Thanks simple and easy to understand! 👍🇬🇧

This is an excellent video, I like it that you don't talk too fast and very good pictures to help understanding, thankyou so much

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks! Glad it’s useful 😀

excellent presentation & very informative.

That was really helpful and to the point. Thank you.

@ExploreVanUK

4 жыл бұрын

Glad you found it useful 👍

Brilliant video - thanks man! Just getting started here, taking notes, hopefully instal over the Winter ;-)

I feel like these are some of the most helpful videos I've ever seen, thank you!

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

Thank you, glad they are helpful!

Really interesting regarding mono & poly, I think now I'm tempted to get poly, and cram every inch of my van roof that my mppt will support. Thanks great video.

Very helpful, thanks.

brillant thank you best one yet on this subject

Brilliant video, thank you

Great information, thanks 🙏

Very informative video. 👍👍

@ExploreVanUK

4 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

Great, thanks

Great presentation thankyou

good video

Thanks 👍

At 2.28 I gave you a 👍 up.and watched the rest.flexable degrading fast I true.

Hi wating your videos , . All good but can you simply tell me ... My setup is small 2x 150w panels 2 x 110 amp hour batteries 30 amp mppt charge controller . As im getting mixed up by what is the best way to set these all up as 12 volt set up .please help thankyou

good quality kabels is also important

Hi, that is really useful, especially the calculator to see what panel size. One question, would this vary depending on what amp solar charger, I.e. 30 or 50 amp ?

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

You’d need to size the charger based on the panels your connecting. They will have a maximum wattage that they are capable of. A higher Amp charger will only be worth it with enough Wattage from the panels to make it worth while.

excellent video, I replaced my 20 amp controller with a 30 amp, will that be OK?

@ExploreVanUK

13 күн бұрын

Yeah no problem. Means you can add more panels later if you want.

Great video! I have a 12v battery. Can I use a mppt controller with higher voltage solar panels?

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

Yes you can. The MPPT will control the voltage to the battery to make sure it is charged correctly. Just be sure to set the controller for the correct type of battery.

@jesseoomen3851

3 жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK Thanks this will help a lot!

I wonder if it will be possible to use solar panels to (slowly) feed the battery of the new upcoming Ford E-Transit electric van when you're parked up? Like wire up the panels to the inside back of the van along with the Ford charging device and from there have the charger cable go outside to plug into the front of the van. Then you can have everything in the van powered by the "Pro Power Onboard" system's 2.4kW possibly even an optional 7.2kW for an electric oven/shower.

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

That would be great - To retro fit something, I imagine it would depend on what demand and what intelligence the Ford charging system has, if it is expecting to be plugged into the mains it will probably not like a trickle charge, but it would be great if Ford thought of this and allowed a direct solar connection, considering the amount of roof estate available it would be a great option.

@TomGB-81

3 жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK Yea, exactly what I was thinking as well. I've read somewhere that the Ford system allows for varying amounts of charging load, but like you say - will it allow for a trickle charge compared to the smallest mains power charge amount. After all its well known faster charging worsens the life of the battery, but what about a very slow charge.

My van, (2024 Sven Hedin), has 2 leisure batteries (92aH & 70aH), and I want to connect a portable solar panel to supplement summer usage. The 92aH battery is most accessible in the engine compartment. Can I connect an MPPT controller to the battery with a 'fly lead' for connection to the panel? That way I can park my van in the shade and position the panel in sunlight.

@ExploreVanUK

Ай бұрын

As long as the lead is suitably sized, fused and protected from damage I don't see why not.

I’ve read that using an isolator switch between the panel and controller isn’t necessary and also reduces efficiency. Comments?

@ExploreVanUK

11 ай бұрын

Hi - from my perspective a fuse or suitable DC breaker correctly installed has its advantages and does no harm for a panel installation - It will protect the controller if it is undersized - If cables are undersized it could prevent fire - Some Controllers require that the battery is connected first to initialise the controller before connecting the panel a breaker or a fuse is an easy way to ensure the panels can be disconnected while this is carried out. -Being able to remove the panel load when disconnecting the cables saves having to cover the panel to avoid potential arcing. I chose to use a suitably sized DC breaker like this amzn.to/45dZy6c to provide both a protection and a means of isolation. Hope that helps

Thanks for the great info. can I ask you a couple of questions ? seems the 12 volt group on face book is stopped, so i cant ask there. On my 30 amp Epever there is a earth connection on the body, is this for a shore line connection as I have not seen it being connected on any of the "how to connect" vids. Also what fuse or breaker would you suggest for the 30 amp charge controller Thanks..

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

Hi, without knowing the exact model of your controller and full details of your installation its a bit difficult to be sure of giving the correct advice with regard to the earth connection, I don;t recollect there being one on my ePever tracer - but I may be wrong. When it comes to the fuse / breaker (I've assumed you mean in the battery positive connection rather than the load output or solar input) ePever recommend a fuse whose current is 1.25 to 2 times the controller's rated current, with a distance from the battery no longer than 150 mm.

@dozukime

3 жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK Oh, i have ordered a 30 amp breaker, will this "break" too soon?

