Most solar?

[DonTom]

I have both and the older i get the more i like that i dont have to do anything for the roof mounted.

Yeah, I was thinking about replacing them on my Y2K RV roof, but I do not even like the idea going up there in my old age. A few years ago, I thought nothing of it. But I decided I will configure those to keep my engine battery charged up with one of my old 100-watt PWM controllers. They should work well enough for that for many years.

All my Y2K class C house solar will be on the ground from now on. I recently purchased a Victron 100V/50-amp MPPT solar controller with a monitor to use with my outside solar.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[UTTransplant]

For a number of years there was someone in Quartzsite with tilted panels on their Class A roof, panels on the side of a large enclosed trailer they towed, and more tilted panels on the trailer. Oh, and they had more panels on the ground! I never counted, but they do take the record for the most panels I have ever seen on one rig.

 

[Chef Duane]

 

[DonTom]

View attachment 178817

That either is not used much as well as always parked where sunny, or else it requires some type of EV charging besides the solar. Just to move it at a slow speed will probably take around 30KW and I doubt it has 30KW of solar.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Chef Duane]

That either is not used much as well as always parked where sunny, or else it requires some type of EV charging besides the solar. Just to move it at a slow speed will probably take around 30KW and I doubt it has 30KW of solar.

-Don- Reno, NV

No way. That thing is about 1.21 Gigawatts at least.

 

[Tom_M1]

You'd be lucky to get 1KW. The roof has the largest panels which appear to be about 4x200 watt panels. The sides are covered with several small panels of no more than about 20 watts each. Only 3 sides would get any sunlight. Non of them would get direct sunlight.

Here's a link to an article about this van:
Solar-Powered Van Conversion - RenewCo Solar

 

[DonTom]

You'd be lucky to get 1KW.

And even the full KW will not help much. I doubt the difference will be noticeable.

" He also charges the car from the home, with a cable coming directly from the roof."

Rather obvious it has to charge elsewhere.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[garyb1st]

We have 210 aHs of Lithium and two solar suitcases with 300 watts total. We only have a 1000 watt inverter so can't run a coffee maker or the microwave. Instead we run the Onan 5500 in the morning for a couple of hours. We also use our Honda 2000 most evenings for computing, TV etc. At most, we're probably spending $7-9 a day on gas. We camp maybe 100 days a year.

With another 100 aHs of Lithium and a larger inverter we could make coffee and run the microwave. That would cost me maybe $1,000. What would it cost for enough solar to do the same thing?

Personally, I think the amount of solar needed is related to the owners pocketbook and need to impress. Unless it can run the AC and you're camping during the summer heat, it just isn't necessary.

 

[DonTom]

Unless it can run the AC and you're camping during the summer heat, it just isn't necessary.

It's nice to be able to run my MW oven during quiet hours, such as during lunchtime in Organ Pipe Cactus Nat'l Monument. Or for a late night meal.

And solar means you do not need to run the genny nearly as long when you may. And helps when you cannot be back at that time to run the genny.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[rvlifer]

We have 210 aHs of Lithium and two solar suitcases with 300 watts total. We only have a 1000 watt inverter so can't run a coffee maker or the microwave. Instead we run the Onan 5500 in the morning for a couple of hours. We also use our Honda 2000 most evenings for computing, TV etc. At most, we're probably spending $7-9 a day on gas. We camp maybe 100 days a year.

With another 100 aHs of Lithium and a larger inverter we could make coffee and run the microwave. That would cost me maybe $1,000. What would it cost for enough solar to do the same thing?

Personally, I think the amount of solar needed is related to the owners pocketbook and need to impress. Unless it can run the AC and you're camping during the summer heat, it just isn't necessary.

The amount of solar you need is dependent upon how much power you use and how fast you want to recharge the battery bank. If you need more batteries you might also need more solar.

I can run 1 ac unit off my battery bank overnight but it would take many days for my 2k solar setup to recharge the batteries.

Some may do it for show but there are valid reasons to have a big solar setup

 

[garyb1st]

Some may do it for show but there are valid reasons to have a big solar setup

Full timers would have a legitimate need for as much solar as they can fit on their RV. For others, I think it's more like a toy. Nice to have but not a necessity. Total watts determined more by the size of the pocket book than actual need.

 

[DonTom]

Some may do it for show but there are valid reasons to have a big solar setup

The van in message 23 was almost totally for show, unless he parks it in the sun every day and only uses it once a month.

It can save a few pennies on his electric bill when he charges it up at home., so I cannot go as far as saying totally useless.

But still is mostly for show. Kinda like this 48 cylinder, 1,300 LBS motorcycle:

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Sunnyfalls]

I would suggest the better question is how little solar panel and battery AHs are needed to accomplish unlimited dry camping in very remote locations...

More is always better. Such as for when there isn't much sunlight, and one has a large compressor refrigerator and other large current demands and no genny.

-Don- Reno, NV

And like anything, if you repeat something endlessly, many people will actually believe it and do it...

