Building my solar system for "The T@Bin In The Woods"

phulishcat

I have embarked on my solar setup build I have the following items.
1) 2 X Suaoki 100W 18V 12V Solar Panel Charger SunPower Cell Ultra Thin Flexible with MC4 Connector Charging for RV Boat Cabin Tent Car(Compatibility with 18V and Below Devices)
2) 2 10ft 10awg sun resistant cables with mc4 connectors
3)ACOPOWER 30A MPPT Solar Charge Controller 100V input HY-MPPT Series HY-MPPT30+ MT-50 Solar Charge LCD Display

still to purchase is the new battery box and two 6v agm 245ah batteries
or 2 wet 6v 250 ah batteries decision has not been made yet the cost difference is well over 400$

The question being can I run the system 2x6v in series with my current group 27 in parallel, this giving me close to 600ah  ?

Nomad

I've always heard everything has to match up so I'm betting no on the battery mix.

ericnliz

Agree with Nomad on the battery mix, as I've heard/read the same thing. Looking through your list, personally the thing I would change would be the length of your cables ( if I'm reading it right). Are those one each positive, and one each negative in the 10ft configuration, or two complete sets (pos. and neg.)? You will find the 10 ft to be a bit challenging at times having to adjust the panels for the best sun exposure. I have 15ft, and at times I have to get creative. 20ft total length would be great for most areas in my humble opinion. One thing I don't see on your list is an 10amp in-line fuse. Might want to consider one for added protection. They sell them on amazon that are waterproof with the MC4 connector. Good luck on your project.

rfuss928

phulishcat said:

 2x6v in series with my current group 27 in parallel, this giving me close to 600ah  ?

2 X 6v @ 250Ah = 12v @ 250Ah plus 12v @ ~80Ah grp 27 = ~330Ah

phulishcat

@ericnliz, this is the first part of a dual system, the first two panels will be permanently mounted on the trailer, I will have a second set that I make into a suitcase style for forested areas. 
@rfuss928, thank you for the math, I will dump the group 27 and get four 6v need the amp hours for the disco ball during lake campouts.

phulishcat

Getting closer to picture time for this. The last few cables are in route to my place as I type. I will first set everything up in a bench to test all the parts for functionality, then pre-place all the items where I "plan" to install them, and again test. The final step will permanent installation. I will post at each step.

wizard1880

If you want to keep your existing batteries and amend with golf cart batteries, you can split your battery system into two with a battery switch.  Just like those large trucks with 2 fuel tanks and the tank switch.

The advantage of this is redundancy in case of battery failure, and the ability to use one set of batteries while allowing the other set to get a full charge.  This can lengthen the life of your batteries.

Newfisher

wizard1880 said:

If you want to keep your existing batteries and amend with golf cart batteries, you can split your battery system into two with a battery switch.  Just like those large trucks with 2 fuel tanks and the tank switch.

The advantage of this is redundancy in case of battery failure, and the ability to use one set of batteries while allowing the other set to get a full charge.  This can lengthen the life of your batteries.

Which works well with an engine driven RV but is more difficult for the solar controller/ stand alone charger to define the charge to the individual batteries. A T@B that doesnt need a " start" battery is better set up with " like " batteries and charging/ drawing from the the same bank. They will last much longer taken care of the same way vs. drawing one down and then the other while charging at different rates. Your system is only as good as your weakest battery.

phulishcat

Ok first round of Pictures

remote monitor cable and mounting hardware




battery cableing


the lock to keep it all in the front storage area


the batteries total 200 ah @ 12volts



the remote monitor and control system

lastly the mppt controller that will power the T@B forever and ever hahaha

phulishcat

Ok so the install is finished. We mounted both panels on the roof, ran all the cables under the door side trim( first remove the keder rail, then the trim pieces, secure all cables, re attach the trim, re attach the rail.) Next install the solar controller under the fridge running the control box cable under the floor, through the wall and installed the unit above the see-level. All in all fairly easy if time consuming.
Control panel

View of the back

View from the front, the whole system runs flawlessly.

Ratkity

@phulishcat, does the dead body underneath come with the installation?

phulishcat

Naw, that's the wife down there re attaching the corrugated plastic cover.

