Will a 100 watt solar panel be enough

The question is vague at best, but the answer will depend on what that 100 solar panel will power up.

There are many factors at play when it comes to solar panel usage:
-First the wattage (100 watts in this scenario)
-The location you are in
-The battery size you will be using

The maximum output of a solar panel will be its native wattage multiplied by the number of sun hours in your location. Say you live where there is an average sun hours of 5, then you panel can produce approximately 500 watts.

There are several things you can power with 500 watts:

Like led lights (rated 20 Wh) for around 25 hours continuous usage
Laptops rated at 60 Wh for 8 hours

Etc.

If you use your solar panel for minor electricals and appliances then that is fine.

But going above and beyond like using a portable heater rated at 2kWh will not be possible using a 100 watt solar panel, given the above conditions.

If you want to learn more about 100 watt solar panels, I found this link to have comprehensive answers: https://favorablenergy.com/what-will-a-100-watt-solar-panel-run/

That is my plan. Fuse on the firewall
Thanks for the replies.

Darklock,

I would use a fuse within 18" of the battery for the input to the dc to DC charger. Remember, they used to use batteries for welding.

My plan with the 40 amp charger is to use a 60 amp CB on the input side and a 50 amp CB on the output side. I will probably just use some 2 gauge jumper cables with the clamps cut off as my wire. I saw this on a YouTube video and looked like it worked out pretty good. I would go directly to battery with the negative line rather than chassis if I go this route.

Darklock wrote:
Thank you

It would be best to connect the input of the dc to DC charger to the Chassis battery with a fuse close to the chassis and wire sufficient to carry 50 amps.

Thank you

Darklock wrote:
I have decided that I want to install a DC-DC charger. So naturally I have a couple questions.
1.Can I use the truck chassis as my ground or am I better off running a wire to the Negative terminal on truck battery?

2.I am thinking of going with the 20amp charger. If I up it to the 40 amp do I need to take into consideration the alternator of truck? I don't know what it's specs are, my truck is just a generic 2017 F-150 XL, the basic 3.5 liter fleet model.

3.What do you mean by "install on the house side of the charge solenoid". I thought that the charger hooked up directly to the house battery.

1. yes you can

2. the 40 amp can be operated at 20 amps, so in your shoes I would go that route.

3. I prefer to have switches for everything under the sun. There would be no need to remove the isolation solenoid. The dc to DC should be installed close to the house battery bank.

pianotuna wrote:

Darklock wrote:
please correct me if I'm wrong, (it is the internet, so I'm sure someone will), I read that while driving, modern alternators put out only a small trickle charge once TV battery is fully charged. And that with distance from alternator and small gauge wiring, there is minimal charge getting to trailer battery. Originally I assumed that the truck would keep camper charged, but what I have read has told me otherwise.
There will not be 8 hours driving, probably no more than four hours any day. Probably spending two to three days at a time at each destination. Some stops will be with hook ups others just boondocking, so I need enough to not kill my battery.

Hi Darklkock,

You are correct--but there is a way to fix the problem. You do have to throw some money at it. Use a dc to DC charger.

Get one of these:

https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-Battery-Batteries-Multi-stage-Charging/dp/B07Q5VYPCF/ref=sr_1_3?crid=24ISMNS5CEXIC&dchild=1&keywords=renogy+20a+dc+to+dc+charger&qid=1613847979&sprefix=Renogy+20a%2Caps%2C399&sr=8-3

Place it after the charge solenoid on the "house" side.

This website may give a better understand of solar and has a good spreadsheet that may be used for an energy audit.

https://freecampsites.net/adding-solar/

I have decided that I want to install a DC-DC charger. So naturally I have a couple questions.
1.Can I use the truck chassis as my ground or am I better off running a wire to the Negative terminal on truck battery?

2.I am thinking of going with the 20amp charger. If I up it to the 40 amp do I need to take into consideration the alternator of truck? I don't know what it's specs are, my truck is just a generic 2017 F-150 XL, the basic 3.5 liter fleet model.

3.What do you mean by "install on the house side of the charge solenoid". I thought that the charger hooked up directly to the house battery.

obiwancanoli wrote:
A 100 watt panel will produce about 5 Amps of juice per hour, under ideal conditions. Conditions are NEVER ideal. My system is designed to produce up to 26 Amps under ideal conditions, but a recent boondocking trip, where the sun was about a 45 degree angle to the panels, ended up producing about 4-5 Amps total on a sunny day.

Yup and why I use 67% output for 4 hours as an estimate. Sometimes better and sometimes not.

A 100 watt panel will produce about 5 Amps of juice per hour, under ideal conditions. Conditions are NEVER ideal. My system is designed to produce up to 26 Amps under ideal conditions, but a recent boondocking trip, where the sun was about a 45 degree angle to the panels, ended up producing about 4-5 Amps total on a sunny day.