Hey there! I want to thank you for these terrific instructions. I followed your instructions and recently installed 200 watts of solar power with the recommended charge controller - even used the Harbor Freight ammo box - to completely charge my new Aero teardrop camper. Your instructions were fantastic, so clear, and so smart! I am simply overjoyed that I can now boondock with my lead-acid marine battery and never fear being without power. Thank you, Brian. This is the best channel!!
I can’t believe how easy this is! I’m about to be in an RV full time and after watching videos for weeks, this one makes sense to me. Just found your channel and I’m now a new sub. I will be binge watching your videos all night.
Great video! I bought the Renogy suitcase kit. The waterproof controller *is* connected to the panel, but it's on a flip down hinge so you can easily read the display
Nice job Brian! Thanks for all your time and effort. Always very informative and enjoyable even if I'm not doing the upgrade. PS: I also always enjoy seeing the ever evolving production ..gotta love a slide whistle 😄
Hi. I’m not a DIYer but I am a teardrop owner. I love your videos-I learn so much from them. I like to know how my equipment works even if it is already installed. It will also help me troubleshoot when things go wrong. Thank you for your informative videos and great delivery.
i’m having the toughest time learning all this I’ve been watching your videos and they have been so helpful I wish you were in Northern California I would hire you to do all this on my trailer for me, (Re; proper battery, solar panels, portable power station etc. etc.) I think you’re brilliant I wish I could obtain the knowledge that you have I’m trying but I just can’t get all this in my brain, Thanks for your awesome videos I think you’re brilliant.
Thank you so much for watching. We're on the road traveling a lot, if we passed through northern Ca again Ill let you know. Start with the basics, you got this!
I just did this with a tiny 8.5amp PWM charge controller but instead of a separate box, I bought a large battery box and dropped battery and all in that box. I used your previous video's idea and mounted a battery disconnect on the same box. Keep up the great work!
Hi Brian, thanks for the video. Your channel is an excellent source of information. I have a teardrop camper with two 6V deep-cycle batteries. How do I go about installing the charge controller? I have all the parts that you used in your setup. Additional to the solar panel that will be installed on the camper, I have a suitcase-style panel. I want the system to be set up in a way that I could use the suitcase-style panel when the RV is parked in the shade. What's your advice?
Thank you for watching the channel. Wire your charge controller from the positive of battery one to the negative of battery 2 and youre set. On the charge controller , I would wire a simple lead plug (mc4 or anderson). With those plugs, it should be easy to leave your rooftop panel plugged in, but be able to simply unplug it and attach your portable panel. In some situations, you could even add both.
Amazing job Brain - appreciate the step by step installation, works perfectly thanks to you. Question - with the solar system as you set it up are there any issues when you plug in your trailer to your vehicle and the whacker battering is charging through the 12v plug-in & solar panel concurrently or if you want to trickle charge your whacker battery through a maintainer? Does the solar panel need to be disconnected from the solar charger in either of these situations?
Great job sir. Very easy to follow your instructions and I'm forever grateful to you. My question however, is what do we/I do once you're ready to drive and connected to your vehicle battery? Do I disconnect the solar cables as the vehicle battery/alternator is now charging my RV battery, and reconnect once I disconnect from my vehicle etc.? TIA
Thank you, I appreciate you watching and following along. Actually, it couldn't be any easier… Do nothing at all. The charge controller works as a regulator, it will decrease or stop the charge from solar automatically, depending on the output from the alternator. Have fun!
I had not seen a bi-directional power station LiFePO4; will keep eyes open for units 1K-2K watts with this feature. I imagine choosing compatible panels is highly important based on the station requirements. Nice bonus tip on the Reflectix, had not heard that before!
Haha… all good, I knew right away. Any solar panel with a power delivery port will work. They come in deferent sizes, but the PD port in the power station will only take the voltage and current it can handle.
I've watched two of your videos now. Great content very excited I found your channel. That being said, I love your non-judgmental perfectionist nature. When you tell us we can just cut a big old hole in the side of the box, it's fine, do a bad job. You have cable glands installed, cable glands that you just happen to have laying around. You could just throw the controller in the box, if you are uncultured swine, but if you're not a lazy piece of crap you could put together a wood tray and paint it. Make sure you leave the cable extra long so you can sit outside your RV and watch your battery charge. I get it, that's why I would have a long cable. Your attention to detail leaves me envious. Just one more thing, when you checked the cable glands out of your inventory, does the system automatically reorder or do you have to go online manually, like a Savage?
I would love to somewhat copy what you have done, especially being able to unhook from the battery when it's topped up and be able to plug in to my GoLabs power station. You wouldn't happen to have this written out in a blog so I can take this step by step?
Hi Brian, thanks for these very informational vids… i enjoy them and learn a lot! I have an RV with an existing solar panel which i will soon replace and an existing charge controller that i will keep. It’s all already wired into the auxiliary battery system, so I’ll just wire in the new panel… At about 16:30 in the vid, you discuss disconnecting your solar panel from your battery system and plugging it directly into your portable power station… this is something Id also like to do, but im curious… what happens when the portable battery gets full? Are you supposed to simply monitor its charge status and unplug it when it approaches a full charge?? Could you damage the power station by over charging it? Im also wondering about the LOAD output on my charge controller, which isn't currently being used. Could i output that to an adapter and into my portable battery station?? Trying to think of clever ways to use what i have without needing to disconnect/reconnect things or having to monitor them for charge status. Any information would help… thanks in advance!!
