Reality check

[Pudsey Bear]

I bought one off Eurajohn a while back but buggered if I can find it.

 

[Peter51]

I just had a solar panel fitted to a 'new' van as the fridge is electric! Cost was £650 for the panel and the labour.

 

[trevskoda]

I just had a solar panel fitted to a 'new' van as the fridge is electric! Cost was £650 for the panel and the labour.

100w panels now well under £100 plus say same for a regulator, few hrs time to fit, looks like im/was in the wrong job.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

The trouble nowadays is nobody wants to work for less than £50 or more per hour.

 

[QFour]

Where do you get your Idolised tubing from?

Usually EBay. 15mm square works well. I put the panel on the roof and marked round it with pencil. The tubes were cut to size with holes drilled along one side to act as a key for Sikaflex, small spacers with double sided tape fixed to the ends of the tube were made. Sikaflex applied along the tube and stuck in place. Bead of Sikaflex down either side when tubes when set. Panels drilled down the edge. Inner supports had Sikaflex applied to top surface. Put panels in place and drilled into tube then poprivets down the edges. All done from a ladder. Smaller panels much easier to handle and no bulky corner brackets to fit. Panels are considerably lighter than standard panels. Semi flexible from Photonic Univers and Victron Controller. Panels are wired in parrallel 2 x 50 2 x 50 2 x 80 and then in series so 48v @ 7A

 

[KeithWalden]

Usually EBay. 15mm square works well. I put the panel on the roof and marked round it with pencil. The tubes were cut to size with holes drilled along one side to act as a key for Sikaflex, small spacers with double sided tape fixed to the ends of the tube were made. Sikaflex applied along the tube and stuck in place. Bead of Sikaflex down either side when tubes when set. Panels drilled down the edge. Inner supports had Sikaflex applied to top surface. Put panels in place and drilled into tube then poprivets down the edges. All done from a ladder. Smaller panels much easier to handle and no bulky corner brackets to fit. Panels are considerably lighter than standard panels. Semi flexible from Photonic Univers and Victron Controller. Panels are wired in parrallel 2 x 50 2 x 50 2 x 80 and then in series so 48v @ 7A

Senior moment here, pray what is idolised tubing please?

 

[QFour]

Senior moment here, pray what is idolised tubing please?

Aluminum with a coating to stop it oxidising

 

[bartman]

I assumed it was supposed to be "anodised"!

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Yeah but they really liked it

 

[guerdeval]

The trouble nowadays is nobody wants to work for less than £50 or more per hour.

I’ll work for £49

 

[wildebus]

Gold plated solar panels I fitted my own. I used semi flexible ones and kept them clear of the roof with 15mm square idolised tube glued down on a bed of Sikaflex about 1mm thick so there is an airgap underneath. Panels are pop riveted to the tubes on the outer edges and glued to the inner supports. I uses a Dometic CFX3 25 which is a small compressor top loading fridge / freezer. In freeze mode it happily stays at -18C. Certainly think £2500 for solar is a trifle steep

View attachment 129032

You just have to have a clean roof

You left a bit

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I’ll work for £49

Hell yes, my last hourly rate was £7.50 and I thought that was good for just driving a van around all day 5 days a week., now they want mega money to do as little as possible, I was brought up to think I had to make my employer money or why would I have a job at all.

 

[EarthDemon]

FOLLOW UP

Thanks to whoever DM’d me about

AUTO ELEC DEVIZES

They did a superb job fitting new fridge and solar panels for a lot less than I was being quoted by my usual goto place.

Feelgood factor all round: there are still fair people out there and my van has been given a new lease of life. Job finished three weeks ago and all going well. The panels he put in are doing a great job keeping my leisures topped up though fridge is on 24/7 and I’ve parked up for a while.