Why We Use Solar

This day and age, nobody likes to live without power. I know the kiddo likes to have the computer running all the time. Mamma needs to charge her kindle. But the biggest reason we NEED power? My Espresso Machine! This things pulls 100 amps of 12 volt from the battery, and with out the right set up, this could cause a catastrophe for my mornings.

There are a few different ways to handle this. First, and most obvious, is to always have hookups. This might sound great, but some days we want to be out away from people. Other days we are traveling from one location to another and decide to stop for an overnight.

The prime reason we have a solar system is for the times we don’t want to compromise the luxurious parts of life and avoid the noises of a generator.

Solar is not for everyone. The size of the system will vary by the needs of the users. Our system is smaller and fairly simple. 800W of solar panels flat mounted. 100/50 solar controller. 3000w inverter. Stock converter. 460Ah battery.

How does solar work?

The solar panels collect energy from the sun. That is sent through wires into the solar controller, that then converts it into a flow into the battery. That battery stores all the energy until you are ready to use it. In the rig, we can use that battery two different ways.

First, using 12v natively in the rig. For us that is the refrigerator, lights, furnace, water heater controls, leveling system, AC thermostat/controls, and water pump.

Second, making 120v from the 12v using an inverter. Our rig is set up with an “inverted loop.” This means one of the sets of outlets are wired in a loop, with a location to ‘install’ a pass through style inverter. The wire comes from the breaker box, goes through the inverter, then out to the outlets. If power is disconnected from before the inverter, it will turn on, using the electricity from the batteries to make 120v at the loop of plugs.

We like having twice the amount of panels as amp hours. So, for 200 ah of batteries, we add 400w of panels. For 400 ah of batteries, add 800 w of panels. This allows us to capture from the sun the majority of what we use throughout a day/night cycle.

The size of the solar controller comes from the amount of panels on the roof. With our 4 panels in a 2S2P setup we needed pretty high voltage controller. A 100 volt in and 50 amp out is just bigger than what our panels can do.

Can this keep us with the lights on forever? No. This system was never intended for that. It does allow us a few days of not having to plug in if we are off grid. If we need the air conditioner, then we will plug in and run off the generator. If we are in cloudy conditions for more than a couple days, then we can plug in the generator and charge the battery in a few hours.

We can keep tabs on our consumption and charging a couple of ways. We have a Bluetooth smart shunt on our negative battery terminal counting every electron coming in or going out of the system. Our battery is also Bluetooth enabled. The battery was purchased almost 2 years after the shunt, but they still work together without issue, so it’s okay to purchase in phases.

If our travel goal was to be in parks all the time, I would not have invested in even a modest system. That is not how we want to travel or camp, so we got a system that was economical and fit our needs. Since then, I have learned a lot about RV solar, the equipment, and use. I believe in solar so much I install solar for clients all over the US on their rigs. If you are interested in joining many of us moving to an off grid mentality, I’d be glad to chat with you. If you are wanting a system though, do look at Great Outdoors Solar for ideas on how much solar you may need and prices to make that happen.