INSTALLING REDARC SOLAR PANELS ON AN ALU-CAB CANOPY CAMPER

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Welcome to the ultimate guide on installing REDARC monocrystalline solar panels on your Alu-Cab Canopy Camper!💡 If you've been searching for a detailed, step-by-step installation tutorial, then look no further.
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We’re Eric + Brittany + Caspian Highland, and we’re driving around the world! We started traveling full-time in February 2014 and permanently left the United States in October 2021 with our Jeep Gladiator. We intend to slow travel across all six habitable continents.
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Опубликовано:

25 фев 2024

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Комментарии : 36

@christopherharris6005 7 месяцев назад

Awesome video as always Hourless Life. Even this videos of maintenance on y'all's overland rig is a insight into the reality of life of full time overlanding life. Thanks for letting us ride along with y'all on y'all's journey around the world.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Appreciate that Christopher. It isn't all ancient temples and beautiful beaches. The reality of this journey is much deeper than that. We have logistical hurdles all the time. Glad you enjoyed this video even though it wasn't a travel one. We have an amazing travel video coming out tomorrow about the Nazca Lines, an incredible oasis, and some ancient aqueducts. Just wait till you see it! ~ Eric

@hailahafley-kluver2052 7 месяцев назад

Wish we'd seen this video BEFORE we installed out solar panels. We love our two panels that put out 400 watts, but your installation looks so much better.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

It has all been a learning experience. Thankful to have Carlos who has done similar work before. The REDARC panels are amazing and they are kicking out an incredible amount of power. ~ Eric

@JohnS-zq8ks 7 месяцев назад

Good install, with room under the panels for cooling. Be sure you keep an eye on those mounts to make sure the 221 got and maintains a good bond.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Thanks John. I've started to make it a point to check it every time I stand on the back bumper to open or close the tent. Part of my daily checks now. So far so good. Thanks for the advice. It is well received. ~ Eric

@allenm8182 7 месяцев назад

Nice job. I find it interesting that Redarc is going foward to their glass panels rather than the flexible panels they have been using. I have used flexible panels and they worked fine, but I did not glue them down. Made a lightweight frame for them. I will be using your set up on my Canopy Camper. Continued safe travels.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Hi Allen, yeah I was originally thinking of going with the flexible panel option. But it was more important to me to marry REDARC panels with the REDARC Manager30 and REDARC RedVision system. I wanted everything to play nice together. Thankfully since I'm sponsored by REDARC I was able to speak with their team and seek their advice. They didn't hesitate with our build and recommended the two 120w panels. So thanikful for that recommendation. I seriously can't drain the battery at this point. It doesn't really matter what I throw at it as long as we have some measure of sun. Even on rainy and cloudy days these panels have been topping off our 170ah battery. Super happy with how it all turned out. Definitely recommend for your build. ~ Eric

@Dave_Gurman 7 месяцев назад

Nice job, in reference to the solar roof connections, we use IP rated MC-4 connectors. The Anderson plugs will tarnish and go green and affect your continuity.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

I wonder if they have those here in Peru. Not being coy, I'm being serious. I don't really have that level of knowledge. But I'm always up for an upgrade that will provide longevity. ~ Eric

@Dave_Gurman 7 месяцев назад

Do they have building solar over there as the MC4 connector is used for those installations. Did the Redarc solar panels come with MC4 on the leads?

@kwjr.9569 7 месяцев назад

👏🏾👏🏾 awesome job!! And great info!!

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

So glad it was helpful. ~ Eric

@baileypinto9483 7 месяцев назад

I’ve had similar solar power issues with my current panels and been debating an upgrade to Redarc or 4th D solar panels. Seems like paring the Redarc panels with the manager30 is the way to go 👌🏼

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Bailey, full transparency I'm sponsored by REDARC as I mentioned in the video. Having said that, also in transparency, they would have been the panels that would have been my first pick if I weren't sponsored by them. They have been kicking off energy. We've been parked now 3 nights here in Cusco in an outdoor parking lot with security. (We're in an airbnb for a bit to explore this area) and I went to check on DAUNTLESS today, brought up the RedVision app by REDARC and my batteries are at 100%. Keep in mind it has been cloudy and raining on and off every day. So seriously impressed so far. ~ Eric

@ttkddry 3 месяца назад

Nice clean setup, I wonder if you notice any extra noise while driving having the air flow under and over the pannels, compared to the old flexible pannels glued to Alu Cab top, especially driving highway speeds

@HourlessLife 3 месяца назад

Great question. Not at all. The only thing we notice is a bit of added height which in Latin America can make a difference as to where we're able to park. But no issues so far, and we hit highway speeds for most of northern Chile through the Atacama Desert. We're all the way down to Argentina now, still with no issues and the panels are kicking off serious energy. Been super happy with them. ~ Eric

@JD.12 7 месяцев назад

I have one, two hundred watt redarc panel on the load bars of the canopy camper. Solar has worked perfectly and never had issues with it. Is that a new Redarc Manager 30? I remember you had one before, but this one looks like the latest model with the temperature sensor. Thanks and safe travels

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Hi JD. Glad to hear that your REDARC panel has worked flawlessly. We're just starting to put ours to the test, but so far, we've been amazed. We have 2x 120w panels and they just kick power to our 170aH lithium battery. We've been really impressed so far. Our Manager 30 is the same one we installed in August of 2021. So no, not new. Same with the RedVision. Hope that makes sense. ~ Eric

@JD.12 7 месяцев назад

Thanks for the response Eric, wow, that Redvision screen looks brand new. I had it connected to a 100 amp hour anti gravity battery, but now switching to a mini 100 amp hour redodo battery so it can fit in the single goose gear cabinet under the redarc electrical panel. The other question I have for you, did you connect your National Luna fridge directly to the Redarc Manager 30 or the battery itself? Does the power that the fridge consumes get picked up by the redarc? Thanks.