Newfisher

Great idea hiding the wires along the RT trim and door opening. Any pics of the routing with caps removed? How was it pulling the cap and kedder?

phulishcat

No pictures with everything off, we were kinda in the zone and flat forgot to take some. Taking the kedder and trim pieces of is definitely a two person job. You could do it alone but it would be way too easy to bend the rail or snap the trim off.

cbarnhill

That looks cool, Martin. Can't wait to see it up close at cave creek. 

dsatwork

@phulishcat Amazon had a sale for the Suaoki 100W 18V 12V Solar Panel Charger SunPower Cell Ultra Thin Flexible, so I picked up two of them. I'm wondering why you chose to mount them on the side in front and behind the vent? Was it so all the wires would be nice and neatly hidden in the trim? 

phulishcat

@dsatwork That was part of the reason, the other part was if we added more panels( unlikely as we have more power than we need as we learned last trip, shade low Sun exposure due to cloud cover batteries fully charged by 730 am) at a later date. 

dsatwork

@phulishcat What tape did you use to hold down the panels?

phulishcat

We used automotive trim tape. Double sided and sticky 

dsatwork

@phulishcat What is the black tape over the edges?

phulishcat

@dsatwork That's what we used to seal the edges we chose all weather gorilla tape. You don't have too seal the edges but it is suggested.

dsatwork

@phulishcat did you consider enternabond roofseal? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ER8VL72/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=733TGZDKC8DS&coliid=I1SGDOTC99JKHT

dlud

how are the keder rail and trim piece atttached to the trailer? Is it possible to fish the cable up under the trim piece starting at the front handle (to avoid removing the trim piece)?

dsatwork

dlud said:

how are the keder rail and trim piece atttached to the trailer? Is it possible to fish the cable up under the trim piece starting at the front handle (to avoid removing the trim piece)?

I believe they are screwed down and then the plastic trim piece covers keder edge and back rubber covers the rough plastic edge. I think @phulishcat has done a pretty good job of hiding the cable under the plastic. I'm guessing if it would have been easier to put it under the keder rail, some how, he would have, because he had if off at one point during the install. I'm going from memory because I was reading his post and following very close as I was ordering parts for my install.

dlud

Great, thanks!

phulishcat

apologies for the way late response. The Keder rail actually is part of the securing system for the trim. there is no way to fish the cables up through the trim unless you have hours to try to feed a wire down under the trim. Honestly the removing of the screws and re-attaching was far quicker and quite easy.

Jellybones11

this is exactly what I want to do with my Outback. However, I may have made a mistake on my solar panel. I chose a 136 W Unisolar flexible panel which is quite long. Now I am beginning to wonder if it can actually fit. I measured fine, but I forgot about the vent. I am interested in installing the controller on outside or in some inconspicuous place and the monitoring exactly where you have it. I would like to save these posts but I am not sure how to get to them exactly when I need it. I am not electronically saavy nor am I mechanically inclined, well, I am to a point so installing this myself is out of the question. I am in market to find a MPPT controller right now and am looking at the Renogy but the one you have looks quite competent.  I was planning on taking my outback to the dealer to have it installed however they charge big fees per hour. Any ideas anybody has will be helpful.

Thanks

pthomas745

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Click on the star, and it turns yellow, and you have saved it as a "bookmark" on this web site.

On the top left margin of the page, there is a group of tools for the site.  One of them is "My Bookmarks." Open that up, and this page should be listed there as a bookmark.  An easy way to save the good suggestions you find across the site.

rfuss928

Jellybones11 said:

 I am in market to find a MPPT controller right now and am looking at the Renogy but the one you have looks quite competent. 

MPPT controllers are a technology that is able to help capture the excess voltage at a panels Maximum Power Point.  This MPP only occurs under near perfect conditions including low temperatures, ideal alignment and crystal clear atmosphere.  Think Denver on a blue winter day at noon.  A condition that rarely exists with our small portable systems.   The technology can not and will not capture any additional energy in less than optimum conditions and is actually less efficient than a standard PWM controller under most conditions.
IMO...The extra cost of the MPPT controller is better spent on additional panel wattage which will always produce more energy. 

dlud

I took a little different approach to the wiring of my flexible solar panels. Originally I thought the way to go was to run it under the exterior trim strip to the front tub. However, I wanted to mount the controller in a watertight environment. So, I put two 100w flexible panels on top, drilled a 1/2" hole in the top into the a/c compartment. From there the wires run down the inside of the wall behind the tv into the compartment holding the electrical panel. I mounted my MPPT controller there and ran a remote display to the wall where the Seelevel is mounted. The wiring from the controller to the 2 6v batteries run inside the wall of the bathroom on the drivers side to the front of the trailer. I then drilled a hole from the outside to fish the cable through, then ran the cable through plastic flex tubing to the batteries. The panels are held down with 3M automotive trim tape that is double sided.

dsatwork

@dlud Nice clean looking install...I have the same panel configuration on my roof and so far it has worked pretty well. Extremely well, when I'm running up and down the west coast on the I-5 in the summer time. When I need a fully charged battery for overnight dry camping. I'm surprised how little power you get out of it in the winter time (even in SoCal) but I have a 60 watt booster that I can add to bump it up when needed.

I thought about running the wires inside for the controller. But, ultimately it just seemed easier to mount the Victron BlueSolar Charge Controller MPPT  75/15 in my enclosed tongue box. So far no problems and I use the Bluetooth app on my phone to access the battery State of Charge and solar panel production information from inside the Tab or Outside or in the TV.