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Subject Topic: solar panel help Post Reply Post New Topic
Personchrisfreelander54
17/3/2016 at 4:56pm
 Location: Stoke on Trent
 Outfit: 2016 Xplore 586 & VW Touran 140bhp View chrisfreelander54's Profile View Profile   Reply to chrisfreelander54 Reply   Quote chrisfreelander54 Quote  
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I am looking at getting a solar panel kit, as this will be the first time we run off solar, im not 100 percent sure how to go about it.

I have seen some kits that cost around £350 that are roof mounted and was thinking going down that route, or would I be better of having a kit that uses angled or breifcase type panels?

I would like to be able to run 12v TV, fridge, lighting, water pump and mover off the battery, so looking at getting something like this:

http://www.sunstore.co.uk/140w-12v-MPPT-Solar-Battery-Charger-Vehicle-Kit.html

Would this do what i require it to do, we already have a 110ah battery?

As for installing on the roof, is there a way of fixing it without drilling a hole through the roof?



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February - Blakemere Touring Cheshire
April - Lakeland Haven
May - Sandimouth. Bude
August - Ninham Holidays. I.O.W
August - Windy Harbour. Blackpool
October - Callow tops. Ashbourne


Personboff
17/3/2016 at 9:07pm
 Location: N Wales
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I'm going to sound like a wet blanket so sorry. Firstly you won't be able to run your fridge off the 12 v system. The 12v on a fridge is designed to run on the car's ignition circuit   The good news is a caravan fridge runs really well on gas.

Freestanding vs roof mounting.   I have a roof mounted panel it has for me one huge advantage which is because we use storage we can't plug in at home to charge the battery, but the roof mounted panel is working every day. The disadvantage of roof panel is they aren't as effective as a freestanding panel aimed at the sun. So you could use a smaller panel. Before you buy a huge freestanding panel check the physical size. I personally wouldn't want to go bigger than a 120W folding panel, which is 2 60W panels hinged together.

Basically if you have roof mounted panel then you need to drill a hole in the roof, to run the cable it is not as difficult as it sounds

The kit that you posted a link to claims to come with a mppt controller, the illustration shows a PWM regulator. These are cheaper, I have got one and it absolutely fine but if you are paying for an mppt then that is what you should get. The other thing I noticed was that it shows the connection plugs not fitted to the cable. These really need to be fitted with a special crimping tool. They can be done without this tool but it is a pain.

I am not trying to put you off. I wouldn't have a caravan without a solar panel because we go away through out the year most often without ehu.



Persontango55
18/3/2016 at 12:47am
 Location: Lichfield
 Outfit: Coachman Amara 450 View tango55's Profile View Profile   Reply to tango55 Reply   Quote tango55 Quote  
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A solar panel requires a clear screen to work effectively on bright sunny days which a roof mounted panel can have restricted light due to dry surface dust, dried on rain marks and bird droppings so it needs to be cleaned on a regular basis which can be a difficult place to reach. If a roof mounted solar panel malfunctions an identical replacement will be required in terms of using the same fixing points therefore a free standing solar panel would be more practical.
However, as mentioned previously, the fridge can only be operated by 12 volt power solely from the towcar's supply to the caravan so when on site the fridge can only be operated by means of gas or 240 volt mains.


Personboff
18/3/2016 at 7:07am
 Location: N Wales
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In real life I had a 135w panel on the roof of my last problem. In the 3.5 years it's was fitted it always kept the battery charged so it worked for us. We previously had a 40w freestanding and that worked well but we couldn't charge the battery with it while the van was in storage.   We needed to do this because between about the end of October and March the battery was not quite as full at the end of the weekend than at the beginning so every couple of trips the battery needed to come off to be charged. Interestingly I find in the same March to October period the 135w panel doesn't keep up, but of course charges the battery in storage. It does indicate to me how much less efficent a roof mounted pannel can be mainly because they have to be mounted too flat to be efficent.


PersonAL53HX
18/3/2016 at 10:17am
 Location: BLACK((gods)) COUNTRY
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I bought a 40 watt briefcase panel from Sea Flo,keep it inside the van in a window facing south,works very well for me, been in 6 months now and,although we have been out in the van,not once has the panel failed to keep the battery topped up,although I do disconnect the battery terminals whilst the van is not being used,I was determined not to spend mega bucks in case it didn't work,so I think 60 quid is a fair buy

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Personchrisfreelander54
18/3/2016 at 3:36pm
 Location: Stoke on Trent
 Outfit: 2016 Xplore 586 & VW Touran 140bhp View chrisfreelander54's Profile View Profile   Reply to chrisfreelander54 Reply   Quote chrisfreelander54 Quote  
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So all in all we are best investing in a free standing panel?

Is it a case if just buying a panel and connecting it to the battery or do I need to purchase anything else to go with it, so I can monitor wether or not the battery is charging?

Maybe something like this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/100W-WATT-FOLDING-SOLAR-PANEL-KIT-BATTERY-CHARGER-CARAVA........

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February - Blakemere Touring Cheshire
April - Lakeland Haven
May - Sandimouth. Bude
August - Ninham Holidays. I.O.W
August - Windy Harbour. Blackpool
October - Callow tops. Ashbourne


Personboff
18/3/2016 at 7:26pm
 Location: N Wales
 Outfit: Hymer Nova 590GL View boff's Profile View Profile   Reply to boff Reply   Quote boff Quote  
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Looks OK normally the controller has some sort of indication it is working. Which might only be a led. Ideally the controller should be mounted close to the battery, in this case it will be close to the panel but in the real world it should work fine and give a greater output than my 150W roof panel.

Ps posted from a warm caravan not on ehu relying on Solar panel to provide the electricity and safefil the gas.


Personchrisfreelander54
21/3/2016 at 7:56pm
 Location: Stoke on Trent
 Outfit: 2016 Xplore 586 & VW Touran 140bhp View chrisfreelander54's Profile View Profile   Reply to chrisfreelander54 Reply   Quote chrisfreelander54 Quote  
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What inverter would go well with a 100w panel and a 110ah battery, I'm looking at running a hairdryer and hair straighteners off it?

Was thinking 3000w as hair dryer is 2000w and straightners are 150w

Post last edited on 21/03/2016 20:24:27

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February - Blakemere Touring Cheshire
April - Lakeland Haven
May - Sandimouth. Bude
August - Ninham Holidays. I.O.W
August - Windy Harbour. Blackpool
October - Callow tops. Ashbourne


PersonGrampian91
21/3/2016 at 8:53pm
 Location: Midlands
 Outfit: Mondeo Avondale Gram View Grampian91's Profile View Profile   Reply to Grampian91 Reply   Quote Grampian91 Quote  
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Have you seen the price of a decent 3kw inverter?

Drawing 2000 watts from a 12v battery is over 166 AMPs.

Your leisure battery wont like that and it will take a long time to put that charge back into the battery.

Your going to need a huge battery bank and a roof full of panels to stand a chance of staying on top.


Your 100w panel will be OK for the lights and pumps and a few hours of TV but not hairdryers etc.

Anything more than a few hundred watts and your going to have to rethink..



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