scud24 Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 Iam planning to go to France this year (for a week and hopefully the first of many trips into europe)and like the idea of staying on Aires sites,but i know that most of these sites wont have hook up i thought about getting a solar panel fitted to my van.I would be intrested to know what peoples thoughts on solar panels...ie are they worth the money! and what roughly should i expect to pay for fitting it.The idea would be to just have the water pump and lights to run so is there a minimum or maximum amount of watts i would need,i have seen that the amounts panels generate vary between 80-200 watts....or is getting an extra leisure battery fiitted a cheaper way to go?.. questions questions i know but thanks to all the people on this forum who have taken the time to reply to my past posts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 We have been using solar for 12+(? ) years on vans and before that on boats, for our use it works very well, don't often use hookups, and if the van gets left without being used for any lenght of time over winter the batteries are always fully charged. We have one leisure battery and a 85w panel, this for us is ok for pump, small amount of tv, lights, and blown air truma, for march to november. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 Whether it is worth it or not nobody can tell you as it is totally subjective and what one person finds indispensable another finds pointless - your money your choice. A second battery is the most cost effective way to go and it all depends how long you stay in one place as to how long the battery(ies) last, but in the warmer months even a single 12 v 110 ah battery should last a few days just heating water via gas and the lights and TV etc. and a second will - err - double that time as well as bring peace of mind. When you look at how much we spend on our hobby you do have to ask is any of it really worth it? On the other hand what else would you do with your money except leave for the tax man and the kids? I take the view that anything that makes my camping life more comfortable and more hassle free has to be good which is why I have a solar panel - but then again I have diesel heating and it needs a lot of power to fire it up that gas does not and if we change to a gas heated van I may well not bother with the solar panel - except that I already have one!! In your place I would probably opt for an extra battery - or buy two nice new matching ones - and suck it and see. It would help if you had shared with us what van you have , how it is heated and what AH the existing leisure battery is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scud24 Posted May 29, 2012 Author Share Posted May 29, 2012 I have a Autosleeper Ravanna i bought i august last year...according to the owners manuel its a 60AH but i know the chap i got it off had a brand new battery fitted a few days before i picked it up as for heating its a truama gas heater that also has an electic 240v option via hook up.Hope this info may help you and others.Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 2 leisure batteries and see how you get on......It has always been enough for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 A 60 ah battery is small by today's standards but if, as I suspect, it is under the front seat you may well not be able to fit a much larger one which leave you with the option of fitting a second similar one somewhere else as close to the original as possible, but you might be able to get a higher capacity battery which is a similar enough size to fit or the last owner may have done this? You will need to check the battery capacity and size and measure the available extra space (if any) which might be tricky with the seat in place! Such fun!! Without decent battery capacity it is arguable that there may well be little point in a solar panel so sorting out the battery issue is the first priority. How many days/nights do you currently get out of the battery without mains? If you don't know perhaps try a weekend away without ehu and see how it goes as a yardstick? The Truma system is not heavy on battery power so two decent 60 ah's might be enough to give you several days off site? You can never have too much of some things - and one of they things is battery capacity! The worst that can happen is that you have to start the engine to get some leisure battery charge back in so a flat leisure battery in a warm climate is nothing too serious just a tad inconvenient because they always go flat at the wrong time! Is yours on a Boxer or a Transit as, and I could be wrong, I seem to recall AS used both for the Ravenna? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyishuk Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 Fitting a second battery maybe the way to go, but are you in a posiotion to charge both batteries fully before stopping over ? I am not in a position to do the sums, but putting in say 100 amphrs into your batteries either on an ElecHookUp it may take some hours to charge both as it would traveling through the country. Rgds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 Good point Tony - yes indeed - it pays to fully charge your leisure batteries at home on ehu before setting forth as the charge regime of a modern split charge circuit is nothing like as effective as the way itthe engine alternator charges the engine battery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 BTW with 80w systems now availible for fitting yourself at around £150 it becomes a much more viable option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 scud24 - 2012-05-29 3:31 PM Iam planning to go to France this year (for a week and hopefully the first of many trips into europe)and like the idea of staying on Aires sites,but i know that most of these sites wont have hook up i thought about getting a solar panel fitted to my van.I would be intrested to know what peoples thoughts on solar panels...ie are they worth the money! and what roughly should i expect to pay for fitting it.The idea would be to just have the water pump and lights to run so is there a minimum or maximum amount of watts i would need,i have seen that the amounts panels generate vary between 80-200 watts....or is getting an extra leisure battery fiitted a cheaper way to go?.. questions questions i know but thanks to all the people on this forum who have taken the time to reply to my past posts. Hi Scud As you