Travel Trailer (1050w Solar, 3000w Inverter, 600ah LiFePO4)
- Thread starter jbeletti
- Start date
Pierre
Somewhere down South
- Joined
- Dec 21, 2019
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- 1,122
Brilliant and very professionally done. Some standard to aim for !
Famtraveler24
New Member
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- Jul 22, 2020
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Do you have a diagram of the project, particularly one showing the OEM connections off the battery and into the 12v power distribution system?
schmism
Solar Addict
did you choose to go through roof with screws for hold downs? Ive seen some setups that use VHB tape so they have no penetrations.
Well, I assume you are asking jbelleti. From his excellent photos, it appears he used stainless steel brackets screwed into the roof and covered with Dicor self leveling sealant. An absolutely beautiful system. It also seems that excellence was the primary goal and cost wasn’t. “Do it once, not twice...Get it right.”
My plan is to use the Renogy corner bracket system and stainless steel mounts to be screwed through the EDPM roof into the plywood underlayment.
The reasoning is; Will’s book & website does not recommend VHB tape mounting on an EDPM roof because it would likely pull the roof covering away from the plywood. There’s that and I catch myself driving 80 mph and set cruise control to 65 to slow down. It’s only 20,000 pounds back there. My intent is that the corner brackets will prevent vibration from highway wind speeds combined with the stainless steel brackets.
I have never mounted solar panels on a RV roof and I am interested in any experiences or ideas.
My plan is to use the Renogy corner bracket system and stainless steel mounts to be screwed through the EDPM roof into the plywood underlayment.
The reasoning is; Will’s book & website does not recommend VHB tape mounting on an EDPM roof because it would likely pull the roof covering away from the plywood. There’s that and I catch myself driving 80 mph and set cruise control to 65 to slow down. It’s only 20,000 pounds back there. My intent is that the corner brackets will prevent vibration from highway wind speeds combined with the stainless steel brackets.
I have never mounted solar panels on a RV roof and I am interested in any experiences or ideas.
Realmaplesyrup
New Member
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- Jul 24, 2020
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How much does a setup like this cost?
schmism
Solar Addict
highly dependent on how big of a system you put in and the quality of the components you put in. Battleborn batts are $1k each for a 24v system you need 2. For OP's system he has 6. If i had to guess his installed cost is upwards of $10K
Useing aliexpres/alababa parts you could DIY a something with the same specs for perhaps $3K
I'm looking at price for the most i can get. Still shopping until i'm ready, but SORRY i will not be buying battleborn batteries. Just too expensive by far, i did say too expensive by far didnt i? Actually about 50% to 75% more than i want to pay!
schmism
Solar Addict
For a lot of people who want a quality product that is plug and play with a warranty its the right price. I also happen to think they will have to adjust the price of their bat down in the next 6 months if they want to stay competitive in the battery market.
I am new to this so I have a question. Is there a reason these panels were hooked up all parallel instead of 3P/2S?
59 amps/17 volts vs 30 amps/51 volts? Is this because it is a RV instead of a house application using a 12 volt system? Would not a MPPT recognize and keep it using a 12 volt system? Like i said , I am learning.
59 amps/17 volts vs 30 amps/51 volts? Is this because it is a RV instead of a house application using a 12 volt system? Would not a MPPT recognize and keep it using a 12 volt system? Like i said , I am learning.
The 2 series brings the 100 watt 12 volt solar panels to 24 volts per pair. Consequently, VOLTS X AMPS = WATTS And wire size is determined by amps only. NOTE ; we are working on the solar panel side only. SO the formula notes that when you double the voltage, you cut the amperage in half. Thus reducing the awg wire size necessary. I had already purchased 10 awg solar wire quite on purpose, which handles 30 amps. Length is a bigger factor in DC wiring. Blue Seas website has a good chart on that. I’m one of those guys who has a large portion of the NFPA electrical codes memorized.
Now the truth is I just completed the solar charging and battery portion of my RV. I installed 8 x 100 watt panels. 2Series x 4 Pairs. The 2 series are producing 35 to 38 volts each. That is because the 12 volt panels produce up to 18 volts and you may remember that your car alternator typically put 14.5 volts out in order to charge your car system.
I hope this helps. Also had all 8 panels been wired directly they would equal 45 amps, so by doubling the voltage the amps went down to 22.5 volts within the capacity 30 amps of 10awg wire.
Now the truth is I just completed the solar charging and battery portion of my RV. I installed 8 x 100 watt panels. 2Series x 4 Pairs. The 2 series are producing 35 to 38 volts each. That is because the 12 volt panels produce up to 18 volts and you may remember that your car alternator typically put 14.5 volts out in order to charge your car system.
I hope this helps. Also had all 8 panels been wired directly they would equal 45 amps, so by doubling the voltage the amps went down to 22.5 volts within the capacity 30 amps of 10awg wire.
By the way, now that I purchased the Renogy aluminum mounts and the Teflon corner brackets. I was wrong, they cannot be used together. The different style mounts are each a different height off the roof deck.
I did use short thickness electrical unistrut and unistrut mounts with 1/4” machine screws and lock washers To attach the aluminum Renogy solar panel mounts. This gives the ability remove panels without disturbing the roof seal again.
I did use short thickness electrical unistrut and unistrut mounts with 1/4” machine screws and lock washers To attach the aluminum Renogy solar panel mounts. This gives the ability remove panels without disturbing the roof seal again.
The Victron infrastructure (Multiplus, BMV-712 and CCGX), if configured to work together, provides what is probably the most effective and competent battery protection available for charging and discharging. The BMV-712 will signal charge and discharge cutoff based on the columbic battery state of charge and includes freeze protection as well. This is a much better method than the simplistic solution of just looking at the battery voltage (which the system also does).
Just because there isn't a box marked "Battery Protect" doesn't mean the system isn't protecting the batteries.
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LiFePO4 batteries are fine. These don't vent hydrogen or catch fire and where they are is well protected against collision damage. For maximum battery life, it is a very good idea to keep the batteries in the conditioned living space where they are protected from temperature extremes.
Hayden Sommers
"Scott"
its built into the battleborn units
As a total newbie, I looked at this and realized that I can build my own. With all of the great wisdom and advice on this forum. I am in the prelim phase (calculating what I am using) to be completed by end of summer. This will hopefully allow me to sit down and put pencil to paper to design a system.
Gadgetnerd
New Member
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- May 1, 2021
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Any money you save will go to batteries and other components. So many people using BBs for the "simplicity" Not knocking the product but holy $$$$. I'd have to buy 12+ BBs to match the capacity if my lifepo4 16s 48v bank which was $1800usd all in.