We can get 120VAC and 20A (i.e., 2400 Watts maximum capability) for 20 minutes from our 3000 Watt Inverter using only a 100AH Group 27 LiFePO4 battery. Our daily depletion rate never exceeds 50AHs. We can fully replenish this daily battery depletion in under 4 hours using only 200 Watt solar panels. 20 minutes of operating time using 20A enables daily operation of all our short-duration 120VAC appliances which include our coffee maker, microwave oven, 2-slice toaster, toaster oven, toilet heated bidet seat and vacuum cleaner. And since any one of these appliances only uses a maximum of 800 Watts (i.e., only 33% of our maximum 2400 Watt capability), our actual operational time is about 1 hour.

Having an electric only compressor refrigerator in lieu of an electric/propane absorption refrigerator in a RV that doesn't always have a shore power hookup makes little sense to me. And then constructing a battery system to then power a compressor refrigerator or an AC system when shore power is not available makes zero sense to me. George Carlin probably explained this phenomenon best:

 

[Chef Duane]

But still is mostly for show. Kinda like this 48 cylinder, 1,300 LBS motorcycle:

View attachment 178829

Or a Boss Hoss.

 

[rvlifer]

Full timers would have a legitimate need for as much solar as they can fit on their RV. For others, I think it's more like a toy. Nice to have but not a necessity. Total watts determined more by the size of the pocket book than actual need.

I lean a bit more toward sunnyfalls comment that it has to do more with boondocking than full timing. Also has a lot to do with your opinion on what is necessary vs unnecessary.

Dont completely disregard the showpieces. Many times those show people what is possible. Not a bad thing

 

[DonTom]

Or a Boss Hoss

But that is "only" a V8:

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[garyb1st]

I would suggest the better question is how little solar panel and battery AHs are needed to accomplish unlimited dry camping in very remote locations...

And like anything, if you repeat something endlessly, many people will actually believe it and do it...

We can get 120VAC and 20A (i.e., 2400 Watts maximum capability) for 20 minutes from our 3000 Watt Inverter using only a 100AH Group 27 LiFePO4 battery. Our daily depletion rate never exceeds 50AHs. We can fully replenish this daily battery depletion in under 4 hours using only 200 Watt solar panels. 20 minutes of operating time using 20A enables daily operation of all our short-duration 120VAC appliances which include our coffee maker, microwave oven, 2-slice toaster, toaster oven, toilet heated bidet seat and vacuum cleaner. And since any one of these appliances only uses a maximum of 800 Watts (i.e., only 33% of our maximum 2400 Watt capability), our actual operational time is about 1 hour.

Having an electric only compressor refrigerator in lieu of an electric/propane absorption refrigerator in a RV that doesn't always have a shore power hookup makes little sense to me. And then constructing a battery system to then power a compressor refrigerator or an AC system when shore power is not available makes zero sense to me. George Carlin probably explained this phenomenon best:

Love George Carlin.

 

[rvlifer]

Having an electric only compressor refrigerator in lieu of an electric/propane absorption refrigerator in a RV that doesn't always have a shore power hookup makes little sense to me. And then constructing a battery system to then power a compressor refrigerator or an AC system when shore power is not available makes zero sense to me.

I would own a lot less stuff than carlin is ranting about if my wife agreed. Having the stuff is better than getting divorced and it doesnt make any sense to give up refrigeration, laundry, etc and go back to doing it the old way.

It would have cost me a fortune to convert the fridge and all other less than optimally efficient stuff in my rv so i chose to invest it into a bigger solar setup. I did swap the induction cooktop with gas cause that didnt cost thousands to do.

It was already in the rv so if i swapped that stuff out it probably would have ended up in a landfill

Even though it isnt the most efficient once you get over the initial upfront costs it doesnt cost anything to run all of that inefficient stuff and i get other benefits such as being able to stop anywhere and heat up lunch in the microwave.

I would have bought a different rv with less, more efficient stuff but my life would have been far more miserable because my wife would have been miserable. Life is a set of tradeoffs and everyone has different needs. Its nice that therr is room for everyone

 

[garyb1st]

Missed the 2nd video. It makes me think of folks wearing red hats.

 

[Sunnyfalls]

I would own a lot less stuff than carlin is ranting about if my wife agreed. Having the stuff is better than getting divorced and it doesnt make any sense to give up refrigeration, laundry, etc and go back to doing it the old way.

It would have cost me a fortune to convert the fridge and all other less than optimally efficient stuff in my rv so i chose to invest it into a bigger solar setup. I did swap the induction cooktop with gas cause that didnt cost thousands to do.

It was already in the rv so if i swapped that stuff out it probably would have ended up in a landfill

Even though it isnt the most efficient once you get over the initial upfront costs it doesnt cost anything to run all of that inefficient stuff and i get other benefits such as being able to stop anywhere and heat up lunch in the microwave.

I would have bought a different rv with less, more efficient stuff but my life would have been far more miserable because my wife would have been miserable. Life is a set of tradeoffs and everyone has different needs. Its nice that therr is room for everyone