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Advice 400 Watt Solar Package W/ Alternator Charging

GreySun

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Jul 17, 2021
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Hi there,
I am getting ready to add the 400 Watt Solar Package W/ Alternator Charging to my van and I seem to only have room for 3 panels on my roof instead of the 4 it calls for. I am curious if I can utilize his guide and do everything else the same way or if I am going to have to make adjustments in regards to the charger, inverter, etc...
I have a 2004 pleasure way excel ts with a triton v10 in it. I want the alternator charging because I plan on adding a volt start system as well so that when I am at work I can have my dog in the van without any worries of him overheating i.e. the air conditioning running. I am brand new to this so please any help you can give me is very much appreciated. Also if anyone has a similar van and wants to share their builds I would love to see them.
Best,
GreySun
 
Bump.

Also, I have similar questions related to the 400W Kit on mobile-solarpower.com. Currently converting a shuttle bus to an RV.

1. Could I replace the 4 x 100W panels with 2 x 200W panels? (https://richsolar.com/products/200-watt-solar-panel) OR 1 x 335W Panel (https://richsolar.com/products/mega-335-watt-solar-panel?ref=h-cvbzfahsek)? If yes, great. If no, please explain :)
2. If I wanted a 3000W Inverter would one 200AH Lithium Battery and the 400W panels mentioned above provide enough power to make that work? (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08P6HH4W...colid=2HK6I9Y09801X&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1) - I'm thinking no, but checking.
3. To add shore power and charging to this kit could I add the 35A version of this here? https://powermaxconverters.com/product/pm3-12v-series

I am really new to all this which is what is attracting me to the kits. If there is a better way to consider all of this I am open to that as well.

Thanks in advance
 
am really new to all this which is what is attracting me to the kits. If there is a better way to consider all of this I am open to that as well.
Might should start your own thread. That’s ok.

Kits have their place. They usually have all the basic things like brackets and cables and if the kit is less than the parts separately it’s a no-brained. Except that you might want heavier gage or longer cables. I started with a 200W kit w/ pwm that served me well for several years.

I did “spend twice” when I went to 8ga solar cables and 8ga battery charge cables. However, the cables have supported two upgrades without needing to be larger. With the new 50A mppt, however, 6ga battery feed wires are required.

If you are not adding more panels right away a kit can make sense. If you plan to upgrade within a year or less, buy separate components and the sizes of cable your end result requires.
 
Might should start your own thread. That’s ok.

Kits have their place. They usually have all the basic things like brackets and cables and if the kit is less than the parts separately it’s a no-brained. Except that you might want heavier gage or longer cables. I started with a 200W kit w/ pwm that served me well for several years.

I did “spend twice” when I went to 8ga solar cables and 8ga battery charge cables. However, the cables have supported two upgrades without needing to be larger. With the new 50A mppt, however, 6ga battery feed wires are required.

If you are not adding more panels right away a kit can make sense. If you plan to upgrade within a year or less, buy separate components and the sizes of cable your end result requires.
Thank you for the reply. I wanted to search if my question had already been asked and stumbled across this unanswered thread, so I thought I'd give it a shot. Lol

So, from what I'm reading my only concern using my equipment linked with that kit is the wiring for future-proofing?

Thanks again
 
I just installed one of those Renogy 50A DC-DC chargers with MPPT along with the BT-2 bluetooth dongle couple of weeks ago (already had 400 watts of solar panels on the roof of my RV). Overall I think this is a great setup with LiFePo4. As to the prices in the link, they are out of date, LiFePo4 prices have dropped a lot (I paid just under $1,500 for a pair of 200AH LiFePo4 batteries with smart bluetoth BMS), and I only paid $230 for the Renogy DC-DC charger on amazon.
 
from what I'm reading my only concern using my equipment linked with that kit is the wiring for future-proofing?
Basically yes.
Looking at the 12 month cost versus a 60 day cost.

As far as the “equipment linked” being sufficient that stuff appears that it would work fine. Consider your space available and buy the panels that make sense.
The battery I can’t speak to but if the specs are true it seems ok; read up on if the bms is any good and has adequate low temp protection.
100Ah SOKs that Will reviewed recently are similar cost per Ah and do have adequate bms. I haven’t studied the battery you linked.

If you know you’re going bigger down the road you’ll spend a bit more money on higher-amp cables, but you won’t spend on cables that will become too small for the planned upgrade. You’ll already have them. Same with the charge controller in the kit: say it has a $30 value; $150 for an mppt that will handle the upgrade is a better spend longterm.

That’s just how I’ve learned to look at things. It took a couple years to ‘experience’ the full benefits of choosing to make only longer-term choices but now I’m in a position to have the freedom to only make good long term choices. People who spend for the immediate are either rich or broke, and short term thinking is a good way to stay broke and I got sick of that :)
Survival mentality coupled with longterm thinking and planning creates freedom.

Your situation may be different than mine.
 
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