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Great follow up question. So our National Luna Fridge is locked to always being powered and is connected directly to the REDARC Manager30. The great thing about the REDARC Manager30 is that it controls all power input and delivery. (And you may know this already but for anyone else reading who may be curious) The Manager30 prioritizes solar energy and disperses it as needed directly before drawing from the battery. So if there is enough sun hitting our panels to send to the fridge directly it does that and sends anything left over to charge the battery. If not, then it sends the solar to the fridge and then draws what it needs from the battery and augments it with that so that the fridge (and any other component drawing power) can get the juice it needs. It is really quite a remarkable system. Also of note is that when we do go into an airbnb for more than a couple days we unplug the fridge after we empty it and prop the door open. Hope that answers your question. ~ Eric

@JD.12 7 месяцев назад

@@HourlessLife Thanks so much for your detailed reply Eric. I have had an issue with my electrical as it was not setup right. My National Luna fridge was connected to the battery and not the Redarc Manager 30 as it should have been. I still should have disconnected the fridge as you did when not in use for a long time as when at an Airbnb. I am now having to fix this setup as my original battery also got damaged since the fridge drained the power too low since the Redarc wasn’t connected to it. I have a 3rd gen Tacoma Access cab long bed with the same Goose Gear setup as your’s with the bulk head. The current battery is in a the bulk head, but I found a 100 amp hour battery small enough to fit in the single goose gear cabinet under the electrical panel. The depth of the cabinet is 6 inches and the Redodo battery was able to fit in it being a mini at 5.2 inches. Just happy having my bulk head open up. I am happy you guy’s had the correct setup with your Redarc, I am excited to finally have it correct on mine. I will do the same and take your advice and disconnect the fridge when the truck is not in use. Thanks again for your detailed response. Praying for you and your family to have safe travels.

@brettmarshall1093 2 месяца назад

Love these panel, what Redarc kit is this?

@HourlessLife 2 месяца назад

We do too! These have been kicking off power and have been performing even better than expected or anticipated! They are two 120w fixed monocrystalline solar panels. Reach out to REDARC for details on them. ~ Eric

@Knotanothersailingchannel5879 3 месяца назад

How are your solar panels holding up with the adhesive? Do you feel like they should be screwed down as well.

@HourlessLife 3 месяца назад

Honestly great! No issues yet. We'll be sure to post if that changes. But we've had the rig on highway speeds through the Atacama Desert of northern Chile for extended periods of time with no issues. We've made it all the way to Argentina now, and still holding strong. ~ Eric

@Knotanothersailingchannel5879 3 месяца назад

@@HourlessLife that’s great. Thanks for the info and enjoy your adventure.

@HopeOverLandandSea 7 месяцев назад

What devices are consistently running off of your battery / inverters, etc. I know the fridge, your personal phones, laptops, etc. Just thinking about the fact that you are fully charged by 240 watts of solar by 10am. Can you estimate your percentage used each morning when you start charging again? Starting with 80-90% of the 170 amp hours is my guess?

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Everything in the habitat runs off the 170aH Renogy lithium battery that is under the forward part of the Goose Gear cabinetry. However, everything runs off of our REDARC Manager30 which is connected to the REDARC RedVision display. The Manager30 is the device that directs the power. It is hard to estimate the percentage used each morning as we charge different things on different days. Sometimes a lot, sometimes nothing at all. The inverter is powered by the battery through the Manager30 but doesn't really run anything at all. We just use it to charge our devices via the 110 outlets we have in the habitat. As far as things that are locked into the always on position. That would be our fridge, our USB ports, and our exterior Rigid Industries Scene Lights in both white and amber. Hope that was as clear as mud. ~ Eric

@buffalo4127 7 месяцев назад

Guys, just curious about your video editing…do you have enough power, etc?

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

Hi buffalo. Sorry I don't understand your question. I edit our videos on my MacBook using iMovie. Nothing fancy. So essentially I airdrop everything to my Mac and then edit the videos. The issue isn't power here as much as it is connectivity. Starlink would be a blessing, but we don't have it. ~ Eric

@buffalo4127 7 месяцев назад

Thank you, my offhand question got the perfect answer

@bbibeau 7 месяцев назад

Why not reuse the Anderson SB50 connector from your old solar panels?

@HourlessLife 7 месяцев назад

I wish I could have. Great question by the way. Unfortunately when we were troubleshooting what was going on with the solar panels a few weeks prior to this install, we had to remove that connection in order to get into the wiring of the system to troubleshoot properly, and I put it somewhere and couldn't find it. So when it came to the install we had to improvise, adapt, and overcome. That's all part of the journey. But to your point. If I knew where that thing was, I would have used it. ~ Eric