*See the Full Blog Post for product links, photos, diagrams, and more information* - www.loveyourrv.com/upgrading-our-renogy-rv-solar-system-to-400-watts/ Shop the Renogy Website Via the LYRV Affiliate Link - renogy.sjv.io/doJk9k
I don't spend too much time under trees and see a lot of sun, so that helps. I find the desert sun is good at killing off any mold that might have started growing in the fall before we head south. I wash it with Dawn dishwashing detergent two or three times a year.
Your videos are very helpful to me. I am planning to tackle the four golf cart battery setup. I have a Cardinal with one 12 volt house battery. Can't boondock with this setup. Eventually, I hope to add solar panels. You inspire me. Thanks, Ray.
thanks Ray! I've got 3 100 watt panels hooked up to a battery bank. your video came in handy as a reassurance I was doing everything correctly.. I would love to see more of your set up though from the charge controller to the battery bank and shut off switch. thanks again
You're welcome Nick, In this video, I show most of the wiring when I installed more batteries. www.loveyourrv.com/upgrading-my-rv-battery-bank-and-12-volt-system/ Of course, things have changed on the negative side as far as the new shunt for the Trimetric battery monitor - www.loveyourrv.com/bogart-sc2030-cc-and-trimetric-tm2030-rv-installation/ I still want to clean up the wiring a bit more, shorten some and install a final failsafe catastrophic fuse. Seems the system is always in a state of flux, mostly because I'm adding as I can afford it. :) I'm getting pretty close to having everything the way I wanted though. Cheers Ray
Excellent job and video. I will be using the 3M VH tape on my fiberglass roof as I don't want to compromise the roof. I would do what you did if I had the roof you have. Take care
Good afternoon Ray glad to see you made it out of America and back home safely. I'm trying to find the video where you upgraded your wiring and fuses to your solar system. I'm having a problem with my 40amp breaker popping off once in awhile. The one coming out of my controller to the batteries. Don't know why. Neither does the manufacturer. I figured you were probably smarter than they are. Send me a link or give me a call.
Thanks, check out this post it had the full explanation of my system - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ I've never had the breaker blow, my Bogart controller will only pass 31 amps max.
Nice video! We're going to install solar panels on our Coachmen Freedom Express RV but we'll be using that 3M tape. I'll make a video of it and upload it for you to check out. Thanks for your advice.
Thanks Pat. It's actually a little dirty, looks better on camera. But, we are in SoCal right now and have strict water restrictions so looks like it the RV will stay dirty for a while.
When requiring AC current how your battery are hooked up and your inverter is made is paramount. See hooking them up as 12vs works but the inverter from 12dc to 120 VAC means the inverters transformer will use approximately 40-50% of incoming power. That can effectively be circumvented through bypassing the transformer adding the appropriate fuse and thus reducing the inverters power drain from 40-50% down to 10-15%, that translates into much power electrical AC power.
Great job! I'm going to put two 100 watt Renogy panels on the fiberglass high top roof of my van. I'm going to look into roof racks. Your videos have been very helpful, thumbs up!
Thanks, I've been slowly building it as I can afford things. Here is the latest up to date look at the off grid power setup. I'm pretty happy with it. :) www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/
+Love Your RV I know you and alot of others that put up vids take shots in comments from people who's mothers never taught them to be nice. But I appreciate when you all do. It streamlines my efforts in following my own dream of living in a RV. Do you ever run into a situation where you are boondocking but dont want to leave the RV for a hike or something because it can get too hot for the dog without the AC on
Thanks! Not too often since we are free to migrate to cooler temps if we desire, but it does occasionally happen so we just adjust our hike times to early or late in the day. Here is a post I did a while back about fulltime RVing with our dog. - www.loveyourrv.com/rving-with-a-dog-advice-from-a-full-time-rver/
Another note... The flexible solar panels will tranfer heat directly to the tool's roof so installation of a good high heat insulation barrier that can be glued to the roof and the flexible solar panel glued to that... Or... An air space between the flexible panels and the roof, with wind deflector in front to prevent air from trying to remove those panels would be essential. Also, racks on both sides can desguise these solar panels for more stealth.
