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Billinwoodland's avatar
Billinwoodland
Explorer
Aug 28, 2015

Solar and generator, can they run together?

Hi fellas. My rig is in the signature, but it is a 2008 Monaco Monarch gasser. One question I have which I have not seen the answer to in the archives is the issue of the generator working together with the solar. I am just now adding 2 more 6 v batteries to my system, so I have 4 in parrallel, and was going to mimic the set up in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj32k3UM3Ms. I have purchased the renogy 200W system with a Renogy 30 Amp Viewstar PWM Controller. I have a portable inverter and do not use my inverter for the microwave or making coffee, just the TV when I am off grid. If it's 9am, the sun is shining, and I fire up the generator to make a pot of coffee or run the microwave, would I be pushing power back to the solar panels? Does this circuit need to be isolated somehow? Maybe the controller does this, I am not sure. And what about at night when I fire up the generator, does this second factor influence how the solar is wired?
Thanks guys,
Bill
  • grizzzman's avatar
    grizzzman
    Explorer
    Aug 28, 2015
    Billinwoodland wrote:
    Hi fellas. My rig is in the signature, but it is a 2008 Monaco Monarch gasser. One question I have which I have not seen the answer to in the archives is the issue of the generator working together with the solar. I am just now adding 2 more 6 v batteries to my system, so I have 4 in parrallel, and was going to mimic the set up in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj32k3UM3Ms. I have purchased the renogy 200W system with a Renogy 30 Amp Viewstar PWM Controller. I have a portable inverter and do not use my inverter for the microwave or making coffee, just the TV when I am off grid. If it's 9am, the sun is shining, and I fire up the generator to make a pot of coffee or run the microwave, would I be pushing power back to the solar panels? Does this circuit need to be isolated somehow? Maybe the controller does this, I am not sure. And what about at night when I fire up the generator, does this second factor influence how the solar is wired?
    Thanks guys,
    Bill


    They will work just fine.... no worries
  • time2roll's avatar
    time2roll
    Nomad
    Aug 28, 2015
    Controller is the isolator. No harm will come from starting the generator.
    No harm either from running the main engine to run on down the road.
    No worries night or day.

    Worst case the charging system may trick the solar controller to drop into float. Still no harm done.

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