Multiple Solar Panels with Sunny Buddy

Components & Accessories Power
1

Hello all!

I’m trying to use the Sunny Buddy with two solar panels as described in the instructions.

I soldered a second barrel jack on, cleared J1 and bridged J2 which should connect the two solar panel jacks in series.

When I measure the output voltage of the disconnected solar panels, they each read about 7 volts in the sun. Plugging the first panel into the original barrel jack, I read the same voltage on the pcb.

However, when I plug in the second panel, I read around 5 volts from ground to the higher voltage potential of the second panel.

I thought I should be reading around 14 volts, since they are connected in series, but am I missing something?

2

Hi keenanjohnson,

My guess is there is a hardware/connection problem going on causing the issue. Can you please take a few photos of the top and bottom of your Sunny Buddy as well as the circuit you have it in? Please do your best to make sure they are clear and well-lit.