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Our trailer came with 1 80 watt panel and a small PWM controller. I decided to leave it in place, and add 2 210 watt panels with their own controller. It works fine; you can have multiple charge controllers connected to your DC bus bar.

I think there's a misunderstanding on your/their nomenclature. "10/3" = 3 total conductors (one black/line, one white/neutral, one green/bare/ground). You make it sound like there are 3 load wires AND a ground. You just need X/3 to connect to the inverter AC input/output terminals. And I...

I have the XC 3000 Pro. Yes, it will automatically sense and charge a battery that has been discharged to the point where its Battery Management System has put it into "sleep" mode to protect it. That happened once to me, and I just plugged the shore power into a household outlet and came back...

I think that was the panel/converter I had which I removed when I installed my inverter. I don't think it's lithium compatible. I would just install a battery disconnect switch so you can isolate your batteries from both incoming charge and outgoing loads over the winter. Before you...

I had the same issue -- inverter up front, shore power coming from far side to distro panel. I used 10/3 cable, and used a 30 amp plug set to connect the shore power to the new cable leading to the inverter. Then another length of 10/3 from inverter back to distro panel. Seems to be working...

This is exactly what I was looking for, thank you!

I just finished installing a solar/battery/inverter system in my travel trailer. Now I'm thinking about how to save money on my home electric bill. Is there a document somewhere on this forum that explains in general the different types of residential systems? Like solar + inverter but no...

Good point. For me the weight and space savings were the most important. I removed a 50 lb lead acid battery with 80 aH, and replaced it with 2 50 lb batteries with 400 aH. So I doubled the weight but got 5 times as much power.

If the bed is literally all you want to power, just look up how many amps it draws, and get a portable battery backup unit that size, like a Jackery or Bluetti or similar. Then get a folding solar panel to recharge the backup unit.

Why? After one season with lithium batteries I couldn't be happier. Smaller and lighter than lead-acid or AGM, and better performance too. I think they'll be cheaper in the long run too. What's not to like?

I agree. Your available equipment is way insufficient to do what you want to do, and your very small budget is nowhere near enough to pay for what you would need to make this work. I would bail out and find another place to live.

I also have 2 200aH lithium batteries (different brand) and I do have an inverter. I went with 4/0 cable from batteries -> Lynx bus bar -> inverter. I did the calculations for the length and the maximum current load (which I'll probably never actually draw) and I think it said 2/0 was...

We have a travel trailer with 2x 200aH LiFePo batteries. I know they're not supposed to be charged when they're below 32 degrees F. I would rather not remove them while the trailer is in outdoor storage over the winter (in Illinois). Is it sufficient to perhaps discharge them to 40-50% level...

Yes. For us, the appeal would be to get some extra charge when moving from one campground to the next. I'm hoping that 3-4 hours of alternator plus some solar while driving would avoid the need to alternate between campgrounds with electric and without.

Yes that's a good idea. There is often some sun at the end of the campsite near the road, so a panel there would help and a flexible one would be lightweight and easy to store.

Made our first trip in the travel trailer with the finished battery/solar system. I'm really happy with how it turned out because I wanted to be able to dry-camp for 5 days straight, which is our practical limit for water and holding tanks anyway. Here's what I installed: 2x Chins 200Ah...

I did on the first panel, but after 1-1/2 inches I never felt anything solid. I was scared to go deeper because I thought I would poke a hole in the interior ceiling.

I bought my VHB tape from McMaster-Carr for exactly that reason. Same with stainless steel hardware and u-strut (which they carry in assorted lengths, so I didn't need to cut it.)

Thanks all of you for the advice. I used the same aluminum u-strut channel to mount my 200-watt panels. The strut is 13/16 high, and the panels are mounted to it with Z-brackets, so the panel ends up being almost 2 inches above the roof surface for good ventilation and easy access to the...

I wanted a couple of 250-300 watt panels on my travel trailer to reduce mounting and wiring complexity. The ones that were available from SanTan were too big to fit, and then I found out that the shipping was going to be about $200 which would negate any savings. I ended up going with 2x 210...

Nate at www.explorist.life has a whole bunch of very basic videos covering very basic topics like these, including how to strip a wire, how to crimp a connector, etc. I'm pretty handy but I still found them extremely helpful.

UPDATE -- it's working now But I'm not sure why. I bought a multimeter and measured the DC voltage going into the inverter to see if it was getting power from the batteries. 0 volts! Aha, I must have blown the fuse between bus bar and the inverter. Then I plugged it into shore power to...

But why would the batteries be able to power DC items in the trailer, but NOT feed power to the inverter? Seems like a BMS protection circuit would affect everything downstream from the battery. And where can I get a pre-charge resistor?

Hello, I just installed a Xantrex XC 3000 inverter/charger in my travel trailer. I have 2 200ah lithium batteries in parallel, connected to a Victron Lynx Power In, then out to the inverter's DC inputs. Shore power connection to the Xantrex AC input; AC output to the WFCO AC distribution panel...

Thank you, this is really helpful. I think I'll go with aluminum u-strut secured with VHB + screws into roof struts. Then secure the panels to the struts with 4 brackets on each side. Wire rope from panel to . . . something . . . as a safety tether. If it comes off at least it'll hopefully...

I'm in a somewhat similar situation as you, and I'm in the middle of building a similar system (2x 200w panels, 2x 200Ah lithium, inverter). Here are a few choices I made: 1. For me, the hard limiting factor to boondocking endurance isn't electrical, it's water. My trailer has 30 gallons of...

Thanks, good ideas. To clarify, I don't have a rubber roof -- it's PVC plastic. Also since my trailer is less than a year old, there aren't any visible marks on the roof to go by. But I wasn't familiar with metal stud finders, I'll definitely get one.

The use manual for the Renogy DC-DC charger says: "The DC-DC will not power on or operate until the D+ ignition cable is connected to the ignition circuit where it will detect a 12V source to operate ON."

Agreed, which I guess is why AM Solar uses VHB + screws on rubber roofs. They claim they have never had a panel detach, and they've probably done as many installs as anyone. So how do I determine where the aluminum roof crossmembers are? I've read that stud-finders don't work, and diagrams...

I have a year-old Forest River Surveyor Legend travel trailer with a PVC roof. The roof has a slight texture to it; it's not smooth and shiny like fiberglass. It's not uneven or "bumpy", just slightly textured almost like sandpaper. I'm considering mounting 2 210w panels using unistrut rails...

So I was working on the trailer last weekend, and sure enough -- I had it wired in backwards. I don't know how, since I thought I was careful to orient it correctly. But I reversed it and now it works perfectly.

Hi all, I probably made a simple mistake, but here goes. I have 2x 200Ah lithium batteries in parallel, connected to a Victron Lynx Power In busbar. The AiLi battery monitor (I think this one) is in series with the negative battery connection to the Lynx. Negative battery cable to B- terminal...

I'm looking for a 3000w inverter/charger/30A transfer switch to go into my travel trailer. I'm trying to keep the weight down, and almost all the inverters I can find are 50 lbs or more. The Victron Multiplus is 40 lbs. The only large lighter weight high frequency inverter I can find is the...

That's awesome! I am not familiar with Maker Pipe; it looks really useful for projects like this. I like your solar array. Did you put any backing behind each panel, or are they just supported at the edges by the pipes?

Hey all, I'm thinking of building a portable folding solar panel to use when camping this summer. I'd like two panels of about 100 watts each for a total of about 200 watts. But that will probably weigh 35-40 lbs when complete with some sort of adjustable leg assembly etc. Then I thought, why...