Thanks for the video. I always like to see what guys are doing regarding solar. If I may suggest, after you get your MPPT charge controller, rewire your panels in series. You need a minimum of 13.8 volts before there is enough voltage to initiate a charge current on your GC batteries VIA a PWM controller. By having your panels in parallel, you get your 400 watts when the sun is at a good angle for about 5-6 hours. However, you can get more charge time by wiring your panels in series. When the sun is at a low angle your panels are producing voltage but not enough to begin a charge. By wiring in series you are adding up to sum of all the panels and you can achieve 13.8 volts earlier in the morning and later into the afternoon giving you more charge. This is just a suggestion. You are doing a great install. Thanks for the video. JK
Thanks for the advice. I did add a 5th panel a couple years back. I use it as a remote movable ground panel. To catch the early and late sun. Here is a look at the system now - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ It was relatively inexpensive and serves our needs well. Only had about 10-15 hours generator run time during 4 months of boondocking last winter. :) Cheers! Ray
Nice job and video. It's lighting a fire under me to order my solar system. By the way, I live about 4 miles away from you, I recognize your park. And Yes it is blazing HOT here in the summer. You don't want to be here in an RV any other time than winter. Cheers!
Thanks. Must be pretty quiet around town in the summer. We spent one day in Needles one year when it was about 105F, you're so right. Best our RV AC could do was about 85 or 90 inside.
today is the day, Ray, that I copy your system..my panels and everything is at FedEx waiting for me to pick them up. Wish me luck. and thanks for the videos.
Love Your RV you made that look awfully easy , I got half of it done today before my back went out. Hopefully pain pills ice packs and tomorrow I will get it finished. I will give you credit on my video. thanks again
Love Your RV I've noticed that when you first put your second set of panels up you used a 30 amp fuse and then later you have changed it to a 40 amp breaker am I seeing that right? and if so why did you do that?
The 30 amp was all I could find at the time locally. Mostly the breaker is there so I can have a way of disconnecting the panels if I want. Many people just use a shut-off switch without a breaker. I copied Handy Bob's 40 amp breakers on either side of the SC2030 controller - handybobsolar.wordpress.com/2015-the-trimetric-2030-perfect/
Rather than running the second set of wires from the new panels you could have just added more adapters to the panel cables and connected all 4 panels to the existing pos and neg cables on the roof. Would have saved all the extra work cutting holes and patching the walls, roof, etc. Renogy has videos showing how to connect 300 and 400 watt systems using the adapters.
I wanted the benefit of increased wiring gauge, two 10 gauge wires are comparable to one 7 gauge wire. Having a large gauge wire run means more power transfer from the panels to the solar controller. Basically less power loss in the wiring. I thought 10 ga is a little skimpy for the wire run for 400 watts, especially since I have the panels wired in parallel Best thing in hindsight would have been run a heavy gauge wire like a 6 ga the first time and put a junction box on the roof for future expansion, but the initial kit came with 10 ga cables included so to save money I ran a second 10 ga set when adding the next two panels. Rather than ripping out and replacing the existing 10 ga. Cheers, Ray
Good to hear thanks. Our 400 watts is serving us well so far. I don't have tilts and the sun is very low being winter but I'm still getting about 16-18 amps during the peak sun hours.
Yes, I find the 1000 watt is sort of in-between size. Overkill for most smaller wattage things, so its a waste and too small to run say a microwave, hair dryer or toaster. So when it dies I'll likely go smaller or bigger. If I go bigger I may need to add another solar panel or two.
Just an FYI about the 3M VHB Tapes you mentioned, I do tech support at 3M for VHB and we do not suggest our tapes on this application even though people use them at their own risk on fiberglass RVs it will not bond to the EPDM roofing.
