RV NET solar install?
Ricently purchased a new to us 07 Discovery with a full slide. Looking to full time in the NEAR future. Would like to start planning my solar install. I have a large 8x9 foof area over the bedroom th...
Forum Discussion
Have posted on other threads: we have 1.42 kW of solar and 9.6 kW-hours of Lithium Phosphate Batteries\. This has made us basically solar autonomous. The six 235 W solar panels are ganged three each in series so that they go to controller at 90 V and go to controller (TriStar MTT-45) at 14 amps. If it were to come off at 12 V from smaller panels at 12 V, this would be 108 V or so.
This is fed to a battery bank to four LFP batteries in series for a 48V nominal system: 57.5 absorb and 54.4 V float. This then goes through a Magnum 4.0 PSW inverter for the AC and converter to 12 V for the DC. We have used the air conditioner (15,000 BTU energy hog Dometic) for 3.5 hours several times as combination of solar/battery bank. We use the micro-wave for any heating of fluids and run the Dometic refrigerator on AC during sunny days (why use propane, it costs money).
The system was designed so that we can still use the 50 amp circuit for 110 purposes (air conditioning, water heating and micro-wave) if we so choose and we have not for 13 months.
We burned out micro-waves in Baja and Yucatan due to dirty power (80 to 140 V changes). Son Cary and family came down for a week on beach in Yucatan and he brought a battery charger. Dirty power went through charger to the then 4 x glass mat PbS batteries and then through the then 2.5 kW Magnum inverter. Things worked great. Cary designed and fabricated current system to work in the same manner. The power goes through 15 amp 110V power cord to battery chargers to battery bank.
We spent 6 days in rain forest on Olympic Peninsula on battery only. We lasted 4 days in heavy snow running the forced air heater fairly continuously. There was 8" of snow on the panels and they still put out 100 W. We had friends boondocking in New Mexico desert and we just put a power cord to them to charge up their batteries from our system during the day.
We have room for 700 more W of solar and 4800 more kW/hours of LFP but do not see the need for it. Admittedly 700 more W of solar would run the a/c by itself.
However, our attitude is that we are "Goldilockers" as in "Not to hot and not to cold, just right!" or, go north or up in elevation when it is hot and reverse when it is cold. If our Mexican Temporary Import Licenses are finally cancelled from our wrecked rigs of 16 months ago (totalled trailer and truck in 70 car pileup between Vera Cruz and Puebla - 10 more cars smacked into each other and us during the wreck), we shall be going back to Yucatan/Belize/Guatemala once again. Belize is definite for a month if this comes to pass.
If anyone is interested, can post photos or send personally.
Currently spending a week at Glacier NP "camped" at the Blackfeet Reservation "Chewing Blackbones" RV spot.
Reed and Elaine
This is fed to a battery bank to four LFP batteries in series for a 48V nominal system: 57.5 absorb and 54.4 V float. This then goes through a Magnum 4.0 PSW inverter for the AC and converter to 12 V for the DC. We have used the air conditioner (15,000 BTU energy hog Dometic) for 3.5 hours several times as combination of solar/battery bank. We use the micro-wave for any heating of fluids and run the Dometic refrigerator on AC during sunny days (why use propane, it costs money).
The system was designed so that we can still use the 50 amp circuit for 110 purposes (air conditioning, water heating and micro-wave) if we so choose and we have not for 13 months.
We burned out micro-waves in Baja and Yucatan due to dirty power (80 to 140 V changes). Son Cary and family came down for a week on beach in Yucatan and he brought a battery charger. Dirty power went through charger to the then 4 x glass mat PbS batteries and then through the then 2.5 kW Magnum inverter. Things worked great. Cary designed and fabricated current system to work in the same manner. The power goes through 15 amp 110V power cord to battery chargers to battery bank.
We spent 6 days in rain forest on Olympic Peninsula on battery only. We lasted 4 days in heavy snow running the forced air heater fairly continuously. There was 8" of snow on the panels and they still put out 100 W. We had friends boondocking in New Mexico desert and we just put a power cord to them to charge up their batteries from our system during the day.
We have room for 700 more W of solar and 4800 more kW/hours of LFP but do not see the need for it. Admittedly 700 more W of solar would run the a/c by itself.
However, our attitude is that we are "Goldilockers" as in "Not to hot and not to cold, just right!" or, go north or up in elevation when it is hot and reverse when it is cold. If our Mexican Temporary Import Licenses are finally cancelled from our wrecked rigs of 16 months ago (totalled trailer and truck in 70 car pileup between Vera Cruz and Puebla - 10 more cars smacked into each other and us during the wreck), we shall be going back to Yucatan/Belize/Guatemala once again. Belize is definite for a month if this comes to pass.
If anyone is interested, can post photos or send personally.
Currently spending a week at Glacier NP "camped" at the Blackfeet Reservation "Chewing Blackbones" RV spot.
Reed and Elaine
