On Wed, 22 Apr 2020 14:28:53 +0100, Martin Brown
wrote:

snip

Do the sums very carefully before spending any money!

+1 ;-)

Unless you are
seriously off grid it will almost certainly be cheaper and much less
hassle to buy a mains charger and a pair of SLA's to use in rotation.

I've done that ...

Solar panels work in summer but allow batteries to be ruined in winter.

But isn't the outcome a function of all the components?

eg, If the OP's use is likely mostly in the summer (except tyre
inflation probably but that's rarely a sustained load), and that's
when there is the most sun, if he had a big enough panel connected
though a charge controller to a good enough battery, why wouldn't that
be as good as all those solar powered roadside signs that seem to be
able to cope all year round?

That is the solution I opted for my greenhouse watering system

And would that typically run every day, all year round?

and for
powering my telescopes.

That should be easy if you are anywhere near a big city in the UK and
need a cleat mild night when it's not raining! ;-(

The batteries last about 5 years or so.

Whilst I'm not suggesting that a pair of 'portable' batteries wouldn't
also be a viable solution, it might not be as convenient (money / spec
being no object) than a decent solar solution?

I think they key here *is* having the right spec gear and so insuring
you have way more (charge specifically) capacity than you typically
need, including in the winter.

Cheers, T i m