Rv project for a new guy..

[TwilightZone]

Have you scaled it dry and wet?

 

[12VoltInstalls]

Boy that’s tight! I’d have someone look at the axles and springs.

It seems like the gvw matches the load range D tires; unlikely but the axles/springs might be 7000# and not 5200#
Either way, E-rated tires would give you headroom for that 100#. Tires can blow; it would take a while for the spindles to deflect- if ever- if lightly overloaded. Tires on the other hand blow readily near or over their service rating. Ds are like 2600# rated.

 

[TwilightZone]

Boy that’s tight! I’d have someone look at the axles and springs.

It seems like the gvw matches the load range D tires; unlikely but the axles/springs might be 7000# and not 5200#
Either way, E-rated tires would give you headroom for that 100#. Tires can blow; it would take a while for the spindles to deflect- if ever- if lightly overloaded. Tires on the other hand blow readily near or over their service rating. Ds are like 2600# rated.

Yep. We weren't thinking about living in it when we bought it. Then we were broken into 3 times in one week. We got to thinking we might just hit the road for awhile. I've got family out west, and in tx. Both have acreage and said stay as l I ng as you like. This camper isn't really the best choice, but there aren't alot of choices out there right now to replace it. We've talked about selling it, and waiting for the impending rv market crash, but hate to be without it. So, turd sandwich.. Its load limit really makes carrying enough supplies and to ad solar/batteries tough. Its even got a fairly small fresh water tank at 45 gal. So I hate to short fill it.

 

[BiduleOhm]

@BiduleOhm - what do you think? Salvageable?

Looks like it will be but I didn't read the whole thread yet, just looked at the photo. I'll probably have a better idea of what happened (and so more/better advices) after I read it all

Sorry for the delay BTW, I wasn't home for the last few days.

 

[chrisski]

Are carrying portable panels in another vehicle an option?

I have four 100 watt panels, 20 LBS each, with a combiner box, maybe 10 LBS, that I plug into my RV if I need extra power. If its that tight, and you have room in the bed of a truck, may be worth it. Otherwise, you have a really tight load.

I doubt the RV market will crash anytime soon. FOr a while looked like the RV market had a lot of the same indicators of the great housing crash of 2006, but has not come.

 

[BiduleOhm]

So, I read the full thread and here's what I can advise:

Well, long story. But my renogy croaked. I bought it used, so I own it. At least I don't have to worry about dealing with they're customer service. I took it apart tonight. Looks like it had some cold solder joints on some MOSFETs. The traces don't look too bad, I think I can maybe save it. But we're going to go ahead and upgrade to the victron and get it over with. Anybody need a renogy project? ?

Given the fact it's the same pin on each mosfet, that's there's basically no solder left on that pin on Q22, that the solder on the other pins looks pretty oxidized, etc... it looks more like the mosfets got so hot the solder melted and started the failure by running out of the joint and so reducing the available surface area for the current to pass, thus creating even more heat, etc...

So, the main problem with burnt PCB is not to repair the traces, etc... but to get rid of of any burnt part as they are conductive (and far more than we think at first; it can pass several A at only a few V...). Only then you can repair the missing traces with either bare rigid copper wire or fine flexible isolated wire depending on the case. Thankfully it seems the damage is very small so just drilling the holes big enough should be fine, quick and easy

In your case you also need to replace all the mosfets and you must buy them from reputable sellers like Mouser or Digikey, not from Ebay, Amazon, Aliexpress, etc... as you'll get counterfeit ones 99 % of the time otherwise. Also, buy them in one big lot so you get them from the same batch (ideally leave a comment when ordering saying you want them to be from the same batch) so they have characteristics as close to each other as possible.

If you have any other components close to the mosfets (maybe SMD ones on the other side?) it's probably a good idea to replace them, or at least check them, especially resistors and electrolytic capacitors. From what I can see on the photo: C30 should be fine since it's a ceramic cap and it's TH, and C31 is far enough to not be a problem at all.

 

[TwilightZone]

Thanks. Sorry I'm in and out. At&t is doing something with the towers here, and we only have internet here and there. I'm going to try to get a little deeper into it when I can, but its fairly low priority. I'm going to order the victron as soon as I can get enough internet to research further. I think the 2kw compact model will fit pretty much right where this one was..

 

[TwilightZone]

Are carrying portable panels in another vehicle an option?

