I recently bought a Forest River - Rockwood 8299BS 5th Wheel. It came prewired to use a ZAMP portable solar system. The ZAMP compatible connector in the front of the camper is a 2-pole receptacle that will receive a standard 2-pole flat trailer connector and goes directly to the battery terminal. Instead of paying the higher price for the ZAMP system, I opted for a Renogy 100 watt portable suitcase system. I love the design, quality and packaging. It comes prewired with a 10' long, 14 gauge cable that is fused at 10 amps and has alligator clamps on one end to connect directly to a battery. The other end of the cable is a pigtail that connects to the controller. I want to substitute the alligator clamp cable with a cable that connects to the controller normally but has the 2-pole flat trailer connector on the other end so I can plug directly into my camper. I also want to make the cable 20' long so I have more flexibility. I worry about loss of power and efficiency by running the cables out to 20'. Should I use larger gauge wire or is 14 gauge big enough for my application? Thanks in advance!

The cables were to short for me so I replaced them with These it runs just fine.I also hard wired one end to the battery then made a connection using MC 4connectors that way I can put the unit where I want it and then connect the pig tail that is mounted under the edge on the RV.BTW that little Assembly Tool makes things much easier.

The one thing that you will want to check and verify is if the "pre-wire" ZAMP deal has a solar controller already built into it or if it uses the solar controller most commonly found mounted on the back of the portable solar panels. If by being "ZAMP portable solar ready" includes a solar controller mounted somewhere in the coach then you will need to make sure that your Renogy panels operate within the specs of that controller. Probably nothing to worry about here since you have a 100w panel but I would make sure the operating voltage and amp ratings are good. If there is no controller in the coach then the ZAMP port on the side of your trailer leads directly to the batteries. In that case I guess you would try to find the male or female end of the connector that they are using and you can replace the connector that came with your Renogy kit.If your trailer already has a controller and your Renogy portable panels also have a controller and you plug the panels into the ZAMP port then I am not sure what the consequences of that would be. It probably would just not work. Anyways once you figure out your controller setup you can then make the choice to plug into the port on the trailer or just wire a lead from the battery to a anderson type plug connector and then the same on the renogy panel to make it easy. Or just use alligator clips direct to the batteries.

mrkoje wrote:The one thing that you will want to check and verify is if the "pre-wire" ZAMP deal has a solar controller already built into it or if it uses the solar controller most commonly found mounted on the back of the portable solar panels. If by being "ZAMP portable solar ready" includes a solar controller mounted somewhere in the coach then you will need to make sure that your Renogy panels operate within the specs of that controller. Probably nothing to worry about here since you have a 100w panel but I would make sure the operating voltage and amp ratings are good. If there is no controller in the coach then the ZAMP port on the side of your trailer leads directly to the batteries. In that case I guess you would try to find the male or female end of the connector that they are using and you can replace the connector that came with your Renogy kit.If your trailer already has a controller and your Renogy portable panels also have a controller and you plug the panels into the ZAMP port then I am not sure what the consequences of that would be. It probably would just not work. Anyways once you figure out your controller setup you can then make the choice to plug into the port on the trailer or just wire a lead from the battery to a anderson type plug connector and then the same on the renogy panel to make it easy. Or just use alligator clips direct to the batteries.Good questions! The ZAMP connector seems like a generic connector that will accept this type of cable connector:https://www.amazon.com/Standard-Motor-Products-POLE-CONNECTOR/dp/B002OPHRXW/ref=sr_1_4?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1467816103&sr=1-4&keywords=2-pole+flat+trailer+connectorThe wires from the connector look like they go directly to the battery or battery terminal. No controller seems to be mounted anywhere in the camper. A little dishonest saying it's wired for a ZAMP solar system. It's a generic connector that goes directly to the battery. I was disappointed when I saw the price of the system compared to the Renogy.

IAMICHABOD:Do you also have a Renogy portable suitcase? My cable is about 10' long and has MC4 connectors about 2' from the pigtail that's connects to the controller. The other end has alligator clamps. Since my batteries are covered and vented in the front compartment of my 5th wheel, it's inconvenient to connect the alligator clamps directly to the battery. I would like to build a new 20' cable that will plug into the existing MC4 connectors and then connect the other end into the receptacle on my trailer. I have a photo of my connector but can't seem to upload it to the post. The connector is a 2-pole receptacle that would take something like this:https://www.amazon.com/Standard-Motor-Products-POLE-CONNECTOR/dp/B002OPHRXW/ref=sr_1_4?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1467816103&sr=1-4&keywords=2-pole+flat+trailer+connectorAre the cables you reference very flexible? The connector on my camper doesn't seem very stout. I wonder if I should have a smaller gauge transition to the 2-pole connector so I'm not applying any torque or force on the connector with the weight and stiffness of the cable pulling down on the connector.It sounds like I can buy the MC4 connector tool and install MC4 connectors on one end to mate with my existing cable and then install a 2-pole connector on the other end to mate with my camper, or buy the cable you referenced and attach the 2-pole connector on the pigtail end.Thanks for the link to the MC4 cables and assembly tool!

I bought a GoPower 120w portable unit 2 years ago and wish I didn't, the quality is good but not superior if at all to what Renogy has. The connector is made by Anderson

Solar - Portable Suitcase | Good Sam Community

IAMICHABOD
Explorer II
Jul 07, 2016
I just set up at about 45 degree angle,seems to work fine,just moving it at times to follow the sun.

The MC4 connector will hook up , the connector will accept different wire sizes,but the connector is the same.
Almot
Explorer III
Jul 07, 2016
Best angle depends on both latitude and month, so you'll have to adjust it every few weeks even if you never leave your state. This is a small panel, so the difference btw perfect angle (i.e. constantly changed over the year) and fixed 30-40 degrees, will be negligible. Rotating it few times a day is more important.

Fixed all-year angle = latitude, times 0.76, plus 3 degrees.

Fixed summer angle April 1 through September 30 = latitude, times 0.93, minus 21 degrees.

MC4 have better weather resistance than cheap 2-pole connectors. Not to say that there are no good 2-poles.
red31
Explorer
Jul 08, 2016
best angle based on time of particular day. the sun's Altitude & Azimuth changes all day long.

perpendicular to the sun, 'optimal angles' are based on fixed panels, is your panel(s) fixed?

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/AltAz.php

https://www.amazon.com/CES-Gauge-Quick-Disconnect-Harness/dp/B0057ZQJ12
Almot
Explorer III
Jul 08, 2016
I believe the OP doesn't know yet whether it will be "optimal angle" of fixed panel, or optimal angle with some rotation.

To keep it simple, optimal angle with added rotation will only make things better.

Some people rotate it few times a day, some don't rotate at all.

Doesn't matter much. 100W will harvest very little energy no matter what you do. It's more a top-up thing, to keep battery from dropping too low before you get home.
mrkoje
Explorer
Jul 08, 2016
Being that it's a portable brief case unit I would hope that the user tracks the sun throughout the day. It only takes 1 second to move it. With that being said - a 100w panel will probably only put out 5-6 amp on the best part of a sunny day at the perfect angle with no shading. Any shading issues or otherwise and that will most likely drop to 1-2 amps - shading issues and probably under 1 amp.

My guess is you would probably generate 15-25ah a day depending on conditions. Possibly a bit more if if you really track with the sun.

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