Solar and 12V system plan

[Rids]

I’ve just found a 200Ah LiPo specifically designed to into a seat base of a Transporter...
12V 200Ah LiFePO4 Seatbase Design — Roamer Lithium Batteries

 

[Rids]

Here’s s pic of it...

 

[Howzat]

Steve from Roamer has posted in this forum. Maybe drop him a PM.

 

[Dellmassive]

Yes.

Hes on here..

@RoamerBatteries

 

[czmate1999]

So I'm planning my solar & 12V system & having read through a couple of other threads I would appreciate comments & suggestions on my plan...

I've done a demand calculation and it comes to 56Ah (672Wh) per day, this is dominated by the inverter/mini kettle giving a couple of brews first thing, followed by the fridge keeping those beers cool.
I plan to camp in the van for at 3 seasons, so early spring to late autumn; well once it's fully insulated & has acquired a diesel heater too.

Solar Panels;
I reckon on needing at least 250W to match that that demand once the days get shorter & then maybe I'll have to do with only one cuppa in bed before firing up a gas stove for the second in winter.
I like the idea of two panels in parallel as that will cope much better with being shaded than a single would, provided the shade in on one. so for that reason I plan to use longer/ narrower panels lengthways side by side on the roof, probably toward the front. I don't have any plans for a pop top so these will be onto the tin roof.

Really like the Photonics Universe with the round rear cable outlet and single 2 core cable, such a tidy look on the roof and better to wire up.
I am aiming for some stealthiness for free camping so minimal evidence on the roof is a plus.
This would be two 2x160W coming out at £620 or £1.94/W... ouch, but the reports from others do sound great!
438-160W-Black-Reinforced-semi-flexible-solar-panel-with-round-rear-junction-box-and-3m-cable-with-durable-ETFE-coating.html

Also like the Lensun LS-150FX2 again 2x 150W coming out at £380... only £1.24/W.
Black-flexible-solar-panel


Charge Controller;
I need to get rid of the VW split charge relay anyway so a DC to DC with solar input makes sense to me.
Also one which will trickle charge the starter battery also cuts down on extra bits & wires.
I have two single seats and the drivers will have a Sub in it someday so space will be at a premium.

I like the Renogy DCC50S, it has the voltage input headroom and power capacity in hand for those panel options.
dcc50s-12v-50a-dc-dc-on-board-battery-charger-with-mppt-new-version

I plan to look at the Ctek as well.

Battery;
Ordered the van with a 2nd battery so it currently has a Varta 75Ah AGM under the passengers seat.
I plan the "wear" this out (see below) before upgrading to a LipO of more like 150Ah.
I've had a quick look for slim units (2 x75Ah in parallel) which will fit just inside the front section of my Ovano XL bed/drawer which has a bit of a battery/electrics sized dead space.

Inverter;
I'll need at least 650W pure sine, for that mini kettle.
I've been through the energy & high discharge calcs for that and reckon I can get maybe 20mins from a fully charged battery (the one above) down to 11V; phew the mini kettle boils 500ml for a decent mug of tea in under 5mins...
I'm thinking of sticking with Renology as I can give it ac when on EHU and it'll switch over to that, only reverting when someone trims the EHU...
1000w-12v-to-230v-pure-sine-wave-inverter-with-ups-function

I would appreciate some steers on what to look out for on these...

EHU system;
I'll do this someday, so advice on ac to dc changing would be helpful...
I again had a quick look & did quite like the Victon blue smart fully sealed version so I can stick it under the van somewhere...

Thanks for reading this far and in advance for your thoughts....
Ian

We have a 2000W inverter ( it does more for peak demand), still wouldn't run a kettle off it though. Find a jetboil perfect for a brew… it takes less than 2 mins to boil up enough for two cups.

Camping Stoves - Electric & Gas Camping Cookers | Decathlon

Choose from a variety of camping stoves to suit whatever style of camper you are. From Jetboils to gas camping stoves for the family, available…

www.decathlon.co.uk

on our inverter we run a microwave, coffee machine and toaster…

like the idea of the two panels… would possibly suggest upgrading the inverter. Just my opinion…

 

[Rids]

Yes.

Hes on here..

@RoamerBatteries

I had the space under the drivers seat down for a sub woofer but that’d fit better in that dead space, so i’m liking the look of that roamer battery.
I’m also thinking of going Li straight away instead of rewriting it all in year when i’ve sacrificed that AGM.

I’ll pm Steve.

