Converting to LiFePO4 / Solar

[EmpirE231]

Okay, trying to get as much knowledge and info to make sure I do this right.

I just ordered 3 of these Li Time 12V 230AH batteries

LiTime 12V 230Ah Plus Low-Temp Protection Deep Cycle LiFePO4 Battery,

LiTime 12V 230Ah LTCP LiFePO4 battery with 2944Wh usable energy has low-temperature protection. Weighing only 45.22lbs.

www.litime.com

To replace my 8 full river 224AH 6V batteries... that were in my motorhome. If I am doing my math correctly, my 6 volts wired in Parallel provided 896AH of 12V juice at , but since they were AGM batteries, and really should not get below 50%... that gave me 448AH of juice (896/2). The new Lithium batteries are 230AH X 3 = 690AH of 12V juice... and since these can be ran down to zero.... that is a little over a 50% increase in overall capacity! did I do this math right or am I missing something.

a few questions before I pop these into my motorhome.

1. would you use your onboard inverter/ charger to charge these batteries, or would you run a separate stand alone charger for these? I would like them to charge when I fire up my generator... which currently goes through my inverter chargers. I currently have 2 magnum ms2000'S (one is newer and is lithium ready, the other is not). Each one is capable of charging at 100 amps. I think I would need to upgrade my remote in order to do this correctly?

2. Motorhome obviously has a motor and an alternator.... I have read that the Alternators can be overworked by these new LifFePO4 batteries? Is this true or a myth... do I really need to worry about this? In it's current setup, the alternator charges the chassis batteries (2 separate batteries) and also sends charge to the house batteries (not exactly sure if it does it all at once, or waits for the chassis to be topped off before it goes to the house batts)

3. If I use my inverter / chargers to charge these new batts, since the charge parameters are different... will that destroy my chassis batteries? I am assuming when the gen is running and batteries are being charged, that it is also charging the chassis batteries.

4. I currently have no solar, but plan to add it down the road. What type of panels should I be looking for, and how many panels should I be installing if the idea is to have these batteries topped off daily?

 

[69hondo]

I have no info here or knowledge but have you been on IRV2? there is so much info on that site.

 

[EmpirE231]

I have no info here or knowledge but have you been on IRV2? there is so much info on that site.

I have... but was reluctant to post it there, because sometimes you get wayyy too much info, and it becomes hard to decipher what is good info or not on that site lol.

 

[69hondo]

I have... but was reluctant to post it there, because sometimes you get wayyy too much info, and it becomes hard to decipher what is good info or not on that site lol.

Yeah you got that right. LOL
Then you get the assholes who want to argue about what is right and/or wrong.

 

[RiverCruiser]

From reading previous threads on here it seems that KaOtyk and Mesquito_creek have a great deal of knowledge on this subject.

 

[EmpirE231]

From reading previous threads on here it seems that KaOtyk and Mesquito_creek have a great deal of knowledge on this subject.

yeah they seem to know this stuff pretty good... was hoping they would eventually chime in!

Batteries just showed up today, so I gotta start game planning

 

[RiverCruiser]

yeah they seem to know this stuff pretty good... was hoping they would eventually chime in!

Batteries just showed up today, so I gotta start game planning

I don’t know how to tag people in threads or I would have.

 

[mjc]

Ok here is what i did. Rv had 12 lead and 4 100w solar panels. Changed to 2 100a li's then up to 4 100a and 6 100w panels with 40a mppt controller. Generator and alternator are not li so they won't completely charge but solar will finish them off every day. I only run generator to use the microwave.

 

[Meaney77]

Yeah you got that right. LOL
Then you get the assholes who want to argue about what is right and/or wrong.

Thats different then here???!!!

 

[paradise]

Okay, trying to get as much knowledge and info to make sure I do this right.

