solar panel for new TT

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chaperall lite

Well-known member
Joined
May 23, 2012
Posts
107
Location
Minnesota
Hi, bought a new Puma TT this fall and it has a plug in  for a solar panel...do we need some kind of controller so as not to  overcharge the battery? we would like to leave it on when we are sitting in the yard at home to keep the battery up.
 
I believe for a smaller panel - maybe 50 watts or less - you don?t need a regulator.  It won?t put out enough current to damage your battery. 

One thing to consider: if your TT is ?solar ready? the plug on the roof may not be fully wired to the battery.  On mine, it just led to a cabinet space where the regulator was intended to be installed.  If you have an intelligent charger in your Puma, it might be easier and cheaper to just run an extension cord to the TT and let the converter/charger keep the batteries topped up.  If you don?t, a battery maintainer is pretty inexpensive.

I?m not trying to talk you out of solar - I love mine.  I?m just thinking if its main use is to keep your battery topped up at home, there are easier, cheaper ways to do that.
 
Since you just got the camper, I would advise doing nothing other than what Jim said.  Winter provides less sun than summer.  After your first winter, you may decide it is not needed.
 
I have only seen a couple of pics the plugs that come on "solar ready rigs".  Some manufactures run those solar wires directly to the battery and expect you to use suitcase/portable set up which would have a controller mounted at the panel. I would believe this to be true when the solar plug is on the side of the RV where a person could easily plug in ground panels.

If the wires are on the roof I would then believe the manufacturer to have run the wire from the roof down into a cabinet. If this is the case then they expect you to install a controller there and then wire the controller to the battery. This would also require the proper fuses/disconnects.  After determining what you have I would then consider what gauge the wires are. The gauge will determine how many amps you can push through the wire. I would guess that they used 10 gauge.

I realize that you are only speaking of solar for storage but if you are considering solar I would consider looking at as big of a picture of your potential use as possible.  Where is your solar plug located and do you know or can you look at wire markings for gauge size? IF those wires come out into a cabinet, how far are they from the battery?
 
chaperall lite said:
thanks for the advice..will have it stored inside, so will leave it plugged in til spring.

If your battery is a wet cell remember to keep an eye on the electrolyte level. It should always be covering the plates yet not too high either. As you add distilled water watch closely as it rises. As you continue to add water it will touch the bottom of the vent tube and form what is called a cats eye. The water will no longer look smooth and flat, it will become distorted as it touches the tube. This as high as you want it to be yet it gives you the longest interval before having to add again.  The slots in the sides of that tube provide venting so you dont want the water level to cover them. Wear goggles when working with batteries as you are dealing with sulfuric acid.
 
chaperall lite said:
the plugin is on the front of the camper, only a few feet from the battery...

So it would seem that the wires would go to the battery?
 
there are no extra wires , other than the regular cables, but we will have to check further when it warms up a little..plus we are in the middle of deer hunting here in minnesota...but thanks.maybe it does go into a cupboard, but never noticed it when moving into the camper...or else wired right to the converter?
 
Don't be too thrilled with the factory wiring. It's probably not heavy enough to cut down on resistance. For just keeping your batts in good con'd, a basic 100w panel and Chinese controller off Amazon combined with your wiring should do 3 or 4a.. They only charge to about 14.2 or.4 which is very safe. Mt programmable charges up to 15v and sits for months in the AZ sun. Batts stay at about 1270ish on a water test. For some 'light reading' on solar, search for HandyBob'sBlog. Good luck.
 
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