# Solar Mods



## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Ok, since DW was kind enough to get a solar setup for me for Christmas, I now have the decision to make. Do I mount it to the roof, or do I carry the panels separately. So far I came up with the advantage of separate being optimal sun alignment and no figuring out how to secure them to the roof. The advantage of a roof mount is no storage or setup hassles, charging whenever it is light (storage and travel), and high security (I doubt anyone would climb up on my roof to remove them!).

So, thoughts, experiences....


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Nathan said:


> Ok, since DW was kind enough to get a solar setup for me for Christmas, I now have the decision to make. Do I mount it to the roof, or do I carry the panels separately. So far I came up with the advantage of separate being optimal sun alignment and no figuring out how to secure them to the roof. The advantage of a roof mount is no storage or setup hassles, charging whenever it is light (storage and travel), and high security (I doubt anyone would climb up on my roof to remove them!).
> 
> So, thoughts, experiences....


I wish I had a picture of mine, but I will try to explain.

1) it is not mounted on the Outback
2) I have a quick connect setup, which allows me to plug into the Outback very quickly (3 seconds?)
3) I also have the panel connected to a very long wire. This allows me to place it just about anywhere.

I went this route as we don't camp in a lot of places that get direct sunlight. We are around very tall trees that create a large canopy and therefore the solar panel isn't always useful, so I didn't want to mount it to the Outback.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Oregon_Camper said:


> I wish I had a picture of mine, but I will try to explain.
> 
> 1) it is not mounted on the Outback
> 2) I have a quick connect setup, which allows me to plug into the Outback very quickly (3 seconds?)
> ...


Ok, so how do you transport them and do you secure them in some way so they don't take a stroll??


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Nathan said:


> I wish I had a picture of mine, but I will try to explain.
> 
> 1) it is not mounted on the Outback
> 2) I have a quick connect setup, which allows me to plug into the Outback very quickly (3 seconds?)
> ...


Ok, so how do you transport them and do you secure them in some way so they don't take a stroll??








[/quote]

The panel gets slipped back into a bubble wrap sleeve after each trip...then into a bag with handles. then we simply slip a hanger through the handles and it hangs in the coat closet.

As far as "taking a stroll"...I've never really worried about it. If I see some hooligans in the campground, then take it down if we are going for a hike. Again, I can plug it in...put it where I want it, in about 10 seconds. Very simple. I don't bring it down at night as it is basically impossible to see once it is on top the Outback. There is a small wire that comes down to the battery, but at night there is no chance of seeing it.


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## jasonrebecca (Oct 30, 2007)

Oregon Camper, are you just using the cable that came with your panel or did you purchase a longer one and if so where?


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

jasonrebecca said:


> Oregon Camper, are you just using the cable that came with your panel or did you purchase a longer one and if so where?


This is not the one that came with it. I simply made my own. I don't reccall the wire guage at this time (Outback is in storage, or I'd go look). Then I just bought the same gauge wire....added the quick connects and was done.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Oregon_Camper said:


> I wish I had a picture of mine, but I will try to explain.
> 
> 1) it is not mounted on the Outback
> 2) I have a quick connect setup, which allows me to plug into the Outback very quickly (3 seconds?)
> ...


Ok, so how do you transport them and do you secure them in some way so they don't take a stroll??








[/quote]

The panel gets slipped back into a bubble wrap sleeve after each trip...then into a bag with handles. then we simply slip a hanger through the handles and it hangs in the coat closet.

As far as "taking a stroll"...I've never really worried about it. If I see some hooligans in the campground, then take it down if we are going for a hike. Again, I can plug it in...put it where I want it, in about 10 seconds. Very simple. I don't bring it down at night as it is basically impossible to see once it is on top the Outback. There is a small wire that comes down to the battery, but at night there is no chance of seeing it.
[/quote]
Ok, interesting... The first real use will be the trip to Yellowstone/grand tetons this summer. We'll be doing quite a bit of dry camping, but at more populated campgrounds so I'm debating how to handle it. So, how many watts are you running? The DW picked up 1 15W panel, a 7 amp charge controller and told me to buy what else I needed...


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## W Podboy (Jan 4, 2007)

What a great Christmas present&#8230;
We had 2 solar panels on our old trailer for 15 years and when we got the new OB last year I put 2 panels on the roof. The mounting on the roof was the easy part. I just used the mounting screws that came with the panels and put a big glob of RTV silicone where the screws were going to penetrate the roof. ( to make sure no water leaked ).

The power lead to the battery was a bit more difficult but I found that if I followed the inside of our TV cabinet I could run the cable inside some wire mold and it did not look too bad.

I again sealed the hole with RTV silicone and soldered and weather sealed my wire connection to the panels. This was the same way I did the install on the old trailer and never had any problems.

The panels are on all the time and keep a great floating charge on the batteries during the day and the internal discharge of the cells in the battery is enough at night to prevent "cooking" the batteries. This will extend the life of your batteries&#8230;

Wes


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## Ghosty (Jan 17, 2005)

what size solar panels did you get??


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## skippershe (May 22, 2006)

Ghosty said:


> what size solar panels did you get??


I bet whatever size they are, you'll find them online for $1.50!


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

skippershe said:


> what size solar panels did you get??


