Solar up and running

Congrats, RKenzel. I admire you for starting with two good sized panels. I only have one 100 watt but it is perfectly adequate for our needs in summer. I haven't plugged in for two years now. No TV, no microwave. we are fortunate in having a comfortable summer climate so no air conditioning needed.

I have a more than adequate $25 battery monitor, which always shows the % of full charge. Ebay

Mike-s, I am curious how you can tell if the batteries are fully charged with a voltmeter? It seems to me the voltage stays over 12.6 volts for many hours after a little charging so you can't know the state of charge until at least 8 hours after you want to know. With solar, it's always over 12.6 volts unless I disconnect the panels for 12 hours.

IMHO, solar power is a source of opportunity, but not something you can always rely on in every situation. Trees, cloudy days, winters with short days and the sun low on the horizon can affect output.
Still, for much of the time we spend boondocking in moderate temperatures, soar has mean quiet, painless power without us monitoring it to see if we need to start or stop the generator. If it's sunny out and the RV is in the sun, we can pretty much ignore the power levels, we're going to be full that day before mid-afternoon.

No, it won't run an A/C all day, or at all, really, without a serious infusion of cash. Even then, hot, muggy cloudy days won't work. So, we try to stay where the temperatures are moderate. If that doesn't work for you, solar might not, either.

I would also say that a good battery meter ( one with a shunt, like Victron, Xantrex or Trimetric ) is a worthwhile investment, particularly if you've got multiple batteries. Voltage is a poor measure of state of charge. Certainly, it's possible to get along without one.

Nice job! thanks for sharing.

Makes me wonder how many folks purchase their trailers "solar ready" and find out after the sale that there is some wiring that is pre-installed, but generally too small and in the wrong place to optimize solar.

Others that I have talked to expect "solar ready" to mean that you just need to add panels and controller, good to go... perhaps if all I wanted was small panel to keep my battery topped while not in use..

Glad you got it done and it turned out well.

PG&E called. THere was a definite spike in So Cal recently, they had to change the grid.......:B

Nice install. Solar and RV boondocking is like peanut butter and jelly.

FWIW, I have a Victron monitor and rarely use all the features. I also have a big analog volt meters, 12V and 120V That I can see from 15' away. In my anal retentive moments, I can hook up the laptop, using MSView, and see exactly what is happening with solar charging.

Bill.Satellite wrote:
but few, if any, RVers are able to use solar as their ONLY power source.

I can't. It's darn tough when you get many cloudy days. It's either fire up the gen or do without.

I am sure there are those who can do this, but doing this with solar as your only power source means you have to give up many of the luxuries of life (like Air Conditioning). It's all about priorities. Comfort is my #1 priority and there is exactly zero percent chance that I could remain comfortable year-round using solar as my only power source. I do not mean to diminish the advantages of solar, but few, if any, RVers are able to use solar as their ONLY power source.

What is good to hear, enjoy! There is nothing better than to be able to go boon docking for weeks on end and never run out of power.

I am having good results with it my first solar system and it has exceeded my expectations.

I have had basically the same system for two years now with no complaints at all. I only have two 100 watt panels mounted using the same brackets. I have seen up to 14 amps charging current after an long night, so I think it is working well.
Also, that display will also give you total and current watts into and out of the battery on one of the other screens. At least mine does.

Dave

Nice job and good choice on the controller. I have been using a Tracer MPPT for over 5 years now and have zero complaints. I boon dock 99 percent of the time and only run the genny the odd time for microwave and AC. Solar keeps everything else up and running.