Hi, thanks for watching the channel and asking great questions. Your portable power station has a built-in solar charge controller, there’s no risk of overcharging . When the battery is full, everything can remain connected, it just does not accept the charge. The best advice I can give for the load terminals is to ignore them. They have a very limited use case, which often involves running a set of lights that turn on and off automatically. This can be a very helpful feature on a boat, where it turns the outside lights on once the sun goes down. For our use, just ignore the terminals. If you are in a situation where you want to automatically charge both, plug your portable power station in to the camper through your car charger and leave your solar connected to the battery . This will allow your solar to charge the battery on your camper and then charge the portable power stations through the 12 V plug.
Again, more great information! Thanks Brian :) I have tried to plug in the power station to the auxiliary car charger of my RV but charging is extremely slow. I think I’ll just rewire the system to allow a direct MC4 connection into the portable battery. Cheers!
Hi there. I love your set up. I am going to try to set up a similar box to house the controller. Can I ask how you threaded the SAE end through the electrical gland? I have seen just wires but am wondering if is just as simple as getting larger glands. I've never worked with them before and so am curious to try it out. Thanks.
Another great job Brian. I'm a newbie to solar, but get the jest of it. I have a new Teardrop & will take my first trip on April 25. The maker installed a 85amp AGM which should be just fine, all lights & vent fan run off the AGM. I have a Jackery 500 to run my BougeRV 30 Quart fridge. In the near future I think I want to put a flex solar panel on the teardrop to top off the Jackery (and to avoid my portable Jackery panel from sprouting legs.) ** One thing that stood out when I talked to the seller was a warning ⚠️ to not overcharge the AGM. Am I correct in thinking if I also use a solar panel to charge the AGM that programing the controller will solve that warning? And the MPPT type controller also has the same selection?
Yes, a charge controller of either variety will prevent overcharging. You’ll have a nice set up that you can share between the Jackery and the AGM if you go this route.
Greetings, you helped me with a popup question a while back. I have sold the popup and now have an Aliner Ranger 12 with solar panels and a giant Li battery. There was no paperwork that can tell me anything about how the solar was installed. At a glance, something doesn’t seem right. I would like to sent you pictures to get your opinion. Thx.
Good job, Brian, and kudos to your videographer. I might agree with T.J. that the $30 difference between the Renogy PWM you have, and the Renogy Rover 20A MPPT might be worth the investment. I think it's especially worth it in places like the NE where the sun does not shine as abundantly as, say, the desert SW. But if you need to save every dollar, your system will work fine. Looks like you're gonna die on that PWM/AGM hill! 😉
HAHA...I almost responded to TJ by saying, "I wouldn't die on this hill." One day I'll be vindicated. I imagine some sort of competition, where my $600 system can smoke the competition...lol A guy can dream.
I am so appreciative of your very understandable videos. I have a 130 watt bougerv suitcase solar panel and will be getting an AGM battery with the new casita that we will be picking up next month. After watching this video and your solar 101 video I think I need a 10 amp charge controller. Would it be ok to get a 20 amp charge controller for future growth? I tried to see the model of the blue charge controller in your video but I can't make it out. Can you share what model it is? Thanks loads for what you do.
Hi Jim, that’s great to hear! The 10 amp is perfect, 20 is fine for future proofing. Here is the link to the blue controller, it’s a victron. amzn.to/3YXARbf
@@DIYOutdoorLife I tried to send this question a couple days ago but I don’t see it so I think I did something wrong and it didn’t send. In this great video, I was asking about the charge controller that you recommended. I have a 130 watt bougerv suitcase panel and I will have an AGM battery with the new Casita we pick up in a month.. I didn’t ask the question right and would like to ask again. Is the 20 amp charge controller you recommended a Renogy Voyager 20 amp pwm controller and would that be a good choice for me? Thanks loads for your help. Jim
One question, I have a battery tender for when my camper is in storage and so I have an SAE with o rings and a 7.5 fuse that I have been leaving in the battery. I couldn’t just plug my battery tender into the iGreeley because the fuse size would be too large, correct? Do you think I would be better off? Just swapping out the fuses whenever I plug in the tender or is there another way that would be simpler?
You're fine to plug your battery, tender into the iGreeley, I wouldn't worry about swapping the fuses. The fuse is there to protect the wire, there's a smaller fuse on your battery tender to account for the smaller wire. That I Greeley has 10awg, it's a perfect set up to just plug your battery charger right in.
Another question for you; what is the reason for 2 sae connections between the battery and the controller? Any reason not to just have the short fused igreely in the battery box and then connect one sae extension with forked ends on the end of that cord rather than adding a 3rd cord? Just trying to save a little dough if no real need for the 3rd cord.
