Solar pre wire

[xring]

I posted this yesterday on company site and no response yet. Maybe yall will have info. We recently got the e-mail and need to make our choices. We have no current plan to boondock and plan to stay in State and Corps of engineer parks but I have been warned that we may some day want to. If that is the case Solar would be appreciated. If we get our 5.0TA prewired is it wired for 2 panel locations and what gauge of wire is used. Thanks

[cpaharley2008]

I would try the factory again as the saying goes "straight from the horse's mouth".......

[oldwave]

Originally Posted by xring

I posted this yesterday on company site and no response yet. Maybe yall will have info. We recently got the e-mail and need to make our choices. We have no current plan to boondock and plan to stay in State and Corps of engineer parks but I have been warned that we may some day want to. If that is the case Solar would be appreciated. If we get our 5.0TA prewired is it wired for 2 panel locations and what gauge of wire is used. Thanks

Typically 10 gauge

[xring]

OK that's one half of the question answered are both panel locations wired. Still no response on the Factory Forum.

[rubicon327]

This thread might help. I believe there is only a single MC4 entry plate on the roof. You would need to route your panel wiring to there and use appropriate connectors to join them before connecting to the entry plate.

https://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f...tml#post365835

[Perry Butler]

The couple of Escapes I've seen have both panels going to a combiner on the roof, so at that point one 10 awg wire goes down to the solar charge controller. We have four panels on our roof going to a four wire combiner and then the single 10 awg goes down to the SCC. At 25 amps we're about at the limit the 10 awg wire is still efficient.

We have a second Victron 100/20 controller for our portable, but this summer I added three 100 watt panels now combined on the roof with our 170 watt ETI supplied panel, all four wired in parallel. With two cables the three 100 watt panels could have been wired in series to one cable going to our Victron 100/30 SCC, and the 170 watt panel separately to the other Victron 100/20 SCC.

If I had to do it again I'd ask Escape to run two 10 awg cables from the roof to the SCC area. Of course then you're talking about two SCC's, one for each The worst thing that will happen is you'll never use the second cable.

Enjoy,

Perry

[xring]

Here is the response I got to my question for those interested.

the option "Prewire for Solar with Roofmount MC4 Connector" is wired with 10 AWG and includes wires for one solar panel. However, a second solar panel can be installed using the existing infrastructure once one panel is installed. Yours is a 5.0 TA, so no issues here. If it was a 21C we would not advise of installing two solar panels aftermarket due to the current location of the front panel. To install this front panel aftermarket could interference with the shower enclosure.

Please feel free to reach out to your configuration specialists if you have further questions. Thank you.

[yangstyle]

Originally Posted by xring

Here is the response I got to my question for those interested.

the option "Prewire for Solar with Roofmount MC4 Connector" is wired with 10 AWG and includes wires for one solar panel. However, a second solar panel can be installed using the existing infrastructure once one panel is installed. Yours is a 5.0 TA, so no issues here. If it was a 21C we would not advise of installing two solar panels aftermarket due to the current location of the front panel. To install this front panel aftermarket could interference with the shower enclosure.

Please feel free to reach out to your configuration specialists if you have further questions. Thank you.

I believe it is the 21 NE that has had a few problems with the front solar panel, not the 21 C.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by yangstyle

I believe it is the 21 NE that has had a few problems with the front solar panel, not the 21 C.

Yes, that is correct and Escape issued a safety warning that only involved the 21 NE. That said, someone also lost a panel off the front of a 19. Any panels mounted near the front of trailers need serious consideration of the lift forces involved.

[Edroy]

We had Escape install the solar package on our 2021 19 with 2 roof mounted panels and the additional port for a maneuverable panel. Now I am ready for the additional panel. Go Power has kits available that include a 10 Amp controller but if Escape did the installation right, the additional port should already be wired to the existing controller. Can anyone confirm? I'm not interested in purchasing an additional controller if it isn't needed.

[wackyburggeezer]

With your trailer and solar panels in the sunlight, measure the DC voltage at your extra solar port. 18 to 23 volts will indicate that ETI made the connection on the solar panel side of the controller. 15 to 12 volts will indicate that ETI made the connection on the battery side (output) side of the controller. 18 to 23 volts DC means that your portable panel should not have a separate controller. Additionally, you can check the wiring under the driver side dinette seat. Otherwise, give ETI a call on Monday, and ask for an answer to your question. If you haven't invested in a digital multimeter, now is a good time, as it's as useful as a Robertson screwdriver to an Escape owner.

[SFcamping]

I have a recent 17A and both the port and rooftop wires run to just above the controller where they are spliced together along with a pigtail wire that runs to the controller. I didn't notice the gauge of the port wires but I did notice that they are smaller than the rooftop 10 awg wires.

[oreo]

Just have escape install a Zamp port for solar

[Edroy]

Thanks for that suggestion. I do have a multimeter and find it very useful. Looking under the bench seat doesn't reveal a lot as the wiring from the port goes under the flooring pretty quickly. I will try your suggestion as soon as we get a sunny day again, maybe Monday.
Making a trip to Escape is not an easy option from Twisp (in north central Washington).

[Edroy]

Thanks for this suggestion. I will look again, but it appeared to me the wires from the port went under the flooring layer pretty quickly.