Solar madness

[Admin]

I am now considering not putting 3 x 330-watt panels on my van and upgrading the batteries. Instead, I am thinking of 4 x 330-watt panels giving me 1320 watts and not changing my batteries.

Rae and I have been planning the install today and we think that it will only cost me 25kg of extra weight.

And before you ask why, the answer is "because I can"

 

[wildebus]

I wouldn't ask "Why".




I would ask "Why not"

 

[time4t]

I was getting ready to put 2x200 watt panels on my roof, but when I saw how flimsy the mc4 connectors are I went a different route.
I replaced the 4mm2 wires coming from the rear of the panel with 6mm2, to these I attached 10mm2-25mm2 Dinse style welding plugs female on the pos side & male on the neg, these will go into a Y connector made up out of 10mm2 wire & Dinse plugs.
The single wires coming from the Y connectors then travel along the roof & in to the victron MPPT controller 10mm2 wire is the biggest that the controller will take.

Why have I done this, it's about cutting down resistance in the wire & connectors & it's about the quality of the amps getting to the batteries.
The mc4 connectors create a sort of road block that Dinse connectors do not, so the power can travel in a cleaner, easier fashion, upping the wire size does the same thing.
Word on the web is that I will get about 5-10% increase in power collection.

When I said I was getting ready, well that was until I was admitted to hospital after being told I had Heart failure. Got to take it very easy for a few months so everything has been put on the back burner for now.

Phill

 

[Trek]

4x330 watts yep you said it - madness (well in my mind anyway) Carefull you don’t take off with all those panels

 

[Wooie1958]

How will you get to the original motorhome roof to keep it clean ? It`s hard enough with 160w of panels i.e 1 X 100w and 1 X 60w.

 

[wakk44]

Now that is a massive solar array..
You could always provide a hook up for anyone with low batteries at rallies.

 

[Bigbarry]

I was getting ready to put 2x200 watt panels on my roof, but when I saw how flimsy the mc4 connectors are I went a different route.
I replaced the 4mm2 wires coming from the rear of the panel with 6mm2, to these I attached 10mm2-25mm2 Dinse style welding plugs female on the pos side & male on the neg, these will go into a Y connector made up out of 10mm2 wire & Dinse plugs.
The single wires coming from the Y connectors then travel along the roof & in to the victron MPPT controller 10mm2 wire is the biggest that the controller will take.

Why have I done this, it's about cutting down resistance in the wire & connectors & it's about the quality of the amps getting to the batteries.
The mc4 connectors create a sort of road block that Dinse connectors do not, so the power can travel in a cleaner, easier fashion, upping the wire size does the same thing.
Word on the web is that I will get about 5-10% increase in power collection.

When I said I was getting ready, well that was until I was admitted to hospital after being told I had Heart failure. Got to take it very easy for a few months so everything has been put on the back burner for now.

Phill

Trust you will have a speedy recovery

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I was getting ready to put 2x200 watt panels on my roof, but when I saw how flimsy the mc4 connectors are I went a different route.
I replaced the 4mm2 wires coming from the rear of the panel with 6mm2, to these I attached 10mm2-25mm2 Dinse style welding plugs female on the pos side & male on the neg, these will go into a Y connector made up out of 10mm2 wire & Dinse plugs.
The single wires coming from the Y connectors then travel along the roof & in to the victron MPPT controller 10mm2 wire is the biggest that the controller will take.

Why have I done this, it's about cutting down resistance in the wire & connectors & it's about the quality of the amps getting to the batteries.
The mc4 connectors create a sort of road block that Dinse connectors do not, so the power can travel in a cleaner, easier fashion, upping the wire size does the same thing.
Word on the web is that I will get about 5-10% increase in power collection.

When I said I was getting ready, well that was until I was admitted to hospital after being told I had Heart failure. Got to take it very easy for a few months so everything has been put on the back burner for now.

