I'm sure this has been beaten to death...

[Macodiva]

But lets pretend i know nothing about electricity & that the more i read about amps, volts, monitors ect the more confusing it gets!
My thought is that i would like to add a solar suitcase, plug & play type to my class B. I'm aware it won't be much power but i'm thinking of it as more of a just adding a little bit to keep it ticking over so to speak.
My understanding is you basically stick the panels in the sun & attach the croc clips to the battery & voila you're charging.
The trouble is my 105ah battery is in a box bolted to the undercarriage of the van.
Is it possible to permanently attach some cable to the battery & run it to the side of the rv so that i can just clip it from there? Or am i likely to electrocute myself or destroy my battery or something?
Thanks.

[SteveJ]

I could perpetually power my Roadtrek with a 100 watt portable, but my power demand is normally less than 30 amp hours/day, usually about 20 or 25. I now have 150 watts.

I removed the controller from the portable panels and mounted it inside the van, near the converter charger. I tied in the charging wires to the battery terminals inside the converter. This gives a better charge to the battery. I have a 200 with a side box so I wired up an SAE connector in there. You could definitely mount a connector directly to the camper exterior and just plug into that. Do get rid of the alligator ends and install better connectors.

I have two sections of 25' of wiring to the panels. I can mostly get by using one and that is preferred to lessen the voltage drop, but I do have the extension if required. 10 gauge wiring would be better but I used 12, from the panels to the controller. I used 10 gauge from the controller to the battery as that is more critical. I used SAE two prong connecters throughout as I found the Anderson connectors a pain to deal with.

For a modest system like you want and I have, a PWM controller will work OK. Do get one with a temperature sensor. I use an older model of this one:
https://amazon.com/Renogy-Adventurer...79&sr=8-3&th=1

Do note that the above controller will not work for a lithium battery, but it will work with all others.

Pair that up with a 100 watt folding suitcase or the light weight thin flex panels for easier storage.

This set up will get you up and running for $300-350, all in, doing it yourself including a length of light weight dog chain and a couple of cheap combination locks.

I'm currently usually using 150 watts of solar as one of the sides to my original folding panels broke, so I added another 100 watt suitcase. After having this setup in use for over four years of extended boondocking I would never go back to not having solar.

I have a single 100 Amp hour lead acid battery that can last for usually three nights without needing solar if I take it down to about 25%. I don't usually deploy the solar if staying only two nights somewhere, but three or more, yes.

A shunt based battery monitor, while not absolutely required, will make living with solar and boondocking a lot easier. Amazon has some cheap ones(which I use) or you can splurge on Victron, etc.

YMMV, but you should be able to get about 40 amp hours per day in good all day sun with a portable 100 watt panel, depending on latitude and especially, time of year. Winter would likely be somewhat less.

Some entertaining info is available at hardy bob solar if you really want to delve into it.

I'll be out in AZ next month if you want hook up and see my setup in action.

[hbn7hj]

Originally Posted by Macodiva

Is it possible to permanently attach some cable to the battery & run it to the side of the rv so that i can just clip it from there? Or am i likely to electrocute myself or destroy my battery or something?
Thanks.

Yes.The positive lead from the battery needs to be covered/protected when not connected to the solar panel and should have a fuse near the battery.

Connectors and fuses available at Auto Zone or O’Reilly’s

[themexicandoctor]

Excellent answer Steve J.

Great detail.

Valuable!

PS.What sort of rig do you have Macodiva?

Here is a link that has been shared by a few of the owners here & it seems to have passed their* muster;

https://batteryuniversity.com/

*I mentioned this because there are so e other threads that people post as been valuable & then The Giants amongst us are very clear "lots of bad ideas/some misconceptions/the guy who wrote that doesn't understand RV's/etc.

The Man behind Victron Energy who make some of the finest Solar products in the World along with Batteries, Inverters & such also wrote this book that is free as a PDF Download.

This guy is The Man;

https://www.victronenergy.com/orderbook

Hope this helps.

[Macodiva]

[QUOTE=themexicandoctor;118758]Excellent answer Steve J.

Great detail.

Valuable!

PS.What sort of rig do you have Macodiva?

