Forced to learn about Grounded vs not Grounded outlets

So if your house wiring is ok, we should put a 15 amp adapter into our plug before putting into house power? We knew we have to have an adapter. How many 12v outlets do you have in your T@B? I recall seeing 1 cigarette type plug in ours.

Radren, I don't want the permanent mount for 3 reasons:

1. I don't care for how it looks.
2. You are not always parked in the sun - without a permanent mount, you can move to a better spot without moving the camper.
3. I don't want the extra drilling into the exterior of the T@b.

I certainly understand the convenience factor and it is tempting. I did however, see a good idea of using suction cups to mount the panels on the T@b. This would give me the option of placing anywhere, even the site picnic table.

Mash2 - thanks for the information about the Unisolar panels. Amazon has them listed as 118" long. Maybe the bigger panels are wider? Renogy seems to be the best "bang for the buck", by far. I will say, I am still tempted by the GZ product. Those panels are very will built and super-lightweight. The price is higher, but it is almost 10 pounds lighter than the regular 100 watt Renogy panels, and 7-8 labs lighter than the Renogy suitcase panel. The limitation with using the GZ panel is that if you use the Guardian trickle charger (which I already own), you are limited to a 90 watt input, so you could not daisy chain 2 of the panels. I could however, use a different charge controller.

You need to be careful when purchasing solar panels as "not all panels are equal."   My point here is that solar panel materials "are different" and you need to do some research and know which materials used in panels will provide you longevity and best bang for your buck.  Monocrystalline panels are the most expensive panels out there and the monocrystalline plates are normally pretty heavy duty and the type used in government installations.  I have a generation 1 series Zamp, 80 watt monocrystalline panel that I have had for around 4 years now and recently upgraded my solar charge converter.  This upgrade has made a HUGE difference in my charge rate and the panel performs flawlessly, charging up my golf cart size battery much faster than previously experienced.  I spoke to Zamp owner John YoZamp on the phone and he pointed out the upgrades to their panels since I purchased mine.  I believe that they are now in "Generation 6" and they have made some nice improvements to their panels, although I still enjoy mine and it performs to my expectations and above. 

Here's a video of Zamp's unit and as you can see the solar controller drops down and is easily viewable and provides some good information on the readout. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=IaZz6Q6GvA0#t=29

I have the same controller shown in the video....  I had to carefully remove the old controller and what I did was heat up the old adhesive with a hair dryer, carefully stuck a butter knife under the lip of one edge and pushed it along the seam to break it loose.  One thing you don't want to do is disturb the back of the panel by tearing the backing off.  It's important to apply heat (makes it a lot easier) along the glued edge, take your time and carefully remove the solar controller from the panel.  Once the controller is removed, you spray on some Goo-Gone and clean off the old adhesive. 

The new controller comes with some self-tapping metal screws (no adhesive is necessary) and installation is very simple as the small lugs on the back of the panel are marked (+ & -) and you basically hook up the new controller the same way the old controller was hooked up.  It is easy enough and there is a schematic of sorts built onto the controller and the instructions come with the unit too. 

What I did find however was that my panel leads coming from the panel are a tad bit short and the hinged portion of the new solar controller does not extend out as far as the model shown in the video.  That's certainly not an issue as you can still operate and monitor the solar controller and the digital readout is very nice and shows how the unit is performing.  I might contact Zamp and see if they will send me out longer leads to allow for greater movement of the hinged solar controller.  The controller is just over $100 but is worth the money as it increases the efficiency and charge capability of your solar panel.  In direct sunlight my reading was steady (around 14.4 volts) and didn't fluctuate as much as the old controller.  I can't wait to use it out west or in Florida!