I just ordered 3 of these Li Time 12V 230AH batteries

LiTime 12V 230Ah Plus Low-Temp Protection Deep Cycle LiFePO4 Battery,

LiTime 12V 230Ah LTCP LiFePO4 battery with 2944Wh usable energy has low-temperature protection. Weighing only 45.22lbs.

www.litime.com

To replace my 8 full river 224AH 6V batteries... that were in my motorhome. If I am doing my math correctly, my 6 volts wired in Parallel provided 896AH of 12V juice at , but since they were AGM batteries, and really should not get below 50%... that gave me 448AH of juice (896/2). The new Lithium batteries are 230AH X 3 = 690AH of 12V juice... and since these can be ran down to zero.... that is a little over a 50% increase in overall capacity! did I do this math right or am I missing something.

a few questions before I pop these into my motorhome.

1. would you use your onboard inverter/ charger to charge these batteries, or would you run a separate stand alone charger for these? I would like them to charge when I fire up my generator... which currently goes through my inverter chargers. I currently have 2 magnum ms2000'S (one is newer and is lithium ready, the other is not). Each one is capable of charging at 100 amps. I think I would need to upgrade my remote in order to do this correctly?

2. Motorhome obviously has a motor and an alternator.... I have read that the Alternators can be overworked by these new LifFePO4 batteries? Is this true or a myth... do I really need to worry about this? In it's current setup, the alternator charges the chassis batteries (2 separate batteries) and also sends charge to the house batteries (not exactly sure if it does it all at once, or waits for the chassis to be topped off before it goes to the house batts)

3. If I use my inverter / chargers to charge these new batts, since the charge parameters are different... will that destroy my chassis batteries? I am assuming when the gen is running and batteries are being charged, that it is also charging the chassis batteries.

4. I currently have no solar, but plan to add it down the road. What type of panels should I be looking for, and how many panels should I be installing if the idea is to have these batteries topped off daily?

Not sure on the Magnums. I don’t have them but if they are Lithium ready you should be able to charge with the one.

Yes, you can overwork the alternator. Get a LI-BIM 225. It will make sure the batteries are charged by the alternator but it will give the alternator a break every 30 minutes or so.

The LI-BIM should manage that as well. After it disconnects the batteries it checks to see if the resting voltage is at a charged level and then leaves them disconnected.

You can do rigid or flexible panels, you’ll want MPPT chargers and once you know how many panels you can fit you’ll want to decide how best to set them up in series or parallel to match up with your chargers. As for how much, basically as much as you can in my experience. You would need to look at your expected load to try and figure out your usage but it will vary.

Lastly you should do some type of shunt to measure battery capacity left. I like Victron but there are others out there too.

 

[69hondo]

Thants differnet than here???!!!

Lmao. Right!!

 

[EmpirE231]

Is there a downside to having too many batteries / AH? I am tempted to get one more battery since I have the space for it, which would put me at 920AH vs 690. Will this cause me to need much more robust system in place to make sure they are charged up?

 

[DoughBallin14]

Is there a downside to having too many batteries / AH? I am tempted to get one more battery since I have the space for it, which would put me at 920AH vs 690. Will this cause me to need much more robust system in place to make sure they are charged up?

i have not heard of too much battery storage banks being bad.
I think the question is how much solar can you fit on your rig and if you want that system to be able to completely recharge your battery bank. Or your solar does most of it but then needs to be topped off or finished by your generator.

Thats almost 12,000watt hours at 12v if you add in another battery.

Quick math i want to say a 1000ah bank thats 50%dod, to charge that in one day at the average 6hours peak sun time you would need 1240watts of solar.thats like 20 100w panels, Or about 700watts of solar (10 100w panels) to charge that bank in 2 days..

Dont quote me on it as i am not an expert but from some research that is what i have put together i over the years and i know there are variables in that equation

 

[EmpirE231]

Okay I spoke with someone who does this stuff for a living and might be helping me out. Gonna measure my roof area to see what can fit. He's recommending some second hand 400W panels (if they fit) sounds like we might go with 4 of them if there is room, which would put it at 1600W of solar.

