Solar panel help

[Parksy]

Hi all
these things are something i have been thinking about , but am not up on the tech side, they are a mystery to me. Ebay have one that ooks ok to me but your advise please. 100w solar panel from alfrescobay ebay number 1815557723. 2 things , will this do the job and will i need to buy anything else to make it work . Oh and is the price any good , i have a 110 amp caravan battery. Thanks all

 

[Gybe]

You need a suitable "Charge Controller" unit with it. Probably best buying one from the same supplier or getting a deal that includes a controller.

 

[Parksy]

Hi all
these things are something i have been thinking about , but am not up on the tech side, they are a mystery to me. Ebay have one that ooks ok to me but your advise please. 100w solar panel from alfrescobay ebay number 1815557723. 2 things , will this do the job and will i need to buy anything else to make it work . Oh and is the price any good , i have a 110 amp caravan battery. Thanks all

Hi Graham
I couldn't fine the solar panel on E-bay from the number that you gave but I may be able to point you in the right direction.
'Will this do the job?'
It depends on what you want it to do Graham. If you are off ehu and use normal lighting (preferably LED's which don't use much power), your water pump and toiltet flush as normal and watch an hour or two of television on a 240v flat screen television set via a 12v-240v power inverter then in the months from the end of March until mid September then yes, a 100 watt monocrystalline solar panel correctly installed will maintain the charge for your caravan battery and in the darker winter months your battery will be charged while the caravan is stored providing you don't fit a cover and the caravan is outdoors.
'Will I need to buy anything else to make it work'
Yes Graham, you will need a solar charge controller, sometimes called a solar charge regulator, and you will also need the correct type of cable with which to connect your solar panel to the controller and from there to the leisure battery.
If you are not confident of your ability to install the panel on your caravan roof semi-permanently you could make a frame for ground use, I made one from plastic waste pipe before I installed my panel on the roof, but you still need to connect the panel.
Alternatively most mobile caravan engineers provide a fitting service.
Click Here to see my solar panel installation with some useful links for cable, charge controllers etc.
If you decide to buy a solar panel use a UK supplier with free delivery and choose a monocrystalline rather than polycrystalline panel because mono solar cells are more efficient.and choose a MPPT charge controller to maximise the available power.
I bought my solar panel from Bromsgrove Solar who supply the outdoor insulated cables and a charge controller (although it's a pulse width modulator which is not quite as efficient as a Maximum Power Point Tracking controller) If you mention me on Pactical Caravan Forum, Bromsgrove Solar should offer a discount

If you need any further advice give us a shout and I'll try to help.

 

[Surfer]

I have seen Parksey's installation and it is first class. We have toyed with the idea but cost upfront has put us off plus the thought of drilling holes into the caravan.

 

[GrahamDerby]

Thanks Parksy, www.alfrescobay.co.uk is their web site. It is a mono type so sound ok. Its £108.99 delivered. Is that about right ? Think i will ask them for a price on the whole kit, i may get a deal !!.

 

[Parksy]

I couldn't see any items for sale on the website from your link Graham, but if the company checks out as genuine then £108.99 is a good average price for a 100 watt monocrystalline solar panel. You need to factor in the cost of a solar charge controller (£50-£80 depending on what you buy) and cable which would depend how the panel is to be installed.
Are you taking up rallying Graham?

Edit:
I've found the items on E-Bay, if you decide to go ahead you will need to decide whether to fit your panel or to use it as floor mounted off a stand to find out how much cable to buy to connect from the supplied tails.

 

[GrahamDerby]

Thanks for the info, it will give me something to sort out. We started doing rallys in th mid 1970's with the trailer caravan club "vale of trent" section . I ended up as vice chair, rally sec and ended up secretary. in thoes days we used generators but as we all know these are not looked on kindly now days. As my other half passed away last year i am thinking of trying a few this year. I went away for Xmas to my sons at Saundersfoot , and it was strange on my own, but i need to get away this year.

 

[Parksy]

If you need any help or advice please don't hesitate to ask, Graham.
I think that revisiting the rally scene may be a good move for you, we often rally with the West Mids or sometimes the Birmngham DA's of the C&CC so there is always plenty of good company. Most rally regulars are solar powered these days, ralliers alerted me to the possibilities of solar charging in the first place.