Another Great Video Brian. The part 2 to installing a Solar Panel. How many Watts of Solar can be run through this 20 amp controller if you are hooking up panels together? In a previous Video I seen to remember you recommending the Goal Zero 20amp charge controller? I see this is half the price of that one. Is that the reason for recommending this one today?
The Goal zero PWM excels in it’s ease of use and compatibility with power stations. This guys is cheaper and works well if you are just looking for a basic set up. I currently run a Victron MPPT on my camper. There’s hundreds of options out there, I’ll try to make more videos highlighting the pros and cons of each.
I am planning to do this, but with an AFrame, my solar panel will be portable that I set out. So my little box wont be sttached permanently to the tongue and will be packed away while rolling. However, it will sit there when the panels are being used to charge the battery. My question is--how would you suggest making the temperature sensor wire detachable? I don't want to have to open the top of the battery every time--I would just like for it to hang out. The other end of the sensor is a couple of wires that poke into the coontroller-I wouldn't call it a frequently removal connection. If I cut the wires, what connector would you recommend? Looks like polarity might be an issue, is it?
That sounds like a great set up. I bet you could cut the temp sensors, strip, and use a WAGO connector. I feel like the small ones would do a great job with that fine wire and hold up. They’re non polarized so youre fine.
Thanks for the info. WAGO connectors don't seem to be in my neighborhood, but I think the spade connectors will do ok. And I am going to make a little boot for it from an aligator clip rolling around in the toolbox for some weather protection. (look for another ? on the video about the kill switch.)
Possibly a dumb question but my Bushwacker 15DS doesn’t have a manual that I can find anywhere Questions about the SAE port on the side of the trailer: 1- is there any kind of built in battery protection on that? I was trying to understand what the breaker box actually does and it seems like that does have some over voltage/overcharge protection. I can’t tell what though. 2- if there is some built in plug what benefits/drawbacks are there to using that (other than the wind issue you mentioned)? 3- I’m guessing the fuse/breaker box has an inverter of a sort, but do you know what it’s ratings are? Thanks for any help 😊
These are great questions, very tricky stuff and they don't help things with the no manual. The solar on the side is kind of a gimmick. It's like that on all trailers, it's just a wire going to the battery. There is a small auto resettable dc breaker, notoriously malfunction, and has a higher rating than what the wire does... lol If you use the solar on the side, you still need to use a charge controller. Although it can be convenient and works, it's best to go right to the battery. Your power center has a DC converter, it does not have an inverter. It will serve to take shore power and convert it to 12 V, it does not help with solar. Hope this helps, feel free to reach out if you have other questions.
@@DIYOutdoorLife awesome! Thank you again for replying so fast! That’s very good to know about the solar wire. I had a feeling it might be under rated but didn’t know where to look to find those. All the wires are buried behind walls lol. How do the 110 v plugs in the camper work without an inverter?
@@midnight121190 they require that you plug the camper into a utility power source or make modifications. On the rear driver side of the camper, there is a connection. The camper also came with an extension cord, unless your dealership forgot that.
Hey Brian. Thanks for your great videos. My wife and I just bought a Bushwacker. I'm planning on doing your exact solar setup you cover with the 180 watt panel on the roof of your Bushwacker. I do have a question I hope you could answer? I've been considering going with two 6v golf cart batteries instead of the 100ah you are using. Would that 180 watt panel charge these batteries? Or would I be better off just doing your exact system? I have already bought everything you have except for the panel and the batteries. I know you said in another video that a larger " barrel collects more water that a glass". So I know the battery choice is very important. We live in Oregon if that helps at all. Your expertise would be greatly appreciated here. Thanks again. Chad
I would highly recommend these- amzn.to/3zUu7Sc Or something comparable. The two 6v is a much better system than what I’m using, it’s actually more than I need because of my power stations. Good luck, thanks for watching!
Hi thanks for your videos. I have a question. Can I use a charge controller to charge starter battery from the cigarette adapter in my car so I have a starter always charged as a spare? What fuse and capacity of charge controller is the optimum?
You can use charge controller set ups like battery tenders through 12v inputs like a cigarette plug. Fuse your controller between 1.25 and 1.5 the current limit on controller. 15a fuse on 10a controller. 30 a fuse on 20a controller… those ratios are what most use. Make sure the wire youre using can handle the current of the fuse. Check out my other videos on solar too, thanks for watching.
Another great video Brian! I have a question. I have a hard time wrapping my head around one thing. If the solar panels go through the controller and and charge the battery and I connect shore power to the camper, is there any risk of an shock or fire event occurring if power is fed through the converter and onto the battery while the solar circuit is connected? Should I physically disconnect the solar while plug into shore power? Thank you sir!
Nope, leave it connected. That is safe and common practice. What's really gonna blow your mind is that you can install multiple solar controllers, DCDC chargers, and shore power chargers at the same time... lol They all push a good battery charge voltage and the battery draws the current. Good question!
