oh, total weight of the panels all together is 16kg spread evenly accross the van roof from front to rear. not much room left after that and 3 hatches, 2 aircons, toilet hatch and awning for slideout. but we dont have a antenna as we use foxtel
21.63.1 mods and features
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What size battery do you have? With all that gear going at night may suck the guts out of it pretty quick
only 100 ah standard battery. at night with 1 tv running and media system running, 2 lights, i am drawing 4 amps. the outside combo fridge freezer uses 6 amps, but only when running, so not all the time. the tv has a backlight control function, which at night i turn the backlight down compared to the day. this saves 7 amps just by turning the backlight down. i have tested the tv and everything running with no mains or solar, and i get 30+ hours running in eco mode. however when i tested the system today, i was running everything all at once at full brightness. fridge running as well. which at night i would not be doing.
i am looking at lion batterys, but i will wait to see how this setup runs this long weekend. if i need more battery power i will replace the lead acid with 3 x lion 100 am batterys. which will increase the capacity to 300 amps compared to 80amps which is all you can use from a lead acid battery.
yeah i was thinking the same about it, during the day, the power is just wasted and not stored. the lions are also just so much lighter than the lead acid but you pay for it in the cost of them. same for my panels, i use 1.5 kilo flexable panels for the roof, more expensive, but very light weight.
Hi Adam, that's pretty impressive! Did I read right, 16kg for 8x 85w panels...And when you say lead acid do you mean gel or agm?
I guess the real test will be after a few overcast days. What sort of regulator/ charger are you using to cope with the amp input? Sorry for all the questions
Cheers.
I guess the real test will be after a few overcast days. What sort of regulator/ charger are you using to cope with the amp input? Sorry for all the questions
Cheers.
questions are good, yes its around 15 kg for all the panels. very light weight. lead acid/gel or agm. all are the same weight. all only good for 80% of there rated 100amp hour. they just perform better of road for some types and last longer when running down to 20% all of the time. lion batteries will give you 100 amps of useage. also they will stay over 13 volts until dead flat. unlike normal batterys which will slowly drop in voltage as they loose there amps. lion battery is 8kg instead of 30-40kg. lion will last 10+ years compared to the few of lead based batterys. the solar charger is rated at 30 amps, here is a link on ebay for one http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SOLAR-RE...Caravan_Parts_Accessories&hash=item53e6adabee
the link for solar panels that i bought, there are bigger and smaller ones, but these fit perfectly between the vans roof edge and the air con.
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/170W-2x8...t-motorhome-/310852038375?hash=item486039aee7
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/170W-2x8...t-motorhome-/310852038375?hash=item486039aee7
Hi Adam, that's pretty impressive! Did I read right, 16kg for 8x 85w panels...And when you say lead acid do you mean gel or agm?
I guess the real test will be after a few overcast days. What sort of regulator/ charger are you using to cope with the amp input? Sorry for all the questions
Cheers.
If you are in the market for a solar regulator @Burnsy go for a MPPT controller, more Amps out of your solar system than with the standard PWM modules.
thanks, found one after a little searching - - it runs on the 12 volt batt. but will support around 750+watts with 18 volt solar panels. as i have around 650 watts its fine for my use. going to purchase it now for the long weekend. it also has a remote panel display
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/10A-20A-...=LH_DefaultDomain_15&var=&hash=item35c9906133
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/10A-20A-...=LH_DefaultDomain_15&var=&hash=item35c9906133
Not sure the quality of the tracer units, should be ok. Have a look at batteryvalue.com.au this guy knows his stuff and quality gear. He helped me setup our beach house as an off grid system.
thanks navmatt, but the one you are using is only 25 amps and too small for my job, i also wanted a external display so that i can check that everything is working as expected.
I got the 50 amp controller, but I know what u mean about having the remote display. It's handy knowing what's going into the batts
here is a picture of the roof, note the 2 x air cons instead of one as well.
Hey Adam, Looks like you have space for another panel.. Maybe just one more to even out.
I would look for another battery at least not to loose all that
I would look for another battery at least not to loose all that
OMG its the space shuttle ready for launch!
I am very jealous and it looks like a neat job up there with the wiring too Adam:thumb:
But one question for you @adam 18.57.9 are you getting the 29amps though the factory wiring or have you upgraded the Jayco wiring to the batteries?
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