I have 2 panels and am afraid to try to put on roof of my travel trailer. It is a 14' 10" Prolite. No way to walk on roof. Thought they could fit in front but may wait until next Jan rtr where there will be people who know much more than me.
Love all your videos. Quick question on fuse sizing. That 30 amp fuse you have between the panels and controller, what type and size is recommended. My panels are 3 - 200 watt panels in series. The max current is 9.8 amps, does that mean a 10 or 15 amp fuse would do the job? and then how do you size the fuse coming out of the controller?
Usually about 10-15% above max amperage of the panel string and the controller output is a good bet. The main goal is to have the fuse blow in case of a short circuit before the wiring can overheat and melt or catch fire. So you want to use wire that can handle more than the max amperage of the panels and controller and then have a fuse that will blow below the max amperage rating of the wiring to protected it. Using switchable breakers is a handy way to go. Cheers, Ray
Great job, Ray. You really have me making a list. Maybe a video on those elephant feet and how they work. Do you have a lot of shacking when walking around the trailer? Have you ever used RV stabilizers?
Never used stabilizers other that the stock rear scisssors jack ones. I notice a little less shaking but nothing dramatic. we are very used to shaking since we live full time, doesn't really bother us anymore. I'll be posting a video after I try the feet out on a few more different types of terrain. But so far I like them. Very convenient.
Why wouldn’t you run those two panels in parallel with the existing two? I’m sure you ran the first two together seems to me you could have saved time and material asking in case I’m missing something
They are run in parallel connected at the solar controller in the battery bay, just used the extra wiring to increase the total wire gauge for best power transfer. Recently I added two more and at that time decided to run a single 4 GA run and put a junction box near the roof - www.loveyourrv.com/boondocking-power-upgrade-200-watts-wiring-update-mods/ Cheers, Ray
Anytime you add fuse link or switches to a input line you have voltage drop. I would think that you would have the lines going into a hub in from the Hub you would have them going to your solar controller without having a fuse or any switch. I would be interested to see why you would put a fuse between your controller and panels. Great video though I enjoy watching your videos I've learned from your videos but I know electricity and you have voltage drop across that 30 amp fuse.
I like to have a way to quickly unhook a circuit. Here is my system today - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ With the breakers, I can quickly shutdown circuits to work on them, I like the convenience. It's code to fuse each panel in a parallel array of more than 2 panels. I haven't noticed much loss, With proper connections, I feel the voltage drop is minimal and I can live with it. If it were an issue, I'd add another panel to compensate, but that hasn't been the case. Cheers Ray
Haven't had to remove them, they aren't mounted across any seams and they keep the rubber roof underneath protected and fairly clean, I just flush soapy water under them at the same time I clean the rest of the roof. Likely the rubber roof area under them will outlast the rest of the exposed roof. Cheers, Ray
It protects against a short circuit. For example, say the solar controller failed and dead shorted internally positive to ground and fuse or breaker is not on that wire run then the battery bank could supply enough current flow to the point of severely overheating the wire or solar controller board potentially causing a fire. It is good practice to protect every wire run in a system with an appropriately sized fuse or circuit breaker. I used a circuit breaker as it also makes it convenient to shut off the solar controller when working on the wiring or testing/upgrading something. Cheers, Ray
Hey Ray, good video on adding the panels learned a lot. Plan on updating our 100 watt system soon. What is the name of the park? Did you do the work while there?
Thanks it was Thousand Trails in Palm Springs - www.thousandtrails.com/california/palm-springs-rv-resort/ I did the work there. Here is an updated look at my boondocking system - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ Cheers! Ray
I should have added that solar cells are exceedingly fragile... So safety glass is essential if it does not come with it... I would recommend hurricane glass panels for protection... One falling limb, low branches or a hail storm could devestate your solar array. I am unsure how brittle the flexible panels are. I have kept up with solar cells since I was in the 9th grade... Oh... Beware of buying complete systems claiming 6kw output, as these put out 6kw for the DAY not the Hour. All solar panels you purchase should be rated in KiloWattHour... Not just KiloWatt.