@@DIYOutdoorLife that’s cool Brian thank you for the quick response. I’m glad you were able to understand what I was to trying ask. I ordered the cigs panels with the victron controller and I didn’t want to smoke anything with that configuration. 👍🏼
Hi, I just bought an RV with 150 w Solar panels. I also have 200x portable solar panels, but no way to use the extra panels. What is my best option to connect these into my system. Add another PWM charge controller or tap into the existing PWN controller? Please let me know if you need additional details. Thanks in advance.
Additional charge controller will be the best way. How many watts of solar panels total? What kind of battery? You might want to consider an MPPT if you can.
Won’t my solar panel stop charging my batteries if I’ve installed an on/off switch to the side of my box as you have in the video? I’d love to stop losing battery reserves and turn the switch off, but don’t want to lose the benefit of recharging them with my panel. Thank you in advance brother
You can do it either way, but I set mine up the way youre asking about. Connect to charge controller directly to the battery, not the switch. Then when the switches turned off, the campers off, but the solar is on.
Simple question if you are running 2 batteries in a series do you need to hook to one battery or treat like a series when you run the cables from batteries to the controller?
If you’re running in series, you are running 2 - 6v batteries, do you mean parallel? Actually, the answer is simple, because you should run from the opposite posts either way. Run your charge controller from the + of bat one & the - of bat 2. Always best to use the positive on one battery and the negative on the other for balancing.
Yes running 2 12volt batteries and parallel and thought that be corrected to do have done just that pos to one battery and neg to the other one thank you for confirming what I thought
Couldn’t see the two sets of wires or extensions with the SAE terminals and how they connect with various parts. It would’ve been good to zoom in so we could see those extensions in place and explain it from one end to the other.
Sorry about that. There is only a plus and a minus, A positive and a negative. Stick with positive to positive and negativeto negative, just like putting a battery in a TV remote . Typically, we use Red for positive and black for negative on DC wiring like this
Mine TD has all the electrical inside. I have a sae connector on the side where I hook the panels (similar to cosmo). I usually went for portable panels but now I also have surrendered and installed 120w on rooftop and still thinking best way to wire. Do not want to drill a hole but i am afraid to drive while a sae cable is connected on the side. Not clear how you glued your cables on the outside
The 3M zip ties in my video description are stick on. They do a really nice job attaching to the camper and stay put. What kind of camper do you have? I’m sure there’s a way to hook in without too much work.
@@DIYOutdoorLife it is locally made in Brazil. Search for sun trailers. Really cool type inspired on TD. But I did not want to drill holes in the roof ao I had a SAE connection on the side. Will figure out more…just buys this 3m sticks. Great idea. Did not know they existed
That’s right, unfortunately I hear this all too often. There’s very few waterproof MPPT’s, most really want to go inside, they don’t even particularly like humid environments. Even though the PWM’s don’t do quite as well, tons of waterproof options for cheap.
Felicidades, es un buen ejemplo. 368 sentadillas son unos XX18LIKE.Uno muchas y un buen ejercicio. Se deja ver que hay muy buenos resultados 😍👍 Saludos desde la Cd.. de world 🌹😉💖 los mortalesf abian apreciado tan hermosa mujer.k
Felicidades, es un buen ejemplo. 215 sentadillas son unos YOURGIRLS.Uno muchas y un buen ejercicio. Se deja ver que hay muy buenos resultados 😍👍 Saludos desde la Cd.. de world 🌹😉💖 los mortalesm abian apreciado tan hermosa mujer.k
Dang,I'm an older dude just learning about VHB tape. Your channel has been a wealth of resource. Excellent teacher. cheers
It means a lot that you’re binging out on the content! Thank you for tuning in.
Hey there! I want to thank you for these terrific instructions. I followed your instructions and recently installed 200 watts of solar power with the recommended charge controller - even used the Harbor Freight ammo box - to completely charge my new Aero teardrop camper. Your instructions were fantastic, so clear, and so smart! I am simply overjoyed that I can now boondock with my lead-acid marine battery and never fear being without power. Thank you, Brian. This is the best channel!!
Thank you so much, I really appreciate you taking the time to leave such a nice comment. I'm glad that you like the channel!
I can’t believe how easy this is! I’m about to be in an RV full time and after watching videos for weeks, this one makes sense to me. Just found your channel and I’m now a new sub. I will be binge watching your videos all night.
Thank you! I’m so happy you found us and hope you enjoy the content.
Great video! I bought the Renogy suitcase kit. The waterproof controller *is* connected to the panel, but it's on a flip down hinge so you can easily read the display
Yes, they sell it both with and without. It's nice to have everything all in one.
My head is exploding! Thanks Brian. Great info.
Haha… baby steps!
Nice job Brian! Thanks for all your time and effort. Always very informative and enjoyable even if I'm not doing the upgrade.
PS: I also always enjoy seeing the ever evolving production ..gotta love a slide whistle 😄
Thank you, appreciate you tuning in. Gotta love the slide whistle…lol
Hi. I’m not a DIYer but I am a teardrop owner. I love your videos-I learn so much from them. I like to know how my equipment works even if it is already installed. It will also help me troubleshoot when things go wrong. Thank you for your informative videos and great delivery.
