Is this a good size solar system for my van?

[thenunzzz]

Hello,

I am getting a 2006 dodge sprinter 2500 in about a week or so. My plan is to live full time in the van and be able to power my whole system from solar and while driving. I have spent 4 full days researching this and plugging in numbers to various calculators, but still need some help. I've watched Will Prowse and Explorist Life videos as well as faroutride.com resources. KEEP IN MIND I LIVE IN CALIFORNIA AND GET PLENTY OF SUNLIGHT YEAR ROUND

So far I believe what I will need is 300-400 watts of solar, 2 100aH Battle Born Lithium batteries (I can only afford 2 right now), 40-60amp Renogy charge controller or 100/30 Victron charge controller, and either 1000w or 2000w inverter (maybe a charger combo. My buddy is letting me freeload behind his jiu jitsu gym, so I guess I can be plugged in there).

What I will need power for:

• 1-2 full charges/day for a Macbook pro (85w power cord) and a seperate 24in tv plugged into a 110v. I trade stocks M-F, so the comp/tv will be used 8 hours a day.
• Charge an iphone
• 12V DC Dometic CFX 100W dual zone fridge freezer. (Uses 1.5ah/hour)
• Atwood(Dometic) 3 burner range with oven. I threw this in because I couldn't find any info whether the oven use electricity or not, but I think it uses propane.
• 3 GPM water pump
• 12 dimmable 3W LED puck lights
• Vitamix or some other type of blender used mostly likely once a day for max 2 minutes at full power. (This is why I was thinking a 2000W inverter)
• 1 Maxxair fan deluxe 10 speed. I plan on putting a skylight over the bed for the second ventilation source.
• 1 of those cheap multi-colored LED strip lights from amazon
• I'd like to be able to use my electric tea kettle I got recently instead of boiling water every morning. I eat oatmeal practically everyday.
• I plan on installing some 6x9 speakers and a 12 inch sub, but maybe that will run from the motor battery only.
• Some form of internet hotspot haven't decided on one.

I understand you've gotta downsize and minimize your whole life for this, but if I'm going to be in it full time while trying to learn and earn a living trading stocks there are some things I can't give up. I'm not getting in the van to ruff neck it, but for location freedom and rent avoidance. I don't like giving money away...

Hopefully I covered everything.

Scott

 

[Craig]

Without having the exact usage from each device it is hard to know for sure but my guess is you will be fine. The sound system is the only thing that may use extraneous energy that could be a waste but if you have problems that would be easy to cut out. Seems like I use even more energy and run it off of only 120Ah at 24volts so your 2 battleborns should be plenty especially if you can get shore power now and then.

 

[CascadeOffGrid]

I also have a 2006 sprinter that is built out and can provide some feedback.

I would shoot for the upper range of your solar to sustain the TV all day on less than perfectly sunny days. I have 450W on my sprinter and don't need nearly that kind of power in the summer time for boiling water and sustaining a fridge. My system is maxed out for winter usage up here in Washington State.

Your Vitamix is going to drive the size of your inverter. I would recommend around the 2kW for motor starting capability. I would personally recommend a low frequency inverter (more expensive) for that motor load. The high frequency inverters are certainly cheaper but they struggle with the large motor starting loads. If you are going to utilize shore power, I would definitely recommend a combo inverter/charger for the wiring simplicity of the built-in transfer switch if your budget allows. I sell Battleborn/Victron battery/equipment packages sized like this frequently.

 

[thenunzzz]

Without having the exact usage from each device it is hard to know for sure but my guess is you will be fine. The sound system is the only thing that may use extraneous energy that could be a waste but if you have problems that would be easy to cut out. Seems like I use even more energy and run it off of only 120Ah at 24volts so your 2 battleborns should be plenty especially if you can get shore power now and then.

Right the sound system seems like a reach, so I'll have to see how that goes. Do you think 200aH will be more than necessary at the moment and can stick with just one? Or just be safe and run two? Thanks!

 

[thenunzzz]

I also have a 2006 sprinter that is built out and can provide some feedback.

I would shoot for the upper range of your solar to sustain the TV all day on less than perfectly sunny days. I have 450W on my sprinter and don't need nearly that kind of power in the summer time for boiling water and sustaining a fridge. My system is maxed out for winter usage up here in Washington State.

Your Vitamix is going to drive the size of your inverter. I would recommend around the 2kW for motor starting capability. I would personally recommend a low frequency inverter (more expensive) for that motor load. The high frequency inverters are certainly cheaper but they struggle with the large motor starting loads. If you are going to utilize shore power, I would definitely recommend a combo inverter/charger for the wiring simplicity of the built-in transfer switch if your budget allows. I sell Battleborn/Victron battery/equipment packages sized like this frequently.