My RV came with a standard batwing type antenna and I added the extra digital pickup a year later - www.loveyourrv.com/lubricating-winegard-batwing-style-rv-tv-antenna/ It gets pretty good reception. I'm looking to swap it out though as I need to get one that doesn't fold down as I have added more solar panels recently and don't have the roof space for that. Not a pressing need at the moment though as we are staying in an area that has no over the air reception. Cheers, Ray
Good morning Ray, two more days and we're on the road. I have followed your steps on the 400 watt system. It works fine but I would like to know how you added the extra panel that you carry in your pickup I can't seem to find your video on that could you send me a link please, I would like to do the same thing.
This was my original install - www.loveyourrv.com/building-portable-solar-panel/, however, I did change back to a regular solar panel last year and modify the mounting. - www.loveyourrv.com/replacing-damaged-portable-solar-panel-plus-new-mounting/
I prefer not to put all the solar panels on the roof because I don't want to move my vehicle out of the shade to wherever the sun is available. I'd probably just put the minimum permanent panels on the roof just to maintain the charge when the vehicle is in storage, and have a more portable version for the main charging unit when I need it.
Makes sense if you're in the shade a lot. We do almost all our dry camping in the south-west desert where there aren't any trees or shade. A nice thing about the roof mounted panels is they charge while we drive. I'll likely add in a portable panel in the future though so I can use it to catch the low early morning sun and have it in case we spend some time in a shady area. Cheers Ray
Quick question, when you place panels close together coudn't you over lap the z brackets where they are close together. In other words put one bracket for the second panel over the bracket for the 1st panel. In your set up this would eliminate 8 holes through your roof. Do you see any problems with doing this?
I guess you could but I would rather have more points screwed in for a stronger bond to the roof. Also, it gives me a place to put my hand when I'm leaning over to clean them. Cheers Ray
If you could do it over again Ray, (that’s where I’m at...) what might you do differently with regards to your solar/battery/inverter system? I’m starting with an empty canvas.
The only thing is maybe a rooftop junction box and a heavy say 4GA wire from there to the charge controller. Also maybe a smaller inverter, as we really never use the 1000 watt, likely a 5-600 watt would have been fine.
You can but I wanted to double up on the wire for better power transfer. I hindsight I should have run a thicker wire the first time but would have added to the cost. My budget was limited at the time.
If you run 10gauge solar cable you can prob go 30A or more current. But we all start somewhere - unfortunately solar is extremely addictive drug! I used two cable runs on my 5kw solar grid tie so 12x250w on each run (of two) with 10 gauge. Overkill yes but that's 380vdc @7A per run and each run is 30ft on my house. Great video btw, we are about to buy a 2011 Cougar 5th wheel. One other tip, get yourself a wire fish. Home Depot or other stores have them. I use mine all the time. Drill you little hole, run fish down, find the way, then tape wire to it and pull it through. Quite painless. Thirdly, that type of charge controller is junk compared to MPPT type - but those are $200 bucks for a 40A. Cheapo controllers just short your battery to the panels. When your battery is at 10vdc your 400w @ say 14v panels are only giving you 75% power to the battery. Thats bs. Also, the better controllers allow upwards of 100vdc input so you could of seriously used that single 10gauge run if you had a parallel-series panel connection up there - so double voltage - half current - same wattage. Plus your 400w would all go into your battery even if it was low at 10vdc. Check out MPPT controllers such as www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_osacat=0&_odkw=mppt+40a&_from=R40&_from=R40&_trksid=p2334524.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xtracer+mppt+40a.TRS0&_nkw=tracer+mppt+40a&_sacat=0 as well, you can get a kit with remote control and monitoring panel shows what's being used and what's produced. You can put this anywhere in your rig it runs off a standard cat5 cable/connectors (same as LAN cables for wired networks). You are travelling all the time but for those people who park it at home you can use a 2-way switch to go to a quality gridtie inverter for your panels. Or run both charge controller & gridtie parallel. Once battery is charged gridtie gets the extra juice.This way parked at home your panels can push that 400w into your house (must plug trailer into house 120vac) conserving your home's electrical consumption - oh and avoid those car stereo amplifier chinese gridtie inverters - they are barely 70% efficient at best - trust me I know! Anyhow keep up the great videos.