 

[paradise]

Okay I spoke with someone who does this stuff for a living and might be helping me out. Gonna measure my roof area to see what can fit. He's recommending some second hand 400W panels (if they fit) sounds like we might go with 4 of them if there is room, which would put it at 1600W of solar.

1600W would be very nice! 400W panels are pretty large, be cool to see how you make them fit.

These were the panels I went with (x6) as I wanted to stick with flexible so i could avoid penetrating the roof as much as possible.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B082FCZ4MD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[EmpirE231]

1600W would be very nice! 400W panels are pretty large, be cool to see how you make them fit.

These were the panels I went with (x6) as I wanted to stick with flexible so i could avoid penetrating the roof as much as possible.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B082FCZ4MD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

yeah I'll have to measure... they are 40x80

how did you mount those to your roof? and do they need any gap off the rood itself, or can they be glued down?

 

[paradise]

yeah I'll have to measure... they are 40x80

how did you mount those to your roof? and do they need any gap off the rood itself, or can they be glued down?

You lose some efficiency without a gap due to heat buildup but I chose to live with that and bonded direct to the roof. We did VHB tape about an inch in from the edges and then eternabond around the edges of each panel to seal them to the roof. ~7-8k miles and no issues with some pretty extreme wind and rain while driving 60MPH on the last trip.

 

[spark2678]

Empire I think you have a similar moho as I do from threads in the past, I have a 2011 43' American Coach 42P with (3) rooftop AC's. I think the 400W are going to be tough. I have the 250W panels and they are huge and heavy! I have (2) installed now and can fit (3) more max if configured properly. If you plan on building a platform over the AC units then that's a different story!

 

[EmpirE231]

Empire I think you have a similar moho as I do from threads in the past, I have a 2011 43' American Coach 42P with (3) rooftop AC's. I think the 400W are going to be tough. I have the 250W panels and they are huge and heavy! I have (2) installed now and can fit (3) more max if configured properly. If you plan on building a platform over the AC units then that's a different story!

Yeah just went up and measured and no way will the 400w panels fit. Sounds like we’re gonna go with 200w panels now. Will figure out how many.

Yep same roof most likely as yours.

 

[EmpirE231]

So the 400W panels are way too big and will not work on my roof. Considering going with these now...

https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-200-Watt-Volt-Monocrystalline/dp/B08CRJYJ22/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=OHid4&content-id=amzn1.sym.5f7e0a27-49c0-47d3-80b2-fd9271d863ca%3Aamzn1.symc.e5c80209-769f-4ade-a325-2eaec14b8e0e&pf_rd_p=5f7e0a27-49c0-47d3-80b2-fd9271d863ca&pf_rd_r=MFVXGSXMDQ41JXT3H6WQ&pd_rd_wg=tycYI&pd_rd_r=14ebab3a-3b0f-4bd9-97aa-31141933673e&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mr_hp_atf_m&th=1

Would 5 panels (1k watts worth of solar) be considered a pretty good sized system?

are there other panels in a similar price range you would recommend over these Renogy panels?

 

[DoughBallin14]

So the 400W panels are way too big and will not work on my roof. Considering going with these now...

https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-200-Watt-Volt-Monocrystalline/dp/B08CRJYJ22/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=OHid4&content-id=amzn1.sym.5f7e0a27-49c0-47d3-80b2-fd9271d863ca%3Aamzn1.symc.e5c80209-769f-4ade-a325-2eaec14b8e0e&pf_rd_p=5f7e0a27-49c0-47d3-80b2-fd9271d863ca&pf_rd_r=MFVXGSXMDQ41JXT3H6WQ&pd_rd_wg=tycYI&pd_rd_r=14ebab3a-3b0f-4bd9-97aa-31141933673e&ref_=pd_gw_ci_mcx_mr_hp_atf_m&th=1

Would 5 panels (1k watts worth of solar) be considered a pretty good sized system?

are there other panels in a similar price range you would recommend over these Renogy panels?

