Strewth, how much!

wildebus said:
I have never heard of any insurance issues with self-fitting panels as has been suggested.
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Neither had I until recently but perhaps these insurance companies have had some bad experiences with panels flying off. It is only something I read elsewhere on the internet not something I have any first hand knowledge of.
 
Choice of a few MCEA peeps around you Simon, I've been using them for years with no problems most are quite cheap and motorhome owners, well trained but usually busy so ring them asap to get booked in.

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I think phils idea has some merit . They flip out like a hand fan or pen knifes ! So doubled stacked, in winter and pulled or wound out for use
Put the 365 on stillks and drag the under one out from it. 2 pannels in the space of one
Very heavy !
 
We had 2X 85Watt flat panels fitted on out Autorail Cheyenne, those and two 110 Volt batteries and we've never had a single problem with power. I'm not sure where you are but try Rhino Installs in Preston for a quote.
 
wildebus said:
Here is an example of options .... This is my 6.7M and you can see the front cap is so curved it is out of bounds. Filled in the rest though :)

Solar Completed by David, on Flickr

Something that is hard to find (and not succeeded so far) are panels that are proportioned to suit the in-fill areas. I ended up doubling up end-to-end to achieve that.

Also, you might find that you can route the cables from outside into the van without making any holes. Managed to fit a pair of Panels to Gordons Hymer without drilling a single hole in the roof or a single blob of adhesive (y)
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Nice array, remind me not to challenge you at Tetris.
 
The company who are supplying my new van only use Truma panels.
They asked me why I was not having a panel fitted, and I told them I was not willing to pay for Trumas vastly overpriced panels.
I got the they are the best panels available nonsense, but MMM only last year did a test on Truma, Eco Worthy and Renogy panels and you could not put a hair between them. Eco Worthy mono crystalline panels were every bit as good as their Truma equivalents. The only downside being an equivalent 100w eco worthy was 1 cm longer and wider than the grossly over priced Truma.

EcoWorthy have a Black Friday deal right now for a 240W kit for £131.
Truma were selling the cables for £100 :p

www.ebay.co.uk

ECO-WORTHY 240W Watt 12Volt Mono Solar Panel Kit Battery Charger Caravan Shed RV | eBay

Solar Panel Kit. Solar Panel. Solar Panel System. Lithium Battery.
www.ebay.co.uk
 
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Fisherman said:
The company who are supplying my new van only use Truma panels.
They asked me why I was not having a panel fitted, and I told them I was not willing to pay for Trumas vastly overpriced panels.
I got the they are the best panels available nonsense, but MMM only last year did a test on Truma, Eco Worthy and Renogy panels and you could not put a hair between them. Eco Worthy mono crystalline panels were every bit as good as their Truma equivalents. The only downside being an equivalent 100w eco worthy was 1 cm longer and wider than the grossly over priced Truma.

EcoWorthy have a Black Friday deal right now for a 240W kit for £131.
trump were selling the cables for £100 :p

www.ebay.co.uk

ECO-WORTHY 240W Watt 12Volt Mono Solar Panel Kit Battery Charger Caravan Shed RV | eBay

Solar Panel Kit. Solar Panel. Solar Panel System. Lithium Battery.
www.ebay.co.uk
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Thats a good price for the panel, forget cables, any thick ones will do, and use a boat deck gland £5, to bring them in, connect to a good mppt control unit, pref one that charges the starter battery as well.
 
SimonM said:
My new motorhome doesn’t come with solar panels and has little room for them either. Today I got a call from the salesman in response to my question what can the roof take? Hymer’s option list only shows 2x95w panels which I thought was a bit miserly. The dealer only uses Victron, so good news there. But they reckon it will only accept 2x115w panels as the roof is a tad crowded already.

That’ll be £2000 if you want them. It’s going across to the workshop shortly for pdi preparation. 2 panels and a MPPT controller, no chance!

Dick Turpin hid behind a mask.

fortunately, I’d already decided to wait until delivery and then venture up the ladder for some accurate measurements - and then see what can go up there. Maybe they can go over non-opening vents?

But 2 grand, yer havin’ a laff!
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Little different but bought a new eldiss caravan had solar fitted by dealer £750 not cheap but within 8 months had large amount of dampin walls including the floor long story short rejected the caravan after negotiation and a court threat they accepted that it was not fit for purpose
Can you even imagine if they had not fitted the solar and I’m sure the walls damp was from a leak around their fitting
 
trevskoda said:
Thats a good price for the panel, forget cables, any thick ones will do, and use a boat deck gland £5, to bring them in, connect to a good mppt control unit, pref one that charges the starter battery as well.
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I salvaged my victron 100/20 MPPT from my current van Trev.
But the kit that Truma supply does not have an MPPT controller.
Even at their crazy prices.
I reckon even at the normal price of £163 it’s a great price.
 
wildebus said:
Here is an example of options .... This is my 6.7M and you can see the front cap is so curved it is out of bounds. Filled in the rest though :)

Solar Completed by David, on Flickr

Something that is hard to find (and not succeeded so far) are panels that are proportioned to suit the in-fill areas. I ended up doubling up end-to-end to achieve that.

Also, you might find that you can route the cables from outside into the van without making any holes. Managed to fit a pair of Panels to Gordons Hymer without drilling a single hole in the roof or a single blob of adhesive (y)
Click to expand...
It not out of bounds i had a flexi panel mounted on curve of roof it looked like go faster stripe
 
Trotter said:
A senior member has several 50mm panels fitted wherever there was room for one. Works for him.
Tbh, solar panels seem to be a game changer, for anyone who uses their MH off grid. Even if that’s only Forum meets.
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I am almost always off grid and solar is good for 7 months of the year here. To do better you need tilting. I know you can use normal panels and lean against the van but not many places you could then leave the van except for meets.
 
Nabsim said:
I am almost always off grid and solar is good for 7 months of the year here. To do better you need tilting. I know you can use normal panels and lean against the van but not many places you could then leave the van except for meets.
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Why does leaning against the van help?
 
Pudsey Bear said:
I almost wish I wanted a new kit, no chance of getting it past accounts either, she knows I have a spare panel in the garage.
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Be a man put her in her place :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:

Then let us know where we can contact you :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

I paid £195 a year ago for mine, it had been reduced from £239 then :(

Let’s you see how much solar prices have fallen.
 
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