Solar Panels

[Wingpete]

I am considering having solar panels fitted to my 2008 Rapido to ensure some power is produced when away from hook ups.

Is there any logical suggestions as to the size of panels that I ought to be going for ?

[Randonneur]

We had a 110 watt panel fitted last year and it has been adequate for our needs. It depends on what size of space you have on your roof, saw some vans in Portugal recently that had 2 smaller ones fitted side by side.

[malc d]

It depends on use of course, but when I looked in to this some time ago the advice I got was that an 80W panel was about the minimum to go for.

 

 

 

 

[Clive]

Totally agree with both posts.It all depends on how greedy your van is and which season you are camping in. We had an 80watt BP panel on our Scout and it was adequate in the summer for maintaining us and during the winter adequate to keep all batteries topped up. Don't forget the regulator.

In order

1 Use flourescent or LED lighting

2 Fit an aditional battery

3 Fit the biggest solar panel that will fit.

 

c.

 

[Mel B]

Before you go ahead, try to work out your usage. The cheapest way of getting more/longer lasting power, is to get a second leisure battery fitted, as this will be a cheaper option initially which may do what you want, but if you do still want a solar panel, you should certainly have the extra battery too.

 

We bought an Alden solar panel off ebay cheap last year - it was brand new and still boxed, this is one of the better makes and was much cheaper than buying one of the cheaper ones at a show, even with the discounts! See this thread for more info:

 

Mel's Solar Panel

 

We used it whilst on holiday last year in France (3 weeks) and Germany (2 weeks) and it kept us going without a problem - we like to watch a video on a night for an hour or two (85w total draw per hour) and we never ran out of 'juice'.

 

 

 

 

[Guest Tracker]

The empty space between roof lights, chimney, aerial, sat dish (now or future) et al and where you will need the hole in the roof for incoming cable might impact upon your decision if you want a larger panel?

[Mel B]

And the weight of the panel itself ... the bigger the heavier, it does vary quite a bit from make to make too.

[Frankkia]

I agree with the posters so far - good advice.

 

We have 2 X 120w panels on the roof, both of them have hinges and can be tilted for winter use when the sun is low. We also have an additional 60w panel, on a long cable, to which I fitted a pair of legs. Again this can be place on the ground and positioned to make the max use of the available sun. On the end of a cable is a non reversible 2 pin plug and I have fitted a corresponding socket in a locker which in turn is wired to the solar in of the regulator.

 

Our usage is all year round (northern Europe in summer and Portugal in Winter) and we rarely stay anywhere on hook up. In the winter we tend to stay in one place for a while so don't get any extra power from a run. Despite the fact that we use a fair bit of power via the satellite tv and blown air heating we find this arrangement adequate for our needs.

 

In the summer the 2 big panels are overkill and we have more than sufficient power whilst for winter camping the full array is just enough.

 

So the moral of the story is take a look at how and when you intend to use your 'van and the equipment you will run in it and if you want to stay self sufficient in bad as well as good weather go for a bit of overkill if you have the space and payload.

 

Mel is quite right - whether or not you get a solar panel(s) you will need to consider extra batteries - It aint much good producing the power if you have nowhere to store it and if you don't stay anywhere for more than 3 or 4 days you may find the extra storage will be sufficient for your needs without a solar panel.

[Wingpete]

I had extra battery from new, and the Rapido comes equipped to take solar panels. I resisted fitting from new, until I could find what out is needed. Plenty of roof space. I don't venture up there. No ladder !"

Look like a 150 w may do for me > Thanks for advice everyone.

[potjoe]

Hi,I have a 120w panel for sale appox one year old.john

[Paul-]

How about the most important question, what regulator/charge controller should you get?

 

I'd go for one of the morningstar range, maybe the sunsaver they're a series type & safe to use in hazardous conditions, Mppt's are ideal but costly.

 

Paul

[DJP]

By equipped, if you mean it has the main control panel which you can wire a solar panel in to directly without having the need for a seperate regulator, check the maximum wattage the control panel will take. For example Autotrail use Sargent control panels (EC300) and the maximum wattage for that is 85w IIRC.