Solar Cost

[ctb]

Best advice a Forum member gave (that clicked with me) is they like to park in shade, solar panels hate that (lol) so portable panels you could run a cable to the van in the shade...brilliant!

[86Scotty]

Originally Posted by Lilnuts2

Unless you want 2 lithium batteries (which you do)
For a 2000w inverter $400 to $1,500
2- Batteries $1,900
2--200w panels $400 to $600
Charge controller $300 to $500
Mounts, wire, fuses etc $300
Plus labor you can get to $5,000 fairly easy.

Why? I have no idea what all the hubbub is about lithium. I favor a much simpler and more affordable system. I'm not trying to be disagreeable, just offering an alternate take. 400 watts of solar is HUGE and many people don't have the real estate for it. I've found 200 to be plenty unless you stay still a lot. Still, this is totally in the eye of the beholder.

This bad boy has been chugging along in my work truck seeing daily use for 2.5 years. It has pass through for shore power plug for $568:

https://www.invertersupply.com/index...BoCuPoQAvD_BwE

Add 2 Renogy 100w panels for $100ish per:

https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-Monocr...s%2C290&sr=8-3

A reliable old school MPPT controller, $240:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So, here we are at $1000 but I could care less about lithium personally. I'm much happier with the old basics. AGM or even flooded lead acid:

https://www.amazon.com/Mighty-Max-Ba...6183752&sr=8-7

Add some well shopped wiring and breakers and you still have a pretty robust system for $1500.

[jpau00]

Originally Posted by 86Scotty

Why? I have no idea what all the hubbub is about lithium.

Lithiums are great, but AGM offers more configurations at a cheaper price. For me that was important because I wanted to house my batteries inside a cabinet in the van.



Plus, if you are using solar, you remove the primary reason against AGM which is storage drain. With solar you will be topping it off automatically.

[Twoxentrix]

IMO, I never understood the need for so much solar on the roof - unless you park in direct sunlight (which most of us choose not to do).
Batteries are charged via the alternator when driving, - so no real help there
Any debris on the panels, or just dirty panels will hinder output some, and getting on the roof to clean them (if you are relying on them heavily) is a real pain if you have a pop top deployed already.
Any potential shading that occurs through the day hinders performance (tree branch’s, storage pods mounted on roofs, etc.)
Snow on the roof will limit output considerably, if not entirely.
Suitcase panels are easily deployed, you can move them where you want for effectiveness (and most of the time capture a longer length of charge). You can run multiple panels together (with the right cable & being mindful of the solar controllers limitations)
Just my opinion.

[Mr.Anderson]

I DIY'd my solar build and it ran about $2000 using a lead acid AGM battery, it would have been $3000 if I had gone with Lithium. That being said, I probably put in another $2000 of electrical components during the build (wiring, fuses, lights, switches, etc - that shit adds up quick!).



So in terms of electrical budget for my build it was about $4000 half of which was the solar part of that setup. The only thing I would have probably done differently is maybe gone with Lithium batteries because I've heard they operate better in cold temperatures. My lead acid battery is always happy if the temps are above 50F but starts to get pissed off (low voltage, doesn't charge as fast, etc.) when things get towards freezing. I figured that once my current AGM battery dies I will get a couple of lithium batteries to replace it.

[USA1]

Most things you'll run (I presume) will be 12v (including fridge & lights) , Unless you use a microwave or other Large power consumer a 2000w inverter is unnecessary and consumes a lot of power (when on) it would be handy to also have a 400 to 700w inverter handy , one 100ah AGM runs my 50qt ARB 4 days before the low voltage shut off happens, also think about adding a DC to DC charger, I started out with a Renogy DCC50S (it's DC-DC & MPPT) and added 4 100w panels later, Now 1 battery dedicated to fridge & one for everything else , The DCC50S will also keep your van battery topped off once house batterys topped