I have been thinking of going solar for some time and decided to pull the plug.My wants are a 400 to 500 watt system. I have four 12 volt batteries with 340ah. I am not planning on changing batteries at this time but will go to four 6 volts at 480 hrs in the future.l would like to use an inverter so I can plug directly into the trailers 110 outlets.besides TV's I would like to occasionally run electric heat and coffee maker and all the other things that go with RV use.What size inverter would be recommended? Pure Sine Wave?I would like a blue tooth controller and a automatic transfer switch and a auto smart charger.It it best to look for a kit? or buy individual components? I plan on installing the system myself.

I see lots of issues, given your stated usage. Did you know small electric heaters draw up around 1600 Watts? Your Microwave oven also around 1500 Watts. Standard coffee pots - around 1200 Watts. .... are you begin ing to see the issue? You'll need at least a 2000 Watt inverter, and yes, pure sine wave would probably be best......and that is if you only run one major appliance at a time. A 1500 Watt electric heater through an inverter may pull around 120 or 130 Amps from your batteries when the heater is running..... how long do you think your 384 Amp Hour battery bank will last before it reaches the recommended half way point of that capacity? Frankly, you're going to need far more solar and a much larger battery bank to make that kind of power demands.... ConsideriLithium batteries and at least 1000 Watts of solar for this. I see you are in Oregon. Give AM Solar over in Springfield a call.....or contact them on their website and see if they'll give you an idea what you need. They are one of the best RV Solar companies in the country. . . . . Or you might just reassess your planned usage needs ..... the desire for electric heat would be your big killer.....

You would need a second trailer to haul enough batteries to run a space heater for any significant time. Adjust your expectations to running the furnace with the battery power and propane.2000 watt inverter could run any home coffee maker and your tvs. You can get the inverter with a built-in transfer switch and battery charging when plugged in. I always recommend sine wave.The solar controller is your smart charger. Review the available charge programming before you buy. Not sure why you need blue tooth unless you need one more distraction.If you find a kit with all the right parts I am sure that would make installation easier. I matched my own components.Enjoy the journey.

1L243 wrote: My wants are a 400 to 500 watt system. I have four 12 volt batteries with 340ah. I am not planning on changing batteries at this time but will go to four 6 volts at 480 hrs in the future.340 would leave you with 170 amp-hours usable or about 2000 watt-hours.1L243 wrote:l would like to use an inverter so I can plug directly into the trailers 110 outlets.besides TV's I would like to occasionally run electric heat and coffee maker and all the other things that go with RV use.Everything but the electric heat. You don't have enough watt-hours available for any long term use of even a 750 watt heater.1L243 wrote:What size inverter would be recommended? Pure Sine Wave?3000 watt pure sine wave in a hybrid inverter/charger with load support. I'd recommend Victron or Outback.1L243 wrote:I would like a blue tooth controller and a automatic transfer switch and a auto smart charger.Blue tooth is nice--but it does limit the choice of charge controller. The hybrid inverter/chargers come with a transfer switch.1L243 wrote:It it best to look for a kit? or buy individual components? I plan on installing the system myself.Kits too often come with charge controllers where more panels can't be added.Some notes:Have a budget in mindmake sure the system can be expandedStart by doing an energy audit to size the battery bank--then get enough solar to charge the battery bank.I plug my RV into the inverter to run the whole house, but that does require shutting down the OEM converter (I leave mine unplugged), and setting the fridge to propane.It may be best to stay within one family--i.e. Victron Inverter/charger and Victron solar charge controller. They are designed to "play well together".This series of articles may help: https://freecampsites.net/adding-solar/

Of course I want the best system for the least amount of money. I was thinking of going with a 3000 watt pure sine inverter they tend to be on the expensive side. That said We do not do a lot of winter camping but I wanted to build the solar system with that option open and reduce the consumption of propane and the need to frequently refill the tanks. The heater has 3 settings with the lowest setting being under 600 watts.Typically when we do use a heater it's during the day at night we switch to furnace which keep a things from freezing.

How much solar power do you think you will get on a typical winter day in Oregon? No sun = no solar power = no ability to recharge depleted batteries.

Calling on Solar Techies | Good Sam Community

262 Replies

time2roll
Nomad
Jan 17, 2021
You would need a second trailer to haul enough batteries to run a space heater for any significant time. Adjust your expectations to running the furnace with the battery power and propane.

2000 watt inverter could run any home coffee maker and your tvs. You can get the inverter with a built-in transfer switch and battery charging when plugged in. I always recommend sine wave.

The solar controller is your smart charger. Review the available charge programming before you buy. Not sure why you need blue tooth unless you need one more distraction.

If you find a kit with all the right parts I am sure that would make installation easier. I matched my own components.

Enjoy the journey.
Ed_Gee
Explorer II
Jan 17, 2021
I see lots of issues, given your stated usage. Did you know small electric heaters draw up around 1600 Watts? Your Microwave oven also around 1500 Watts. Standard coffee pots - around 1200 Watts. .... are you begin ing to see the issue? You'll need at least a 2000 Watt inverter, and yes, pure sine wave would probably be best......and that is if you only run one major appliance at a time. A 1500 Watt electric heater through an inverter may pull around 120 or 130 Amps from your batteries when the heater is running..... how long do you think your 384 Amp Hour battery bank will last before it reaches the recommended half way point of that capacity? Frankly, you're going to need far more solar and a much larger battery bank to make that kind of power demands.... ConsideriLithium batteries and at least 1000 Watts of solar for this. I see you are in Oregon. Give AM Solar over in Springfield a call.....or contact them on their website and see if they'll give you an idea what you need. They are one of the best RV Solar companies in the country.
. . . . Or you might just reassess your planned usage needs ..... the desire for electric heat would be your big killer.....

Forum Discussion

Calling on Solar Techies

262 Replies

About Technical Issues

Related Content

Calling Solar Gurus

Another solar question.

Roll Call Alaska 2018

Roll Call Alaska 2014

Roll Call Alaska 2015