130w SP - 105ah AGM ?

[Lance]

Gooday ppl.
I need to put a SP on the roof of the Hiace camper but I'm limited on space.
I realise the more solar the better,but two roof vents make positioning a bit difficult so this one is about as big as we can physically go.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/130W-12V-Sol ... SwnHZYb0lc

I have 1x 105ah AGM and figure this SP would do the job considering the very little power we consume.

Yes ?
No ?
What the heck are you thinking Lance ?

[native pepper]

if you have the room to store it, you could also look at getting a fold up solar panel to increase your input when parked. I know someone who has a hiace and they have 2 x 200w panels on it which are slightly raised above the vents and have a couple of 12v computer fans on the vents to move the air out. They have a lift up roof and a deflector on the front of the panels, which seems to help a lot. I have a deflector in front of the panels on my bus and it works fine, have to increase the height of the exhaust stack though, as soon as I get the big panels on.

[JohnM]

It really depends on what you are running, your usage is what determines the whole system, if you run a compressor car fridge etc, or whether your power usage is limited to just your lighting, and a 12v TV for a couple of hours a night.
If you camp overnight or for a couple of nights, how flat is your battery? or how long can you camp before your battery drops below 12v?
or you can fit a watt meter (around $10 on ebay) in your power circuit from the battery, leave it on for 24 hours of normal use, and then see how much power you are using.
Almost any solar panel/regulator will recharge a battery in time, I have 2 50w panels in parallel maintaining 2 (24v) starter batteries.
What you need to know is how much power you need to replace, also sometimes it is easier to fit two or more smaller panels, there by get more input if required, eg 2 80w panels will give you 160 w and they may fit either side of the roof vent.

[bagmaker]

Can you use multiple smaller panels Lance?
130w in and 105a/h AGM is only going to give you the absolute minimum from my experience. All being well you can drive a compressor fridge and some lights but will need a perfect charge each day to keep up.

[T1 Terry]

Smaller panels are definitely the way to go as you can fit a lot more solar and greatly reduce the shade effect. The amount of power you use is limited by battery storage and the ability to replace what (watt?) was used over night or during poor solar conditions. Just like the household $$ income, you very quickly find a way to use any extra you get or is available in the bank without eating into the reserves
Another alternative is the Peter Mannin idea of one panel mounted over the other for storage/travelling and deployed when camping using a pantograph type set-up of arms designed to lift the panel above the panel under it and place it beside the mounted panel effectively doubling the solar area.
Another idea is solar panels that act as sun shades, folded down over the rear and R/H side windows when travelling and swung out on support rods when camped, solar shades If light weight semi flexible panels mounted to Lexan thermoclear were used there would be very little protrusion if any past the normal body line yet quite a bit of added solar area once camped.

T1 Terry

[Newcastle George]

I have found that having solar panel wattage of 3x the Ah of the battery is a good ratio. I have 750w/24V of solar and 260Ah/24V of battery but am considering adding another 250w of solar. However, I am running a 220 litre 240v domestic fridge via inverter.

George

[grizzzman]

Gooday ppl.
I need to put a SP on the roof of the Hiace camper but I'm limited on space.
I realise the more solar the better,but two roof vents make positioning a bit difficult so this one is about as big as we can physically go.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/130W-12V-Sol ... SwnHZYb0lc

I have 1x 105ah AGM and figure this SP would do the job considering the very little power we consume.

Yes ?
No ?
What the heck are you thinking Lance ?

Hi ya Lance
ANY amount of solar will help. When I first played with solar in a 78 Pace Arrow it was 15 watts and I could tell a difference with that. That being said I have gone from 15 to 200 to 640 watts. I agree with Terry, there are many ways to deploy panels in a limited space. Ya may wanna think on that

[Lance]

Good info here chaps, thanks for that.
As I said we're not big power users at all, fridge a coupla lights and CPAP, that's about it. The vast majority of our time is spent outside the van watching a fire drum.
Looking back, I worded my original post wrongly.
I'm actually replacing a pair of 90w folding panels that are currently on the roof.
I'm planning on using them as portables if and when needed but I don't want to carry them permanently in the van.
The panel I linked to in the OP will fit exactly between the current mount rails, I don't want to fiddle too much with an 8yo fiberglass bubble and relocate those rails.
We've had no issues I've noticed with the current 90w panels other than a slow take up on dull mornings.
I'm hoping the 130w SPs will improve that.

[bagmaker]

From our little thread here
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=4802
you can see in the real world most are only getting about 80% of the panel advertised output.
From 90 to 130 is a fair increase though

[shonky]

Hi.

Lance - you may find it worthwhile to set up a 10 meter long cable for your folding panel, and fit it with Anderson plugs. Using this will allow you to park in the shade, and collect some amps as soon as the sun's up. I recommend 4mm2 twin core cable,to ensure you have no voltage drop.