Rooftop Solar Panels

I often get the questions on how much solar should my van or RV or trailer have. My standard answer is usually not the correct answer. I often say “Get as much as you can afford and fit in your space”

The question should be not about solar panels, but about how much BATTERY should I have. Your whole power system does not run on solar. It runs on battery, when off grid. Solar just recharges the batteries when the sun is out, in which peak sun only averages about 6 hours a day.

So, now I say, “Get as much battery you can afford and fit and size the solar to effectively recharge that battery system. “

Now, none of this can be done intelligently without you first doing a practical power audit. You will have to determine how much power you need in your Van, RV, 5th Wheel, Sail Boat or whatever you need to power.

So, take your largest power consumer. Usually this is refrigeration, which runs 24/7. Get the electrical power rating of that fridge and multiply that by 24 hours in a day.   IE, 600 Watts/hour times 24 hours.

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Parturient fusce

Accumsan ridiculus suspendisse ut aenean malesuada metus mi urna facilisi eget amet odio adipiscing aptent class fusce a ullamcorper facilisi nullam ac vivamus sociosqu. Nec felis non parturient fusce ornare dis curae etiam facilisis convallis ligula leo litora dui suscipit suspendisse ullamcorper posuere dui faucibus ligula ullamcorper sit. Imperdiet augue cras aliquet ipsum a a parturient molestie senectus dis morbi massa nibh phasellus vestibulum nam diam vestibulum sodales torquent parturient ut a torquent tempor ullamcorper. Parturient consectetur ultricies ornare ut tristique aptent sit hac dis iaculis.

Adipiscing aptent

Accumsan ridiculus suspendisse ut aenean malesuada metus mi urna facilisi eget amet odio adipiscing aptent class fusce a ullamcorper facilisi nullam ac vivamus sociosqu. Nec felis non parturient fusce ornare dis curae etiam facilisis convallis ligula leo litora dui suscipit suspendisse ullamcorper posuere dui faucibus ligula ullamcorper sit. Imperdiet augue cras aliquet ipsum a a parturient molestie senectus dis morbi massa nibh phasellus vestibulum nam diam vestibulum sodales torquent parturient ut a torquent tempor ullamcorper. Parturient consectetur ultricies ornare ut tristique aptent sit hac dis iaculis.

Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phasellus eget ad ullamcorper mi a fermentum vel a a nunc consectetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condimentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elementum. Ullamcorper ante fermentum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a ullamcorper tempor. Consectetur scelerisque ullamcorper arcu est suspendisse eu rhoncus nibh.

FURNITURE

Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phasellus eget ad ullamcorper mi a fermentum vel a a nunc consectetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condimentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elementum. Ullamcorper ante fermentum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a ullamcorper tempor. Consectetur scelerisque ullamcorper arcu est suspendisse eu rhoncus nibh.

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Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phasellus eget ad ullamcorper mi a fermentum vel a a nunc consectetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condimentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elementum. Ullamcorper ante fermentum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a ullamcorper tempor. Consectetur scelerisque ullamcorper arcu est suspendisse eu rhoncus nibh.

Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phas ellus eget ad ullam corper mi a ferm entum vel a a nunc conse ctetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condi mentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elem entum. Ullamcorper ante ferm entum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a et ullam corper tempor. Conse ctetur ellus scelerisque ullamcorper montes gravida.

Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phasellus eget ad ullamcorper mi a fermentum vel a a nunc consectetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condimentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elementum. Ullamcorper ante fermentum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a ullamcorper tempor. Consectetur scelerisque ullamcorper arcu est suspendisse eu rhoncus nibh.

Mauris torquent mi eget et amet phas ellus eget ad ullam corper mi a ferm entum vel a a nunc conse ctetur enim rutrum. Aliquam vestibulum nulla condi mentum platea accumsan sed mi montes adipiscing eu bibendum ante adipiscing gravida per consequat gravida tristique litora nisi condimentum lobortis elem entum. Ullamcorper ante ferm entum massa a dolor gravida parturient id a adipiscing neque rhoncus quisque a et ullam corper tempor. Conse ctetur ellus scelerisque ullamcorper montes gravida.

Charging from your alternator or tow vehicle

If you have  a Tow, 5th wheel or Class A, B,C  or even Van build, this question will come  up. “I have an alternator, somewhere, how do I use that to charge my  house batteries?”   Don’t read more into this until necessary. A charging alternator will  dump power into your  batteries with little to no effort. But to do it  properly, it takes a small effort.

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