Overall not a bad tutorial but some of the electrical advice is questionable. Never solder high amperage connections (NEC code violation). Mechanical joints are the way to go. If the joint heats up the connection can de-solder itself. If you worry about corrosion put NoAlox on the connection terminals or right in the wirenuts. When you parallel the panel array I would fuse the two sets separately and then combine them. If you have a failure in one string that blows the fuse the other string is still providing power. The fuses are for the protection of the wire. #10 wire is good for 30a. if by increasing your panel wattage you exceed the 30a threshold and the fuse blows, you don't want to put in a bigger fuse, unless you go with larger wire. But over all you don't want to fuse above the capacity of input of your charge controller. Paralleling small gauge wire without individual over current protection is not a good idea, and is actually a NEC code violation. Just some things to think about.
Thanks, can you point me to the NEC code violation section and also how high of the amperage of DC wire can you use solder on? A lot of the NEC seems to apply to AC house wiring. All I can find is solder is OK in a splice as long as the wire first has a good electrical and mechanical connection. Section 110.14 The 30 amp solder controller itself uses solder for its terminal to circuit board connections. I've since added a 5th panel in parallel and at that point separately fused each panel with a 10 amp fuse just in case one panel were to short circuit. Cheers, Ray
Nice video and as always great workmanship. If I may ask? Why is it that you, who knows electronics started with an undersized system? Only to double it after one year? Now that new charge controller you got one year use out of is scheduled to be replaced. Sounds like a waste. In hindsight, would you say it would be better to have got 400 watt (or maybe 600 w) and the charge controller your intending to get now a year ago? Now you have a controller your replacing after one year. I would appreciate your thoughts, or reasoning and to know if you would do it differently, today? I ask this because most people start out with not enough panels and end up upgrading. Sometimes with mixed panels and sometimes more than one charge controller, when up grading an inadequate systems. I've even seen Mono and Polycrystalline panels mixed or panels of different wattage mixed. Wouldn't having a matched and properly sized system be best, instead of up grading when you find your system inadequate? It just seems wrong to not do it right the first time. Just asking, Cheers
Thanks, I didn't have the budget to devote large amounts to solar. $400 dollars got us a usable 200-watt complete system, we enjoyed it for a year, Your actually mostly paying for the panels ($300 of the $400 dollar kit), the charge controller the kit came with is only worth $20 bucks, so there is no great waste there. All the panels are matching. I've upgraded the battery capacity and now I will add a battery monitor and a better quality charge controller. So, I see it as expanding my system, slowly as I can afford it.
Hi Ray, I realize it's an older video but I have a quick question. Would you go with Renogy panels again? And is there a way to remove the panel without unscrewing the roof bracket? Thanks!
Yes, I have 7 now and no I don't think the panels can easily be removed without unscrewing from the decking. I have never had a reason to though. Cheers, Ray
Yes! it would also come in handy for capturing the early morning sun when it is low and in the east. Next investment though will be in a battery monitor and better charge controller. I sort of have to add things as I can afford them. Cheers Ray
Heavier plate and smaller footprint. Usually more Amp HOurs capacity for the buck and can handle more deep discharge cycles. This is an interesting read, check out the cutaway photos near the end. - marinehowto.com/what-is-a-deep-cycle-battery/ I didn't tilt as I knew I could meet our power needs (fairly modest) without doing it. It is less hassle for me, no need to setup and put away. We aren't people that spend a long time in one spot, like to move every 5-7 days on average. Finally, I have loads more space on the roof and could still add more panels if I desired more power before tilting would be required. Since the 400 watt install, I have added an additional 100-watt remote ground panel, I move it around to follow the sun. www.loveyourrv.com/update-boondocking-remote-solar-panel-mod/ www.loveyourrv.com/replacing-damaged-portable-solar-panel-plus-new-mounting/ It's worked great, gets me charging right as the sun rises as I can have it pointed dead on to the east. Cheers, Ray
Liking your vids Ray. I have a question about the Z brackets. Are you able to get to the bolts that attach them to the panel after installation in case you want to get under there for some reason? I'd hate to have to remove the lag bolts into the roof.