I have 4 of the 100watt panels from renogy on my TH previous owner put them on as a 400watt kit from renogy.
So far been on their for 6 years now and not a single problem. I want to add 2 more which is what i have room for. But have also considered just upsizing the panels i have to the same size renogy ones that are now 200w panels. Would be nice because my mounts are already their on the roof from before.

1000w system your putting together sounds like a good size for your set up along with The proper quality mppt controller.

These are the other panels i have seen others mention in the past and a few friends with van/overland builds

Rigid Solar Panels

Durable and highly efficient, BougeRV rigid solar panels are the best fit for permanent installations to power your RV, off-grid camping, and house.

www.bougerv.com

 

[EmpirE231]

Okay ordered 5 of the Renogy 200w panels. Decided on 5 because it’ll fit in straight line down the driver side roof of the RV, and will keep the other side accessible. Gonna schedule things with the guy installing it all and hopefully be done within the next 2 weeks . I’ll keep this thread updated.

 

[mesquito_creek]

I am on a fishing vacation in Mexico… but when I get back this weekend if you PM me your number we can talk about what I have done and how to figure out a bunch of this stuff over the phone.

 

[mjc]

Okay ordered 5 of the Renogy 200w panels. Decided on 5 because it’ll fit in straight line down the driver side roof of the RV, and will keep the other side accessible. Gonna schedule things with the guy installing it all and hopefully be done within the next 2 weeks . I’ll keep this thread updated.

I have 6 of the renogy on my roof held down with there z brackets and 3m 5200. Any holes are sealed and glued down.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Regarding #2 motor home alternator charging.

You would need to really do a deep dive to figure out your setup, what size alternator and how it’s all wired between the engine starting battery and the house battery. Lots of times there is a relay that will connect the two batterys together. Once the starting battery is fully charged it connects to the house batteries. This is bad when mixing lead with lithium because of the difference in internal resistance. There is a mad rush of current between the two and I will most likely damage the bms.

Even if there is a completely separate circuit between the starting and house you would need to protect the alternator from the lithium battery because of the low resistance on lithium. This a where a DC to DC charger get added. So that the alternator DC current is regulated to the lithium DC particulars

I tend to say is probably not worth it to have alternator charging on the house battery unless you are spending many hours driving. Most alternators don’t produce enough excess charging current to barely charge, they provide a low amount of maintenance charge at best. So you might just start by eliminating it on the new lifepo4 and see how you do without it. Other wise put an alternator dc to dc charger on the house lifepo4.

 

[paradise]

Regarding #2 motor home alternator charging.

You would need to really do a deep dive to figure out your setup, what size alternator and how it’s all wired between the engine starting battery and the house battery. Lots of times there is a relay that will connect the two batterys together. Once the starting battery is fully charged it connects to the house batteries. This is bad when mixing lead with lithium because of the difference in internal resistance. There is a mad rush of current between the two and I will most likely damage the bms.

Even if there is a completely separate circuit between the starting and house you would need to protect the alternator from the lithium battery because of the low resistance on lithium. This a where a DC to DC charger get added. So that the alternator DC current is regulated to the lithium DC particulars

I tend to say is probably not worth it to have alternator charging on the house battery unless you are spending many hours driving. Most alternators don’t produce enough excess charging current to barely charge, they provide a low amount of maintenance charge at best. So you might just start by eliminating it on the new lifepo4 and see how you do without it. Other wise put an alternator dc to dc charger on the house lifepo4.

I think Empire has a pusher and often times you have 100A+ of charging available. I linked to a product above that manages the situation and has worked flawlessly on mine as well as is used on many new motorhomes with factory lithium batteries.