Thank you for the kind words. I’m glad you’re on board for the ride!
i’m having the toughest time learning all this I’ve been watching your videos and they have been so helpful I wish you were in Northern California I would hire you to do all this on my trailer for me, (Re; proper battery, solar panels, portable power station etc. etc.) I think you’re brilliant I wish I could obtain the knowledge that you have I’m trying but I just can’t get all this in my brain, Thanks for your awesome videos I think you’re brilliant.
Thank you so much for watching. We're on the road traveling a lot, if we passed through northern Ca again Ill let you know.
Start with the basics, you got this!
You have answered so many of my questions in just a couple videos than in MONTHS of research. Thanks man!!
That's great to hear, thanks for watching the channel.
I just did this with a tiny 8.5amp PWM charge controller but instead of a separate box, I bought a large battery box and dropped battery and all in that box. I used your previous video's idea and mounted a battery disconnect on the same box. Keep up the great work!
That’s great to hear. Solar can be a lot of fun, thanks for watching!
Very imformative and easy to follow for sure. I'm glad I saw your channel. Hope to see more DIYs
I’m glad you found us too! Thanks for watching.
Hi Brian, thanks for the video. Your channel is an excellent source of information. I have a teardrop camper with two 6V deep-cycle batteries. How do I go about installing the charge controller? I have all the parts that you used in your setup. Additional to the solar panel that will be installed on the camper, I have a suitcase-style panel. I want the system to be set up in a way that I could use the suitcase-style panel when the RV is parked in the shade. What's your advice?
Thank you for watching the channel.
Wire your charge controller from the positive of battery one to the negative of battery 2 and youre set.
On the charge controller , I would wire a simple lead plug (mc4 or anderson).
With those plugs, it should be easy to leave your rooftop panel plugged in, but be able to simply unplug it and attach your portable panel. In some situations, you could even add both.
@@DIYOutdoorLife Thanks for your reply!
Thanks Brian for the education
Thank you for swinging by!
Amazing job Brain - appreciate the step by step installation, works perfectly thanks to you. Question - with the solar system as you set it up are there any issues when you plug in your trailer to your vehicle and the whacker battering is charging through the 12v plug-in & solar panel concurrently or if you want to trickle charge your whacker battery through a maintainer? Does the solar panel need to be disconnected from the solar charger in either of these situations?
Thank you, I appreciate you watching. There’s no issues at all, you can leave the solar set up… easy peezy
Great job sir. Very easy to follow your instructions and I'm forever grateful to you. My question however, is what do we/I do once you're ready to drive and connected to your vehicle battery? Do I disconnect the solar cables as the vehicle battery/alternator is now charging my RV battery, and reconnect once I disconnect from my vehicle etc.? TIA
Thank you, I appreciate you watching and following along. Actually, it couldn't be any easier… Do nothing at all.
The charge controller works as a regulator, it will decrease or stop the charge from solar automatically, depending on the output from the alternator. Have fun!
I had not seen a bi-directional power station LiFePO4; will keep eyes open for units 1K-2K watts with this feature. I imagine choosing compatible panels is highly important based on the station requirements. Nice bonus tip on the Reflectix, had not heard that before!
oops these comments were for "Faster Charging - Portable Power Station". Watching the whole series...
Haha… all good, I knew right away.
Any solar panel with a power delivery port will work. They come in deferent sizes, but the PD port in the power station will only take the voltage and current it can handle.
Dude your the best again!!
I appreciate you tuning in. Do you have a solar set up on your rig?
I've watched two of your videos now. Great content very excited I found your channel. That being said, I love your non-judgmental perfectionist nature. When you tell us we can just cut a big old hole in the side of the box, it's fine, do a bad job. You have cable glands installed, cable glands that you just happen to have laying around. You could just throw the controller in the box, if you are uncultured swine, but if you're not a lazy piece of crap you could put together a wood tray and paint it. Make sure you leave the cable extra long so you can sit outside your RV and watch your battery charge. I get it, that's why I would have a long cable. Your attention to detail leaves me envious. Just one more thing, when you checked the cable glands out of your inventory, does the system automatically reorder or do you have to go online manually, like a Savage?
Hahaha... this made me LOL
Awesome, thanks man for great advice👍
Fun project, let me know how it goes!
DIY Outdoor Life will do it should be a breeze with your instruction video, thanks again.👍
Excellent video... thank you very much !
Thanks for sticking with us Dave, appreciate you watching and commenting.
I would love to somewhat copy what you have done, especially being able to unhook from the battery when it's topped up and be able to plug in to my GoLabs power station. You wouldn't happen to have this written out in a blog so I can take this step by step?
I wish I did, unfortunately, this video and the description links are the best I have.
Hi Brian, thanks for these very informational vids… i enjoy them and learn a lot! I have an RV with an existing solar panel which i will soon replace and an existing charge controller that i will keep. It’s all already wired into the auxiliary battery system, so I’ll just wire in the new panel…
At about 16:30 in the vid, you discuss disconnecting your solar panel from your battery system and plugging it directly into your portable power station… this is something Id also like to do, but im curious… what happens when the portable battery gets full? Are you supposed to simply monitor its charge status and unplug it when it approaches a full charge?? Could you damage the power station by over charging it? Im also wondering about the LOAD output on my charge controller, which isn't currently being used. Could i output that to an adapter and into my portable battery station?? Trying to think of clever ways to use what i have without needing to disconnect/reconnect things or having to monitor them for charge status. Any information would help… thanks in advance!!
