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[MykCamper]

Guidance please:sad:, I have a 80W solar panel but it isn't enough to keep the two leisure batteries ( 170w) plus the starter battery topped up in the low Sun of northern Europe,:rolleyes2: I have 1.3 x 1.6 metres of space on my roof, where can I purchase a quality solar panel to give me the maximum power? :banana:
I want to self fit and I am I right in believing that I can connect it up to the existing panel's wiring? :idea-007:
My regulator is good for 30W.
Much info as pos, would be greatly appreciated. :bow:

 

[QFour]

We have 150w panel which goes to a Twin Solar Controller. The Twin charges the leisure batteries first and then switches to charging the cab battery. You don't need to go through your control panel. Just take the leads from the Solar Charger straight to the batteries.

..

 

[mistericeman]

Having mounted 2 X 100w solar panels flat on the roof along with a controller feeding 3 x 110ah leisure batteries....
the maximum I have seen on the controller screen is about 7 amps output...
not great in fairness BUT I guess every little helps.

I suspect that solar is frankly of little benefit in our darker colder seasons.

 

[jake]

Having mounted 2 X 100w solar panels flat on the roof along with a controller feeding 3 x 110ah leisure batteries....
the maximum I have seen on the controller screen is about 7 amps output...
not great in fairness BUT I guess every little helps.

I suspect that solar is frankly of little benefit in our darker colder seasons.

buy a genny !
:dog:

 

[mistericeman]

buy a genny !
:dog:

No need to subject ourselves OR others to the nasty irritating noise...
Split charge relay and moving around does the job for us... ;-)

 

[Johnnygm7lsi]

buy a genny !
:dog:

He already has a genny under the bonnet, tap into it, no point in buying another one.

 

[QFour]

buy a genny !
:dog:

Yep we had one like that the other weekend. 9pm they decided to warm up some soup using the generator to power the microwave. I listened to it revving away merrily for about 5 minutes before I went and banged on the door.

:mad2:

Bleeding generators ..

 

[QFour]

He already has a genny under the bonnet, tap into it, no point in buying another one.

Yep we have had that as well revving the engine trying to charge the batteries and then leaving it on fast idle while they watched the television ..

..

 

[Deleted member 9849]

I have 180watts of solar panels and a 270A/H leisure battery which is more than adequate for around 8 months of the year.During the dark and gloomy winter months in the northern hemisphere I need another power source as there is not enough current produced by the sun(when it comes out)to keep the leisure battery topped up.I don't want to go the generator route so my choice is to try to get an ehu every 4/5 days to recharge the batteries.

I am a fan of solar power but there is an inconsistency in output during the winter which paradoxically is the time when more power is needed with lighting,heating and for us,more TV watching.Don't expect too much from your solar panel(s)during the winter.

 

[Johnnygm7lsi]

Yep we have had that as well revving the engine trying to charge the batteries and then leaving it on fast idle while they watched the television ..

..

Nawww not doing that, using one of these Sterling Power Waterproof IP68 Battery to Battery 12V-12V 120a Charger - PN:BBW12120 a lot cheaper and loads better than a genny, an hours driving and my batteries last 4 days running microwave, blown air heating, skybox, telly and the other halfs body rebuilding tools. And thats in the middle of winter.

 

[trevskoda]

Guidance please:sad:, I have a 80W solar panel but it isn't enough to keep the two leisure batteries ( 170w) plus the starter battery topped up in the low Sun of northern Europe,:rolleyes2: I have 1.3 x 1.6 metres of space on my roof, where can I purchase a quality solar panel to give me the maximum power? :banana:
I want to self fit and I am I right in believing that I can connect it up to the existing panel's wiring? :idea-007:
My regulator is good for 30W.
Much info as pos, would be greatly appreciated. :bow:

How can you be puting 80w through a 30w reg,you require about 300w panel as at best he you may be lucky to get about 2/3 of rated wattage from it,i also would use 2/3 panels rather than one big one just in case it went down.

 

[Deleted member 9849]

How can you be puting 80w through a 30w reg,you require about 300w panel as at best he you may be lucky to get about 2/3 of rated wattage from it,i also would use 2/3 panels rather than one big one just in case it went down.

I think the OP meant to say amps-it will be a 30A regulator,he's also described the leisure batteries as 170w-I assume he means 170A/H.