 

[mesquito_creek]

To replace my 8 full river 224AH 6V batteries... that were in my motorhome. If I am doing my math correctly, my 6 volts wired in Parallel provided 896AH of 12V juice at , but since they were AGM batteries, and really should not get below 50%... that gave me 448AH of juice (896/2). The new Lithium batteries are 230AH X 3 = 690AH of 12V juice... and since these can be ran down to zero.... that is a little over a 50% increase in overall capacity! did I do this math right or am I missing something.

Your math is the same as mine on this…. I convert to watts to make it a little easier on my small brain.

Yes you can run the lifepo4 to 0% but you probably shouldn’t. Set the low voltage cut off on the inverter/charger to 3-5%. When you completely go down to zero some of the BMS will turn off and not like to wake up OR they go into a trickle type mode where it takes a long time to get the cells back to a small % charge before the bms will take the full 100 amps of charging. The juice isn’t worth the squeeze on that last few percent. Just start charging via the generator or wait for the sun and in a few minutes you will already be charged more than waiting on the trickle charge or worse having to jump the bms to turn it back on.

 

[mesquito_creek]

I think Empire has a pusher and often times you have 100A+ of charging available. I linked to a product above that manages the situation and has worked flawlessly on mine as well as is used on many new motorhomes with factory lithium batteries.

Got it! Makes sense… I checked it out online. These is a direct replacement for what I referred to as the relay. This solution seems pretty simple and straightforward to deal with the rush of current I described by connecting the starting and house batteries together. The only downside is that if he has a 100 amps of alternator charging available there is a lot of charging potential not being used by going the LI-BIM 225 route. A DC-DV charger would provide full time charging evertine you are running the motor. But your solution is better than my “don’t bother with it” suggestion.

In order of efficiency.
1). Don’t connect the house batts to the alternator is super easy but least efficient.
2). Lifepo4/lead acid BIM. Middle of the road solution. You get some alternator charging
3). Dc to dc best solution with full time charging.

 

[paradise]

Got it! Makes sense… I checked it out online. These is a direct replacement for what I referred to as the relay. This solution seems pretty simple and straightforward to deal with the rush of current I described by connecting the starting and house batteries together. The only downside is that if he has a 100 amps of alternator charging available there is a lot of charging potential not being used by going the LI-BIM 225 route. A DC-DV charger would provide full time charging evertine you are running the motor. But your solution is better than my “don’t bother with it” suggestion.

In order of efficiency.
1). Don’t connect the house batts to the alternator is super easy but least efficient.
2). Lifepo4/lead acid BIM. Middle of the road solution. You get some alternator charging
3). Dc to dc best solution with full time charging.

Totally agree, only issue I have heard of (never experienced first hand) is that the Lithiums have such a big capacity that you can overheat and hurt the alternator by running full charging current for hours. Is that a real issue? I don't know

 

[mesquito_creek]

Totally agree, only issue I have heard of (never experienced first hand) is that the Lithiums have such a big capacity that you can overheat and hurt the alternator by running full charging current for hours. Is that a real issue? I don't know

Someone with more knowledge can explain it better but I understand it as a problem with the low resistance of lithium. So the typical alternator is built to charge high resistance lead acid batteries. The alternator is expecting a garden hose size pipe to fill the lead. Lifepo4 gives the alternator a firehose sized pipe so the alternator burns up trying to use fill the firehose. Large Capacity Of lifepo4 not being the direct issue.

 

[EmpirE231]

So the guy I spoke with about the install also recommended the Li-BIM. I made sure to ask that it can be fullproof.... ex, If I'm on a 4 hour drive (alternator), sun is shining (solar) and I have the genny on for the roof AC's (inverter charging x 200 amps). That everything is communicating with each other so I don't blow up going down the road lol

I ordered 5 panels yesterday (5*200w = 1k w) but am tempted to order 1 more and be at 1200W. Wondering if it is even necessary or beneficial to have that much more? If we are on a 5 day trip... I do not mind if I have to run the genny one or twice for a few hours. I am not trying to eliminate all genny use, just minimize it . What do you guys think?

