Project Started, Big Wire and Victron, Oh My ! installing Solar and auxiliary battery, 2006 Hawk

A

A.Smith

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Aug 9, 2014
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64
Location
So. Orange County
Nothing like learning, and knowing your limitations.

I am in South Orange County, California. Anyone close that would like to help for pay, not asking for free.

I want to add an auxiliary battery and seems smart to add solar at the same time.

I am mechanically capable, but at my point on the calendar, getting on the roof of the camper is a no, no.
And all the components of solar and auxiliary batteries can be a bit overwhelming.

So any and all help, advice for installing solar and an auxiliary battery, would be most appreciated.

Stan did not have any wiring diagrams for my camper. So I will disassemble cabinet and panels and try to understand the existing wiring, fuse panel and IOTA unit.

Thanks to all for the great posts and threads. I have learned and gotten confused and wondered a lot.
All Good !
 
Do you know if it is prewired for solar? I think it was an option, not standard on some of the older units. I would get in touch with KP Pawley, who is up in reno and he might have some recommendations of folks to contact to help with the install. I would also look into lithium batteries, they are expensive, but one 100amp battery will give you more usable energy than a dual agm battery setup.

KP Pawley
https://www.sixguntwelvevolt.com/contact

Good luck
Chris
 
Yes, I am looking at installing a lithium battery.
My questions are; which solar brand panel ?
Which controller ?
And what charging equip I need between the alternator and the camper, auxiliary battery ?

On the Adventures
 
There are a lot of variables.. What do you want to power? How long will you be camped in one location w/out driving for a few hours? How much do you want to spend? Is convenience worth money?

But otoh, assuming you're 'average' in your power needs.
I recently upgraded my 2015 campers electronics. Replaced the alternator link, AC charger and solar charger. Replaced the two lead batteries w/ a lithium.
For the battery, you probably want 120-200ah. I built my lithium with four big prismatic lifepo4 cells. It ended up being less than 1/2 the cost of a name brand lithium battery. It is 1/2 the weight and double the capacity of my previous lead batteries. I'll give you more details if you are interested.

For the solar and charge controller, I went w/ a Redarc Manager30. I did so because it's all the store had in stock and I needed it that day. But, it's a great system. I installed it in the field w/ minimal tools. It does everything. AC charging, alternator charging (dc/dc), and solar charging (MPPT). Also a battery monitor which makes charts of power usage and solar state, etc.
Otherwise, you'd have 3 or 4 separate components.. If you don't care about the complexity, going with all separate components could give you a little more customization, and be slightly less expensive. I guess if something fails with the redarc, you've lost all your power, where with separate components, if the solar controller failed, you'd still have the alternator or AC. But the redarc is compact and easy to set up. Just four wires (well, 8 wires.. four positives and four grounds).

Solar panels.. You probably want 100-200 watts. That's one or two panels, usually. I ended up going w/ 2 'Sol-Go' flexible 115 watt panels. They use good SunPower solar cells. And they're inexpensive. Overland Solar uses the same cells, but are more expensive, made in the US and likely higher quality. You don't need flexible panels, but that's how these particular panels come. And they're much lighter than solid panels. But they do have other issues, like being more fragile.

About the wiring, if you are pre-wired for solar, it's easy. Just cut a hole in the proper location, and install a solar socket. If you aren't pre-wired for it, you might have to disassemble the ceiling.. There are threads from others doing it, if you search.

Then mounting the panels.. Do you have a rack on the roof? Again, lots of threads here. People w/ racks and w/out. People w/ flexible and w/ solid panels, have all posted build threads.

Well, that's what I know. Others here have a lot more experience than I do, but maybe aren't as bored as I am tonight.
 
Thank You Wicked1. I have been reading different ultimate threads. Batteries and Panels, Oh My !

I need to spend time in the camper measuring and wire tracing.

This is going to be an interesting project.