I have four 100 watt panels, 20 LBS each, with a combiner box, maybe 10 LBS, that I plug into my RV if I need extra power. If its that tight, and you have room in the bed of a truck, may be worth it. Otherwise, you have a really tight load.

I doubt the RV market will crash anytime soon. FOr a while looked like the RV market had a lot of the same indicators of the great housing crash of 2006, but has not come.

I have a 3/4 ton, but its a short bed. With the 5th wheel hitch there really isn't much room for big panels. Once I get the inverter situation sorted back out, I'll get a little more serious about getting the solar mounted. I'm thinking about either non permanent adhesive, like maybe silicone applied with a notched trowel. Or maybe putting down epdm patches in a similar fashion, then bonding to that, so if the panel has to come off you have a better chance of not damaging the real roof. Or just bond them down come what may. Idk. Replacing the whole membrane would suck, but you have to do them all eventually if you keep it long enough.

 

[chrisski]

Putting the flexible panels in are not that hard after you decide on a method.

The YouTube Channel I linked earlier from RV With Tito has about three different ways to install flexible panels some with a year update. In another video, he even goes into how to get the tape off the roof, which is basically a heat gun and sparkle tool. Removing tape is not a quick process.

I’ve heard other stories of when the flexible panels fail, people taping the next panel on top of the old one.

My flexible panels from Renogy are warranted for five years. This is part of the warranty and I do believe Renogy will be here five years from now:


So if they go bad in a year like people say, I can get them warranted.

When the RV is stored, all my panels are under a cover.

EDIT: I have the same setup with a 3/4 ton and a fifth wheel. Not much room in the bed. The 4 panels and combiner I mentioned take up the half the backseat with the seat folded up from the floor to the bottom of the window. I don’t exactly consider that compact.

I’ve looked at roof racks for the truck but am not yet at the point where I need that.

 

[TwilightZone]

Putting the flexible panels in are not that hard after you decide on a method.

The vYouTube Channel I linked earlier from RV With Tito has about three different ways to install flexible panels some with a year update. In another video, he even goes into how to get the tape off the roof, which is basically a heat gun and sparkle tool. Not a quick process.

I’ve heard other stories of when the bagels fail, people taping the next panel on top of the old one.

My flexible panels from Renogy are warranted for five years. When the RV is stored, all my panels are under a cover. This is part of the warranty and I do believe Renogy will be here five years from now:

View attachment 56304
So if they go bad in a year like people say, I can get them warranted.

I gave $350 for 600w. I may yet regret it, idk. But they won't mount down anything like the renogys. These are super thin, and have no grommets, or any real border to drill hole in. Its really hard to explain till you hold one.

 

[TwilightZone]

Have you scaled it dry and wet?

I just crawled under it. The axles are marked 5k lbs.

 

[12VoltInstalls]

I just crawled under it. The axles are marked 5k lbs.

That’s ok.
if it were me I’d put E-rated tires on and give myself another 500 or 700# of payload in my head. Unless you do tons of pot-holed or rough dirt roads I think you’ll be fine for a long time. The ‘shorter life’ on the springs might not even be a factor. The axles aren’t going to break unless you hit a curb at 50mph and maybe only bend!

Your sensibilities might be different- I’d upgrade the tires and not look back

 

[TwilightZone]

That’s ok.
if it were me I’d put E-rated tires on and give myself another 500 or 700# of payload in my head. Unless you do tons of pot-holed or rough dirt roads I think you’ll be fine for a long time. The ‘shorter life’ on the springs might not even be a factor. The axles aren’t going to break unless you hit a curb at 50mph and maybe only bend!

Your sensibilities might be different- I’d upgrade the tires and not look back

A few Posts back.. it has 5 brand new maxxis E range tires on it now

 

[12VoltInstalls]

Then don’t worry about it. The RV will take the weight spread out, it’s not much. The only safety or immediate reliability concerns involve the tires. It’s not like you’re adding 2000# it’s maybe 100# or so. No risk to the time/warp continuum.

 

[TwilightZone]

Then don’t worry about it. The RV will take the weight spread out, it’s not much. The only safety or immediate reliability concerns involve the tires. It’s not like you’re adding 2000# it’s maybe 100# or so. No risk to the time/warp continuum.

I agree. But 100 here and a100 there leads to 1000s. I'm just trying to save it where I can. I removed the #65? Deep cycle battery, but added 3 35lb lithiums, and a 50lb inverter. Food and clothes aren't light. Just trying to be careful.