 

[mesquito_creek]

So the guy I spoke with about the install also recommended the Li-BIM. I made sure to ask that it can be fullproof.... ex, If I'm on a 4 hour drive (alternator), sun is shining (solar) and I have the genny on for the roof AC's (inverter charging x 200 amps). That everything is communicating with each other so I don't blow up going down the road lol

I ordered 5 panels yesterday (5*200w = 1k w) but am tempted to order 1 more and be at 1200W. Wondering if it is even necessary or beneficial to have that much more? If we are on a 5 day trip... I do not mind if I have to run the genny one or twice for a few hours. I am not trying to eliminate all genny use, just minimize it . What do you guys think?

Maximum panels…. If you put 1200 on and avg 1000 watts for 5-6 hours you will get about 6000 watts hours or 500 amp hours. With 690ah battery bank you will still be running the generator some.

 

[EmpirE231]

Maximum panels…. If you put 1200 on and avg 1000 watts for 5-6 hours you will get about 6000 watts hours or 500 amp hours. With 690ah battery bank you will still be running the generator some.

okay, you just made me spend another 200 bucks . If all 6 can fit with still having some decent roof access, we will run all 6. If not, we'll go back to the 5.

The more I consider the 2nd benefit of having this system the more I justify spending on it.... if the power at home ever goes out for 10 days or what not, I will be glad I invested in this.

 

[spark2678]

I disconnected my "big boy" relay so my alternator only charges the chassis batteries, not the house LifePO4. While driving, the only major 120V load on the inverter is the refrigerator. On a long 6-8 hour road trip with 600ah of LI and 600W of solar (soon to be 850W), at the end of the day I am at still at 90% on a sunny day. On a cloudy day I may be around 75%. I can always start the genny while driving if I want to charge the house batteries.

Likewise when parked, the genny and shore power does not charge the chassis batteries now. I hooked up an 8A trickle charger to the chassis batteries to solve this issue.

This combo works great for me.

Note- I have (2) magnum inverters. I use the custom charge setting and it's worked great. The batteries have their own BMS too.

 

[spark2678]

Solar Panels | SanTan Solar

www.santansolar.com

This is where I have sourced my used panels. I have had good luck with very little degradation. Pricing can't be beat.

 

[EmpirE231]

I disconnected my "big boy" relay so my alternator only charges the chassis batteries, not the house LifePO4. While driving, the only major 120V load on the inverter is the refrigerator. On a long 6-8 hour road trip with 600ah of LI and 600W of solar (soon to be 850W), at the end of the day I am at still at 90% on a sunny day. On a cloudy day I may be around 75%. I can always start the genny while driving if I want to charge the house batteries.

Likewise when parked, the genny and shore power does not charge the chassis batteries now. I hooked up an 8A trickle charger to the chassis batteries to solve this issue.

This combo works great for me.

Note- I have (2) magnum inverters. I use the custom charge setting and it's worked great. The batteries have their own BMS too.

When you say you are at 90% on a sunny day... is that fridge use only? or also the coffee pot, microwave or stove top use (I'm assuming you have an electric stove top like mine)

Solar guy is scheduled to install everything on Friday, as long as my panels show up on time (first time Prime has let me down... they were supposed get here last Sat). But he will be wiring everything up and installing everything with the LI-BIM, solar charge controller and shunt.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Microwave oven is pretty light weight if you are just nuking something for a minute or two. Even pop corn is 3 minutes.

You have 690AH. Convert that to WH 690 x 12v is 8280 watt hours. So if you ran a 1000 watt microwave for 1 hour you would use 1/8 of you batteries. For a couple minutes here and there is only a couple hundred watt hours max.

Pull out the manual on your stove top and get the wattage spec and you can figure out how much it uses in an hour.