Great video thanks can i ask .. I have 2 100amh batteries wired in parallel , i want to add another panel the same type .. do i wire it also in parallel..12 volt setup thanks

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

Hi, could you clarify what you are looking to add? You talk about Batteries but then you say add another panel. If you can give a bit more information about your current set up Batteries / Solar Control / Panels / other charging etc models and types, and how you are planning to use it, we might be able to give some advice.

@adriancross8067

Жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK i thought i did ...at moment 1 x 150 watt panel ..2 x100 amh batteries And 30 amp mppt controller i want to add 1 more 150watt panel same as last one

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

Ok - as you have an MPPT controller it is probably capable of taking the input voltage of the panels either in parallel or in series - but do check the specs. Series is probably the easiest to wire up as you can probably do this without making any changes to the connectors. However a down side of running the panels in series is that if one gets shaded it adversely impacts the performance of the other panel even if it is still in full sunshine. For that reason personally I would put them in Parallel.

@adriancross8067

Жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK hi so to confirm my batteries are parallel connected so i can put panels in parallel. Or what’s best Thank-you for your advice also .

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

It doesn’t matter how you have your batteries other than you would need to set your controller to match (parallel 12v, series 24v) Your controller will match your panels to your batteries whether your panels are in series or in parallel. (As long as it is suitably rated.) There are pros and cons to each but parallel would be my choice as explained above.

Are you aware of a suitable and small wind turbine that can be used on a solar set up either static and/or mobile?

@ExploreVanUK

11 ай бұрын

Hi, my only experience of Wind Turbines is on boats and to be honest its not been great. As they have moving parts even the expensives ones are prone to failure over time, the cheap ones even more so. They need to be pretty big and pretty heavy to get a reasonable amount of power out of them. No matter how well they are balanced the vibration and sound of them is pretty annoying. Personally I wouldn't consider one for a van, add more solar, a high power B2B will give you more power for your £s. But if you really want one the only ones I would consider would be a Rutland - www.marlec.co.uk/wind-power/

Hi do you lose ampage through using longer solar panel wire from longer distance from panel to controller than if only short distance .. im talking 3 metre to maybe 20 metres ? Thanks

@ExploreVanUK

7 ай бұрын

In short, yes. For best performance short high quality “thick” cables are the norm. You can compensate for longer runs with a high grade cable but always best keep it as short as practical.

This might be a stupid question but do you need to keep the panels in direct sunlight, it gets to 40°c in Australia most summer days, I'm asking because of efficiency

@ExploreVanUK

2 жыл бұрын

They will still work to some degree in the shade but it would dramatically decrease the power generated. The decrease in efficiency due to the heat would be far less than than the gain from being in direct sunlight.

Hi I’ve got a 120w panel on motorhome can I fit a dual mppt controller and what material would I need

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

Hi, could you just clarify what you want to do. By dual do mean for dual batteries? What do you mean by material?

@peterrider3471

3 жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK hi yes I want to charge leisure and engine battery’s material is size wire cut out etc what the best way .

@ExploreVanUK

3 жыл бұрын

Assuming you’re comfortable that a 120w panel will give you enough power I would go for a quality MPPT from the likes of ePever or Victron. Because your Engine battery will mainly be charged by the alternator there should be no need for a dual battery controller. Just fit a dual direction Voltage sensitive relay between your leisure battery and starter battery. That way once your leisure battery is charged it will top up your engine battery and will also mean your Leisure battery can be topped up once the from the starter battery is charged when driving. (If your van has a Smart alternator you will need a battery to battery charger rather than a VSR) When it comes to cables etc it’s very individual as to how much power you are putting through and how long the cables are. There are lots calculators on line to help pick the right ones for battery connections etc. For the panel I would buy dedicated solar cables these would be fine for 120w panel. amzn.to/3cOeCQi

I was wondering which inverter your using? Especially to run the microwave.

@ExploreVanUK

2 жыл бұрын

We tried a 1500w (2000w peak) inverter and though it happily runs the microwave we found it totally kicked the batteries and meant we needed a lot of sun to add the deficit back. We now don’t bother, it’s therefor an emergency but we only cook on gas now unless on hook up. Especially since we went to refillable LPG which costs pennies.

@drewhodge3820

2 жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK Thanks for the reply. I really appreciate it.

When you say biggest panel you can get I assume that you are talking about the wattage and no the dimensions.

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

So kind of both, - highest wattage with the dimensions that will fit in the space you have. You could save some money by going with a Polycrystalline panel which has slightly less watts for the same dimensions. But that's obviously at the sacrifice of some performance.

@indorr

Жыл бұрын

Will this permormance 18% vs 21% really matter in 250-400W range? I can't decide between 500W poly(way cheaper) and 420W mono. For couple of %more efficiency more than double price? And more Watts with poly. Worth?

@ExploreVanUK

Жыл бұрын

The 500w will out perform the 420w irrelevant of whether Poly or Mono. Mono just means the panel can be physically smaller for the same power output. If you have the room to accommodate it I would be going with the 500w Poly.

@indorr

Жыл бұрын

@@ExploreVanUK perfect. Thanks so much for quick reply and massive advise. Even better option with 2-3 panels not to loose efficiency % when shaded. One of the easiest subscriptions done for me. Keep it up