 

[jagmanx]

In the darker months

The effectiveness of solar is reduced by a "Quadruple Whammy"

1 Less daylight hours
2 Sun not as powerful.
3 Low angle reduces generation.
4 More Use of Leisure battery whilst it is dark

I have solar panels on my house roof with a Feed in Meter recording true energy
Generation in the 3 winter months is 20% of that in the 3 summer months

 

[Admin]

Guidance please:sad:, I have a 80W solar panel but it isn't enough to keep the two leisure batteries ( 170w) plus the starter battery topped up in the low Sun of northern Europe,:rolleyes2: I have 1.3 x 1.6 metres of space on my roof, where can I purchase a quality solar panel to give me the maximum power? :banana:
I want to self fit and I am I right in believing that I can connect it up to the existing panel's wiring? :idea-007:
My regulator is good for 30W.
Much info as pos, would be greatly appreciated. :bow:

1) If you are going to connect the new panel and the old panel together, then they must be the same voltage.
2) Remember that if you are going to use a fitting kit it will increase the footprint of the panel.
3) Without knowing what solar cable has already been installed or its length, it is not possible to say if it is adequate.
4) If you could stretch to 1640mm you could get a 315 watt LG panel (but this will be 30.4 volt).

To get the most from your solar

1) Make sure that your solar charger is a true MPPT unit.
2) Make sure that the cables are big enough.
3) Make sure nothing on your roof can cast a shadow on the panel.

Admin

 

[Admin]

Charlie installed three 175watt panels.



The brackets are 100mm x 50mm x 3mm aluminium angle. 12 of these cut to size cost £23 from the Aluminium Warehouse. These are used panels and are only £65 each from Bimble Solar.

I have also fitted one on Hippy's van and two on my trailer.

 

[jagmanx]

Yes Indeed

We can be fairly precise about number 1. There are published insolation figures for the UK. Generally, you get the equivalent of about five hours full sun per day in summer, one hour of full sun per day in winter, and three hours of full sun per day overall.

Number 2 in your list is a combination of 1 and 3 really. The sun is lower so it shines through more atmosphere, which is allowed for in the insolation figures.

And yes, number 4 is often the problem. But that's evidence that people rather miss the point of solar panels. Particularly in winter, they are best regarded as more of a help than a power source. Motorhomes managed for decades before roof-mounted solar panels were available. And it makes sense to arrange things like that, even with them.

You say you have solar panels on your house roof, but there's no way you'd think of them as your primary power source. They only made sense because of the index-linked, tax-free FiT deal, which is why nobody fits them any more now the Tories' commitment to green power has been shown to only refer to the green on the banknotes they amass for their cronies in the energy generation sector.

What solar panels have going for them is that they work every sunny day, slowly but surely topping the batteries up. They vastly improve the battery life and are silent, non-smelly and free to use, working whether you are there or not.

I was simply alerting the OP re the limitations of Solar.

Even at the end of September we choose to go on EHU
As we only have 1 LB and a 120Watt Solar Panel
Your comments re FIT arrangements are entirely valid..
I used the info simply to validate my figures.. You could say that January figures are around 10% of July !!!
I only installed them as it was/is a good investment almost 12% but of course my "Capital investment" is effectively irretrievable !

And yes SOLAR is great despite its "winter limitations"

 

[Steveboy]

Hi. Being 'unschooled' in lectric things I had never heard of these battery to battery chargers. Why and how are they different from the charger I already have in my Rapido? Also if I fit one does it replace my charger or is it an addition?

 

[delicagirl]

Yes, you can add more panels if there is space, but doubling the panels will only double the output.

In winter, expect one hour per day of "sunshine" on average, and with the low angle that will mean about half the rated output. So 240 watts of panel will give an average of 10Ah per day.

As has been suggested, a Sterling b2b charger might be a better bet: it's what I use.

have i misunderstood - but i thought the whole point of solar panels was to increase the output of electricity available for use by those using the van

 

[Johnnygm7lsi]

have i misunderstood - but i thought the whole point of solar panels was to increase the output of electricity available for use by those using the van

Nope, you got it right, it does increase the output of electric, just not reliably, and depending on whàt appliances you have it can fall short

 

[Deleted member 9849]

............................

What solar panels have going for them is that they work every sunny day, slowly but surely topping the batteries up. They vastly improve the battery life and are silent, non-smelly and free to use, working whether you are there or not.

A good point about keeping the batteries topped up,a solar panel will do this and some regulators/controllers will also keep the engine battery charged as well.The battery life will be extended by being fully charged all the time,this is particularly useful for vans that are in storage with no hook up available.Given the choice I would always have solar on the roof even though it's not much use in the depths of winter.