Going Solar

[ForestCreature]

For those considering Solar, this is what we did with our
   45 watt ICP system we purchased from Costco on line.
   It was not very hard to connect up. We basically followed the
   directions that came with the unit. Which included the charge
   controller .
 
  Our battery is inside the Aliner, but something simular can be done to
  an outside battery.
  We installed the charge controller ontop of the battery box
  drilling holes to put the wires thru,then sealing the holes with
  silicone. From the controler we ran the wiring (14 gauge) through  exisiting holes in the floor to the tongue,connecting a plug  
  receptacle to the tongue. We used heat shrink tubing to seal all
  of the exposed wiring. The panels are connected together in parralell,
  we then used 14 gauge wire (about 65 ft total) with a plug on the end ( a heavy extension cord).
 
  We (came up with the idea) a friend made the stand for the panels that keeps them together and folds for travel. There is a top bar to stabilize that is not shown in the picture.
 
  This gives us the flexability to place the panels
  in the sun, while we are set up in the shade. Using the heavy duty  
  wire gave us no loss of   performance. We tested it during peak
  sunlight.

[garym053]

Thanks for the Pics and Info, Marcy! I think that Solar is going to be my next big project, as I have Sleep Apnea and run a C-PAP at night and I pretty much like only state parks and except for some New Hampshire State Parks, hook-ups are non existant! So I run the C-PAP off an inverter hooke to a 12v battery.
I'd like to add Solar to my house as well, but I think the payback period would make me about 110 years old before it paid for itself!

[topcat7736]

Ohhhhhhhh, solar PANELS! I thought you were going solar into outer space. I've been there a long time and would have welcomed you with open arms! LOL :W :J :S

[midwest_camper]

This summer I bought a 5 watt ICP Global Battery Saver Pro solar panel. I used it on a couple of camping trips and my battery always had enough juice to run the furnace at night. My question is how do I tell what my battery charge is before I hook up the panel. Or how do I tell how much juice the panel has charged into the battery? Or how the heck do I monitor the charge in the battery.

Regards, Brooke Kruger

[mike4947]

This summer I bought a 5 watt ICP Global Battery Saver Pro solar panel. I used it on a couple of camping trips and my battery always had enough juice to run the furnace at night. My question is how do I tell what my battery charge is before I hook up the panel. Or how do I tell how much juice the panel has charged into the battery? Or how the heck do I monitor the charge in the battery.
 
Regards, Brooke Kruger

Brooke, you've been lucky. A 5 watt panel over 12 hours of sunlight where the panel has been turned hourly so the surface is perpendicular to the sun's rays will produce a total of 60 watts of power. Divide that by 12 volts and you've managed to get 5 amps into the battery or about an 1 and 15 minutes of furnace fan running time.
Here's a few likes to gain a whole bunch of knowledge on 12 volt sytems & solar power.
http://www.rvsolarelect
http://bart.ccis.com/home/mnemeth/12volt/12volt.htm
http://bart.ccis.com/home/mnemeth/12volt/12volta.htm
http://www.dcbattery.com/faq.html#1
 
For real good info on battery amperage monitors try IM'lng ChuckS over at: http://www.popupexplorer.com/forum/default.asp
He's realy good with RV electrical monitoring systems, bu be prepared they ain't cheap.

[ForestCreature]

Mike, thanks for the links.
 
 midwest_camper , As mike said, you probably have gotten lucky. I'm going to guess you were only out for the weekend. Your battery can handle a weekend easily without recharging, especially in the summer. I hate to say it, but under a heavy load in cooler wether you would end up with a dead battery using (or relying on) a 5 watt panel . We initially started out with 15 watts and that barely kept up in cooler weather or on a stretch of cloudy days. If you are seriously considering solar I'd reccomend no less than 45 watts. Any less you would be losing charge with each day, never achieving a full charge.
 
 We have been out for 3 weeks in the fall, and achieve a full charge daily with the 45 watts. Running the furnace during the night (off during the day while we are not in the camper) , light usage is minimal and the fridge on propane. We don't bring extras such as 12v televisions etc. The bigger the load the more wattage you'll need to attain full charge daily.
 
 

[/color]My question is how do I tell what my battery charge is before I hook up the panel. Or how do I tell how much juice the panel has charged into the battery? Or how the heck do I monitor the charge in the battery.

We use a  volt meter to check the state of the battery charge. As for the out put on the panel, we use a multi meter, so we just change the setting and check to see the panel output. (we have only checked that a few times, never really needed to check for any reason [/color]other than curiosity)
 
 The Controller that came with our solar set up isn't that sophisticated to tell us the charge state. It's easy enough to check the battery with the meter,so we do that as opposed to spending a big chunk of change on a fancy controller. (the controller prevents over charging)
 

[Diplomat]

Is this the kit that you bought?
http://www.costco.com/product.asp?catid=114&subid=3241&prdid=10006841&hierid=3404&log=&navtop=

$319 seems like a good price from what I have seen from other folks.

Another great source of information and solar products is Backwoods Solar.

[ForestCreature]

Is this the kit that you bought?
 http://www.costco.com/product.asp?catid=114&subid=3241&prdid=10006841&hierid=3404&log=&navtop=
 
 $319 seems like a good price from what I have seen from other folks.
 

Yes, that's the kit. We were happy with the performance of our previous 15 watt panel which was also ICP.  Thanks to a grumpy bear, it gave us the opportunity to replace it with more wattage. I looked around the net and that kit sells for about $500 elsewhere.
 The closet price to what Costco has is at Harbor Freight for $299 , but that one diddn't include the controler. It did include a light, which we had no use for and a 12v socket.

[midwest_camper]

Hey everybody, thanks for the info...

Looks like I have some work to do.

[SactoCampers]

Thanks for the Pics and Info, Marcy! I think that Solar is going to be my next big project, as I have Sleep Apnea and run a C-PAP at night and I pretty much like only state parks and except for some New Hampshire State Parks, hook-ups are non existant! So I run the C-PAP off an inverter hooke to a 12v battery.
I'd like to add Solar to my house as well, but I think the payback period would make me about 110 years old before it paid for itself!

Gary,
 
If you lived in California, home solar would pay itself off in about 7 years. With a lifespan of 25-30 years, solar makes sense in CA, particularly since there are rebates that drop the cost by about 45%.
 
I put a 2.4 KW system on my roof and went to a time of use rate plan and my electricity bill has dropped to almost nothing. That's with one or two panels malfunctioning that need to be replaced. Once I get them replaced my electricity should zero out entirely. Summertime is a different matter because Mrs. Sacto runs the AC way more than we need to.
 
At the very worst, in CA home solar systems pay for themselves and you usually come out ahead by going on time of use and doing some minor energy conservation.