One large inverter or 2-3 small ones?
So as I get closer to adding solar (or at least a larger battery bank) to my RV, I have more questions than I started with! Big thanks to the folks who have helped me along so far. I found a great...
Forum Discussion
Hi Jeff,
I use small wattage radiant heating to limit my demands--I have one that will do just 281 watts.
I have a three prong approach to recharging.
A. During storage 256 watts of panels return the battery bank to fully charged. The controller has a temperature probe to optimize charging voltage. Harvest in good weather is approximately 100 amp-hours per day. Worst case is perhaps 17 amp-hours on Dec 21.
B. While trundling down the road, I can recharge at up to 70 amps per hour. Of course the solar is doing some charging too, up to about an additional 17 amps at solar noon. As the bank reaches 85% state of charge the acceptance rate drops to about 11 amps per jar, but since I have seven that's not a problem. I drive slowly and rarely stay in one place very long.
C. On shore power I use a 40 amp PD converter with added wizard.
For the future, I hope to add an external module to the alternator to allow me to draw even more amps from it.
AGM's don't have the same problem with acceptance rates dropping until they are at about 97% state of charge.
I use small wattage radiant heating to limit my demands--I have one that will do just 281 watts.
I have a three prong approach to recharging.
A. During storage 256 watts of panels return the battery bank to fully charged. The controller has a temperature probe to optimize charging voltage. Harvest in good weather is approximately 100 amp-hours per day. Worst case is perhaps 17 amp-hours on Dec 21.
B. While trundling down the road, I can recharge at up to 70 amps per hour. Of course the solar is doing some charging too, up to about an additional 17 amps at solar noon. As the bank reaches 85% state of charge the acceptance rate drops to about 11 amps per jar, but since I have seven that's not a problem. I drive slowly and rarely stay in one place very long.
C. On shore power I use a 40 amp PD converter with added wizard.
For the future, I hope to add an external module to the alternator to allow me to draw even more amps from it.
AGM's don't have the same problem with acceptance rates dropping until they are at about 97% state of charge.
Just Jeff wrote:
How do you keep electric heating within your energy production capacity?
