Solar Panel Prices

Does anyone know what I should expect to pay to have 2 solar panels installed?

Well that is an open ended question...lots of "depends". I will tell you I had my (2) 100 watt solar panels installed at AM Solar in Oregon for ~2k. That was for the 2 panels, solar controller, and a TriMetric battery monitor. Labor was ~ $750. They did an excellent job.

http://www.amsolar.com/products.html

Jim

Guess I did kind of leave that open... ;D

I want to add 2 solar panels to help keep the batteries charged.  We already will have a solar system that comes with the rig, this is just for extra measure.  The dealership has quoted me 5K. 

Are yours for the same situation and are yours adequate?

Well...it "depends"...on how many amps you use per day. You really have to sit down and calculate that number. Once you have that then you can make an "educated" decision on how may solar panels you may want/need. Of course everything depends on if you have adequate sunshine to use your system. Nothing is perfect.
For our usage the 2 panels work for our needs.

I have no idea what the sales verbiage "solar ready" means when you view the RV websites. 

$5K sounds very expensive.  Two 130 watt panels are the largest fixed expense and are about $800 each the last time I looked at prices.  Which was over a year ago.   

This place was the lowest price for panels that I could find. They are in Miami, FL and if you could pick them up yourself  it is a bargain. Shipping is high. This is where I expect to get them if I decide to go ahead with a plan. It would require lots of aluminum bars and angle to install, available from your local Ace Hardware store. A controller is needed and some wire. This concept is of course a do it your self project. A 1kW Honda is a lot cheaper.

http://sunelec.com/

Prices have dropped in the last year 2-135 watt panels can be had for less than 1K. Just panels and no shipping or installation.

Wally

  I installed 90 watts worth of panels on top of my cl C with not alot of effort at a fraction of the quotes you received,id be happy to give you my ideas if you would be interested.e-mail me at                [email protected]  for anybody interested in my setup.    Bill

BayareaBill said:

.e-mail me at                [email protected]  for anybody interested in my setup.    Bill

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Please post your details here.  I, for one, would be quite interested in them.

judway said:

A 1kW Honda is a lot cheaper.

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And noisier.    Have you figured in the price of fuel?

4ducksrus said:

Does anyone know what I should expect to pay to have 2 solar panels installed?

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Mine cost me about $200.00 and that includes a panel to keep the engine battery charged too. Buy this set now, it's as cheap as they ever are. Comes with a good controller.  It's what I am using and has more than you're need to keep your house batteries charged. You can use one of the panels on your engine battery, as well, without a controller.

They are rather simple to install, especially if you already have a little solar panel on top of your A/C unit like many RV's have, you can use those wires and mount the controller on the bottom of the A/C unit, unless you're more than 7 feet tall or so.

The price of that HFT solar set was $169.99 when I posted that message a few hours ago. Since then, the price went up by $30.00!

But it's on sale for $169.99 quite often. Keep an eye on it if you're not in a hurry and wanna save $30.00.

It's not sold at the full price of $249.99 very often, so don't worry if it goes back up for a while to that price. It seems to change price every week or so, but the $169.99 is the lowest I've seen them ask, but that's all they ask quite often (every couple of weeks or so).

-Don-

  I got 2 sets for 149.00  in Augest.Used aluminum  channel bracket about a 1/4 inch wider then the panels to cup the panels top and bottom,(with a high quality stickyback foam tape  lined inside  channel and between panels to isolate vibrations)! 1  1/4 inch  wide for these panels.mounting bolts to a second L bracket(1 1/2 inch) held panels from sliding out ends.Channel brackets bolt to L brackets that are both glued/sealer-and wood screws to roof.Used appropriate  wire for amps  to  Camping World smart charge contoll er( unit that  comes with system is dumb regulator,might be OK for some installs,I wanted something I didn't have to keep too close of an eye on. I use my setup to charge 2 6 volt cart battery's powering an inverter,that I use for my C-pack and TV/DVDs in evening.But I am sure that setup could be slaved into existing house setup with minimal extra effort,now for the best part:
panels      330.00      charge control er  100.00    mounting brackets(from metal supply shop,Lowes and Home Depot dont carry brackets this large in my area)  60.00    assorted screws bolts  glue sealer  wire  and  sticky tape    40-50  bucks    materials  cost  550.00  and about 6 to 8 hours install  time

install  looks  good  and survived  3000 mile  road trip with no panels exiting top of rig or any damage  so  far.install price will drop by 50 % if only 1 set of panels are installed.    My email  is in message above if anybody would like any further info.
                                                  Happy Holidays to all            Bill

BayareaBill said:

(with a high quality stickyback foam tape  lined inside  channel and between panels to isolate vibrations)

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Now that's a good idea.

A little searching should produce solar panels at $2/watt or less ($200 for 100w panels). eBay is a good source. The Solar cells used in the panels are of only one or two types and quality is fairly consistent. There is some variation in quality of the frame and glass covering. Typical size for a roof top panel would be 100w to 130w( both the same - just marketing!). A "100w" panel is typically made of 72 3x6 inch solar cells, each capable of producing 1.8w - so a total of 129.6w in a good sunny location. Most people will derate that 129.6w by at least 20% to allow for some cloud coverage and the sun not being directly overhead and so call the panels 100w panels.

As mentioned above there are other components - charge controller, wiring, battery(s) etc.

Mounting and labor will likely be the highest cost component of the solar panels and on a RV there are additional considerations compared to mounting on a house - vibration on the road, wind load, etc. So, it would be a good idea to use an installer with RV experience if you are not doing it yourself.

Frank

Thanks to everyone for the great advice.  Wally sent me an email and is sending me a brochure, so we will take a look at what he has and when we're in Arizona next we might have him put a couple on for us.

where in Az?

BTW in the town where I currently live I pretty much walk everywhere so I might only start up my current vehicle every month or so.  I've just had to replace a relatively new battery because I was negligent in ensuring it was charged at frequent enough intervals.  So my next vehicle wil have a 20 or 30 watt solar panel mounted on the roof of the cab.  Along with a quality charge controller. 

Tony, be VERY careful depending on solar panels to keep an expensive battery from going into deep discharge. If the panel gets covered even partially with leaves, or debris output can fall to the point of not being able to charge the battery.

FrankNSharon said:

Tony, be VERY careful depending on solar panels to keep an expensive battery from going into deep discharge. If the panel gets covered even partially with leaves, or debris output can fall to the point of not being able to charge the battery.

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What do you mean by "going into deep discharge"?