Solar Requirements - Confirmation

BFL13 wrote:


I don't know the Mainland parks very well, only been to a few (all treed like the Island ones, but doubt any are "full sun" which is what you need/want. "Partial" won't get the job done. Really suggest ask on the Canada forum for folks who have been to particular parks.

Thanks. I'll be doing more research on that.

BFL13 wrote:
PT, under trees where solar doesn't work, doubling the solar won't help.

Doubling the gen would help as you say. OP can get a second 1000 and parallel them to run a bigger amp charger/converter. If his rig has a 55 amp converter that can do 14.x, that single 1000w gen won't run it.

How do I figure out what OEM converter I have?

I'm suspecting my generator doesn't run it, in retrospect, from experience.

CptSydor wrote:

BFL13 wrote:
Battery more in the 200-232 range more like. Solar iffy in many provincial park sites under trees so expect to use the gen. You'll need a charger/converter that can do 14.x volts for sure to recharge in the two hours, not be stuck at 13.8v Gen hours 9-11am and 6-8pm so you can't be away biking for any needed gen time. Suggest research and reserve camping sites that have sunlight so you can be away biking more (ask where on Canada/Alaska forum?)

The BC park park site generally gives a description of the site, with pictures, so it should list them as shaded/partially or full sun. I'll have to take that into consideration.

I don't know the Mainland parks very well, only been to a few (all treed like the Island ones, but doubt any are "full sun" which is what you need/want. "Partial" won't get the job done. Really suggest ask on the Canada forum for folks who have been to particular parks.

CptSydor wrote:
From what I've figured out, I should be designing my battery system to be in the 150-200 amp hr rage with panels in 150-200w.

Does that seem reasonable for what I've described?

The most common recommendation for a good starter system seems to be calculated as 1 watt of solar for every AH of battery reserve, so yeah if you have a pair of 12 volt G31s or pair of 6 volt GC-2s on the tongue you'll have ~ 210 to 220 AH capacity, in which case a couple of 100 watt panels would be about right. However, since you'd presumably be away from your campsite much of the day that suggests you'd want to mount these panels on the roof rather than run a portable system that could easily disappear while you're absent from the site. That in turn virtually guarantees there'll be times you won't get much out of those panels and will have to rely on your genset anyway. It's easy for forum solar pundits to spend your $$$ on solar when they're not paying for it, keeping in mind also that prices here in Canada aren't anywhere near as attractive as they are in the US. I guess the answer depends on the depth of your wallet but since you already have a genset I'd be inclined to pass on (sometimes unreliable) solar and just run the genset as needed and when permitted. As mentioned though, you're greatest limitation when running on genset may be your trailer's converter which may not actually be able to deliver a maximum charge to the batteries in the minimal amount of time. Details on exactly what you have would help others offer ideas for improvement in this area, if needed.

Regardless, with any system the key is conservation and you seem to be on the right track here. However, you can probably still reduce your consumption rate by installing a kill switch in the radio circuit so it's memory circuit isn't wasting power ... also make sure the television wall plate that supplies 12 vdc power to the antenna is always off. You plan to run your fridge on gas but as you know it still requires 12 vdc power to run the circuit board, not much you can do about that ... however, what you don't need is to have the fridge's climate control heater powered when you're running on battery. Turn it off, but if your fridge like many these day doesn't have a switch then add your own, just as I've done. Pics are in my gallery.

PT, under trees where solar doesn't work, doubling the solar won't help.

Doubling the gen would help as you say. OP can get a second 1000 and parallel them to run a bigger amp charger/converter. If his rig has a 55 amp converter that can do 14.x, that single 1000w gen won't run it.

BFL13 wrote:
Battery more in the 200-232 range more like. Solar iffy in many provincial park sites under trees so expect to use the gen. You'll need a charger/converter that can do 14.x volts for sure to recharge in the two hours, not be stuck at 13.8v Gen hours 9-11am and 6-8pm so you can't be away biking for any needed gen time. Suggest research and reserve camping sites that have sunlight so you can be away biking more (ask where on Canada/Alaska forum?)

The BC park park site generally gives a description of the site, with pictures, so it should list them as shaded/partially or full sun. I'll have to take that into consideration.

The Honda may only power a 600 watt converter, if the battery bank is hungry. You may need to consider a battery charger depending on the OEM converter's size.

I would double the numbers to around 300 amp-hours and 400 watts of solar.

For my further thoughts on batteries and things solar surf here: https://freecampsites.net/adding-solar/

CptSydor wrote:

I have a 1000W Honda generator if needed to run a couple hours per day if needed.



From what I've figured out, I should be designing my battery system to be in the 150-200 amp hr rage with panels in 150-200w.

Does that seem reasonable for what I've described?

Battery more in the 200-232 range more like. Solar iffy in many provincial park sites under trees so expect to use the gen. You'll need a charger/converter that can do 14.x volts for sure to recharge in the two hours, not be stuck at 13.8v Gen hours 9-11am and 6-8pm so you can't be away biking for any needed gen time. Suggest research and reserve camping sites that have sunlight so you can be away biking more (ask where on Canada/Alaska forum?)

With the ever dropping price of solar panels I would go bigger, I have 4 100 watt panels feeding a pair of group 29 deep cycle batteries on my 28 ft motorhome thanks to the previous owner and in an ideal world I would like more. The problem is cloudy days, shaded solar panels and less than optimal sun angle.