Thanks Mike. It would be a pain but I'm pretty sure I could get at the bolts with a ratcheting wrench. Would just need to break the torque on the lock washer then work it loose with fingers.
Hey Ray...I'm curious if your upgraded solar system has proven satisfactory for all your boon docking demands. I'm planning my system now and I see other systems out there with crazy high wattage numbers. I think my demands will be similar to yours, so I'm wondering if 400 watts is enough based on your experience. I already have two 125 watt poly panels left over from another project so I'm thinking another two 100 watt panels will be plenty. Thanks for your time, Jean
Hi Jean. 400 watts has been enough except for when we were in mid-winter with the shortest days. Also, at that time, it has cold nights which means more furnace fan run time at night. Tilting may have solved that but I prefer not to have to. Less roof time the better I feel. Once we got into February the daylight hours had increased and night time temps increased and firing the generator became a very rare event. I have plenty of roof space left so I may add a couple more panels or possibly use a ground panel. I more than happy with my battery capacity 464 AH but would like a bit more solar power for next winters boondocking. My biggest motivation for getting solar was to not have to run a generator when camping in close quarters, especially with tenters like when we visit national and state parks. I can say the 400 watts has been plenty and I'm most pleased. Even if we have cloudy days it's enough as long as we get a little more strict with our energy uses, IE, no big screen TV time or Anne'a big 21" iMac. We still have enough to run laptops and charge up things, plus LED lights and the regular RV 12 volt loads.
They are parallel - here is a link to my blog post showing my system today and a more in-depth video, it has a schematic - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ Cheers, Ray
Yes, but far less than if any windows are pointed to the sun, like a greenhouse. Also, camping in the desert where we do the most boondocking it cools off dramatically when sundown hits. It can be 80 in the day and 40 at night. By the time we go to bed we are needing heat. :)
That makes sense now that I think about it. Keep the heat out of the large windows (to the North), that’s the area you would spend most of your time in during the warmer hours and you use the bedroom after it cools off. Thanks Ray!
How do you like your Renorgy solar panels I've got 10 of them however I only have five hooked up right now to Renorgy tracer 4210 MPPT charge controller I'm using the four golf cart batteries 6 V wire it up for 12overall I've had pretty good luck with that I see were someone ask why you're using 100 Watt panels instead of a 200 W panel a lot of folks swear by those 100 Watt panels Renorgy sells mine have perform very wellsupposed to be really good and with the right charge controller they sometimes put out a shade over 100 W some of those bigger panels are problematic at times
Ray, can you remember what gauge the wire was from the panels? Also just wondering if you thought of a combiner box on the roof? With a combiner box up there would that have given you the ability to wire the panels in parallel like you did, but then run at 24v down to an MPPT controller? Just wondering. I’m planning a solar install myself and just figuring things out. Trying to figure out a way to run as much solar as possible on the solar prep which came on my new rig. It has 10awg wiring and an MC4 connector plate on the roof. Obviously I’m a little worried about shading so parallel is the obvious choice, but will also need to wire in series to avoid going over the 30amp pre wiring maximum limit. I will eventually have to bring down separate wiring because I plan to bring down three separate strings. That way if there’s an issue with one string, the other two will still be functional. Anyway couldn’t tell if that was 8 or 10awg on your setup. We are very excited to be able to have functionality in our rig without having to run the generator all the time.
