U ns often get inquiries from travelers who want to know about building a solar plant more. Most of them are about a solar panel that is to be mounted on the roof.
Therefore, in this article, we would like to give you instructions on how we installed our solar system on the roof of our VW T5 camper.
As you know, we try to be as independent as possible on our road trips. The solar system plays an important role here, as the solar energy generated enables many devices to be used in the camper. Basically, a solar system is indispensable for many campers and expedition vehicles who like to stand freely in nature and who do not want to do without electricity.
In the following, we, therefore, describe how and where best to install a solar system on the vehicle.
A flexible or fixed solar system on the roof of the camper
Z extremely you should ask yourself whether you want to have the solar system permanently mounted on the roof of the vehicle or not? Because both variants have their advantages and disadvantages.
A removable solar system that is flexible.
A solar system does not necessarily have to be installed on the vehicle roof. You can also carry a loose one with you and only take it out and connect it at the destination. One of the advantages of a solar system that is not permanently installed is that the vehicle height does not change. This means that you are still able to drive into garages and some ferries with height restrictions. In addition, if you are in the forest or in a shady place with your vehicle, it has the advantage that you can simply place the solar panel where the sun can reach without having to move the entire vehicle.
A fixed solar system on the vehicle roof.
Compared to a flexible solar system, a fixed solar system has the advantage that the battery can always be charged while driving. A permanently installed solar system is also always ready and runs continuously. Furthermore, you save time, work, and space in the vehicle because you don’t have to constantly assemble and dismantle them. In addition, you can install several solar systems next to each other on the vehicle roof and thus increase the energy supply.
We decided on an interim solution and attached our solar system to two roof racks with four screws. This means that we have a fixed solar system on our vehicle roof, but we remain flexible because it can be unscrewed in about 10 minutes and moved elsewhere if necessary. In order for this to be possible, however, you must always have an extension cable for the solar system with you.
Practical test: Until now, we haven’t even had to dismantle our solar system. We simply avoided garages with height restrictions and paid a higher tariff on ferries. We hadn’t dismantled the solar system in places where there was little sun, nor was it necessary because it produced enough energy even in the shade.
The right solar panel for your purposes
Es are now buying that serve one purpose or another better different solar systems. In addition to being stable, there are also flexible and flatter solar systems. Let’s look briefly at the two differences.
Flexible, pliable solar modules
If you are looking for a solar panel that should be as good as invisible on the vehicle roof and also only change the vehicle height slightly, then you should resort to a more flexible solar module. Such one costs a little more, but you can stick it directly on the vehicle roof. This saves you either the roof rack or unnecessary holes in the vehicle roof. The only disadvantage is that it is harder to get it off again.
Rigid, fixed solar modules
In addition to the flexible solar modules, there are the rigid ones, which are not flexible, but have a solid frame made of aluminum and are specially secured against storms such as hail with solid plexiglass.
For example, we opted for a rigid solar module for the following reasons:
Firstly, because we wanted to take it off after our road trips so that it isn’t exposed to the weather or possible theft on the vehicle roof for too long. Second, if necessary, we must also be able to arrange it when we drive on ferries with height restrictions or remain in the shade for a long time.
Cable entry for the solar system through the vehicle roof
When you’ve decided on a fixed solar panel, then you must define and drill a hole in the vehicle roof, the position of the solar system on the roof than initially. The hole is necessary to pull the two solar cables from the solar system into the vehicle cabin.
We placed our solar system beforehand on the roof rack and aligned it so that it was in the middle. Below that we have marked where the hole for the cable entry should go. Then we drilled a hole and checked briefly in the vehicle compartment whether we had drilled correctly.
The next step was to pull the extension cords through the vehicle roof up to the solar cables. The solar modules ordered all have built-in cables, including solar connectors. We have connected an extension cable to these two solar cables, which runs into the vehicle interior.
But the whole project was not finished yet, because the hole still had to be protected from water penetration. There are also extra plastic housings to buy, which are intended for the vehicle roof. You can lead the respective cable through this and then glue the plastic housing to the vehicle roof with a sealant directly above the hole. It should be noted that the plastic housing is glued in the direction of travel of the wind.
Connect the solar system with the charge controller and battery
N weaving the solar system on the roof placed and the cables were then laid, we naturally wanted to also equal to test whether it works. The next thing we had to do was connect a charge controller.
The function of the charge regulator is actually self-explanatory. There are 6 connections for the cables, which are differentiated between plus and minus. Two connection inputs are intended for the battery, two for the cables of the solar system, and two for further connections directly for a device or a lamp.
In any case, our solar system worked well from the first moment and delivered solar energy, as can be seen in the picture. We used a small battery for the test, which was later replaced by a solar battery.
A solar battery is also required so that the solar energy can be stored there. We decided on a battery that is specially designed for solar operation. Alternatively, of course, you can also use a car battery, but it survives fewer cycles than a solar battery.
We were able to place our solar battery under the driver’s seat, there was a stable and safe place there. So that it doesn’t slide back and forth, we had specially fixed the battery with screws.
Tip: Since different cables are connected to the solar battery, we have also procured battery pole clamps, which greatly simplify the attachment and, above all, prevent short circuits. We also had fuses, also known as flying fuses, installed between the respective devices. Fuses with screw connections are particularly suitable for this, as they are easy to attach and change.
Attaching a voltage converter (converter, inverter)
V Many small devices such as a mobile phone, a cool box, or other chargers usually come with 12V and you do not necessarily need a voltage converter. However, if you want to connect devices that need 220V, you need a voltage converter. Depending on the battery strength, this can deliver 220 volts over a longer period of time.
It is important to know how many watts it can deliver. Because the more watts, the more powerful devices can be used. You can easily find out how many watts you need by checking the wattage of your device. Usually, this is somewhere on the back of a device. Note, however, that this will also use up the battery faster.
We got a voltage converter that runs up to an output of 600 watts, which was completely sufficient for our purposes.
The voltage converter can be easily connected by connecting two plus and minus cables to the solar battery. Since our voltage converter only had one socket, we also connected a socket strip.
So that the voltage converter, the charge regulator, and all the cables, etc. do not fly around loosely, we built a small device with a flap to which we had attached everything safely and securely. This is how it looked with us:
Conclusion on our solar system
We wrote these instructions after putting the whole setup to a practical test on one of our road trips. We were in Norway for over two weeks and had no problems. Despite the partly cloudy days, the solar system provided us with enough energy for our electric Waeco cool box, for two water pumps that operated a tap and a shower, for our light in the vehicle interior, and for all the chargers that charged the batteries for cameras and laptops.
If you do not want to do without a solar system in your camper, then you are well-advised with this inexpensive construction :-).
As always, we look forward to your comments and experiences on this topic.
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