I have been using solar panels for charging my camper batteries for a few years now. I learn something new EVERY DAY!Something I have recently learned was that the charger/converter that came in my camper may only keep my 2 6-volt batteries charged to only 70% and also may boil them dry in the process. YIKES!Yesterday, I replaced my factory charger/converter with a "Smart" charger/converter.Also, I am adding a portable solar panel, where is the best place for locating the charge controller? Closer to battery or closer to panel?Although I have dry camped, once for a whole season (may - oct), I have always been insecure about knowing when the batteries where getting dangerously low. Is there an affordable monitor available that I can install to give me the feedback I need?Any other insights would also be appreciated.Thanks

cmcdar wrote:Also, I am adding a portable solar panel, where is the best place for locating the charge controller? Closer to battery or closer to panel?where you can use it to monitor the battery! Close to the battery.

I built me a nice three digital meter panel using Shure Electronics meters from ebay-china. Was not expensive and looked real nice. Mounted in PVC speciality three position switch box from Lowes. Glued the meters in the large switch holes. Monitors two channels of DC VOLTS 0-19VDC (Bank 1 and Bank 2) and also monitors the whole battery system for INPUT/OUTPUT DC amps (0-75AMPS DC). Lets me know how much is being drained and also how much is being provided by the converter/charger when in charge mode. Roy's ImagesWorks great but after looking at some of the manf meter panels I sort of wish I went with the Bogart Engineering TriMetric 2025-RV battery monitoring system. Probably double the cost I spent with the Sure Electronics Meters. It has preset alarms and is in a nice looking meter console. Also provides alot of history of when things were done charging wise etc..Google ImageI keep it simple when camping off grid and always keep my eye on the Battery Monitoring Panel which is just inside my OFF-ROAD POPUP access door. When i see the battery banks approaching 12.0VDC I know it is getting close to its 50% Charge state. I beefed up my battery bank and cabling to have this happen to me around 8AM each morning when i am allowed to use my 2KW generator to power up my PD9260C Converter/charger unit and recharge my batteries back up to their 90% charge state. this usually takes around three hours of generator run time for me starting with 14.4VDC smart mode charging.This has been my off-road camping routine since 2009 and I just started to seeing my GP24 12V Interstate batteries start falling off in performance last season... Working on a new battery bank now...Curious which smart mode converter/charger unit you purchased. I did same thing back in 2009 and picked up the WFCO WF-8945 charger unit which I immediately found out it would never go into smart charge modes. This was a well known thing back then which I was not aware of... So I just replaced the charger in the WF 8900 series Power Distribution panel with a Progressive Dynamics PD-9260C charger unit... It works just fine for me...Roy Ken

What converter/charger did you have?What converter/charger did you go to?

Bobbo wrote:What converter/charger did you have?What converter/charger did you go to?I removed the original Atwood 55 Amp Converter/Charger.I replaced it with a PowerMax PM4 100A 110V AC to 12V DC 100 Amp Power Converter with built in 4 Stage Smart Battery Charger

RoyB wrote:I built me a nice three digital meter panel using Shure Electronics meters from ebay-china. Was not expensive and looked real nice. Mounted in PVC speciality three position switch box from Lowes. Glued the meters in the large switch holes. Monitors two channels of DC VOLTS 0-19VDC (Bank 1 and Bank 2) and also monitors the whole battery system for INPUT/OUTPUT DC amps (0-75AMPS DC). Lets me know how much is being drained and also how much is being provided by the converter/charger when in charge mode. Roy's ImagesWorks great but after looking at some of the manf meter panels I sort of wish I went with the Bogart Engineering TriMetric 2025-RV battery monitoring system. Probably double the cost I spent with the Sure Electronics Meters. It has preset alarms and is in a nice looking meter console. Also provides alot of history of when things were done charging wise etc..Google ImageI keep it simple when camping off grid and always keep my eye on the Battery Monitoring Panel which is just inside my OFF-ROAD POPUP access door. When i see the battery banks approaching 12.0VDC I know it is getting close to its 50% Charge state. I beefed up my battery bank and cabling to have this happen to me around 8AM each morning when i am allowed to use my 2KW generator to power up my PD9260C Converter/charger unit and recharge my batteries back up to their 90% charge state. this usually takes around three hours of generator run time for me starting with 14.4VDC smart mode charging.This has been my off-road camping routine since 2009 and I just started to seeing my GP24 12V Interstate batteries start falling off in performance last season... Working on a new battery bank now...Curious which smart mode converter/charger unit you purchased. I did same thing back in 2009 and picked up the WFCO WF-8945 charger unit which I immediately found out it would never go into smart charge modes. This was a well known thing back then which I was not aware of... So I just replaced the charger in the WF 8900 series Power Distribution panel with a Progressive Dynamics PD-9260C charger unit... It works just fine for me...Roy KenReally nice set up, Roy! I have looked at the TriMetric but chocked at the price... (I do that). I no longer boon dock let I did a few years ago. Now I spend 4 months snow birding, mostly plugged in. Right now I only spend a few weeks a year un-plugged.In the future I hope to boon dock in BLM in the southwest. THEN the $$ would be well worth it.Any cheaper alternatives?

Solar charging and battery monitoring question | Good Sam Community

RoyB
Explorer II
May 11, 2017
I built me a nice three digital meter panel using Shure Electronics meters from ebay-china. Was not expensive and looked real nice. Mounted in PVC speciality three position switch box from Lowes. Glued the meters in the large switch holes. Monitors two channels of DC VOLTS 0-19VDC (Bank 1 and Bank 2) and also monitors the whole battery system for INPUT/OUTPUT DC amps (0-75AMPS DC). Lets me know how much is being drained and also how much is being provided by the converter/charger when in charge mode.

Roy's Images

Works great but after looking at some of the manf meter panels I sort of wish I went with the Bogart Engineering TriMetric 2025-RV battery monitoring system. Probably double the cost I spent with the Sure Electronics Meters. It has preset alarms and is in a nice looking meter console. Also provides alot of history of when things were done charging wise etc..

Google Image

I keep it simple when camping off grid and always keep my eye on the Battery Monitoring Panel which is just inside my OFF-ROAD POPUP access door. When i see the battery banks approaching 12.0VDC I know it is getting close to its 50% Charge state. I beefed up my battery bank and cabling to have this happen to me around 8AM each morning when i am allowed to use my 2KW generator to power up my PD9260C Converter/charger unit and recharge my batteries back up to their 90% charge state. this usually takes around three hours of generator run time for me starting with 14.4VDC smart mode charging.

This has been my off-road camping routine since 2009 and I just started to seeing my GP24 12V Interstate batteries start falling off in performance last season... Working on a new battery bank now...

Curious which smart mode converter/charger unit you purchased. I did same thing back in 2009 and picked up the WFCO WF-8945 charger unit which I immediately found out it would never go into smart charge modes. This was a well known thing back then which I was not aware of... So I just replaced the charger in the WF 8900 series Power Distribution panel with a Progressive Dynamics PD-9260C charger unit... It works just fine for me...

Roy Ken
red31
Explorer
May 11, 2017
cmcdar wrote:

Also, I am adding a portable solar panel, where is the best place for locating the charge controller? Closer to battery or closer to panel?

where you can use it to monitor the battery! Close to the battery.

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