Solar or not to solar

[B&T RVers]

are portable solar panels worth it for a large Diesel - 2021 Ventana?

 

[Neal]

No, I don't think so because you have a great GEN that needs some TLC, i.e. to be used. I'm not sure the size of your house batteries, i.e. 6 vs. 8 batteries but they take some good power to charge up.

 

[B&T RVers]

I have 6 house and 2 chassis. while I’d love to able to boondocks and run my res. Refrig not sure I am ready for that kind of investment.

 

[Neal]

I have 6 house and 2 chassis. while I’d love to able to boondocks and run my res. Refrig not sure I am ready for that kind of investment.

AMSolar can tell you how many watts of solar you'd need. I think you'd probably need 6 panels minimum, maybe 8 at 180W per panel.

AM Solar | Solar Panels for RV | RV Solar

AM Solar specializes in RV solar panels, chargers, batteries, and battery monitoring systems. We serve customers nationwide.

amsolar.com

 

[B&T RVers]

Neil - as always thanks for the info!

 

[Retired]

Its going to take some money to generate enough power to boondock in a hotel room. Ive seen a couple DIY systems that used prius batteries and a bunch of solar panels to generate enough power to run everything 24/7.

 

[Gizmo]

I have found that I can boondock with six 6-volt batteries by running the generator for 1 hour in the morning and between 1 and 2 hours in the evening. That cost me about 5 bucks a day in fuel. What I have found is weather dictates how much I run my generator since air conditioning is the deciding factor for us. I can't sleep in RV that the temperature inside the RV is 80 degrees plus and it takes on a heck of a battery bank to run the air conditioning for 10 to 12 hours a day.

PS If you pull into a boondocking site and there someone with 15,000 solar setups and you going to use your generator I would park as far as I can away from that person as I could or find a different site.

 

[Chuggs]

Solar is a multi-faceted tool. There are lots of different ways to use it...and each tailored to a specific job. Before jumping in...you have to ask yourself...

Will solar perform for you?

Latitude ?(Sun Angle)
Clear View of sky? (Dense forest in the Pacific NW vs. Arizona desert)
Climate? (Temperate allowed open windows vs Hot Florida in Summer requiring Air Conditioning)
Coach Specific Load analysis...(Dometic fridge v Residential fridge...AC appliances and how many amp hours you typically consume.

On the Light end of the spectrum...keep batteries topped up, minimal loads, charge a cell phone routinely ////all the way to power users...running a full suite of electric appliances, totally off-grid, no reliance on Generator.

I also think having redundancy is a very nice function. We where leaving the Florida Keys in late Jun when our Generator failed to start. The occurred at the same time the filter dryer on our dash A/C got plugged. Luckily, solar meant being able to run one rooftop air on the way home. The generator turned out to be a screw that came loose inside and was getting sucked up j to the governor, causing the control board to shut down due to erratic speed data. Anyway...placing all of your eggs in one baskets sometimes backfires.

I like being able to rally off grid...and use our generator very little. But...you still get to listen to everyone elses generators...as obviously, many folks don't use solar. And for some reason...they love to line the coaches up so the generator exhaust from one Class A points directly into the entry door of the next rv. I digress.

It can be a rather hefty investment...so if it is worth it,nor not, is a very personal choice. What you want to power with it...and whether or not you can get the required sunlight onto those panels.