Inverter, Solar, and Other Power Recommendations

Lots of good advice above:)
Your best bet is to do some of your own research and learn a little about your options - research costs, installation, and of course your needs. Plenty of DIY kits for sale from various manufacturers - check out amazon... Pretty easy install for the average diy person.

... in case if you are already lost and scared after looking at all the different installs on that list - many of this don't apply to you. Some are old, some are huge, some are tilted, some are made for specific roof material.

If you decide that you only need 200W or less, then it's simple. No beefy wires, no conduits, no roof junction boxes.

If you decide that you need 350W or more, then the easiest way would be to use 24V panels with MPPT controller - not 12V panels and PWM controller. Then you can still have it without beefy wires, conduits and junction boxes on the roof.

No MPPT-bashing here please, - this will be more than the OP can absorb :)

When I first purchased the RV, I swapped out the factory installed coach batteries for a set of 2 12V 100AH batteries running in parallel

Get those 4*6 if there is enough room, but this is not crucial if your energy needs are what you said. 2*100 AH will do.

I'd be interested in installing one to use for charging laptops, cell phones, and occasionally watching TV. What size inverter would you recommend for the battery setup and for the use that I am looking for?

200W inverter, and this doesn't change if you add more batteries. $25 modified sine like 175W GoPower will do for laptops and phones, it "might" work with TV or might not. Some TV prefer Pure Sine inverters, those cost more.

Is an inverter installation pretty straight forward and can someone with little electrical experience do this on their own?

For 200-300W inverter, - yes. Just run any wire that you have in your shed. A few old lamp cords spliced together to make 15-20ft run from battery to inverter. Place inverter near TV and tuck that lamp cord so that you won't trip over it. Without basic electricity knowledge I wouldn't do anything else like wiring inverter output into 120V receptacles of the trailer etc.

I'd also be interested in using solar power for charging the batteries. My main concern would be installing panels on the roof and causing potential leaks, wind resistance, etc.

Your worries are misplaced. There is no concern with wind resistance on flat panels (not tilted). There is no concern with leaks with #10 screws in 3/4" particle board of the roof. Just use stainless screws and plenty of Dicor sealant under the mounting brackets and on the screw heads.

Since we tend to boondock in an area for about a week at time, as long as our water/tanks last, I wouldn't mind having portable solar

With your minimalist use you need at least 180W solar if it's mostly sunny and 400W if it's not. (There is also a rule to oversize the solar by 30-50% from what you think you need, this has been proven by thousands users). You will run several other devices that you didn't mention - pumps, lights, 12V circuit of propane fridge, possibly furnace. Portable "suitcases" are 100-120W max, as I recall, and it will be more expensive per watt than roof-mounted. Portable could be beneficial in partially shaded areas though. When parked in dense leafy shade, solar power is reduced several times.

portable solar panels that I attach directly to the battery to charge

You don't attach any panel bigger than 15-20W "to the battery directly". Portable suitcases include solar controller that is wired between the panel and battery. If you buy panels for roof install, there are also kits that include the controller (check Solar Blvd), or you can buy controller separately (that would be my preference).

PS: there has been a tendency to post "solar" questions in Tech section, rather than DIY.

A little off point, I must be reading from responders who Rv in mild climates.
In the south we would always look for shade.

But I learned a lot of helpful bits thanks guys

The first step is to total the amount of power you wish to use on a daily basis. The amount of battery storage and solar charging revolves around your use.

For inverted 120V power, you can multiply the device's rated amperage by "10", to see what the 12V draw would be.

Portable panels are nice but it depends on how much you want to fuss with them. If you leave your RV for day excursions, will you leave the panel outside? Are you willing to move it so it faces the Sun? How much trouble will it be to move in and out when setting up camp?

Mounting onto the roof is not an issue, as is wind drag. Some folks use VHB tape to mount the panel brackets--no screws needed but that only adheres to the roof surface, not a good thing with an EPDM roof. Screws with sealant is the more common mounting scheme and nearly all report sturdy mounting with no leaks.

My solar system is similar to lawrosa's---one big panel , MPPT controller, and a 1000W inverter. I have 300 AH of battery storage. I run a 120V fridge and 120V entertainment devices, along with the other 12V items.

If you don't have a battery disconnect switch between your new batteries and the parasitic loads of your RV, I'd suggest to install one. The circuit boards, alarms, and radio memory will combine to draw down your batteries quickly.

andrewh wrote:

When I first purchased the RV, I swapped out the factory installed coach batteries for a set of 2 12V 100AH batteries running in parallel, ...

We do not have an inverter, but I'd be interested in installing one to use for charging laptops, cell phones, and occasionally watching TV.

I also wouldn't be opposed to swapping out the batteries for a set of 4 6V if that would seem to make more sense for our use/need.

First, run what you can directly off of 12V DC. Inverting to 120V AC and the converting back to 12V DC is very inefficient.

USB cigarette lighter chargers are cheap on eBay. You can also buy cigarette lighter sockets. Yes, you may have to pull some wire. Make sure any new 12V DC circuits are properly fused. Shop for a 12V DC laptop charger.

Unless you plan on running addition 120V AC appliances (CPAP, residential refrigerator, etc) a 300-500 watt PURE SINE WAVE inverter is all that you will need. These are small so you might not want to permanent mount it (you could use it in the car while driving), but make sure you have adequately sized wiring (12 minimum, 10 better) and the wired is fused near the battery. The simplest connection from the inverter to your RV is to run an extension cord from the inverter to your normal shore power inlet. Make sure to TURN OFF the converter/charger and you are done !

As for batteries, a pair of 6V golf cart batteries would likely be adequate, especially with some solar.

Its a tough choice on the solar panel. Portable takes up valuable storage space, and you have to spend a little time setting it up and putting it away. However, you have the flexibility to move it around to keep it in the sun. Roof mounted panels are always out and always charging, if they are in the sun. So your batteries are being topped of while your rig is stored, on the road, etc. We needed more watts for our 450 AH battery bank, so ours are roof mounted. That's great, unless we park in the shade, but we also have a 2000w generator as backup. There are lots of installation threads on this site, which you can use for inspiration.

Heres what I did.

280 watt panel 30 plus volts
MPPT controller
1100 watt invertor.
I plug the camper to inverter.

Consult an electrician as all inverters are not the same in regards to nuetral bonding...

Solar install

terry thiessen wrote:
We have one 135 WATT panel that keeps our two 6volt golf cart batteries charged. The panel,is on a 35 foot cabel so we park in the shade and move the panel,into the sun. We only power the electronics for the refrig., led lights and water pump. We also power two cpap machines. As long as we have sun the panel is all,we,use to keep batteries charged.

watt not amp

135amps would be 1890watts of power

A "portable" style suitcase solar panel negates the need for punching holes into the roof and the running of cables down into the interior.

A 600W inverter will supply sufficient power to run what you want it to run.
The number one concern is you MUST have a method to replace the amps to the batteries that the inverter/devices consume.
That is either a fuel powered generator or a solar setup.

I can fully recommend a Go-Power brand solar suitcase with 2 60 watt panels joined together for 120 watts.

Unfold it, lay out the panels, plug it in......done for the remainder of your trip......save moving it to get the sun angle a couple of times a day.
Plus.....with the include cable, you can seek out the sun, whereas on the roof you have no such option.

As dry camping is my thing without a source for shore power, solar is the way to go.....after all, when the initial costs are done and swallowed, it's FREE power.