are only going for a week, I assume you will be driving around rather than staying staic for the whole time, therefore I would be extremely surprised if your battery capacity caused any problems for you - your driving will put power back into it and as it is a new battery it should hold a good charge. I'd suggest seeing how you get on with your first foray and take it from there, adding a second battery is the next best thing to do (easiest and cheapest), then if you really need more power, a solar panel is the next best option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted May 29, 2012 Share Posted May 29, 2012 My thoughts on charging systems are thus: If you always use main sites with hookup you need minimal battery capacity (leisure obvioulsly). If you rarely use hookup sites you neead a decent sized leisure battery bank According to your camping pattern and the optimum charging system will vary accordingly. If your camping pattern is to stay one or to nights in any one place, without hookup, then move on, driving for an hour or more then a decent sized battery capacity of at least 110AH with a Battery to Battery (B2B) charging system will probably be your best option. If your camping pattern is to rarely use main hookup sites but to stay in one place for three nights or more then a decent sized (80 watts or better) solar panel will be a boon but of little use in the UK during late autumn to late spring months, in southern Europe however it can be a real bonus. My own camper includes a CTEK 20 Amp B2B charger (I opted for the CTEK because it only does 20 Amps and my alternator is only rated to 55 Amps max) I have also used the Sterling 50 Amp B2B unit. I also have 3X 110AH batteries and a 160 Watt solar panel feeding them. We have a compressor fridge which does tend to be a bit power hungry, assuming you would have a three way fridge running on gas when camping off grid your power consumption could be a fair bit less than ours. In the middle of winter we can do three days before our batteries are down to 12 volts or thereabouts (this was at new year when it was cold, damp and very grey, solar output was less than 10 AH per day) and we used the heating a lot. In summer we can camp almost indefinitely in the UK. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clive Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 The short answer is NO. But I would not be without ours. If you plan to have lots of summer camping without any external charging method then once you have gone past the capabilities of a big battery bank a big solar panel is a boon. But first make sure you have minimized your electrical loads. Like have you replaced all those down lighter bulbs with LED replacements? Is your TV an economical flat screen type from Avtex? There are many flat screen TV,s you can use but Avtex seem to be the most economical. Do you turn your satellite TV system properly OFF when its not in use? In standby mode it continues to consume battery current) If you wild camp in the winter then you are bolder than I. But perhaps this is where an EFOY comes into its own, these units make solar panels look cheap. Chive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 Bearing in mind your equipment, solar panels would work fantastically for you when you didn't need them, ie when the days are long and sunny and would be useless when you did, ie when the days are short and it's cold. As others have said, leisure batt(s) with a capacity of 200 or so Ah will probably be all you'll ever need. Don't waste your cash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 As scud24's stated intention is to use only 12V lighting and the water-pump when not on 230V hook-up, I would have thought that large battery-capacity will be unnecessary, never mind a solar panel. Assuming that French aires are employed as limited duration rest-stops not as alternatives to campsites, a couple of days off hook-up should, realistically, be easily obtainable with even a 60Ah battery provided that LED/fluorescent bulbs are used for the lighting. Of course, as soon as blown-air heating, TVs, etc. are stirred into the mix, it becomes another matter. Neither of my two motorhomes has had a leisure battery capacity above 80Ah and neither has had a soIar panel (nor a TV). We rarely use a 230V hook-up, but 2 days is the maximum we stay in one place, so the leisure battery does get recharged while the motorhome is being driven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 We have had solar panels fitted and do not regret it for one moment, we can camp indefinitely in the summer without hook up which makes camping a lot cheaper. For the winter they are not so good obviously, but there is still sun to help the batteries (2x110) last longer, we can do 3-4 days of careful use. We are not reliant on blow air heating, we have a gas/electric fire. Not sure of your location but we used Solar Solutions in Poole now called C.M.C 1 Stop Work Shop, they were recommended to us and we have happily recommended them on. They are at the Motorhome Shows. The price would differ as to what you had fitted so best to get your own quotes. :-> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonflyer Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 We have managed for 6 years with just one Leisure battery. When at home it is permanently hooked up. We have a 3-way fridge, gas combi boiler with electric heating too. We have toured in Europe using Aires - being always on the move - during spring and autumn, some of the time it is quite chilly in the evenings but have managed fine. We do not take a TV to Europe or to week-end Festivals in UK. Otherwise in UK we mix and match, sometimes staying for 3 or 4 days on site with EHU, other times managing in discrete wild camping. For us a solar panel or indeed additional battery/s would compromise our limited payload. I would advise that you wait and try a camping trip without solar to judge how you are able to manage. Joyce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted May 30, 2012 Share Posted May 30, 2012 Ditto Joyce...........We have managed for 20 years with just one 85 amp leisure battery [Not the same battery!!].........I am only considering solar panels now as we are hoping to go long terming ...........so in your position I'd expect things to be fine unlesss your battery is duff..........how old is it? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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