Isuzu NPS 300 camper build

[4x4coaster]

One of my aims has been to use electronics that perform as many integrated functions as possible and this is where it gets difficult. Just when you think you are on a winner, some little specification then knocks it out, like the Voc issue mentioned before.
I am also keen to use light weight thin solar panels as I have been down tracks with tree limbs bouncing along the roof ribs of the coaster.
Maybe I will have to go for less multifunction and focus more on the individual performance and the ability of the items to perform in an integrated way.

At the end of the day, if I cant find a light weight solar panel solution I'm happy with, I will just concede and go the traditional route.

 

[SkiFreak]

...then I look at 4 panels I think are good value and the total Voc exceeds the MPPT component, back to the drawing board!
This is so frustrating.

Are you adding the Voc of each of the 4 panels and that total is exceeding the capacity of the MPPT regulator? If so, you may not be as bad off as you think.
If all 4 panels were in series then the MPPT regulator would need the capacity to handle the Voc of each panel x 4; however, if all of the panels were in parallel then the MPPT regulator would only need to handle the Voc of one panel. If you have 2 lots of 2 panels in parallel and those pairs are in series, then the MPPT regulator needs to handle 2 x the Voc of a single panel.
Is that as clear as mud?

 

[SkiFreak]

At the end of the day, if I cant find a light weight solar panel solution I'm happy with, I will just concede and go the traditional route.

Just be mindful that some of the thin, flexible panels from China (normally available on eBay) are not always as good as the specifications supplied say they are.
If I were using crystalline solar panels, which I'm not, then I would use more smaller panels, opposed to a few big ones. Shade tolerance on some brands of panels is not what I would consider good. A whole panel can turn off in some situations, so if you have a larger array of smaller panels you can negate this issue, to some degree.

I have UniSolar amorphous panels so this is not an issue, as each individual cell has bypass diodes.

 

[dlh62c]

I can't remember where, but somebody did a review on flexible solar panels. They did the job but got HOT sitting out in the sun and the heat transfers to the surface their attached too. The other thing was the individual cells tended to cup which allowed water and dirt to accumulate causing large water spots, thus diminishing their ouput. They ended up going with traditional panels.

 

[yabanja]

One of my aims has been to use electronics that perform as many integrated functions as possible and this is where it gets difficult. Just when you think you are on a winner, some little specification then knocks it out, like the Voc issue mentioned before.
I am also keen to use light weight thin solar panels as I have been down tracks with tree limbs bouncing along the roof ribs of the coaster.
Maybe I will have to go for less multifunction and focus more on the individual performance and the ability of the items to perform in an integrated way.

At the end of the day, if I cant find a light weight solar panel solution I'm happy with, I will just concede and go the traditional route.

I am early in the research portion of all of this but my thoughts are absolutely the same as yours! Light weight and simplicity win out. I have been talking with the powerfilm guys about glue on panels. My camper is weak on insulation though so excessive heat transfer may nix this whole idea....

 

[dlh62c]

I found the review; http://www.technomadia.com/2014/11/zephyr-is-solar-powered-800-watt-rv-bus-roof-solar-install/

 

[yabanja]

I found the review; http://www.technomadia.com/2014/11/zephyr-is-solar-powered-800-watt-rv-bus-roof-solar-install/

Good read. Thank you. Also his article on the LifePO4 batteries is interesting. Heat and individual cell bms systems are crucial! Victron Multiplus 2000 looks like the way to go for my needs.

Allan

 

[LeishaShannon]

We have 2 x 1600VA Victron Multiplus in parallel for redundancy and they're brilliant. They also now have the "Easy Solar" which is a Multiplus + MPPT controller + AC switchboard in one unit that might be worth considering. All their kit is user programmable and comes with a 5 year warranty for peace of mind. Using a single vendor for the entire electrical system enables some pretty neat integration


We stuck with 24v for simplicity / efficiency and use 24v to 12v DCDC converter for 12v stuff.

