Practical use of solar

Gjac wrote:
Is there some basic requirements before going to solar?

For me it was not liking campgrounds. If you are fortunate enough to be in one with a tent area, you can camp there, well away from all the other rigs who must have power.

It's not about cost, it's about comfort.

Here is a simple flow chart.

Budget-->Energy Audit-->Battery bank size-->number of watts-->PWM or MPPT. What ever type of controller is chosen, make sure it has adjustable set points and a temperature probe that is on the battery.

One rule of thumb is between 60 and 150 watts of panels per 100 amp-hours of storage. The smaller the battery bank the higher the wattage needed (per 100 amp-hours). Here is a link to the rather special spreadsheet which includes an energy audit, that N8GS has created to help size solar battery charging systems!

Solar Spread Sheet N8GS

For a nice explanation of solar, try this link:

Golden rules of solar

I designed my system when I was only part time in the RV. Next year I'll be beefing up to 1250 watts (I hope).

Gjac wrote:
90% of the camping I do is dry camping but I always run out of water before I run out of battery power.

I would focus on the water supply and conservation first. The three of us can go a week with our 50 gal on board supply.

For me the excess solar gives DW comfort that we don't have to plug in so much.
So it is different for everyone.

the bear II wrote:

During the day, I will start the generator about 10am and let it run until it runs out of gas, about 9 hours

Holy crap! Really? Everyday? You are a PRIME candidate for solar my friend! DW and I only camp 3-4 days max when boondocking and we're going to get a solar setup too. Surely you've already paid for it in fuel costs by now. Since you're in SoCal, you can take advantage of the cheap prices that Solarblvd in Norco offers.

I had thought about going solar but was unable to justify the cost based upon the number of days that we typically boondock. Normally when we boondock we are only in one spot for 5 days at the most. Between batteries and inverters plus a 1000watt portable generator we can get by for the 5 days.

During the day, I will start the generator about 10am and let it run until it runs out of gas, about 9 hours, this keeps the batteries charged. I have the inverter in the 5th wheel switched on and it uses 4 deep cycle batteries for power. We can run the microwave, TVs Sat receiver or DVD player, laptop and lights at will for the 5 days.

If we need to use the air conditioning then I have two Honda 2000i generators with the parallel kit to use. We rarely need the AC so these generators usually are left at home & I just bring the 1000 watt.

I also use the two 2000 watt Hondas for projects to run power tools or provide power at home if the electric goes out. I like the flexibilty of these two units.

If we spent more time in one spot boondocking, I might consider going solar.