Hi, thanks for watching the channel and asking great questions.
Your portable power station has a built-in solar charge controller, there’s no risk of overcharging . When the battery is full, everything can remain connected, it just does not accept the charge.
The best advice I can give for the load terminals is to ignore them. They have a very limited use case, which often involves running a set of lights that turn on and off automatically. This can be a very helpful feature on a boat, where it turns the outside lights on once the sun goes down. For our use, just ignore the terminals.
If you are in a situation where you want to automatically charge both, plug your portable power station in to the camper through your car charger and leave your solar connected to the battery . This will allow your solar to charge the battery on your camper and then charge the portable power stations through the 12 V plug.
Again, more great information! Thanks Brian :) I have tried to plug in the power station to the auxiliary car charger of my RV but charging is extremely slow. I think I’ll just rewire the system to allow a direct MC4 connection into the portable battery. Cheers!
Hi there. I love your set up. I am going to try to set up a similar box to house the controller. Can I ask how you threaded the SAE end through the electrical gland? I have seen just wires but am wondering if is just as simple as getting larger glands. I've never worked with them before and so am curious to try it out. Thanks.
Most of the time, you can just push the sae through. They do make larger glands if needed, but elbow grease goes a long way.
Awesome. Thanks so much for the reply.
Another great job Brian. I'm a newbie to solar, but get the jest of it. I have a new Teardrop & will take my first trip on April 25. The maker installed a 85amp AGM which should be just fine, all lights & vent fan run off the AGM. I have a Jackery 500 to run my BougeRV 30 Quart fridge. In the near future I think I want to put a flex solar panel on the teardrop to top off the Jackery (and to avoid my portable Jackery panel from sprouting legs.) ** One thing that stood out when I talked to the seller was a warning ⚠️ to not overcharge the AGM. Am I correct in thinking if I also use a solar panel to charge the AGM that programing the controller will solve that warning? And the MPPT type controller also has the same selection?
Yes, a charge controller of either variety will prevent overcharging. You’ll have a nice set up that you can share between the Jackery and the AGM if you go this route.
Greetings, you helped me with a popup question a while back. I have sold the popup and now have an Aliner Ranger 12 with solar panels and a giant Li battery. There was no paperwork that can tell me anything about how the solar was installed. At a glance, something doesn’t seem right. I would like to sent you pictures to get your opinion. Thx.
Sure thing. Email me at
diyoutdoorcontent@gmail.com
Give me an explanation of what's going on and I'll see if I can help
Good job, Brian, and kudos to your videographer. I might agree with T.J. that the $30 difference between the Renogy PWM you have, and the Renogy Rover 20A MPPT might be worth the investment. I think it's especially worth it in places like the NE where the sun does not shine as abundantly as, say, the desert SW. But if you need to save every dollar, your system will work fine. Looks like you're gonna die on that PWM/AGM hill! 😉
HAHA...I almost responded to TJ by saying, "I wouldn't die on this hill."
One day I'll be vindicated. I imagine some sort of competition, where my $600 system can smoke the competition...lol A guy can dream.
and the Rover is $60 more and doesnt fit...lol
Thank you!
Thank you for watching!
I am so appreciative of your very understandable videos. I have a 130 watt bougerv suitcase solar panel and will be getting an AGM battery with the new casita that we will be picking up next month. After watching this video and your solar 101 video I think I need a 10 amp charge controller. Would it be ok to get a 20 amp charge controller for future growth? I tried to see the model of the blue charge controller in your video but I can't make it out. Can you share what model it is? Thanks loads for what you do.
Hi Jim, that’s great to hear!
The 10 amp is perfect, 20 is fine for future proofing.
Here is the link to the blue controller, it’s a victron.
amzn.to/3YXARbf
@@DIYOutdoorLife I tried to send this question a couple days ago but I don’t see it so I think I did something wrong and it didn’t send. In this great video, I was asking about the charge controller that you recommended. I have a 130 watt bougerv suitcase panel and I will have an AGM battery with the new Casita we pick up in a month.. I didn’t ask the question right and would like to ask again.
Is the 20 amp charge controller you recommended a Renogy Voyager 20 amp pwm controller and would that be a good choice for me? Thanks loads for your help.
Jim
@@jimkasenow6122 Yes Jim, it would be a great fit for your set up. It’s an inexpensive piece of equipment but it gets the job done for sure.
@@DIYOutdoorLife Thanks so much. I have subscribed and will be watching everything.
@@jimkasenow6122 thank you!
One question, I have a battery tender for when my camper is in storage and so I have an SAE with o rings and a 7.5 fuse that I have been leaving in the battery. I couldn’t just plug my battery tender into the iGreeley because the fuse size would be too large, correct? Do you think I would be better off? Just swapping out the fuses whenever I plug in the tender or is there another way that would be simpler?