 

[Rids]

Sounds like we have something in common here. Work van come occasional sleeper with kettle 'n fridge here too.
Currently using a sterling DC 30amp charger and sterling 80ah lithium which I think allows at least a 100a draw. Fridge uses about 10% per day and is recharged every morning in about 30 minutes while driving for work. It was using a lot more (more like 20%) when the weather was 28C.
People laugh when they see a fridge in my van but I wouldn't be without it now during the summer!
I have a 800w Duracell inverter (not pure, kettle and ipad charger work fine) and a 600w 500ml swan kettle. That uses up to 8% per boil. The lithium can safely go down to 10% charge so I can easily manage 6 brews and the fridge per day taking the battery down to about 40% leaving some left over for iPad and phone charging and some lighting.
Recharging takes about 3 hours if the battery goes down to 10% using the DC.
Not got solar yet as I'm only doing the odd overnighter but for longer periods away it's gonna be required to avoid running the engine everyday to recharge via the DC. I think 300w would be my minimum too so I can average out 150w with 6 hours strong sunlight which would nearly top up the 80ah battery without loads. More solar wattage (or sun!) would be ideal but gotta weigh up the costs and the practicality of a British summer v's my actual nights away. At 300w and the odd trip out in the van I'd hope that the current battery could sustain me for 3-4 days easily going wild during April to September.
Finally I plan to get a separate solar controller so I've got some redundancy if either the controller or DC fails.
That's my take on it so will be interested to see how you go on.

That is a good point on keeping the dc-dc separate from the solar for redundancy...
I’m thinking maybe a pair of the combined units... dual redundant... but maybe I’m not really going to be all that remote.

 

[DXX]

Hell of a cost for cup of tea, in that situation I would opt for the Jet Boil.
Boil the water for the first cup before bed and put in a flask, that avoids the getting out of bed before the first cup.

 

[RoamerBatteries]

Thanks for the tags!

@Rids I got your PM, all looks good with that set up. The Seatbase is a slightly lower power output to the regular sizes (only 120A or 1600W continuous) but that’s still more than enough for what you need. Will reply in more detail on the PM

 

[Howzat]

Hell of a cost for cup of tea.....

Depends how much and how often you like your tea and whether you're happy balancing water on a naked flame inside your van while half asleep. I've paid leas than £600 for my battery, charger, inverter and kettle and I'll easily make over 600 brews using this setup over the next 10 years so the tea savings alone compared to shop bought will easily offset my setup costs. TBH the leisure setup will probably outlive the van.

 

[Rids]

Depends how much and how often you like your tea and whether you're happy balancing water on a naked flame inside your van while half asleep. I've paid leas than £600 for my battery, charger, inverter and kettle and I'll easily make over 600 brews using this setup over the next 10 years so the tea savings alone compared to shop bought will easily offset my setup costs. TBH the leisure setup will probably outlive the van.

Nicely put...

 

[DXX]

Depends how much and how often you like your tea and whether you're happy balancing water on a naked flame inside your van while half asleep. I've paid leas than £600 for my battery, charger, inverter and kettle and I'll easily make over 600 brews using this setup over the next 10 years so the tea savings alone compared to shop bought will easily offset my setup costs. TBH the leisure setup will probably outlive the van.

I won’t have gas in my van, I’ve survived one gas explosion on an open deck, I don’t fancy anyones chances in an enclosed space. For that and a few other reasons I use a Wallas XC Duo.
I was just pointing out that water stays hot in a flask overnight if you don’t want to get out of bed.
I can switch my Wallas on with my toe, kettles already on the hob ready to go, coffees in the pot.

 

[Howzat]

I can switch my Wallas on with my toe, kettles already on the hob ready to go, coffees in the pot.

I can picture that as the ultimate solution to brewing up while staying in bed. That would be a great YouTube video.

 

[Rids]

I won’t have gas in my van, I’ve survived one gas explosion on an open deck, I don’t fancy anyones chances in an enclosed space. For that and a few other reasons I use a Wallas XC Duo.
I was just pointing out that water stays hot in a flask overnight if you don’t want to get out of bed.
I can switch my Wallas on with my toe, kettles already on the hob ready to go, coffees in the pot.