As SkiFreak mentioned, the total Voc depends on how you wire the panels. We have 4 panels on the roof with 2 panels wired in series and then those 2 groups wired in parallel. Configured this way the voltage the controller sees is 2 x Voc of a single panel, not 4 x VoC.

Flexible panels are... ok if you really need the weight savings. We have 4 x 100W flexible panels that we use as portable panels because their 1.7Kg rather than 10Kg+ makes them really easy to handle which means I can send Leisha out to aim them at the sun rather than doing it myself

We purchased the flexible panels from https://www.solar4rvs.com.au/solar-panels-flexible.html and are really happy with their service (one panel failed and they couriered the replacement asap)

That said when I did a side by side comparison they produced ~20% less power over the day (watt for watt) compared to the LG Neons on the roof. The cells aren't as efficient , they don't work as well in low light, and if they're stuck down to the roof which is how most people mount them they get hot which further lowers the output.

If you can afford the weight and have room to mount them premium grid-tie panels like the Sunpower X21 or LG Neon will perform better and cost less per watt than flexible panels.

 

[ozzyfishaman]

Man you guy's try to make your power systems so Bloody Complicated, I have been running all my campers on 12V systems for 10 years with no problems whatsoever, including using 240V air conditioners,extra Fridges,all my lighting and a 230ltr Vitrifrigo Main Camper 12-240 V Fridge.
I predominately use products supplied by Enerdrive in Oz, and have NEVER had a problem with any of their Products. AMEN.

Cheers Ozzy

 

[4x4coaster]

I found this story of an NPS300 hard sided pop-top built for international travel and didn't know where else to put it so here it is;



http://www.theaussiebushman.com/

 

[SkiFreak]

Definitely much nicer than a plain old white box, that's for sure. I plan on doing a similar thing when my box has been built.

Given that my design is quite similar to this, I took particular interest in the roller shutter they have used above the pass-thru. I am pretty sure that is a simple aluminium roller shutter SLR has used there (as there are views of it from inside and outside), which has the potential to create a huge cold path, unless I am missing something. This is how I was going to do mine, but the cold path issue made me look for an alternate solution. Let's just say that it is not easy at all to have a hard sided pop-top with a pass-thru.

 

[Maninga]

That's very neat, like it with a bit of colour attached. Be curious how they did the passthru

 

[whatcharterboat]

Definitely much nicer than a plain old white box, that's for sure. I plan on doing a similar thing when my box has been built.

Given that my design is quite similar to this, I took particular interest in the roller shutter they have used above the pass-thru. I am pretty sure that is a simple aluminium roller shutter SLR has used there (as there are views of it from inside and outside), which has the potential to create a huge cold path, unless I am missing something. This is how I was going to do mine, but the cold path issue made me look for an alternate solution. Let's just say that it is not easy at all to have a hard sided pop-top with a pass-thru.

Hi Owen,

I bet your still wearing shorts in -6C.

Yeah. Looks like truck shutter-style passthrough........and guess cold might be an issue too. I was trying to work out how many LA36's they used. I can see 3 in that photo looking forward. 2 in the right corner next to the passthrough and 1 in the middle of the bench???? They must have more than 4 ????? Puzzled.

 

[whatcharterboat]

Hi Owen,

I bet your still wearing shorts in -6C.

Yeah. Looks like truck shutter-style passthrough........and guess cold might be an issue too. I was trying to work out how many LA36's they used. I can see 3 in that photo looking forward. 2 in the right corner next to the passthrough and 1 in the middle of the bench???? They must have more than 4 ????? Puzzled.

Doh!!! I see. There must be 4 x LA36s for the bed and 4 for the roof I guess.

 

[SkiFreak]

I bet your still wearing shorts in -6C..

Yep... you know me all too well.

Looks like truck shutter-style passthrough

I recon it looks like a security shutter on a house.

Doh!!! I see. There must be 4 x LA36s for the bed and 4 for the roof I guess.

In one of the posts is says the roof is lifted/lowered with hydraulics, but this may simply be a misunderstanding of the technology being used.