Solar option...

[COBOZ]

If I order a new camper..thinking of the solar option. Not sure it would be benifitial to me, except for the winter. Does solar eliminate the need to bring the batteries in the house on a trickle charger? Can they stay in the camper and be trickle charged the same???

[arto_wa]

Solar panels did not work very good for us during this trip:

[Oldtymeflyr]

I leave my batteries in the camper and the solar systems treats them quite well.

The factory option is probably not cost effective. I would not order it. If you are handy with electricity you can probably install as good or better system for 1/4 the cost.

Rick

[Buzzcut1]

Before you order the factory option understand that you can buy 200 watts of solar with a controller and mounting hardware on Amazon from Renogy for $350 delivered and install it yourself in a few hours vs how much the Factory charges for a smaller unit

[brholt]

Depends when and where you camp. We have 150 watts of solar on the roof. In summer it usually does the job. Winter camping is another story. The sun is lower, the hours of daylight are a lot less, and we are often in the forest in the drizzle of the Pacific Northwest. We get very little from the solar. Moreover the demands for power are much higher with the furnace and the lights running much more. We generally have to run the generator after one or two days ( two group 29 batteries).

[towpro]

My wolf creek has 2 100w panels on the roof.
It has an RV cover over all winter.
I have two 27 series AGM batteries.
I have a cutoff switch so I can turn off the RV, but I have it wired so solar will still charge the RV.
All winter my batteries have never gone more than a couple days (unless snow is on the cover) without being fully charged according to the Bogart Engineering Tri meter.

during the summer I can leave the RV with power turned on, and refrigerator running on propane, in the woods (solar panels might get 6 hours sun per day) and the two batteries always stay charged.

I have sat in the RV and watched several hours of TV, with lights on, and Refrigerator running on propane, during summer and batteries are always fully charged by 10am.

This is two of the Renogy 100w panels, being controlled by the Bogart Engineering solar controller that matches the TM-2030-RV meter I have from them.

[corvettekent]

As long as the solar panel gets some sun it should keep the batteries charged.