solar panel choice
hello world, Noob here. Looking at 2 systems about 400 each. Ningbo NEW 150w MONO panel charge controller 20ft UV burial cable mounting brackets http://www3.telus.net/public/tps.x/pdf/150W...
Forum Discussion
takaya49 wrote:westend wrote:
Tak, the thing about RV solar is that it needs to be tailored to the user, every installation should be custom. I see a lot of posts on this Forum and elsewhere where the owners are looking for advice because there "kit system" isn't providing what they need.
The absolute first step for solar RV is doing an energy audit to find out how many amp hours are used daily and how the owner wants solar to reharge for that use. Here is a spreadsheet used to determine energy use. After the use is calculated and the purpose is defined (i.e. "I want my solar panel to charge my batteries while in storage" or "I want enough power to recharge my batteries for my daily use"), system size can be outlined.
The good news is that solar modules are at an all-time low price and can be had inexpensively. Depending on your needs, a controller can be fitted for your present and future use. Give us a bit more information on what you have for batteries and RV, how you camp, and what you want solar to do.
Ill be dry camped for two months this summer.
small 21 foot travel trailer
30w led tv 4 hrs/day
satellite receiver 4 hrs
a few lights 10 w each 5 hrs
laptop 4 hrs
stereo 4 hrs
water pump,,..
no micro, wont use ac.
temp between 40 - 80 F
summer sun, so avg 6 hrs sun, 6 cloud
battery just have a new deep cycle costco rv. can replace anything, add etc
You need to add in any parasitic draws like refrigerator and furnace controls, alarms, stereo memory, etc. Just looking at your items listed, I bet you'll be close to 100 AH/day. If you operate a typical RV furnace, you'll surpass 100AH. I would urge you to use a spreadsheet or a fine pencil to really nail down your use numbers. Assuming a 100AH draw/day you would need 200AH of battery capacity for one day. If you're full-timing in the RV, you'll want more capacity and panels to get past days that don't allow for any harvest or very little harvest. If you can supplement the solar with generator use or lower your use during off-peak days, you can lower your capacity and module totals. Changing all your lamps over to LED is one inexpensive mod that saves quite a bit of energy.
