botttttlaaa a woootterrr UK lol

  • @jayashkumar5941
    @jayashkumar5941 Před 10 měsíci +1

    We have used the czcams.com/users/postUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!

  • @bainmccartney685
    @bainmccartney685 Před rokem

    That control sucks. The power output has leaking power and will steady drain your battery completely and possibly ruin it. Test it with some led lights and watch it drain and not charge shit

  • @RandomDude989
    @RandomDude989 Před 2 lety

    .2 volt... not 2 volt

  • @Badg0r
    @Badg0r Před rokem +2

    What a clumsy video. I see a lot of mistakes being made. But it's good that you've showed the product really does.

  • @jr5389
    @jr5389 Před 3 lety +1

    Its got to come off......✅ 😂😂😂😂 👍👍👍👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🤪

  • @laryangel4082
    @laryangel4082 Před rokem +1

    T

  • @Ich0308
    @Ich0308 Před 3 lety

    🐦🐦🐦🐦🐦 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🥰🥰🥰🥰

  • @FranksBmwAdv
    @FranksBmwAdv Před 3 lety +2

    12.7 to 12.8 is .01 volt not 1 volt. lol

    • @pollos4157
      @pollos4157 Před 3 lety +3

      0.1 V not 0.01 V

    • @apocsurvival916
      @apocsurvival916 Před 3 lety +5

      @@pollos4157 has it, correcting the correction. Gotta love it!

  • @TheCrossroads09
    @TheCrossroads09 Před 2 lety

    Dohhh read the instructions first then make a video.

  • @lmantuano6986
    @lmantuano6986 Před 2 lety

    Mate, you got scammed, just do your research and admit it... 1 sqft panel, in ideal sunshine, @15% efficiency - being generous - will give you 15 Watts max..

  • @tonyv8925
    @tonyv8925 Před 3 lety +3

    The bird is louder than you. You sound like you are just mumbling...smh

  • @alanjackson2540
    @alanjackson2540 Před 7 měsíci +1

    Question from a newbie to how solar charging works...if I bought a bigger panel say 600w (same type from AliExpress) with a 100A controller would it charge a battery quicker or would it charge more batteries at the same rate? And would the controller be sufficient? Thank you.