Phill

Thanks Phill.

Not often you can learn anything new about solar for vans, but I'd not heard of the Dinse connectors, had a quick google but not a lot of info due their normal use for welding cables, such as are they waterproof as they don't look it.

Don't mess with your ticker, take it easy.

 

[nabsim]

The ones we

Thanks Phill.

Not often you can learn anything new about solar for vans, but I'd not heard of the Dinse connectors, had a quick google but not a lot of info due their normal use for welding cables, such as are they waterproof as they don't look it.

Don't mess with your ticker, take it easy.

used were, they are enclosed in thick rubber

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I think why is a fair question Phil (Tomlinson) what have you got planned, aside from world domination???

 

[nabsim]

P

I think why is a fair question Phil (Tomlinson) what have you got planned, aside from world domination???

robably because with low angles of sun in winter producing much lower harvesting. Phil runs a fair amount of 240v kit in his van

 

[Pudsey Bear]

The ones we

used were, they are enclosed in thick rubber

not sure what you meant there???

 

[nabsim]

The welding cable connectors, you asked if they were waterproof. The connectors we used were encased in rubber and a substantial lump, we had them trailing through water outside and were waterproof. They always said beware of a shock but none of us ever got one. Saying that it could have been we were lucky as we probably wouldn’t though them while we were welding

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Ah I see, thank you kind sir

 

[Admin]

I think why is a fair question Phil (Tomlinson) what have you got planned, aside from world domination???

I use my van as a mobile office as well as a motorhome, this means that I need mains all year around to power my computer equipment, heating and most importantly the coffee maker. I use my microwave almost daily and I have an electric toaster.

So I need lots of power, far more than a normal motorhomer. I have been going through all the options that could provide this for me including generators (onboard silent type), Efoy system and a larger lithium battery bank. I wanted to look at cost, ease of use, nuisance to other motorhomers and weight.

After working out my roof space for the panel upgrade I found that I could install 4 x 330 watt panels. My batteries are rated at over 600Ah if they are discharged in 8 hours, so I have plenty of storage capacity.

In the summer I will have enough solar to run the fridge and water heater, in the winter I will have power to use the motorhome as I want to without worrying about power.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

After looking at the sizes, I don't see any for 6mm to 10mm, the 10mm ones look like they would need a copper sleeving, as would the smaller size on any of them.

I need to go to a local welding factors.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

I use my van as a mobile office as well as a motorhome, this means that I need mains all year around to power my computer equipment, heating and most importantly the coffee maker. I use my microwave almost daily and I have an electric toaster.

So I need lots of power, far more than a normal motorhomer. I have been going through all the options that could provide this for me including generators (onboard silent type), Efoy system and a larger lithium battery bank. I wanted to look at cost, ease of use, nuisance to other motorhomers and weight.

After working out my roof space for the panel upgrade I found that I could install 4 x 330 watt panels. My batteries are rated at over 600Ah if they are discharged in 8 hours, so I have plenty of storage capacity.

In the summer I will have enough solar to run the fridge and water heater, in the winter I will have power to use the motorhome as I want to without worrying about power.

Thanks Phil did you get my PM re DIY?

 

[nabsim]

After looking at the sizes, I don't see any for 6mm to 10mm, the 10mm ones look like they would need a copper sleeving, as would the smaller size on any of them.

I need to go to a local welding factors.

Are they not brass screws that bite down on to the cable cores still? If so you could use bigger then fill gap with some sort of sealant maybe? If Runach spots this he may be able to answer your questions properly as I believe he can stick metal together

 

[jeffmossy]

I think I will stick to my 525w solar set up , it should work fine next winter when we are in Portugal / Spain

 

[Admin]

Thanks Phil did you get my PM re DIY?

I did,

Not sure why the members are having problems as they do not need an activation email and no members are in the queue for moderation.

I am going to work on the site later today and get the SSL installed. I am also going to set up the email system a little better.