Newbie looking for Solar advice - Fiberglass RV
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Old 05-03-2012, 08:53 PM   #1
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Name: Rob
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Newbie looking for Solar advice

I have heard about this company called cea solar that has a deal for fiberglass owners. It is a portable solar system that is 90 watts and has a motion sensor alarm. Friends have said it totally covers their power needs and is $425 includind shipping. More then some but it seems to come with a lot of adapters that may work for me. They also say that their solar cells are German, not Chinese. Has a cool metal storage case. Web site is rvsolarnow.com advice please.
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Old 05-03-2012, 09:03 PM   #2
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Should have said that my friend said the deal is not on their website, you have to call them for the deal. Please give this newbie advise on this.
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Old 05-03-2012, 09:22 PM   #3
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I'm not sure I could advise you.
I have Chinese Solar panels that work OK for me, and I paid about half what you mentioned. Then I put a bit of work into creating a carrying case situation that mimics these panels storage, but mine is a less appealing clunky design. I don't use mine a lot; which is probably why they've held up for as long as they have. Mine are far from perfect but the price was right at the time.
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Old 05-03-2012, 09:31 PM   #4
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My first set up was the Harbor Freight 3 panels set.
I used it one time and lost money selling it in a yard sale.
It was cumbersome and when set up I worried about it being stolen while away from the trailer.
I have installed 3 50W, Chinese,systems now for less than $250.00.
I have never ran out of power even with the grand kids and their DVDs.
Install it flat on the roof. Install Chinese LEDs in your light fixtures and you should have all the power you need and it's not in the way.

John
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Old 05-03-2012, 09:43 PM   #5
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I have a 65 Watt Kyocera panel that has served me well for the past 4 or 5 years. We were out for over 90 days. I turned off the converter, even so we only spent 4 night with shore power. We 3 weeks in Death Valley, a couple weeks in Big Bend, and a couple weeks at Kathrine Landing (Bull Head City, AZ). I would charge the house battery about every 3rd day.
One more thing, try to reduce you power needs. I changed all lights to LED except for a couple Cold Cathode Florescent tubes (basicly the same lights in your laptop for screen back light.)
When I don't have to run the furnace I can go a couple weeks or more without recharging the batteries.
I made and A frame type of mounting so I can move it around. It has connectors that will connect to both the trailer battery and my radio battery, 80 amp hour, 50amp hour respectively and I have not any trouble keeping both charged.
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Old 05-04-2012, 06:07 AM   #6
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120 Watt 12 Volt Solar Panel From Solar Cynergy
PV-SC120J12
$162.00

Solar Cell, Solar Panel, Solar PV, Solar Products, Charge Controllers, Solar Trackers
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Old 05-04-2012, 06:49 AM   #7
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Lots of much better deals on eBay, as well. Solar panel prices have fallen so fast that I suspect many don't realize what a good price is right now.
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Old 05-04-2012, 09:21 AM   #8
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We have 80 watts of flexible solar panels taped to the roof of our Scamp. The panels are about a tenth of an inch thick and weigh about 2 lbs a piece.

We have been in rain country for about two weeks, northern CA to WA, rarely seeing full sun yet our battery has stayed charged.

We particularly like this set up because they can't be stolen and require no effort, they're always there and 'unlike stored when you're driving panels' our panels are charging while we're driving. 'unlike boxed roof mounted panels they don't interfer with the aerodynamics of the trailer.

They're disadvantage is that they can't be aimed towards the sun, this has not been a problem.
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Old 05-04-2012, 11:06 AM   #9
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Generally speaking I don't think most kits are worthwhile. If you understand what you are doing and buy on Ebay you can do much better. Basically you need a solar panel, a solar charge controller and wire and mounting hardware (you probably already have a battery) Wire and mounting hardware needs will vary considerably depending on your situation. That kit will work well if you want to set your panels on the ground while you camp but if you want permanently mounted panels that charge on the go you will need a different setup. Charge controllers in kits are likely to be small, cheap and substandard or overkill MPPT controllers that cost more and only deliver a bit more power. Solar panel size for a single battery system need only be 50-100 watts. Solar charge controller size should be between 10-30 amps. I would recommend learning about how to look after your battery, LED lighting, and then solar charge controllers and system monitors. I have a nice german made 30 amp charge controller with a built in energy monitoring system. The digital readout gives me data on exactly how much battery power I have, solar panel output and electrical consumption in amp/hours. I got it for less than $100 and it will allow me to see what is happening in my entire system and also if more batteries or panels would be a good idea or a waste of time. When it comes to solar " Knowledge is Power" and if you do not have any knowledge solar equipment installers are standing by ready to relieve you of your extra cash in exchange for their supposed expertise.
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Old 05-04-2012, 12:23 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rene View Post
Generally speaking I don't think most kits are worthwhile. If you understand what you are doing and buy on Ebay you can do much better. Basically you need a solar panel, a solar charge controller and wire and mounting hardware (you probably already have a battery) Wire and mounting hardware needs will vary considerably depending on your situation. That kit will work well if you want to set your panels on the ground while you camp but if you want permanently mounted panels that charge on the go you will need a different setup. Charge controllers in kits are likely to be small, cheap and substandard or overkill MPPT controllers that cost more and only deliver a bit more power. Solar panel size for a single battery system need only be 50-100 watts. Solar charge controller size should be between 10-30 amps. I would recommend learning about how to look after your battery, LED lighting, and then solar charge controllers and system monitors. I have a nice german made 30 amp charge controller with a built in energy monitoring system. The digital readout gives me data on exactly how much battery power I have, solar panel output and electrical consumption in amp/hours. I got it for less than $100 and it will allow me to see what is happening in my entire system and also if more batteries or panels would be a good idea or a waste of time. When it comes to solar " Knowledge is Power" and if you do not have any knowledge solar equipment installers are standing by ready to relieve you of your extra cash in exchange for their supposed expertise.

