Anderson Plug Outside van- Can I plug solar panel straight in?

[Coastrunner]

Hi Expanda Buddies!

A question for the clever people!

I have just booked an unpowered spot at the beautiful Murramarang Resort down near Batemans Bay.

I have a roof mounted solar panel but am concerned that I may be under the shade of trees.

I noticed when I bought the van that there was an "Anderson Plug" type connection outside the van for additional panels. The guy I bought the van off told me that he believes it's wired to simply plug in additional panels, no need to have an additional regular, as the power from the anderson plug will pass through the Jayco inbuilt regulator on it's way to the battery.

I do have a 40Watt solar panel that I can connect to 10m of cable with Anderson female connection. I thought i'd do that and have the option to put it out in the sun away from shady trees if need be.

Can anyone tell me if they have the same set up, or think it really is as simple as that?

 

[Coastrunner]

I tried to book a powered site but they're all taken, so I`ll have to rely on my solar panel & battery set up. Kind of looking forward to being a bit self sufficient. Glad I have the back up power to do it.

 

[Flanders]

If the Anderson plug wire is definitely passing through the controller (regulator) then it will work the same as the supply from the roof panel, so should be no problem. I had the same set up in my old Swan it worked very well

 

[Coastrunner]

Thanks Flanders.

I`ve been thinking. I spose if I looked at my regulator before and after connecting the panel, I'd hope that I'd see an increase in amp input when the portable solar panel is connected. if there's no increase in amperage on the metre then I spose it means its not connected? I`ll also see if I can follow the wiring from the Anderson plug connection too.

 

[chartrock]

G'day @Coastrunner , I have an Anderson plug at the front of the van that was wired up by the dealer purely as a connection for a solar panel. It works a treat with my 100W foldable panel and 120 AH AGM battery and have never run out of power.

I'm sure if you plug it in and check battery voltage with and without, you will see if it is connected and through the van's regulator.

 

[Soaring]

I'll preface this with the comment that I'm a little rusty on 12v, however I would try to follow the leads either physically or using resistance checks to ensure that it is connected through the existing van regulator.

The Anderson plug would be there for one of many reasons.
It could be as you hope, wired through the van regulator to enable direct solar hookup.
It could be wired directly to the battery with a diode so that the car will charge the battery while driving, utilising the regulated voltage from the car. So not through van regulator.

It could be wired direct to van battery to be used as a power source for things like compressors ect. In this case, not through van regulator.

In the last two cases, you would potentially be feeding up 22v (or whatever your panel can produce) direct to your van battery if you hook up the portable panel without its own reg. not good.

 

[DRW]

KT cables have just released a NEW 2 pin 50A plug and socket, I know they are available at supercheap auto, I spoke to KT (I have known them since they began) and we discussed ratinge etc. They also now do a 9 pin plug and socket, flat 7 pin with 2 pin 50A as well. The 2 pin is made from poly carb and he went through the testing and comparrison to anderson plugs etc. If you use an anderson plug, try to get the original Anderson brand not a chinese copy. Just full of useful information are'nt I?

 

[Coastrunner]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. One thing I didn't mention was the fact that the Anderson Plug is positioned behind the rear nearside wheel (where the annexe goes) so I can eliminate that it's there for the car to charge the battery while driving. So I guess it's either for incoming power (so a solar panel can connect up and charge the battery) or outgoing power (run compressor or fridge). I`m thinking it's more than likely incoming because most compressors & fridges don't generally have anderson plug connections?

 

[Hubble80]

I think due to positioning that it would be running a fridge outside, however if you panel has a regulator on it, there is no reason you can't use it to charge the battery. As stated above, I would try to physically check the wiring runs from the plug directly to the battery. If you turn of the Battery Isolator in the van, you can use a multimeter and check for voltage. If you get 12V, it won't got through the Setec (good thing!) if not it will either go through the Setec or be connected as an input to your solar regulator.

Hope this helps.

Not wanting to scare you off though, but I think 40W may be a little undersized to recharge the battery as it will only deliver a little over 3A at best, depending on what you are running off it of course. If you are not running any 12V appliances through the day and be smart with the lights you use, you might be alright for a few days. I am also assuming you have the 100Ahr battery installed too!

 

[Coastrunner]

Thanks Hub.

I have a 110 Watt solar panel permanently attached to the roof (charging my 100Amp/Hr battery). The 40 Watt portable was just a thought as an extra for charging if my van was parked under the shade of trees, making my roof top panel ineffective.

 

[Hubble80]

Too easy! Hopefully you get some sun on those roof panels!!!!

 

[norm walker]

Hi fellows I have a 140w fold away whith its own regulator on the back of it can I hook it strait up to the battery when I get my new outback thanks norm

 

[BUSH PALACE]

Cant see any problem there Norm ..

 

[boots33]

Hi fellows I have a 140w fold away whith its own regulator on the back of it can I hook it strait up to the battery when I get my new outback thanks norm

Yes that will be fine the only thing you need to check is the max voltage output of the regulator does not exceed 14.8v as that is the upper limit for the setec power supply in the expander. I would also fit an inline fuse in the lead as close to the battery end as is convenient.

Quote below from the setec manual

"Solar power should be connected directly across the battery terminals with a voltage regulator in
series. A solar panel voltage regulator with maximum output voltage not exceeding 14.8 volts must
be used at all times. Failure to use a voltage regulator may result in power supply damage."

 

[Hubble80]

If you are connecting the output of a solar regulator DIRECTLY to the battery, the 14.8V limit for the Setec doesn't really apply as there is a diode to prevent backfeed anyway, however I would be wary of the maximum charge voltage of the battery itself.

 

[norm walker]

Yes that will be fine the only thing you need to check is the max voltage output of the regulator does not exceed 14.8v as that is the upper limit for the setec power supply in the expander. I would also fit an inline fuse in the lead as close to the battery end as is convenient.

Quote below from the setec manual

"Solar power should be connected directly across the battery terminals with a voltage regulator in
series. A solar panel voltage regulator with maximum output voltage not exceeding 14.8 volts must
be used at all times. Failure to use a voltage regulator may result in power supply damage."

thanks for that