"Larry Jaques" wrote in message
On Mon, 31 Dec 2012 10:55:57 -0500, "Jim Wilkins"
wrote:
Winter ...

Maybe not, but it'll kill you a whole lot quicker than bugs will,
given any chance at all. I prefer less deadly climes.

You live where there are no cars, stairs or pools?

We grew up knowing the cold is dangerous and most suburban/rural men
at least wear enough warm clothing to deal with it. I watched Halley's
Comet on a frigid night on a ski mountain in Mass, then watched the
city boys in jeans and short jackets freeze their butts off waiting
for the chair lift down.

"My dog doesn't bark"

Zat ees not my dog.

....Or I might have to get another solar array
and battery to add to the massive 45 full, manly watts I now have.

If it's the Harbor Freight panel kit you are lucky to get 30W from
it.
The 45W rating is into a 17V battery. They deliver the same current
to
a 12V battery.

It is. I have no hard and fast ideas as to what it can do until I
get
it outside and working, with everything set up.

Reasonably priced meters:
http://www.futurlec.com/Panel_Meters.shtml
I have the APM3A, 3ADC analog meter in series with the charger, and
another (surplus) one I can use to aim the panels for peak output.

During our last long outage I could run this laptop or a small TV
about two hours a day from the panels, enough to keep up with the
local weather forecast and NWS radar, which was more useful when I
needed to know whether to repair or cover up roof damage. The image
tells a lot more than "scattered".

jsw