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  • I'm cluless and overwhelmed...please help

    I'm new to solar panel so please forgive my ignorant questions. There's a vast amount of information I've read through that I have difficulty absorbing it all.

    My issue is very simple and, I think, is easily answered. I have a camper shell that I've built on the bed of my truck. I want to run a simple fan to keep me cool. I may want to also run a DVR player with a TV at a later date (but the DVR/TV will be an upgrade later). I can capably install a solar panel, charge controller and inverter if it's a plug and play type.

    So, here's my questions:

    1) can I use a small deep cycle battery? Say, the size of a lawn mower battery?
    2) I will be storing the battery in the enclosed camper where I will be sleeping. Is there a danger of me dying during my sleep because of some gasses being emitted from the battery during charge/discharge?

    I have read through all the watt/watt hour conversions and that's where I get lost. This is a one time installation so I just won't get too involved in all the technical calculations.

    I would like to keep my cost under $300 and would need to permanently install the panel and equipment. I'm looking at some solar panel kits from one of the big box stores.

    Thanks for tolerating my ignorance. And thank you in advance for the information.

    kevol

  • #2
    Welcome
    Briefly, no, a small battery won't work for much more than half an hour. Like a fuel tank in a truck, Just need 2 gallons of gas, and I'll be back in an hour to get 2 more.

    Fumes. A simple flooded battery will stink up your living space, and the fumes will corrode everything. A sealed battery requires more precise care, and when it eventually goes bad, can emit the same fumes from the safety vents. Sealed also costs 2x as much, and lasts half as long. Many trucks have space in the engine compartment for a 2nd battery, or maybe you can add one under the bed/on the chassis, google remote starting battery on the speed truck forums for your model. (racers often relocate the battery to get weight over the back wheels)

    Anything under $300 will be a toy that will sour your experience. Hey, I just bought this $300 truck off craigslist and it only got me 5 miles and broke down.
    Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
    || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
    || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

    solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
    gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

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    • #3
      Originally posted by KEVHOL View Post
      I

      I have read through all the watt/watt hour conversions and that's where I get lost. This is a one time installation so I just won't get too involved in all the technical calculations.

      I would like to keep my cost under $300
      Welcome, we have to answer the watt hour conversion stuff to answer your question, and if we keep it basic it is not too hard to follow. With solar, system balance is critical ( if you want the system to work for more than 2 days). Location and how much sun energy is available is also critical to your answer. Fans and tv's are very common in 12V DC models, that will be possible to make a smaller/less expensive system viable if your loads are smaller and not needing the extra cost and energy waste of a AC inverter system. If you find a DC fan you can live with in the 10 - 15W range and dont need to run it more than 4 - 6 hours a day, and then mix in just an hour or so of TV later, you may be able to get close to your target price for a simple system, if you tell us more about your location and time of year for the sun energy harvest side of things and more about your fan size and duration requirements i'm sure we can get a little closer to some good answers for you.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by KEVHOL View Post
        My issue is very simple and, I think, is easily answered. I have a camper shell that I've built on the bed of my truck. I want to run a simple fan to keep me cool. I may want to also run a DVR player with a TV at a later date (but the DVR/TV will be an upgrade later). I can capably install a solar panel, charge controller and inverter if it's a plug and play type.

        I would like to keep my cost under $300l
        OK $300 is not even going to buy the panel and controller. If you drive at least every other day you have no need for any solar. Just buy you a pair of 6-volt golf cart batteries and a Battery Isolator that allows your engine alternator to charge the batteries. Your engine alternator can generate more energy in 1 hour than panels can generate in a two days.

        For $300 you can get a pair of entry level golf cart batteries at Wally World and a Battery Isolator. The big question is no one knows if that will be enough to work or not for you. If you keep daily usage under 1 Kwh will work but requires you to drive an hour a day or at least idle.
        MSEE, PE

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        • #5
          I'm kind of a newbie at solar also and had similar needs for my hunting van, I have a fantastic fan in the ceiling, four 280 Lumen LED RV interior lights and a small RV furnace designed for a VW Vanagon. I went with a Renogy 100 watt kit with PMW controller($185 shipped) and two sealed lead acid batteries for a wheel chair/scooter and the appropriate fusing and wiring. At the suggestion of folks here I did add a battery isolator and so far I've only needed the battery isolator in the PNW when it rains hard for days on end. Here in the SW and inland from the coast I leave it switched off and rely on the solar panel and it has worked perfectly since last sept., heating all night in sub-freezing temps and cooling the rig in the evening when the temps are hot. The batteries are usually fully recharged by early afternoon. The controller I have has a SLA setting and goes into Float mode when the batteries are charged and seems to be easy on the batteries. I feel pretty safe with these batteries in the van as they are designed to be use indoors with medical equipment and charged everyday.

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