You're fine to plug your battery, tender into the iGreeley, I wouldn't worry about swapping the fuses.
The fuse is there to protect the wire, there's a smaller fuse on your battery tender to account for the smaller wire. That I Greeley has 10awg, it's a perfect set up to just plug your battery charger right in.
@@DIYOutdoorLife great!
Another question for you; what is the reason for 2 sae connections between the battery and the controller? Any reason not to just have the short fused igreely in the battery box and then connect one sae extension with forked ends on the end of that cord rather than adding a 3rd cord? Just trying to save a little dough if no real need for the 3rd cord.
@@BrookRieman the extra cord allows a lot of modifications, easy to swap out for other purposes.
Perfectly fine to do as you said.
Another Great Video Brian. The part 2 to installing a Solar Panel. How many Watts of Solar can be run through this 20 amp controller if you are hooking up panels together? In a previous Video I seen to remember you recommending the Goal Zero 20amp charge controller? I see this is half the price of that one. Is that the reason for recommending this one today?
The Goal zero PWM excels in it’s ease of use and compatibility with power stations. This guys is cheaper and works well if you are just looking for a basic set up. I currently run a Victron MPPT on my camper. There’s hundreds of options out there, I’ll try to make more videos highlighting the pros and cons of each.
I am planning to do this, but with an AFrame, my solar panel will be portable that I set out. So my little box wont be sttached permanently to the tongue and will be packed away while rolling. However, it will sit there when the panels are being used to charge the battery. My question is--how would you suggest making the temperature sensor wire detachable? I don't want to have to open the top of the battery every time--I would just like for it to hang out. The other end of the sensor is a couple of wires that poke into the coontroller-I wouldn't call it a frequently removal connection. If I cut the wires, what connector would you recommend? Looks like polarity might be an issue, is it?
That sounds like a great set up. I bet you could cut the temp sensors, strip, and use a WAGO connector. I feel like the small ones would do a great job with that fine wire and hold up. They’re non polarized so youre fine.
Thanks for the info. WAGO connectors don't seem to be in my neighborhood, but I think the spade connectors will do ok. And I am going to make a little boot for it from an aligator clip rolling around in the toolbox for some weather protection. (look for another ? on the video about the kill switch.)
Possibly a dumb question but my Bushwacker 15DS doesn’t have a manual that I can find anywhere
Questions about the SAE port on the side of the trailer:
1- is there any kind of built in battery protection on that? I was trying to understand what the breaker box actually does and it seems like that does have some over voltage/overcharge protection. I can’t tell what though.
2- if there is some built in plug what benefits/drawbacks are there to using that (other than the wind issue you mentioned)?
3- I’m guessing the fuse/breaker box has an inverter of a sort, but do you know what it’s ratings are?
Thanks for any help 😊
These are great questions, very tricky stuff and they don't help things with the no manual.
The solar on the side is kind of a gimmick. It's like that on all trailers, it's just a wire going to the battery. There is a small auto resettable dc breaker, notoriously malfunction, and has a higher rating than what the wire does... lol
If you use the solar on the side, you still need to use a charge controller. Although it can be convenient and works, it's best to go right to the battery.
Your power center has a DC converter, it does not have an inverter. It will serve to take shore power and convert it to 12 V, it does not help with solar.
Hope this helps, feel free to reach out if you have other questions.
@@DIYOutdoorLife awesome! Thank you again for replying so fast!
That’s very good to know about the solar wire. I had a feeling it might be under rated but didn’t know where to look to find those. All the wires are buried behind walls lol.
How do the 110 v plugs in the camper work without an inverter?
@@midnight121190 they require that you plug the camper into a utility power source or make modifications.
On the rear driver side of the camper, there is a connection. The camper also came with an extension cord, unless your dealership forgot that.
Hey Brian. Thanks for your great videos. My wife and I just bought a Bushwacker. I'm planning on doing your exact solar setup you cover with the 180 watt panel on the roof of your Bushwacker. I do have a question I hope you could answer? I've been considering going with two 6v golf cart batteries instead of the 100ah you are using. Would that 180 watt panel charge these batteries? Or would I be better off just doing your exact system? I have already bought everything you have except for the panel and the batteries. I know you said in another video that a larger " barrel collects more water that a glass". So I know the battery choice is very important. We live in Oregon if that helps at all. Your expertise would be greatly appreciated here. Thanks again. Chad
I would highly recommend these-
amzn.to/3zUu7Sc
Or something comparable. The two 6v is a much better system than what I’m using, it’s actually more than I need because of my power stations.
Good luck, thanks for watching!
Hi thanks for your videos. I have a question. Can I use a charge controller to charge starter battery from the cigarette adapter in my car so I have a starter always charged as a spare? What fuse and capacity of charge controller is the optimum?
You can use charge controller set ups like battery tenders through 12v inputs like a cigarette plug.
Fuse your controller between 1.25 and 1.5 the current limit on controller. 15a fuse on 10a controller. 30 a fuse on 20a controller… those ratios are what most use. Make sure the wire youre using can handle the current of the fuse.
Check out my other videos on solar too, thanks for watching.