 

[Martin24]

We tend not to use hook ups whether on the rally field or not. For the past 4 years we've used a 55w free standing panel which has seeen us through all weather at all times of the year with no problems at all. On the new van we have had a 120w roof mounted one installed to keep the battery charged in storage, primarily for the alarm system. Hopefully all will be well with it.

 

[Parksy]

We tend not to use hook ups whether on the rally field or not. For the past 4 years we've used a 55w free standing panel which has seeen us through all weather at all times of the year with no problems at all. On the new van we have had a 120w roof mounted one installed to keep the battery charged in storage, primarily for the alarm system. Hopefully all will be well with it.

Hi Martin
You were doing well if a 55 watt solar panel was enough to meet all of your requirements

Our 80 watt roof mounted solar panel just about copes in the lighter months but between the end of September and mid March we've had to rely on ehu.
What solar charge controller were you using?

 

[Martin24]

Not sure Parksy, It all came as a job lot ready to go. Of course all lights were LED and no telly. The free standing is of course key to the 55w working well so that it's at a 45% degree angle to the sun and you need to move it around a bit a couple of times a day. That's why we've gone for a 120 on the roof, they should be equivalent more or less. I've always worked on double the difference for roof mounting which If I'm right would mean your 80w is the equivalent of 40w free standing which could be why you struggle in the winter months more? Certainly managed all year with 55.

 

[Parksy]

I think that the biggest drain on our leisure battery when off ehu is the tv which is a 240v powered from the battery via a power inverter. We've never had any problems with just the 12v lights (LED's) water pump and toilet flush whatever the season, but with only the two of us if the weather isn't good enough to sit outside and socialise on rallies with no ehu then tend to watch more tv.
I can tilt the roof mounted panel to 45° because I mounted it on an adjustable roof bracket but to be honest I rarely bother.

 

[GrahamDerby]

Hi Parksy, i ordered the panel today with all the cables and regulator , cost delivered complete delivered £154.00. Shaun who i spoke to was realy helpfull , didnt think the price was bad.

 

[Parksy]

Hi Parksy, i ordered the panel today with all the cables and regulator , cost delivered complete delivered £154.00. Shaun who i spoke to was realy helpfull , didnt think the price was bad.

Well done Graham, the price seems about right provided that the regulator is either a PWM, or better still a MPPT model.
Are you going to install the panel on the caravan roof or use it as a freestanding model?

 

[GrahamDerby]

Hi parksy, i think to start with i will have it free standing, this will give me chance to get used to how it works with the vans equipment. One problem with my van is the inboard tank. You have to pump the water into the tank , then fill the boiler etc then re fill the tank, you can then use the taps, so the battery gets hammered 3 times to set up the van. There is no facility for bi-passing the onboard tank , poor design ?. This is one thing i am going to see if the panel can cope with

 

[Gybe]

Unless you are very sure of where you stay please take care Graham. Solar panels can soon grow legs and walk off without you

.
The best or worst solar panel tale I know of involved a freestanding solar panel that had been positioned so that it wasn't shaded by the hedges of the French sites pitches. Some neighbouring pitches UK adults were enjoying a few glasses of wine and their kids were enjoying a game of cricket. I'll leave you to guess what was being used as the wicket when the owners arrived back from a shopping trip

 

[Parksy]

One of the reasons why I decided to mount my solar panel on the caravan roof was because children on rallies often run around and I was worried about a child falling into the panel and getting badly hurt when it was freestanding. I used a small padlock and length of slim chain to attach the panel to the angle of the corner steady support when I used the panel freestanding. This deterred anyone considering taking my panel but with such a faff when locking and unlocking, and having to clean the panel and travel with it on the fixed bed I finally made up my mind to install it up on the roof out of harms way.
A 100 watt panel coupled with a 110 amp / hour leisure battery which is in good condition should cope well enough Graham.

 

[Surfer]

Graham did you ever get around to fitting the solar panel on the roof of your caravan?