I agree about gas in the van & that does look like a nice bit of kit, but even counting for the fact it’s a heater too it’s also a pretty expensive cooker.
If I ever get to a full conversion I’d def consider it, but till then the gas is outside under the stitches & steel tarp awning

 

[DXX]

I agree about gas in the van & that does look like a nice bit of kit, but even counting for the fact it’s a heater too it’s also a pretty expensive cooker.
If I ever get to a full conversion I’d def consider it, but till then the gas is outside under the stitches & steel tarp awning

It’s paid for itself many times over cooking two meals / day for two people for months

 

[RoamerBatteries]

It’s paid for itself many times over cooking two meals / day for two people for months

I have a Webasto X100 in ours as we go ski touring for weeks at a time and need something completely off grid, gas is a massive pain to find in the Alps.

We have done several induction based systems for customers recently however. I was sceptical at first but have come round to it and I think this is a realistic option now, especially if using one of the lower power hobs like the Vango (900W per ring so max 1800W).

I have developed a new 200Ah LiFePO4 shape for the T6 to support induction hobs, stock is in manufacturing now so will be available in about 8 weeks. Its designed to fit in a standard side pod and is just 180mm wide (360 L x 180 W x 240 H). Couldn’t think of a better name so it’ll be called the 200PODBASE

We are using EVE prismatic cells that can output 3C (so up to 600A) and a Bluetooth BMS that supports continuous discharge of 200A (2600W). So an induction hob will be no problem for the battery, just needs a 2000W or bigger inverter and some chunky cables.

 

[Rids]

We have a 2000W inverter ( it does more for peak demand), still wouldn't run a kettle off it though. Find a jetboil perfect for a brew… it takes less than 2 mins to boil up enough for two cups.

Camping Stoves - Electric & Gas Camping Cookers | Decathlon

Choose from a variety of camping stoves to suit whatever style of camper you are. From Jetboils to gas camping stoves for the family, available…

www.decathlon.co.uk

on our inverter we run a microwave, coffee machine and toaster…

like the idea of the two panels… would possibly suggest upgrading the inverter. Just my opinion…

Hi, what battery set up are you using for that inverter?.
I don’t think I’ll be fitting a microwave, so I reckon the 1kW will do for me; thanks for the nudge to reconsider...
I’m now about to review the power demand to include the recharging of my 18V power tool batteries, it’ll be instead of the early cuppa as I rarely work away from an ac supply, but I suspect significantly more energy will be required...

 

[Rids]

It’s paid for itself many times over cooking two meals / day for two people for months

Indeed, if it was just about the cost of cuppa’s or dinners we’d all still be in tents...

 

[czmate1999]

Hi, what battery set up are you using for that inverter?.
I don’t think I’ll be fitting a microwave, so I reckon the 1kW will do for me; thanks for the nudge to reconsider...
I’m now about to review the power demand to include the recharging of my 18V power tool batteries, it’ll be instead of the early cuppa as I rarely work away from an ac supply, but I suspect significantly more energy will be required...

I have 2 x 100ah batteries. Not need EHU yet. In the winter, if we run into trouble, I’ll just turn the engine on to recharge but was fine last winter.

we have an induction hob as well but haven’t used it yet. Don’t like cooking in the van - unless it’s a microwave lasagne from M&S. .

here’s my triple charger,

Votronic VBCS 12V Triple Charger 45A DC-to-DC, 30A Mains, 350W Solar

The ultimate all in one 12V charging system for campervans & motorhomes. 45A DC-DC charger, 30A mains charger & 350W MPPT solar controller in a single unit.

www.12voltplanet.co.uk

Inverter,

NDS 2000W 12V Pure Sine Inverter with Priority Switch

<p>This inverter has a built-in priority switch which makes it simple and safe to feed 230V AC to the mains sockets in your motorhome, caravan or b...

www.roadpro.co.uk

 

[Rids]

I have 2 x 100ah batteries. Not need EHU yet. In the winter, if we run into trouble, I’ll just turn the engine on to recharge but was fine last winter.

we have an induction hob as well but haven’t used it yet. Don’t like cooking in the van - unless it’s a microwave lasagne from M&S. .

here’s my triple charger,

Votronic VBCS 12V Triple Charger 45A DC-to-DC, 30A Mains, 350W Solar

The ultimate all in one 12V charging system for campervans & motorhomes. 45A DC-DC charger, 30A mains charger & 350W MPPT solar controller in a single unit.

www.12voltplanet.co.uk

Inverter,

NDS 2000W 12V Pure Sine Inverter with Priority Switch

<p>This inverter has a built-in priority switch which makes it simple and safe to feed 230V AC to the mains sockets in your motorhome, caravan or b...

www.roadpro.co.uk

Thanks for that.