 

[12VoltInstalls]

It’s up to you but if you were 500# over I wouldn’t worry - at all. After what I saw at the trailer dealer I worked for…

Rigid, standard panels last longer, are removable, and cost less. If you keep the RV a couple of years- or sell it- buying new panels won’t be necessary. Plus you ‘could’ engineer your mount to tilt while parked for 20-40% more power.

 

[TwilightZone]

It’s up to you but if you were 500# over I wouldn’t worry - at all. After what I saw at the trailer dealer I worked for…

Rigid, standard panels last longer, are removable, and cost less. If you keep the RV a couple of years- or sell it- buying new panels won’t be necessary. Plus you ‘could’ engineer your mount to tilt while parked for 20-40% more power.

Normally I'm the reckless cowboy of the bunch. But something about being God knows where on the road and having an axle burn up or break sure is a sobering thought.

 

[bobdelso]

Thanks, but thats a no go for these panels. They're MUCH thinner and more flexible and have no grommet holes. They are designed exclusively to be bonded directly down. Most come with adhesive pre applied, but the ones I fell into do not. Not to mention that side of the project is on hold until I get the power side ironed out. We had been planning a dry camping trip this weekend. Luckily the weather kept us home. If we'd have gone, the inverter would have failed 3 hours from home with no other power than a generator, that could have only run between certain hours.

You really should try to use the plastic signboard / cardboard. I have them under my flexible solar panels and it makes a world of difference.

I cut the signboard to size, used silka flex to attatch the signboard to the panels. Then I used a 2 inch wide 3m VHB and taped the top of the panel down to the roof. EG the signboard was sandwiched in between. Use a mineral spirit or similar cleanar and VHB will stay on forever. Going on 2 years now without issue.

If you don't use signboard your panels will overheat and start delaminating within 1 year. Yes its annoying but your throwing your money away without it.

 

[TwilightZone]

You really should try to use the plastic signboard / cardboard. I have them under my flexible solar panels and it makes a world of difference.

I cut the signboard to size, used silka flex to attatch the signboard to the panels. Then I used a 2 inch wide 3m VHB and taped the top of the panel down to the roof. EG the signboard was sandwiched in between. Use a mineral spirit or similar cleanar and VHB will stay on forever. Going on 2 years now without issue.

If you don't use signboard your panels will overheat and start delaminating within 1 year. Yes its annoying but your throwing your money away without it.

Thanks. I'm new here and pretty new to solar all around. And I really appreciate all the advice. But I keep wondering if people understand that these aren't built at all like the renogy flexible panels. I have a 50w flexible panel on my truck tool box lid to run my dometic cooler, and it's at least 5 times as thick as these hanergy cigs. And built in a far different manner. They have almost no structural strength at all. If you hold one in the middle it will drape over and touch the floor, bending at 60-75 deg. I like the idea of something under them, and the corrugated board might be perfect. But I'll have to totally bond the panel to the board, not just around the edge, these are far too floppy. If your familiar with these, and I'm talking out my rear, my apologies. But these are odd.

 

[bobdelso]

Thanks. I'm new here and pretty new to solar all around. And I really appreciate all the advice. But I keep wondering if people understand that these aren't built at all like the renogy flexible panels. I have a 50w flexible panel on my truck tool box lid to run my dometic cooler, and it's at least 5 times as thick as these hanergy cigs. And built in a far different manner. They have almost no structural strength at all. If you hold one in the middle it will drape over and touch the floor, bending at 60-75 deg. I like the idea of something under them, and the corrugated board might be perfect. But I'll have to totally bond the panel to the board, not just around the edge, these are far too floppy. If your familiar with these, and I'm talking out my rear, my apologies. But these are odd.

My flexible solar panels were literally 1/8 of an inch thick, super thin plastic that you can roll up into a tube if you wanted. If you pick them up they droop like crazy. Pretty sure I broke a few cells as I heard a few crunches while taking them out of the box.

From what I read, black panels on a solid surface will lead to the panels overheating and the plastic will delaminate within a year or 2. The airgap gives them a bit of cooling

My panels are on a curvy roof. The signboard is flexible too so they sorta bend with the roof. VHB tape is ridiculously strong, you technically only need like 8-10 inches of contact to keep them on the roof. I lined the front, back and sides with tape and they haven't budged.