Same thing with coffee maker, I think my Mr coffee uses about 800 watts. So if it takes 15 minutes to brew you would use about 200 watt hours of your 8280. I turn off the burner after the coffe is made if I am in conservation mode.

On the flip side. If you have 1200 watts of solar panels and you are making 1000 ish during peak, you would put the whole coffee maker run back into the batteries is about 10-15 minutes of sun

Once the shunt and battery monitor is installed all the guess work goes away and you can just look at it while the stove is running and see how much it’s using

 

[EmpirE231]

Hardware is all going in today! will get some photos once it's all dialed in.

 

[EmpirE231]

Okay finally had a chance to snap some
Pics!

6 panels total, 1200W

690AH of LiFePO4. Had 8 6V before. This took up the space of 6 of them with an increase of 50% in available capacity. Room for 2 more…. Might consider adding one more of there are any Black Friday deals.

Victron charge controller and shunt, cutoff etc

BIM to control charging between the house batts and chassis batts & alternator

Looking forward to testing it all out in a few weeks to see real world results. Guy who installed it was legit if anyone needs a referral.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Super clean install… I assume it’s victronconnect shunt with the Bluetooth phone app? If so did he program the settings on the app for you? If not there are some good YouTube’s or other resources… I can take a screenshot in a week or so when I am off the grid and connected to my shunt.

I would test it out for a while before adding more batteries, the deficit is normally between the ability to recharge with solar while using solar at the same time!

 

[EmpirE231]

Super clean install… I assume it’s victronconnect shunt with the Bluetooth phone app? If so did he program the settings on the app for you? If not there are some good YouTube’s or other resources… I can take a screenshot in a week or so when I am off the grid and connected to my shunt.

I would test it out for a while before adding more batteries, the deficit is normally between the ability to recharge with solar while using solar at the same time!

Yes a Victron shunt, so I have both shunt and charger data on the same app. He dialed in all the settings. I’m still getting the hang of reading the data.

 

[mesquito_creek]

Yes a Victron shunt, so I have both shunt and charger data on the same app. He dialed in all the settings. I’m still getting the hang of reading the data.

There a lot of data there but after a while it’s just SOC (state of charge) and power (plus or minus, you are either making it or using it).

 

[EmpirE231]

There a lot of data there but after a while it’s just SOC (state of charge) and power (plus or minus, you are either making it or using it).

yeah it is interesting to see the loads and how long you can run that load.

Weather has been not ideal lately so I don't think it has produced peak power yet.

 

[EmpirE231]

So I was concerned at the amount of juice it was making while the Motorhome was parked at home… but had our maiden voyage to glamis last weekend with the new solar and batts… and it looks like it made some good power while out in full sun.

 

[69hondo]

So I was concerned at the amount of juice it was making while the Motorhome was parked at home… but had our maiden voyage to glamis last weekend with the new solar and batts… and it looks like it made some good power while out in full sun.

View attachment 1302690

So are you happy with it? Your coach is full electric right?

 

[EmpirE231]

So are you happy with it? Your coach is full electric right?

yes the coach is full electric / no propane. I learned last week that the electric stove top only works with the generator running (I thought it would work off the inverter but never tried it)

I think I need I need a little more time with it to determine if the solar is worth it. I am leaning towards a yes, but should know more after we spend the next week in Glamis. From the last trip.... I think we could have got away with only running the generator once over a 3 day trip, which is pretty good.

The battery investment was definitely worth it. I needed batteries anyway, and it is nice to have more AH capacity in the same or smaller footprint. The LifePO4 batteries are supposed to last 10+ years, pretty much maintenance free. I like the fact that you can use 100% capacity and not hurt them. Always worried about that with the AGM's if I was gone most of the day, and if the kids ran them way down... you are doing damage to the batteries etc.