Here is how the system sits today and it supplies all our needs off the grid - www.loveyourrv.com/diy-rv-boondocking-power-system/ I never did the combiner box as I added the solar in stages so just ran 4 wires down and paralleled them near the controller. They were 10 GA but when doubled up like that are effectively 7 GA It must be plenty thick enough for my short wire run as I've seen full panel rated current charging the batteries. The other day I saw a charging current of 30 amps at 14.6 volts, not bad for 500 watts of panels. 438 watts is great considering that most panels real world don't put out the full rated watts. Usually, getting 80% is considered good. Cheers! Ray
I have 6 volt. I think that Golf Cart Batteries is just slang now for heavy duty 6-volt deep cycle. I like them because they use very thick heavy lead plates in them and they can take more deep discharge cycles than the typical 12-volt deep cycle. Also, because they are taller they have a smaller footprint making them a little more compact for storage compartments. Finally, they tend to give the best bang for the buck and they match up with pretty well any solar chargers because they are so commonly used.
Yes, but decided against it as we move quite often, average every 5-7 days, more cost and complexity, we only dry camp 4-5 months of the year and I prefer not to be going on the roof all the time. If I need more power I still have plenty of room for more panels. I also have a 100-watt remote ground panel now I utilize to catch the early morning rays.
Not much, they look like they would be moe of a pain than they are worth since we move around a lot. I don't see them on many RV's except small units like truck campers. Our little generator does a good job of providing a second energy source when solar isn't available. - Ray
The original install used 10 gauge wire which was OK for 200 watts but too small for 400 watts, by running a second set of 10 gauge wires in parallel it brought the effective gauge down to 7 which keeps the power losses due to wire resistance reasonable.
Yes, they were a little small for the 400 watts, would have lost some energy in wire loss. So, I bought the same kit and just ran another set. So there is 2 sets of 10 GA wires paralleled making an effective gauge of 7. I could have ran a single thicker wire but this was easier and cheaper for me at the time. Cheers, Ray
@@paintingsofrebellion Yes could have done that but would be giving up some thickness in the wire run so would lose a bit of power, by using both sets of cables I reduce the resistance of the wire run between the panels on the roof and the batteries in the front storage compartment. Recently, though I have added two more panels for 600 watts and at that time I invested some money in some thicker 4 gauge cable for my run down to the batteries - www.loveyourrv.com/boondocking-power-upgrade-200-watts-wiring-update-mods/
Did you use MC4 cables? I was told by the tech guy at the RV dealer I go to that those cables are pretty big and can be hard to get down the fridge vent which is where my present old cables go through. He said they're about the size of your pinky. Is that so?
Yes but the MC4 connectors are under the panels. The feed cables down to the controller have MC4 connectors only on one end which connect under the panels to the Y connectors to parallel the panels together. The end going down through the roof is just wire with no connectors. The stripped off bare end gets attached to the controllers input connectors.
Big fridge is kind of a vague term but I'd guess yes, if the sun is shining. Could be a bit of an issue during the winter months when the days are shorter.
Hey love your videos, we're new to rv'ing and just subscribed to learn more. I'm wondering if you can help me out deciding, I'm looking at the renogy 200 watt kit and the 100 watt portable kit. We have two 6v golf cart batteries at 225ah on our unit. We live in Alberta and not sure if panels on the roof would get enough light or not in wooded areas? Do you find these work well if you head out to the woods? Would the portable unit be a better option? Thanks in advance for your advice!
Any sort of shading can really limit the solar panels power so if in the bush a lot you'd want to go with a portable setup where you can get into full sun. Keep in mind though at best a 100-watt panel will put out 5-6 amps. Not very much when you are trying to charge up the 2 golf cart batteries. Say they got really run down to 50% or around -100AH, it would need 20 hours of sun to bring them back to full charge with the one 100 watt panel. It would only extend your time between hooking to shore power or a generator. Nice would be to have 2 on the roof plus a portable panel for the ground.
+Love Your RV thank you for your reply I appreciate it. Alright ill have a look at the renogy 200watt system and just be mindful of where I set up. I think it probably a better setup at 200 watts and like you said look at the portable setup afterwards.