It's a 2019 Carado Banff., no lithium, no eco trek, no solar, no volt start ect. Just 105 agm & UHG. I know a lot of people say they're crap & cheaply made ect. I agree they are fairly cheaply made but that's ok with me as the price was right.
I don't need a singing dancing rv lol. I'm quite happy with basic, less to break!
It also works for me as all the plumbing & electric are in place. I'll eventually get round to setting it up inside just how i want it. It means i won't sweat ripping the woodwork out as i didn't pay $100,000 + for it!

[GallenH]

My setup is almost exactly what SteveJ has: Single 100AH LA battery, 100w Renogy folding suitcase with same controller. I also use a chain with padlocks for security. That setup recovers what we use during the day plus overnight by noon (in the AZ blazing sun desert). This past week in Yosemite (which doesn't get many hours of sun due to the canyon walls) it takes longer, but we did maintain battery without driving or generator (which we don't have). The only driving we did when camping was to change sites.

If I add more battery capacity, I'll probably do some roof solar but I'll still use the suitcase as part of the package.

[GallenH]

Forgot: I mounted an external outlet box (orange box store) with a single outlet cutout and bought a single AC outlet that has a rubber cover.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I use normal 12ga extension cords from the box to the suitcase panel. Have several 10ft lengths and use only what I need to get to the panel.

[mkguitar]

I use a "trailer light" style flat-2 plug ( like a battery tender uses) wired to my house battery.
with a fuse in line
I plug my suitcase into that.


if you are interested in electricity "ohm's law" will help convert watts to amps and etc- google

mike

[SteveJ]

Originally Posted by mkguitar

I use a "trailer light" style flat-2 plug ( like a battery tender uses) wired to my house battery.
with a fuse in line
I plug my suitcase into that.


if you are interested in electricity "ohm's law" will help convert watts to amps and etc- google

mike

Same terminal as I use. Pic to eliminate possible confusion:

[markopolo]

MC4 connectors with dust caps would be good. Easy to expand the array and hard to mess up polarity. I find them to be easier to disconnect than most SAE connectors. And, they're waterproof, often with double insulated wire and UV protected.

It seems to be easier to go wrong with SAE connectors & polarity IMO. It gets worse if you have multiple items that use them and have several cords around. If there's a power "source" at both ends of the circuit then a positive terminal is unavoidably bare. OK with dust caps I guess as long as the cap stays on. It helps if the SAE positive wire is red. Some have both positive & negative wires that are black.

I'd probably use a round style (7-way) trailer plug with a portable panel if the controller is external as the existing 7-way receptacle already provides a circuit protected path to the coach batteries on my van.

Edit: adding photo of two SAE connectors. Notice the red wire is on the left on both but the terminations are the opposites.
SAE.JPG

Red to Black
red to black.JPG

[Macodiva]

Originally Posted by mkguitar

I use a "trailer light" style flat-2 plug ( like a battery tender uses) wired to my house battery.
with a fuse in line
I plug my suitcase into that.


if you are interested in electricity "ohm's law" will help convert watts to amps and etc- google

mike

Thank you!
This is the simple type of thing i was thinking of but after reading so many things i wasn't sure if it actually could be that simple!

[ChicagoTom]

I have mine setup like that. Neatly run cables to the battery tray, 09 Lexor TS. I have a 100 watt Solar that I slap up in less than 1 minute, and folds up to about 14 inches. I have velcro below the two upper windows and that's where the panels sit. 100 watt is more than enough. I had 60 watt and it worked fine, but this keeps it 100% charged all the time. I run the fan, charge vac, 12v TV, etc.

[ChicagoTom]

I also have the controller permanently installed under the awning. (Velcro is my friend) BTW, I've had this setup for about 2+ years now. No need to shut the battery disconnect off. Once in awhile if no sun for a few days, I'll have to run the chassis, but So California is pretty sunny year round.

[Doneworking]

Personally, my system is really simple and has worked fine for years. I don't want anything too complex in any of my systems because we boondock mostly and complexity is not your friend out in the boonies 30 miles to a town and no cell service. A solar panel, a controller, a fuse and hooked up to the battery through a quick release outside receptacle or connection of some description. Period. Just my way of doing things.

ChicagoTom and I seem to share the same wave lengths on these matters.


Paul

[booster]

I think pretty much all solar setups are very simple as mentioned. Panels, controller, fuse, batteries. Not much else to have unless it is tied into an automatic charge controlling central control like some lithium setups are.


Portables and fixed panels have different positives and negatives is about the only difference. We prefer fixed panels so we never have to mess with them and they are charging when parked anywhere.