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Wed 22 May, 2019 09:47 am
I have a small solar pump for a garden fountain that runs at 12-24 volt. I just hooked it up to two 12 volt - 20 watt solar panels. I connected the two panels in series as the pump stated it produced more head running at 24 volt. The water has to pump about 3 feet to get to the top of the fountain. What do I need to prevent my panels from exceeding the 24 volt maximum?
That is not a maximum. A motor is not damaged by voltage higher that its rating. You could run it at 48 volts if you wanted to.
But 24 volts is a maximum for the solar panels. They only put out maximum voltage with full sunlight, which means an hour or two in midday.
If you wanted to charge batteries then you would need a charge controller because batteries need a constant voltage.