Ready to add solar & battery question

[MBA80]

Wiring for roof mount Solar in the trailer is the hardest part. The wiring to the battery or batteries is also very simple. Connecting roof mounted solar to your roof is the difficult part. Since I am partial to Zamp Solar, I would get their 160 Watt Deluxe Roof mount kit. There are even You Tube Videos showing the entire installation process. A good installer will charge no less than $450 for on roof panel installation.

[yologals]

I'm going to spend some time this weekend digging into what I have back there. Providing a diagram would be great and much appreciated!

[MBA80]

I used both Portable and Roof Mounted. 120 Watt Portable and 160 Watt roof mount, with the option to add two additional 160 Watt or 100 Watt extension panels using the same Zamp Solar Charge Controller.

[MBA80]

Please clarify which diagram you would like to see.

[alanmalk]

Originally Posted by philostechedon

One other consideration for AGMs, especially high-quality ones: the Costco batteries you mention (I assume the 6V golf cart ones) will last you 2-3 years, whereas the pricey AGMs are rated for 7-10 year lifespan. So, you can spend $160 three times, or $500 once, for about the same 200Ah.
...

Another consideration in favor of AGM: They have a lower "self-discharge rate" than flooded batteries. (Think of that as "leakage" of power that just disappears whether or not the batteries are being used.) That means two advantages: You can wire them in parallel - with short cables, not trailer-length, as already mentioned. Plus, if you start your winter storage with full batteries they will be full in the spring, without having to take them home or put them on a charger. I measured my self-discharge of my new AGMs at about 5 milli-amps. Almost nothing...


--
Alan

[dusty]

Originally Posted by MBA80

Sounds like you have limited wiring and nothing else. A single Zamp Solar port is very easy to install. I can send you wiring diagrams for single and multiple battery configurations. On my previous 17 foot Liberty Deluxe Casita prior to my 2017 21 Escape this installation took less than 30 minutes. It took longer for the calking to dry around the port than it did to two wires to the battery (1- Group 27 wet acid battery).

Hi - I would LOVE a wiring diagram as well if you are able.... we would like to connect our 100w portable panel to the two 6V batteries we have on the bumper of our 17A. I would like to install a Victron charge controller as well, and a battery monitor, and am a bit puzzled where to place the shunt (nearest the battery, but the prospect of that feels daunting.) Our 10 gauge Zamp port is installed near the rear brake lights, but it is only roughed in at the moment, so currently we just connect with battery clamps and have a rudimentary controller plugged in and sheltered in waterproof connection box. It works, but..... Any help you can provide would be most appreciated.

[MBA80]

My PDF document is too large for the forum attachment guidelines. Email me directly to request what you want.

[John in Santa Cruz]

you put an ammeter shunt in series with what you want to measure.

I could see putting it directly on the battery, then connecting both the power converter and solar to the other side of the shunt, this way the ammeter will show the net current from (or to) the battery. you'd get negative readings while charging, positive readings while discharging.