How do I regulate a 12v output from a battery being charged at a variable rate from 14-18vdc?
I want to charge a 12v car battery with a solar panel and run LED lights in my house off of the battery. What do I need on the OUTPUT side of the battery to regulate the voltage and keep it at a constant 12 volts +/- 5% at around 5 amps. Is there something from a computer or old car amplifier I can rob, do you have the specs to draw a diagram I can build one from?
I need to clarify a little. I have 300 3.2v LED lights. I know how to wire them up in series of 4 to get a 12.8 volt configuration. LED lights are voltage sensitive. If I wired them straight to a 12 volt battery all is good, however, I am using a solar panel that fluctuates in charging voltage from 14-18 vdc. If I give a 12.8 volt series of LEDs 18 volts, they will burn out. I need more than 12.6 volts to charge the battery, but I can not let that high of a voltage pass through to the lights. I want a 14-18 volt trickle charge on the battery and I want a 12-13 volt output. If I regulate the voltage coming off the solar panel, it will not charge the battery so the regulator / reducer needs to be on the output side of the battery before the LEDs.