I'm back, Solar Charger Review

[JimS]

I got back last night from 15 days in the PU.  The solar charger worked very well.  We were able to use all the electrics without worry.  The batteries never dropped below 70% and that was using the heater as much as we wanted.  Generally, all I needed was about 2-3 hours of direct sunlight each day to fully recharge the batteries.  Having the panel movable really helped in following the sun.  The two Trojan T-105's really improved capacity over to old GP 27 I had before.  The coldest night in Yellowstone was 25 degrees and the heater kept the PU warm enough for the 1 year old without killing the batteries.
Here is a picture of the panel:
A picture of the plug:
The charge controller and battery voltage:
Solar panel output amps:
Last, controller output amps, thanks to MPPT:

Jim
Darn it, the pictures did not come up in the thread!
Link to original post:http://www.arveeclub.com/showthread.php?t=63953
Next post: http://www.arveeclub.com/showthread.php?t=64247

[wavery]

I got back last night from 15 days in the PU.  The solar charger worked very well.  We were able to use all the electrics without worry.  The batteries never dropped below 70% and that was using the heater as much as we wanted.  Generally, all I needed was about 2-3 hours of direct sunlight each day to fully recharge the batteries.  Having the pannel movable really helped in following the sun.  The two Trojan T-105's really improved capacity over to old GP 27 I had before.  The coldest night in Yellowstone was 25 degrees and the heater kept the PU warm enough for the 1 year old without killing the batteries.
Here is a picture of the pannel:

A picture of the plug:

The charge controller and battery voltage:

Solar pannel output amps:

Last, cnotroller output amps, thanks to MPPT:

Jim
Darn it, the pictures did not come up in the thread!

Looks like you have a real nice set-up there.

I'd really like to know where you got that panel. I'm not interested in the controller. They are fun to have but not necessary IMHO. Putting a volt meter on the battery and reading it a couple times in direct sun-light would be fine for me. I used solar panels on my boat for many years and the thrill of staring at a charge controller has long since worn off. The only thing that I am concerned about is getting the batteries over 14.5v or having them boil dry.  :sombraro:

[JimS]

How come some of my pictures are in the thread and these are listed as attachments?  What am I doing wrong?

[wavery]

How come some of my pictures are in the thread and these are listed as attachments?  What am I doing wrong?

I'm not sure how you got them listed as attachments :confused: .

Who is hosting your pics? Did you post them as behind it.

[JimS]

I'm not sure how you got them listed as attachments :confused: .

Who is hosting your pics? Did you post them as [IMG]  ?

I went under ' Manage Attachments' below and just attached the pictures.  I did this before and some of the pictures did as in this thread and then the one picture of the lake I go to went into the thread.  I don't understand the difference. :confused:

The solar pannel and controller were ordered from RV Solar Electric.
http://www.rvsolarelectric.com/

[JimS]

I'm not sure how you got them listed as attachments :confused: .

Who is hosting your pics? Did you post them as [IMG]  ?


......I see what you did. I'll PM you.


.... guess I won't PM you...you have that feature turned off.

here is how to post a picture:

-----------------------------------------------------

I turned on the PM

[JimS]

I'm not sure how you got them listed as attachments :confused: .

Who is hosting your pics? Did you post them as behind it.

Thanks, I will give this a try!

[austinado16]

Thanks for the update! Nice set up, I'm very jelous!

[DoubleD]

Jim, you may have answered these questions in other posts that I may have missed, but that looks like a fairly neat setup.  I boondocked in YNP for 7 days Sept 1-7 with my 2 group 27's before I decided to high tail it over to Wapiti for a night to get charged then back into GTNP for another 4. However the thought of being able to go for 15 nights without dependancy on electricity is attractive.  I have a couple of questions:
1.  The taboo question, what was your bottom line cost?
2.  You obviously are somewhat handy, and so am I.  How many man hours did the installation take?
3.  What is the panel size you selected and what other items take up storage space while in transit?
4.  You mentioned that you moved it to follow the sun.  What is your experience when you wanted to leave camp for most of the day and simply pointed the collector in the direction of the sun at its most intense location?
5.  Is the 70% you referred to after one night, or a couple of nights because you didn't get full sun?

