How much solar is enough for your van

Robbie Mc · Member

How much solar is enough for your van

Whenarewethere · Guru

We have 120 watts & it's plenty for us. https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t65231112/custom-6x20-watts-solar-setup-with-mppt/

Robbie Mc · Member

Hi I was thinking of putting another 160 on my van. I want to have enough to free camp for a week or more if possible.

Jaahn · Guru

Robbie Mc wrote:
I have 320 watt solar on the roof and a 250 watt solar blanket is this enough for free camping?

Hi Robbie smile

Sounds OK to me I have 190W but lived on 140 for years. If you have a easily read meter to tell you the state of your batteries that is all you need really. When the meter says its low enough then you go to bed. biggrin Pretty easy really ! but some think they need to live like at home. disbelief What battery capacity do you have ?

Cheers jaahn

Robbie Mc · Member

2 x 100 amp gel batteries

Whenarewethere · Guru

As Jaahn said, what battery capacity.

Also depends what your load is. Does the wiring have the right cross sectional area. Quite often this is under size. Is the controller near the batteries & especially not on the back of the panels. Better insulation on the fridge will help.

Robbie Mc · Member

ok thanks for the info have a good day.

Mike Harding · Guru

What loads are you running?

Where in Australia will you mainly camp?

In what sort of environment will you camp, ie desert, beach, forest?

What time of year will you camp?

Do you intend to run a 12V freezer?

A 12V fridge/freezer (+2C/-12C) will require between 25Ah and 60Ah per day depending upon ambient temperature.

Currently I am camped in NW Victoria in forest - solar panels are not worth a damn here because the tree cover is significant, the sun has little energy and is only above the horizon for a few hours each day at this time of year. The 120W panel on the van produces a few Ah per days but I haven't even bothered to get the portable panels out of their box - in summer with a high sun I may.

Because I use a three-way fridge/freezer in the van my electricity usage is fairly low and I run a generator for a couple of hours each day in order to keep everything charged.

Solar can be very effective, or it can be next to useless, it totally depends on individual circumstances and use.

bgt · Guru

I helped someone who couldn't go 24 hours even though they had plenty of panels and batteries for a few days dry camping. Then the wife revealed she 'only' used her hair dryer for 30 minutes each morning!!!

Write down your needs before you even think about what panels and batteries you need.

Wanda · Guru

Really depends a lot on your consumption
Your biggest user of power is always the Compressor 12vlt fridges, lights use little power, tv's set top boxes for sat tv etc also use a bit because of the time they are on is usually when there is no solar going in.
We have a compressor fridge with sat tv and have 2 x 120amp lead crystal batteries and 3 x 150 solar on the roof. We find this suitable for most occassions.
cheers
Ian

Jaahn · Guru

Hi smile

Well some good informative answers so far IMHO. I think Mike gave a very revealing story about where he is camping. If you choose a place down by the creek in the mountains then you might not expect to get much solar in winter(or TV). In summer it might be marginal too if under the big shadey trees. Sooo you should choose a place which is open to the north, with a bit of height and a clear solar outlook, if you want the power. Not rocket science really. Some choose generators instead ! Your choice. We tend to choose what suits on that particular day and if it needs some tweeking we do so just by moving the MH or starting the motor for a while. aww

If you go out to "central australia" the shade and lack of sun is not as much a problem. wink That story about the hair drier by bgt is not untypical perhaps for some couples.

Jaahn

-- Edited by Jaahn on Friday 29th of May 2020 03:43:10 PM

Robbie Mc · Member

Hi Juaahn thanks for sharing that with me

Whenarewethere · Guru

Depending on your setup you can have the data on your phone. I generally don't bother with the consumption going through my controller, but it is useful if one doesn't have an idea of daily load.

Eaglemax · Guru

The whole how much solar depends on several factors But without going through the nitty gritty of it all, that you can look up in archives, I think its best to take along a small generator regardless. A small genny can be purchased on eBay for as little as $270 4 stroke 800w and if you are in Victoria atm it will be a handy item. And it will weigh less than 13kg Tony

Meredith · Senior Member

It depends on what you want to run and where you go and how long you sit there. For the first few years we had our van we had 120 watts of solar and 1 100amp battery, with a 3 way fridge we managed to free camps for months without any problems at all, but we didn't want to run much, just a few lights, water pump, occasionally a bit of tv and recharge a phone, and we usually moved on every few days. We now have about as much as you and 2 batteries and we also run a 60 litre compressor fridge and sirocco fans and have sat in one spot for weeks and never come close to running out and have never had or wanted a generator. Of course if you want to start running high power use appliances it soon changes.

Robbie Mc · Member

Thanks Merideth have a great day

Nevd · Senior Member

Good Morning Robert,

There are a few solar calculators on line, but I find this one to be the best

http://s4rvs.neto.com.au/assets/SPEC/default.html

Nev

FMC · Veteran Member

We have 360 Watts of flexible solar panels on the roof and 120 watt gel battery and have found this enough for plenty of off road, only use radio, tv, lights for dining and reading at night, 12 volt pump, fridge on gas etc. Our power requirements and usage were worked out by a friend who is the retired professor on environmental science Flinders University and checked by our 12 volt wizard installer. (Based on 12 months of seasonal fluctuations e.g. light and shade and temperature)

Water is always going to be the issue.

Delta18 · Guru

Can never have too much. smile

yobarr · Guru

With 1710 Solar on van and 540ah Lithium I do what I like! Through a 5kw Victron inverter I run 2.5kw reverse cycle AC,microwave,slow cooker,electric frypan,air fryer,electric jug etc etc.Also have 175 litre Evakool fridge/freezer,Sat TV,fans,LED lights,two water pumps...no gas appliances.Car has solar too,with 180ah Lithium and 2kw inverter for use when away from van.With over 600 litres of water,and a diesel heater for water and air,I can spend weeks away from civilisation! As someone else has said,you never can have too much Solar,but you always should have a minimum solar capacity of 150% times battery capacity....minimum.I run over 300%,as do Neil and Lynne..Cheers.

-- Edited by yobarr on Sunday 31st of May 2020 07:14:25 PM

Eaglemax · Guru

I prefer not to boast what I have but demonstrate how you can go caravanning and enjoy it with minimal capacities. Built own lightweight van 16x7ft tare 730kg atm 998kg full ensuite.130a agm battery (yes only one), 300w solar on roof, one 12v pump, 30 litre 12v drawer fridge, 84L water, (+40L in car) cpap, tv, ... we last 6+ days away from towns more if near a water supply. We take the approach we are camping with the bare luxuries a caravan provides. While you cant have too much solar I cant relate to those that travel in a block of units. Less is more.

Whenarewethere · Guru

FMC wrote:
Water is always going to be the issue.

We live out of a car & there is not a lot left for water with our 500kg payload with all the safety gear, sand flag, tow ropes, sand tracks, second spare wheel, tyre repair kit, compressors, jump cables, fire extinguishers, fuel, tools......

StewG · Senior Member

We have 220 Ah batteries and 240 W solar panels in/on our van and run a 90 litre compressor fridge, pump, LED lights, radio, TV and computers. Generally, we can go ok for several days (depending on sunshine), but as others have said, water goes low first - we like our showers. When in storage at home, the van is in the open and the fridge runs continuously during Summer, Spring, Autumn, but needs to be plugged into power during Winter (in Melbourne). I love the setup that Delta 18 has...although I think use could be made of the bonnet and roof rack.