I'm going to disagree with your charge controller size. I use a 6 amp controller and it does the job just fine. The charge controller needs to be no bigger than the maximum charge current. In my case that 4 amps. The smallest charge controller I could find is 6 amps.
You don't need to use the "Load" function on the charge controller. Just connect the battery the controller and solar panel. That is all.
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Old 05-04-2012, 12:40 PM   #11
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......... I have a nice german made 30 amp charge controller with a built in energy monitoring system. The digital readout gives me data on exactly how much battery power I have, solar panel output and electrical consumption in amp/hours. I got it for less than $100 and it will allow me to see what is happening in my entire system and also if more batteries or panels would be a good idea or a waste of time..........
Can you share the brand / model and where you got is so inexpensively?
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Old 05-04-2012, 12:47 PM   #12
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I'm going to disagree with your charge controller size. I use a 6 amp controller and it does the job just fine. The charge controller needs to be no bigger than the maximum charge current. In my case that 4 amps. The smallest charge controller I could find is 6 amps.
You don't need to use the "Load" function on the charge controller. Just connect the battery the controller and solar panel. That is all.
All true but controller size and price are not much different. A 10 amp controller will be sufficient for a one battery system and they are cheap. 30 amp gives you room to grow your system should you ever decide to do so. The advantage of connecting to the load terminal of the controller is monitoring. I would rather know what is happening in my system and the idiot lights of tiny controllers are not capable of telling me.

The bottom line is you have to figure out the best fit for your needs. No substitute for research.
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Old 05-04-2012, 01:13 PM   #13
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Can you share the brand / model and where you got is so inexpensively?
Sure. The controller is branded under a number of different names but is made by STECA a german company and will be labeled as model PR3030.

30A Solar controller with LCD PR3030 12V 24V autodetect Steca PWM charger charge | eBay

The above is an example on offer today. There are a lot of chinese copies of this model avaliable as well. The chinese controllers vary widely, pick carefully or find a US manufacturer /vendor.
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Old 05-04-2012, 01:42 PM   #14
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Chinese copy. Similar but different.

30A 12V/24V Solar Controller Regulator Charge Battery Safe Protection CE Certify | eBay
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Old 05-04-2012, 01:56 PM   #15
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Steca website

STECA Steca PR 1010, PR 1515, PR 2020, PR 3030
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Old 05-04-2012, 02:08 PM   #16
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All true but controller size and price are not much different. A 10 amp controller will be sufficient for a one battery system and they are cheap. 30 amp gives you room to grow your system should you ever decide to do so. The advantage of connecting to the load terminal of the controller is monitoring. I would rather know what is happening in my system and the idiot lights of tiny controllers are not capable of telling me.

The bottom line is you have to figure out the best fit for your needs. No substitute for research.

Understand battery charging requirements. A group 27 battery should never be charged with more than about 9 amps. Charging at a higher rate could damage the battery.
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Old 05-04-2012, 05:10 PM   #17
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I do understand charging requirements. You are right you should not exceed 9 amps of input when charging a single battery. BUT that does not mean you cannot use a charge controller with a larger capacity. Exceeding 9 amps of charging current would require another battery. I plan to use 150 watts of panel with a 9 amp max. output.
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Old 05-04-2012, 06:07 PM   #18
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"Solar panel size for a single battery system need only be 50-100 watts. Solar charge controller size should be between 10-30 amps. "


OK what is a good panel brand to get ?
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Old 05-04-2012, 06:26 PM   #19
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I do not think brand is the most important. There are many good brands. Panel type and efficiency will determine its size and relative cost. Shipping costs can be a factor. Determine the size of panel you need and look for a deal that suits you. I have secondhand panels both made by oil companies Shell and BP LOL!
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Old 05-04-2012, 09:39 PM   #20
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I'm going to disagree with your charge controller size. I use a 6 amp controller and it does the job just fine. .
I also only have a small simple 6 amp controller and it has worked well for me for 5 years. I have a 12 volt plug in battery monitor in the trailer that I can check to see if things are happening as they should but to be honest I normally just plug the panel in and forget it - the controller has a simple light that comes on when the battery is fully charged - if I check the battery monitor in the trailer sure enough it is...... no need for anything else. :-)
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