Connection ... It ’ s all about balance
Here ’ s one example that I ’ m intimately familiar with ...
Mike Sokol with his Rockwood GeoPro .
Since last summer I ’ ve been experimenting with a prototype Rockwood GeoPro G-19FBTH trailer that includes the new Power Package upgrade . This boondocking upgrade includes 570 watts of solar panels on the roof , a 400 amp-hour Lithium Battery , and a 3,000-watt Hybrid inverter with full control over shore power allowed in 1 ampere increments . All this fits nicely in a 19-ft toy hauler package . This combination seems to be a great balance of solar panels , battery storage , and inverter power . In fact , this integrated Solar / Battery / Inverter system will run the 10.5 KBTU rooftop air conditioner for four hours on battery power alone .
The newest inverter technology is something called a Hybrid Inverter which allows you to mix power from your shore power connection with make-up power from your battery bank , when needed . For example , let ’ s assume you ’ re moochdocking at a friend ’ s house , but you can ’ t pull more than 10 amps of current from their outside outlet because they have other appliances on this branch circuit . With a traditional inverter it ’ s an all or nothing thing . That is , your RV 120-volt needs are either being powered by batteries though the inverter , or it ’ s being powered from shore power .
A hybrid inverter allows you to set a maximum allowable current you can pull from the shore power line , let ’ s say 10 amps . So if your RV only needs 8 amps for normal operation , then the hybrid inverter uses the extra two amps of current to recharge your house batteries . If you turn on the microwave and pull an extra 10 amps for a total of 18 amps , the inverter still limits the shore power current to 10 amps , but gets the extra 8 amps at 120-volts from your RV house batteries . Of course , this only works until you run out of battery power , so you ’ re still going to need at least 200 amp-hrs of battery storage .
Making the solar connection . It ’ s all about balance ...
Yes , this sounds like a lot of engineering design and consideration . In an ideal situation you would have enough battery storage to last you through the night , a sufficient number of solar panels that would recharge the battery bank every day , plus a large enough inverter to power your 120-volt AC appliances for a reasonable amount of time . So that generally works out to 200 to 400 amp-hours of Lithium batteries , 600 to 1,00 watts of solar panels , and a 3,000-
www . prvca . org | largestRVshow . com watt hybrid inverter that can power your RV from multiple power sources at the same time . You really can ’ t expect to just slap solar panels on the roof of your RV and expect it to work .
I do believe that solar power is the future of RVs , since boondocking offers so many more unique camping opportunities than staying in campgrounds that have electric power . That said , solar panels must be properly integrated into the RV ’ s electrical system to be safe and useful . And that ’ s why a factory integrated Solar / Battery / Inverter RV system will generally operate more efficiently than something you piece together yourself . There ’ s significant engineering needed to integrate and install all the pieces properly .
Mike Sokol is an author , educator and authority on RV eletricity . He is an electrical and professional sound expert with more than 40 years experience in the industry . He teaches RV electricity to RV technicians and consumers , including seminars at America ’ s Largest RV Show ® in Hershey , Pa .
Sokol is the author of No ~ Shock ~ Zone RV Electrical Safety . Visit RVelectricity . com to read more of his articles and videos about electricity .
EXPLORE Pennsylvania 2022 | 31