Sweet! Glad to have feedback from someone with a T1N! Sounds like I'm on the right track so far, what low frequency inverter would you recommend? I was thinking this one so far: https://www.renogy.com/2000w-12v-pure-sine-wave-inverter-charger-w-lcd-display/. I also plan to run two of these: https://www.renogy.com/200-watt-12-volt-monocrystalline-solar-panel/. Thanks for the input. Nice to hear you're not having trouble in Washington with your setup.

 

[CascadeOffGrid]

I think the Renogy solar panels are good quality. I have retested their performance after 5 years and they are performing better than their degradation curve.

I don't know much about that inverter/charger. I'm not sure if it is a low frequency type.

I typically sell the higher end Magnum-Dimensions or Victron equipment. I'm sure there are other good alternatives out there that others can weigh in on but those are the two companies I have the most experience with.

 

[Craig]

Right the sound system seems like a reach, so I'll have to see how that goes. Do you think 200aH will be more than necessary at the moment and can stick with just one? Or just be safe and run two? Thanks!

I would stick with 200AH but I would also build my own battery and not pay the premium for battle born

 

[thenunzzz]

I think the Renogy solar panels are good quality. I have retested their performance after 5 years and they are performing better than their degradation curve.

I don't know much about that inverter/charger. I'm not sure if it is a low frequency type.

I typically sell the higher end Magnum-Dimensions or Victron equipment. I'm sure there are other good alternatives out there that others can weigh in on but those are the two companies I have the most experience with.

That Victron inverter is $1,155.00 . Ive been wondering about the quality hierarchy of all these solar companies. Looks likes Victron is in the top spectrum. I can't say I can afford that inverter even though I like to do things once and do them right, but I was hoping to keep my build budget to 7K or less. I'll have to check out some reviews for Renogy's inverter as it is more within my budget.

How much did your completed electrical system cost? Not including the lights and appliances, just strictly the the panels, inverter, batteries, wiring, etc.

 

[thenunzzz]

I would stick with 200AH but I would also build my own battery and not pay the premium for battle born

Ok I figure 200aH would be good. Do you have to get a battery management system for a build your own? What brand/kit would you suggest?

 

[Deleted-User]

You can drive up to Santa Rosa tomorrow and buy 2! Valence XP (12V 138AH/ea) for about $700, then need to concern yourself with only LVD, if you want the cells to last. Add Victron SCC and quality LVD programmable inverter and you're well on your way.

 

[thenunzzz]

You can drive up to Santa Rosa tomorrow and buy 2! Valence XP (12V 138AH/ea) for about $700, then need to concern yourself with only LVD, if you want the cells to last. Add Victron SCC and quality LVD programmable inverter and you're well on yo

How old are the batteries? I can't get anything until I have my van which I am hoping to purchase in about a week or so.

 

[Craig]

That Victron inverter is $1,155.00 . Ive been wondering about the quality hierarchy of all these solar companies. Looks likes Victron is in the top spectrum. I can't say I can afford that inverter even though I like to do things once and do them right, but I was hoping to keep my build budget to 7K or less. I'll have to check out some reviews for Renogy's inverter as it is more within my budget.

How much did your completed electrical system cost? Not including the lights and appliances, just strictly the the panels, inverter, batteries, wiring, etc.

Victron is top tier and so is a Mercedes van both are overpriced in my opinion. Sure if money is no object they are great but on a budget you can do what you wish for way less than 7k

Panels $300.
All in one SCC/inverter/charger $1000
batteries with BMS $1500.00 280Ah at 24 volts

throw in $500.00 for extras and off you go.

 

[tictag]

It sounds like you already have all this kit, you just need to put it all in your van. If so, I would highly recommend that you measure your energy consumption using something like this:



...to get a 24-hours consumption value in Watt-Hours e.g. 2,400Wh.

With that value you can then work out how long your battery bank will last i.e. without PV e.g. 200AH at 12V = 2,400Wh. If your daily consumption is, say, 2,400Wh your battery will be entirely discharged in one day.

Also, once you know your daily consumption, you can work out how much PV you need to replenish each day e.g. 400W PV would generate around 1,600Wh per day in Summer, around 400Wh in Winter.

Everything is based on your daily energy consumption, and that can be easily measured using a cheap $10 device.

Edit: corrected typo.

 

[Sparky]

Tell us more about your vitamix. Is there already a wall-wart involved? I hope you're not inverting to 120/240 to covert again to 12/24.

 

[Craig]

Tell us more about your vitamix. Is there already a wall-wart involved? I hope you're not inverting to 120/240 to covert again to 12/24.