+Love Your RV hey one more question, I solar panels mounted to the roof - if I park my trailer in the rv storage yard my panels will be keeping the batteries up until winter right? I'm just thinking about storage and having to remove batteries to trickle charge when not using the rv. Obviously they will be removed in the winter time
Question- Do I need a bigger charge controller for 400 watts? I have a HQST 20a MPPT Controller in my array (only 200w now) and want to get my panels up to 400w in a 12v system In the manual it says 12v systems can only input 260w ... That doesn't seem right...$100. for a charge controller that can only handle less than 300 watts? Does that mean I have to put two panels in parrel and 2 in series or something like that? to keep the wattage input down?
I'd say you do. Looking at its specs its rated charge current is 20 amps, 400 watts of panels can exceed that when in max sun. You should have a controller capable of 30 amps if you want to get the max charging amps out of them. If not it doesn't look like it will hurt anything to hook up the extra panels you just won't get the extra charging amps you could get when on max sun. Here is a quote from the user manual "4.1 Protection PV Over Current The controller will limit charge power in rated charge power. An over-sized PV array will not operate at maximum power point" Cheers, Ray
Yeah...I hear ya..... The ratings for amps together (From labels on backs of panels) totals are aprox. 19.5 ..right on the max line... hahaha But- I can't remember when my panels got that much sun so far. Usually I get about 70% of those manufacturers ratings but That 260w number is the number I'm really concerned with... Is that total panel rating amount (I'll have 400) or actual watts being dumped into the controller...Cause- again... I never seen 100% efficiency yet even though I am in Florida.. If it's actual amount the controller is dealing with then yeah...It's a waste cause I gotta believe 400 watts of panel would make over 260 watts...
Hi did you drill through the roof then apply the eternabond, or did you apply first then drill through that, if you drilled before the eternabond was it hard to find the drill holes?
+infringinator I'm only in Palm Springs for a few weeks, I'm actually a full-time RVer so travel all around. Palm Spings is sure nice in the winter, but I can't really comment on the summer as I've never visited then. I imagine it gets super hot.
Commonly available, light weight and fit my roof and the way I planned to lay them out. I feel smaller sized panels will be more secure on the roof. Also, I wanted 12-volt panels for my system.
you know its pointless to fuse the output of solar panels right ? Even under short circuit the current will be almost the same as when they are charging the batteries flat out.
I wanted an easy way to be able to break the panel circuit if needed so may as well use a fuse. I've since swapped it out for a switchable breaker. This is a look at my system as of now - www.loveyourrv.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Boondocking-System-Diagram.jpg I like to have every circuit fused. Probably, overkill but makes me happy and confident it will pass inspection if needed in the future for insurance reasons. BTW, the Renogy manual shows fusing between panel and controller - www.renogy.com/template/files/Manuals/Off-grid-General-Manual.pdf pages 63 and 64 Cheers Ray
100 watt panels for under $30 each??? Really? I realize there places advertising such but they are used or defective. I own 8 100 watt panels and 8 160 watt panels plus 2 wind generatorators... 1 400 watts and the other 1kWh. And I also have purchased other products for up grades and portable stream powers generators and alternator totaling over 6kWh. For everything.and an on an generator as well. So my power is no problem.
I love it when people do their own electric work, then make a video saying I think I ran the right size wire. Lol if you look up in the national Electric code, you can find out what size wires you need for current. You shouldn't be guessing in a unit that you and your family sleeping in. I find these videos very disturbing.
Thanks for your concern. The wire size for the panel wattage was correct. I knew that the OEM uses the same size in their 200w kit, and it's easy to look up. I wondered if I had undersized the fuse and if a normal full-panel current would blow it. With sun and panels, you are never sure exactly how much maximum real-world current they will produce. I some cases with cloud flare they can put out more than their ratings. I was erring on the side of caution. Many people don't even fuse the solar panel input and only add a disconnect switch.