Still need to determine if the additional 3k investment in solar is "wort it" It is definitely cool to have... but is it needed? I am not the person to worry about generator use... I run the coach genny, and not a little portable. So the main benefit to solar, is to reduce generator run time. we'll see how it does over a week long trip and I will keep track of the hours. Like I said, it's cool.... but is it 3k necessary?? 3k is a lot of diesel fuel and generator maintenance over several years of use.

one side benefit is that I rarely have to plug the motorhome in while at home. The residential fridge can pretty much run forever with the battery capacity and solar (unless we have some bad weather), but the flipside to this is if you want to park it under a structure or shade, you lose that benefit of the solar.

 

[69hondo]

yes the coach is full electric / no propane. I learned last week that the electric stove top only works with the generator running (I thought it would work off the inverter but never tried it)

I think I need I need a little more time with it to determine if the solar is worth it. I am leaning towards a yes, but should know more after we spend the next week in Glamis. From the last trip.... I think we could have got away with only running the generator once over a 3 day trip, which is pretty good.

The battery investment was definitely worth it. I needed batteries anyway, and it is nice to have more AH capacity in the same or smaller footprint. The LifePO4 batteries are supposed to last 10+ years, pretty much maintenance free. I like the fact that you can use 100% capacity and not hurt them. Always worried about that with the AGM's if I was gone most of the day, and if the kids ran them way down... you are doing damage to the batteries etc.

Still need to determine if the additional 3k investment in solar is "wort it" It is definitely cool to have... but is it needed? I am not the person to worry about generator use... I run the coach genny, and not a little portable. So the main benefit to solar, is to reduce generator run time. we'll see how it does over a week long trip and I will keep track of the hours. Like I said, it's cool.... but is it 3k necessary?? 3k is a lot of diesel fuel and generator maintenance over several years of use.

one side benefit is that I rarely have to plug the motorhome in while at home. The residential fridge can pretty much run forever with the battery capacity and solar (unless we have some bad weather), but the flipside to this is if you want to park it under a structure or shade, you lose that benefit of the solar.

Right on man thats some good info so far.
So it sounds like when I need batteries to at least upgrade to the lifepo4 instead of buying AGMs?
I saw on GD.com buggy is for sale again? LOL

 

[EmpirE231]

Right on man thats some good info so far.
So it sounds like when I need batteries to at least upgrade to the lifepo4 instead of buying AGMs?
I saw on GD.com buggy is for sale again? LOL

I'd say for sure go Lifepo4... its the new tech, lighter more AH and should last a decade... just have to make sure you are able to have the proper charging parameters with your current setup.

Yea I think I am officially gonna list it after thanksgiving and actually try to sell it this time around. I'm torn between wanting to take a break, and between wanting something different... I know, it's crazy lol

 

[69hondo]

I'd say for sure go Lifepo4... its the new tech, lighter more AH and should last a decade... just have to make sure you are able to have the proper charging parameters with your current setup.

Yea I think I am officially gonna list it after thanksgiving and actually try to sell it this time around. I'm torn between wanting to take a break, and between wanting something different... I know, it's crazy lol

YEah I will definetely have to hit you up when I am ready to switch over. I am not good with electrical.

Man everyday I see a lot of guys posting their cars/sxs for sale. Guys I never would think they would sell. It is a lot of work just to load up and go.

 

[EmpirE231]

YEah I will definetely have to hit you up when I am ready to switch over. I am not good with electrical.

Man everyday I see a lot of guys posting their cars/sxs for sale. Guys I never would think they would sell. It is a lot of work just to load up and go.

for sure!

and yes, this is definitely a labor of love! I got burned out on all the prep this time around (my fault... started late). Seems like I'm in too deep, and maintaining all this stuff is a part time job. I usually enjoy it when I have free time, but the problem is that I have no free time lol. That's why I kick around the idea of a cabover camper setup, a flatbed and sickkkkk buggy lol. Just blast out there, shred the dunes for 2-3 days and come back home. Gets me my fix. Then on the flipside, I love doing this as a family, and I don't think they'd really get a kick out of staying in a truck bed sized RV for 3-4 days lol