Where did you find the Renogy Voyager charge controller pre-wired Thanks
I wired it up. I listed the parts in the vid description. Let me know if I can be of any help.
Another great video Brian! I have a question. I have a hard time wrapping my head around one thing. If the solar panels go through the controller and and charge the battery and I connect shore power to the camper, is there any risk of an shock or fire event occurring if power is fed through the converter and onto the battery while the solar circuit is connected? Should I physically disconnect the solar while plug into shore power? Thank you sir!
Nope, leave it connected. That is safe and common practice. What's really gonna blow your mind is that you can install multiple solar controllers, DCDC chargers, and shore power chargers at the same time... lol They all push a good battery charge voltage and the battery draws the current.
Good question!
@@DIYOutdoorLife that’s cool Brian thank you for the quick response. I’m glad you were able to understand what I was to trying ask. I ordered the cigs panels with the victron controller and I didn’t want to smoke anything with that configuration. 👍🏼
Hi, I just bought an RV with 150 w Solar panels. I also have 200x portable solar panels, but no way to use the extra panels. What is my best option to connect these into my system. Add another PWM charge controller or tap into the existing PWN controller? Please let me know if you need additional details. Thanks in advance.
Additional charge controller will be the best way. How many watts of solar panels total? What kind of battery? You might want to consider an MPPT if you can.
Won’t my solar panel stop charging my batteries if I’ve installed an on/off switch to the side of my box as you have in the video? I’d love to stop losing battery reserves and turn the switch off, but don’t want to lose the benefit of recharging them with my panel. Thank you in advance brother
You can do it either way, but I set mine up the way youre asking about. Connect to charge controller directly to the battery, not the switch. Then when the switches turned off, the campers off, but the solar is on.
Simple question if you are running 2 batteries in a series do you need to hook to one battery or treat like a series when you run the cables from batteries to the controller?
If you’re running in series, you are running 2 - 6v batteries, do you mean parallel?
Actually, the answer is simple, because you should run from the opposite posts either way.
Run your charge controller from the + of bat one & the - of bat 2. Always best to use the positive on one battery and the negative on the other for balancing.
Yes running 2 12volt batteries and parallel and thought that be corrected to do have done just that pos to one battery and neg to the other one thank you for confirming what I thought
Couldn’t see the two sets of wires or extensions with the SAE terminals and how they connect with various parts. It would’ve been good to zoom in so we could see those extensions in place and explain it from one end to the other.
Sorry about that. There is only a plus and a minus, A positive and a negative.
Stick with positive to positive and negativeto negative, just like putting a battery in a TV remote .
Typically, we use Red for positive and black for negative on DC wiring like this
Hey Brian you mentioned to me you may have discount codes for the renorgy batteries.
shoot me an email. DIYOutdoorcontent@gmail.com ... I'll see what I have
When your connected to shore power do you need to disconnect the charge controller?
No, theyre fine to be on at the same time.
Dumb question... do I need to add a ground at all on a similar setup?
No, you’re fine going from panels and battery to charge controller, it will have continuity ground to your chassis through the battery.
@@DIYOutdoorLife thank you for the quick reply!
Mine TD has all the electrical inside. I have a sae connector on the side where I hook the panels (similar to cosmo). I usually went for portable panels but now I also have surrendered and installed 120w on rooftop and still thinking best way to wire. Do not want to drill a hole but i am afraid to drive while a sae cable is connected on the side. Not clear how you glued your cables on the outside
The 3M zip ties in my video description are stick on. They do a really nice job attaching to the camper and stay put.
What kind of camper do you have? I’m sure there’s a way to hook in without too much work.
@@DIYOutdoorLife it is locally made in Brazil. Search for sun trailers. Really cool type inspired on TD. But I did not want to drill holes in the roof ao I had a SAE connection on the side. Will figure out more…just buys this 3m sticks. Great idea. Did not know they existed
@@risconamira I’ll look them up now… thanks!
I want to do this.
Awesome!
I mounted a victron controller on the outside of my camper and it failed within a year, they are definitely not weatherproof.
That’s right, unfortunately I hear this all too often. There’s very few waterproof MPPT’s, most really want to go inside, they don’t even particularly like humid environments. Even though the PWM’s don’t do quite as well, tons of waterproof options for cheap.
Felicidades, es un buen ejemplo. 368 sentadillas son unos XX18LIKE.Uno muchas y un buen ejercicio. Se deja ver que hay muy buenos resultados 😍👍 Saludos desde la Cd.. de world 🌹😉💖 los mortalesf abian apreciado tan hermosa mujer.k
Esto no parece tener mucho sentido… pero le agradecemos por mirar nuestro canal!
First
Nice! Thanks for staying tuned with notifications!
Felicidades, es un buen ejemplo. 215 sentadillas son unos YOURGIRLS.Uno muchas y un buen ejercicio. Se deja ver que hay muy buenos resultados 😍👍 Saludos desde la Cd.. de world 🌹😉💖 los mortalesm abian apreciado tan hermosa mujer.k
Esto no parece tener mucho sentido… pero le agradecemos por mirar nuestro canal!