The vitamix that I just looked up has no input for Dc just an AC plug that goes directly into base of machine. I dont consider that using a wal-wart but semantics aside are these actually run on DC?

 

[Sparky]

Idk about that brand, but there do exist 12v and 24 v blenders, and hand-crank ones as well.



SAFETY NOTE: Your safety is up to you.
You'll get ENOUGH TORQUE TO TAKE YOUR FINGERS OFF. But also enough to crush ice, if you use it well. No joke: you can find people rigging mixer blades into their battery operated drills. KEEP YOUR FINGERS. END SAFETY NOTE.

 

[Craig]

Idk about that brand, but there do exist 12v and 24 v blenders, and hand-crank ones as well.



SAFETY NOTE: Your safety is up to you.
You'll get ENOUGH TORQUE TO TAKE YOUR FINGERS OFF. But also enough to crush ice, if you use it well. No joke: you can find people rigging mixer blades into their battery operated drills. KEEP YOUR FINGERS. END SAFETY NOTE.

Side track but I used to play Rugby with a guy who went to Georgia Tech. Every year they had some sort of mixed drink competition. He told me with the engineers it evolved into a souped up blender competition. He said they had blenders with gas motors and full on transmissions. Must of been fun

 

[DonPhillipe]

My buddy is letting me freeload behind his jiu jitsu gym, so I guess I can be plugged in there).

- know how to "sell short"
- if you are just saving paying rent, as you say your goal is and you are going to permanently park behind a friend's business with electrical, basically all you need to do is to install some outlets inside and purchase a 12 gauge extension cord. If you add electrical heat and/or AC for cool you need to ensure you are the only one on the circuit and that it is at least 20A
- if your goal is just to park in the rear of this business, then I'd go with a very old van perhaps just a generic US made and get one as reliable as your travel plans but only if travel and off-grid will be part of the package. To realize the benefit of a Sprinter, you really have to drive a lot of miles to get the payback from the better MPG. Otherwise if you are mostly parked in one place, then it doesn't do vehicles any good to just sit parked and when you do need service the diesel is going to be about double the cost to repair as gasoline version
- actually why anyone would go with a build-out if they plan on being in one place for a long time is a mystery to me. There are so many old RVs for sale that are really too worn for RTW travel but they'd be great for something like this and they have all the wiring done for you. In fact there are a lot of people setting up businesses now with land for sale for rollable "tiny houses" and these are basically just RV ranches. Basically if you do plan to drive yours anywhere, you can always add solar and upgraded batteries as well. Also a propane fridge usually comes with the older models and that will put your requirement back down below 100aH (e.g. half power of a couple of GC2s if you do decide to drive somewhere) That hot tea kettle would be an issue off-grid but if you think it takes too long to boil water on a typical Magic Chef style stove-top, try a 20K BTU camp stove on propane and you can have boiled water in 2 minutes or under. Of course back on-grid you can pull your electric appliances back out.

Otherwise if you do plan to travel, then the battery operated fridge is what actually increases your exposure and puts you over the 100aH mark that would serve you if you were not using the electric heating elements. (Nothing like sequential rain and spoiled food to make a bad day.) The Vitawhatamagic (don't personally use one, but researched for others and actually forgot the name) I believe pulls around 14A so that means you need at least a 2000W inverter. And with no other major inverter loads like that and at the couple of minutes per day you could likely get by on a pair of golf carts and not delve into lithium. Always go with a pure sine wave to keep from burning up the stray computer power supply and there are good ones under $300. Other than the monumental work you have cut out for you if you go the build-out route, a hearty wish of good luck to you at the online casino.

 

[mapguy525]

That Victron inverter is $1,155.00 . Ive been wondering about the quality hierarchy of all these solar companies. Looks likes Victron is in the top spectrum. I can't say I can afford that inverter even though I like to do things once and do them right, but I was hoping to keep my build budget to 7K or less. I'll have to check out some reviews for Renogy's inverter as it is more within my budget.

How much did your completed electrical system cost? Not including the lights and appliances, just strictly the the panels, inverter, batteries, wiring, etc.

before dropping units like Victron from your purchase list -look at the features, abilities, and installation needs that this class of products bring to the table in your explained situation.

The load sharing abilities of this class of product should be carefully considered if using low amp shorepower connection from someone else(driveway camping).

 

[thenunzzz]

before dropping units like Victron from your purchase list -look at the features, abilities, and installation needs that this class of products bring to the table in your explained situation.

The load sharing abilities of this class of product should be carefully considered if using low amp shorepower connection from someone else(driveway camping).

So you’re saying I should consider getting it over other brands?