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Topic ClosedAny upgrade the solar in a 190?

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PeterK2003 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Any upgrade the solar in a 190?
    Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 8:35am
I was wondering if anyone upgraded the solar on a 190?

I think it would be great if I could get 300W or more worth of panels up there. 
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Awchief View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 9:26am
There is a fellow on the Facebook page put 3 Renogy 160 watt foldable panels on his pod. 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 11:10am
Cool!

I guess I put his in the wrong sub forum...opps.
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offgrid View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 11:22am
You should be able to mount a standard 72 cell utility solar module side to side across the top of an rPod. The length of the module and the width of the pod are almost identical. The width of the module is about 39-40 inches so see if you have a space that wide behind or in front of the a/c. I do in my 179. 

The standard utlitiy solar modules are around 300-350 watts and can be bought for about 50 cents per watt now, so they are very cost effective. The other benefit is that there are no holes in the roof, you can mount the module from the side to a vertical plate which is in turn mounted to the side of the top edge of the trailer. This also allows the module to be stood off the roof a couple of inches for better cooling of both the module and the trailer.  

I haven't done this yet but my plan is to remove the a/c and TV antenna and mount 3 modules up there for about 1 kW of solar. 
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furpod View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 11:31am
Originally posted by offgrid

You should be able to mount a standard 72 cell utility solar module side to side across the top of an rPod. The length of the module and the width of the pod are almost identical. The width of the module is about 39-40 inches so see if you have a space that wide behind or in front of the a/c. I do in my 179. 

The standard utlitiy solar modules are around 300-350 watts and can be bought for about 50 cents per watt now, so they are very cost effective. The other benefit is that there are no holes in the roof, you can mount the module from the side to a vertical plate which is in turn mounted to the side of the top edge of the trailer. This also allows the module to be stood off the roof a couple of inches for better cooling of both the module and the trailer.  

I haven't done this yet but my plan is to remove the a/c and TV antenna and mount 3 modules up there for about 1 kW of solar. 


as a side note.. OG, have you looked at these:
https://climateright.com/climateright-5000-btu-a-c-heater-2.html

I think with the right batteries.. a solution for a/c offgrid...
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 12:00pm
Originally posted by furpod

 
https://climateright.com/climateright-5000-btu-a-c-heater-2.html

I think with the right batteries.. a solution for a/c offgrid...

I handn't seen that one yet furpod but it could work. It has an EER rating (BTU/watts) of 5000/700 or about 7. It would be more efficient than the indoor portable a/c's but about the same as the RV roof a/cs. 

I've been thinking about a 9000 BTU minisplit like this:


These have an EER of about 15, so use half the energy.  Plenty spendy though. The evaporator unit on some of them is small enough to fit above the drivers side front window above the bed in the 179 and the condenser would go on the tongue where the batteries are now. I don't think there's any practical way to carry enough battery capacity to last overnight using lead acid batteries so I'd need to go with lithium ion. About 4-5 kWh worth. More $$$.  And then I need an inverter, and about 1KW of solar, and a controller for the solar, etc. Using salvage Tesla batteries I think I can do the whole thing for about $3.5- $4K if I'm lucky. Here's a guy that's done everything except the a/c on his full time RV.



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PeterK2003 View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 12:22pm
OG do you have a link to those panels?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 1:08pm
PeterK2003, here's one example. This one is about 65 cents a watt for 325 watts. Its 1960 mm long or about 77 1/8 inches and 991 mm or 39 inches wide. 

I don't recall exactly the width of my rPod but they vary slightly anyway so you should measure yours. If you want to use an rDome I'd suggest taking the keder rail (the rail that an rdome would slide into) on the passenger side of your pod loose and sliding the plate you're going to mount the solar module to behind that, so measure from that point. 0.080 inch aluminum plate should work fine, just shoot several self tapping screws into the top 1 inch of the pod wall and into the module end frames. You can cut the bottom edge of the plates to match the curve of that section of the rPod.  If you want to get artistic, maybe even curve the top edges of the plates so they cover the module edges. 

This is the standard solar module configuration used in large solar projects so there's plenty of options. They vary slightly in dimensions so you should be able to find one that is a really good fit. I'd also suggest trying your local Craigslist, you'll often find great deals on modules for sale there that are leftover from projects where they couldn't use them. I've seen those as low as 40 cents a watt. 

You'll need an MPPT type battery charge controller too. There are a bunch of options on Amazon. 


1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
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GlueGuy View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Feb 2019 at 6:45pm
The best deals I've found are on ebay.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: 28 Feb 2019 at 5:47am
Ebay for sure has great prices and lots of options. The advantage of buying local is that you can inspect the product and you save the transport costs. Solar modules are large glass objects so packing and shipping can get pretty expensive. 
1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
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