I bet whatever size they are, you'll find them online for $1.50!








[/quote]

He can find a deal...can't he!!


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

I got 1 15W (Sunforce I beleive) with permission to buy what I need.









edit... maybe that question wasn't directed at me.....


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## Oregon_Camper (Sep 13, 2004)

Nathan said:


> I got 1 15W (Sunforce I beleive) with permission to buy what I need.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


LOL...

Was directed at Ghosty...he can find a deal on just about anything.


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## SoCalOutback (Dec 18, 2005)

In my gallery I have a picture of my solar panel connection point and my charge controller. I have 2 64 watt solar panels that I opted to not mount on top. I have found that most camp grounds I I frequent in Southern California end up having quite a bit of shade. So it nice to be able to put the panels where they are in the sun all day.

See these threads for more info on my solar system:

Solar Panels

Solar Battery Charger


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## MJRey (Jan 21, 2005)

Nathan, I've got an 80 watt panel mounted on the roof. Sometimes it's blocked by shade but I usually don't camp where that is a big issue. If you're normal camping areas have lots of shade then a portable panel setup will work better. The only problem will be securing the panels while you're away from the campsite.


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## Thor (Apr 7, 2004)

I did the same as Jim

I mounted my charge controller near my batteries. On the 28RSS under the cover..on the 31RQS just under the trailer but visible thru the propane access door. I ran cables to the front and back of the trailer with automotive quick connects. I have 3 of them, front middle, rear of the trailer. The solar panels also have the quick connects on them and I have a long cable which allows for flexible location of the panels. I am like Jim, usually when I dry camp, I am in not out in a field.

As for storage - 28RSS - I kept them behind the sofa - You need to remove them if you are going to pull it out. The 31 RQS - I built a shelf above the hot water tank which can be accessed thru the rear storage door.

Thor


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## Tonopah (Nov 17, 2007)

I had two 80 watt panels on the roof of my prior RV. I also had twin 6 volt batteries. The good thing about the roof (permanent) mount was that I always started each trip with a full charge as the batteries continued to charge while the TT was in storage (and also when traveling). It's really a trickle charge and that is good for the batteries. The roof mount also meant that the panels were secure from theft.

The downside though was that when I camped in the forrest, the solar did not do much good. So I had to get a Honda EU2000 anyway. When camping in sunny areas I did not need the generator at all as 160 watts of solar really kept the 6 volt deep cycle batteries up to snuff well. Wish I had this set up on my Outback 25rss and someday I may do it. My Outback currently has no solar and has two 12 volt batteries and it seems like I am running the generator a lot.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Ok, I've been discussing it with the DW on pros and cons of roof/vs portable mount. We've come to a conclusion (although it could align with some Dilbert cartoons







). The decision is: Both.









So, I'm planning 45W on the roof for charging while parked, while traveling, etc. Then I'll look for a 60-80W panel to set up if we need additional charging in a dry camping situation. I'll do the plug on the front of the trailer with a long cord for the portable panel. So, now how do I hook panels to the roof. I can just picture them blowing off somewhere in the Dakota's.


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## MJRey (Jan 21, 2005)

Nathan,

One thing to consider is the size of the panels. An 80 watt panel is pretty big and you'll have to find a secure place to store it when not in use. You'll also need some kind of stand to set it out on, something out of PVC would be easy to make.

To mount the panel on the roof you can buy mounts or make your own. I made my own with square aluminum tubing and angle brackets. Mounting anything on the roof is a bit tricky because you have to find the rafters to mount into. Somewhere I took some pictures of my install and described the process. I'll see if I can find it and send it your way.

One more thing you'll need to get is a good charge controller to manage the power from the panels. I went with a fairly expensive one because I didn't want to overcharge the batteries when the trailer was in storage. When you've got both panels connected (100+ watts) you'll be able to put out 4 to 6 amps and a good controller is a must to manage that much current.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

MJRey said:


> Nathan,
> 
> One thing to consider is the size of the panels. An 80 watt panel is pretty big and you'll have to find a secure place to store it when not in use. You'll also need some kind of stand to set it out on, something out of PVC would be easy to make.
> 
> ...


Thanks, I'd appreciate any pictures. I was figuring aluminum tubing would work well, but was trying to figure out the best attachment method. I have a charge controller. I'm still going to look around for a good price on a portable panel. The small 15W ones are running $65 on Amazon.com so they are pretty affordable, but I didn't want to have to get into setting up multiple panels in camp, plus I was considering using it over the winter to keep my batteries topped up when at home (the trailer is in indoor storage).


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## Alaskan OutBackers (Apr 2, 2005)

So should 15w be a good size to get, ofcourse the bigger the size the faster the charge. I have looked into a solar panel for ours however could never come to a decision on what size. Spoke with a friend that works with a company here in town that build different contraptions with solar panels powering it. Some of the used ones are just as good as good.


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## wildeyedandbuckwild (Jan 2, 2008)

As for mounting the solar panels on the roof, less hassle. But I would use some lock tight on the nuts and bolts. There’s is two types of lock tight “Red and Blue “any hardware store carries it, the difference between the two is “the red is used when what you are using it on is not going to be removed. But if you heat it, It will loosen up” the blue can be removed but it will take some effort. Would love to see pic once it’s installed.


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