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Old 04-05-2019, 09:10 AM   #1
Cooter
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Solar Questions

I am looking for help with size for purchasing a solar system and any accessories needed. I have a 2017 379RD. The biggest concern is that we do a lot of dry camping(boon docking) in the high country of Colorado and Wyoming and we have a residential frig. I do have an inverter, 2- 6 volt deep cycle batteries.
 
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Old 04-05-2019, 11:33 AM   #2
PNW Fireguy
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I would start with using one of the readily available online load calculators to determine what your real world power requirements are based upon how you will be camping. You may need to upsize your battery capacity usable amp hours due to the residential fridge dependent upon your remaining load demands. Lithium may be an option you may want to consider. Don’t let others scare you from your due diligence with fears of cost. There are many lithium options out there and for less than most folks realize. There are lots of resources available on the internet to utilize to educate yourself on sizing your solar system to meet your needs. YouTube also has a plethora of related channels. Best of luck.
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Old 04-05-2019, 11:46 AM   #3
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A quality battery monitor is the start point.
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Old 04-05-2019, 11:49 AM   #4
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I have kicked the Idea around about going off of the grid. Online calculators are a good place to start. Even then I would for starters test what I have and see how it compares to the calculator. I would also make sure that what ever you do it is flexible to add to it. You never know how you needs may change over time.
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Old 04-05-2019, 04:19 PM   #5
jetskier
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With a residential fridge, you're going to need at least four batteries and at least 600W of solar. I just upped my solar to 860W this past weekend with room to grow to 1180W. I was testing the system this week under partial cloudy skies and it would operate at about 20-40% of the rated panel capacity. I powered up the inverter and turned the RV fridge to electric. The fridge label says it runs at 600W on electric, but I believe the Res ridge is about 300-400W. I bought the 150V/85A MPPT controller with bluetooth for monitoring. I was watching the panel output and battery voltage and current while firing up the fridge and it dropped to 12.7V from 14.4V rather quick when the panel output was around 230W under mostly cloudy skies. It was dumping over 30A back to the batteries. When the sun peaked out, it jumped to around 575W for a few and it started to climbing back up to 13V. We haven't had blue skies for since last Sunday so I haven't had a chance to get full sun output under load. You have to take into account panel mounting angles (I mounted them flat), battery storage for overnight use and in off-peak conditions (like clouds and shading). Fortunately I run the fridge on propane when boondocking so I should be fine with my system, but I sized the system based on my old trailer and the cloudy days where output is minimal.
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Old 04-05-2019, 06:27 PM   #6
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Thank You

Thanks to everyone for your valued feedback!
I have my homework to do now.
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Old 04-05-2019, 07:41 PM   #7
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Just installed three 305 Watt panels and 4 six volt ago batteries. With full daytime sun I watched sat tv for 4 hours, and had my coffee maker turn on in the am. Wife used blow dryer, and curling iron for a short time and was still above 12.2 volt. so far so good, now will test with less that full sun during the day and adjust from there. I also have residential fridge, it does not seem to be any issue on solar at all. Have 2000 watt inverter so time will tell.
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