Oh the Adventures

Thanks Again.
 
wicked1 said:
There are a lot of variables.. What do you want to power? How long will you be camped in one location w/out driving for a few hours? How much do you want to spend? Is convenience worth money?
But otoh, assuming you're 'average' in your power needs.
I recently upgraded my 2015 campers electronics. Replaced the alternator link, AC charger and solar charger. Replaced the two lead batteries w/ a lithium.
For the battery, you probably want 120-200ah. I built my lithium with four big prismatic lifepo4 cells. It ended up being less than 1/2 the cost of a name brand lithium battery. It is 1/2 the weight and double the capacity of my previous lead batteries. I'll give you more details if you are interested.
For the solar and charge controller, I went w/ a Redarc Manager30. I did so because it's all the store had in stock and I needed it that day. But, it's a great system. I installed it in the field w/ minimal tools. It does everything. AC charging, alternator charging (dc/dc), and solar charging (MPPT). Also a battery monitor which makes charts of power usage and solar state, etc.
Otherwise, you'd have 3 or 4 separate components.. If you don't care about the complexity, going with all separate components could give you a little more customization, and be slightly less expensive. I guess if something fails with the redarc, you've lost all your power, where with separate components, if the solar controller failed, you'd still have the alternator or AC. But the redarc is compact and easy to set up. Just four wires (well, 8 wires.. four positives and four grounds).

Solar panels.. You probably want 100-200 watts. That's one or two panels, usually. I ended up going w/ 2 'Sol-Go' flexible 115 watt panels. They use good SunPower solar cells. And they're inexpensive. Overland Solar uses the same cells, but are more expensive, made in the US and likely higher quality. You don't need flexible panels, but that's how these particular panels come. And they're much lighter than solid panels. But they do have other issues, like being more fragile.

About the wiring, if you are pre-wired for solar, it's easy. Just cut a hole in the proper location, and install a solar socket. If you aren't pre-wired for it, you might have to disassemble the ceiling.. There are threads from others doing it, if you search.
Then mounting the panels.. Do you have a rack on the roof? Again, lots of threads here. People w/ racks and w/out. People w/ flexible and w/ solid panels, have all posted build threads.

Well, that's what I know. Others here have a lot more experience than I do, but maybe aren't as bored as I am tonight.
Click to expand...
Yes I would like more information on your battery build. Thanks
 
A.Smith

I live in Orange County. I have a Grandby on a 2017 F350. I have a 160w solar panel with Zamp controller, 2 -75ah batteries, a Victron battery monitor and Victron DC to Dc charger. I would be happy to help in any way possible. Perhaps you would like to look through my rig to see how things were done by the factory and the changes I made. Dan
 
For a good solid basic setup with lithium I would recommend:
  • 100ah battery - Battleborn is a good option
  • 200W +/- of solar with a MPPT 30A controller (30A will leave room for expansion if needed), Victron SmartSolar 100/30 is a favorite for many.
  • dc/dc charger for charging from the engine, Victron Orion-Tr Smart 12/12-30 is another favorite.
  • 4AWG wiring from starter battery to an Anderson connector at the camper, them 6AWG to the Orion and then to the battery.
  • All of the above needs to be properly protected with fuses or circuit breakers.
  • As long as you're not heavily dependent on shore power for charging, the IOTA is fine as is. It's just slow charging for lithium and does very little above 80% SOC.
I would second the recommendation of KP Pawley in Reno. Just a days drive up 395 and who can resist a road trip up 395 in the spring?

Good luck
Dean
 
veryactivelife said:
For a good solid basic setup with lithium I would recommend:

  • 100ah battery - Battleborn is a good option
  • 200W +/- of solar with a MPPT 30A controller (30A will leave room for expansion if needed), Victron SmartSolar 100/30 is a favorite for many.
  • dc/dc charger for charging from the engine, Victron Orion-Tr Smart 12/12-30 is another favorite.
  • 4AWG wiring from starter battery to an Anderson connector at the camper, them 6AWG to the Orion and then to the battery.
  • All of the above needs to be properly protected with fuses or circuit breakers.
  • As long as you're not heavily dependent on shore power for charging, the IOTA is fine as is. It's just slow charging for lithium and does very little above 80% SOC.
I would second the recommendation of KP Pawley in Reno. Just a days drive up 395 and who can resist a road trip up 395 in the spring?

Good luck
Dean
Click to expand...
Perfect, Thank You Dean ! I have been reading a lot of posts and threads. Your recommendations are spot on.
I was not sure I needed a dc to dc, in addition to a solar controller, but everyone is in agreement that I need both units.

Oh the adventure.
 
A.Smith said:
Perfect, Thank You Dean ! I have been reading a lot of posts and threads. Your recommendations are spot on.
I was not sure I needed a dc to dc, in addition to a solar controller, but everyone is in agreement that I need both units.

Oh the adventure.
Click to expand...
Glad this was helpful. The lithium batteries typically need in the range of 14.2 to 14.6 volts to charge, hence the need for the dc/dc. Most vehicles produced since around 2000 have smart alternators that throttle back the voltage once the starter battery recovers, it a fuel economy thing. The dc/dc charger will cycle and cut out every time the voltage drops.
 
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