[JimS]

Jim, you may have answered these questions in other posts that I may have missed, but that looks like a fairly neat setup.  I boondocked in YNP for 7 days Sept 1-7 with my 2 group 27's before I decided to high tail it over to Wapiti for a night to get charged then back into GTNP for another 4. However the thought of being able to go for 15 nights without dependancy on electricity is attractive.  I have a couple of questions:
1.  The taboo question, what was your bottom line cost?
2.  You obviously are somewhat handy, and so am I.  How many man hours did the installation take?
3.  What is the panel size you selected and what other items take up storage space while in transit?
4.  You mentioned that you moved it to follow the sun.  What is your experience when you wanted to leave camp for most of the day and simply pointed the collector in the direction of the sun at its most intense location?
5.  Is the 70% you referred to after one night, or a couple of nights because you didn't get full sun?

DoubleD,
1. The solar panel, wire (which I didn't use), and controller were about $925.  The Trojan T-105's were about $250 with tax, the battery box (Blue Sea for two golf cart batteries) $110 with shipping, and probably another $100 for the 6AG welding cable, connectors, plugs, fuses, terminals, and other mounting hardware.  So roughly $1400 installed.
2. I spent a weekend installing everything plus hunting down the other electrical issues I had.  One evening to make the stands.
3. The panel is a Kyocera 130 watt, 7.4 amp panel that I store on top of the smaller of the pullout beds, with two small wooden braces under the end of the bed to prevent sagging.  The panel is 56 inches by 26 inches and weighs 27 lbs.  Its a little over 2 inches thick.  Since the controller is mounted inside of a cabinet, the only things I have to store in the camper is the panel and the two small stands that it sits on.  They are collapsible and weigh about a pound each and take up very little space.  The 10AG wire (25 feet) just coils up and is placed in the sink cabinet when in storage position.
4. In the campsites I was in, I was lucky to have a place I could put the panel and receive about 4 hours of good sunlight.  That is all I needed to recharge the batteries.  I also used a cable lock to lock the panel to a tree at Yellowstone to discourage those with a little too much interest.  The days I stayed in camp, I could follow the sun and run everything off the panel.  It can power the fan, lights and water pump without having to use the batteries.
5. We had one very cloudy day at Yellowstone and the batteries were used for two days and nights, furnace and all without being recharged.  The lowest volt reading on the controller was about 12.4 volts, and that was with a everything off but the small draw of the converter, controller and the gas detector.  So open circuit voltage would be higher, as would the charge.  I guess I could have disconnected the batteries to get a true open circuit voltage, but oh well...  Also, this reading was taken when the batteries were around 25 - 30 degrees, so I would expect a lower voltage at this temp.
Hope this helps,
Jim
Edit: I misquoted the price on the panel and controller: should have been about $825, not $925.

[tlhdoc]

Jim who did you order the hardware from?

[JimS]

I ordered the "jumbo kit" from RV Solar Electric, with an upgrade to the SB 2000E controller.  I then mixed and matched pieces and parts to get the system like I wanted it.  I did not use the supplied wire however because it was too stiff for what I wanted.

[tlhdoc]

Thanks for the information.

[wavemaker]

i had purchased this for my batteries

http://www.harborfreightusa.com/usa/itemdisplay/displayItem.do?itemid=90599&CategoryName=&SubCategoryName=

it works realy good here in arizona

Dean

[BuddyBear]

Hey, wavemaker.
A couple quick questions for ya, if I may.

How far can you place the panels away from your batteries?
The charge cables look to be about 3 ft long, did you extend them?

Can you add additional panels to your set up if you decided to expand it?

Did you purchas locally in the Phx area?

Thats it!
Thanks.
Stay Cool Down There.
BB