Fitting Solar Panel

[Pontyboy]

I am planning to fit a 200W solar panel to my Nexxo T740. Has anyone undertaken similar and could pass on any tips or advice.
Regards
Roy

 

[Jev88]

Hi. If you search the words "solar panel fitting" and similar on the forum you will find loads.
And also a subsection about solar.

Fitted my first panel last year. Checked and checked again where to position and where to put cables. Fairly straight forward apart from the dear factor. Use the correct roof prep and the right adhesive and away you go.

 

[Pontyboy]

Thanks for info.
I have read a number of articles, however some of info is a little contradictory.
Type of adhesive, aluminium or plastic mounting fixings etc.

 

[tonyidle]

Thanks for info.
I have read a number of articles, however some of info is a little contradictory.
Type of adhesive, aluminium or plastic mounting fixings etc.

Plastic or aluminium is fine - preparation is key (see what I did there) particularly for plastic that is contaminated by mould release agent during manufacture and needs cleaning and light sanding. Plastic mounts are also expensive for what they are. You need a good quality PU adhesive. People have their favourites - I have used Tiger Seal and two variants of Sikaflex all of which have stood the test of time. Surface cleanliness is essential using the cleaners recommended by the manufacturer of the adhesive or one of these:

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............ or Isopropyl Alcohol (my favourite because I always have a few litres in my workshop).

 

[tonka]

Thanks for info.
I have read a number of articles, however some of info is a little contradictory.
Type of adhesive, aluminium or plastic mounting fixings etc.

On my past 2 installs i went with Aluminium brackets simply for the fact it was cheap and readily available at B&Q for the first one, plus i had some left over for when i did a second one later So that was down to cost and as its on teh roof who is really going to see it . The plastic corners do look neater but really dont do any better of a job.

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[9526]

Thanks for info.
I have read a number of articles, however some of info is a little contradictory.
Type of adhesive, aluminium or plastic mounting fixings etc.

It’s contradictory because there are several ways to do it, and everyone will say there method is best

Best advice is to ensure

panels are secure (choice of brackets, adhesive, screws all down to personal choice)
cable entry point is sealed
wiring (series, or parallel your choice)
buy decent sized cable
controller type your choice, but MPPT is best
Battery master or dual charge down to personal choice

Some people make it really complicated, when it really isn’t (unless you want it to be)

 

[Jev88]

As said above there are lots of ways and options.
For me it was second hand panel and basic controller supplied with from another Funster that was also upgrading.
Purchased my own plastic corners and cables and cable entry port for two wires.
Drilled entry hole near TV aeriel as that guarantees I knew where the inner hole would appear in a locker of my choice.
Mounted controller in locker and removed internal trim to route cables from controller down to leisure battery.
Then fed solar cables down and loosely fixed with some slack to controller.
Mounted corners in my workshop and then moved to roof.
Placed panel on roof and pencil marked where feet sit. Roughed up and cleaned four contact points and dried. Double checked foot position. Puraflex40 applied to all of four mounting feet. Lowered panel onto pencil marks and applied gentle even pressure. Then applied extra sealant/adhesive around feet edges and smoothed off.
Using multimeter I triple checked the wires (+/-) coming from panel as all solar cables are usually black.
Cut and trimmed all cables and fixed MC4 connectors and removed the excess metres of cables. Puraflex a few cable mounts on roof in convenient places to hold cables (not pulled tight) .
At this point I then used same Puraflex to mount the cable entry point box and glands.
I then went back in MH to connect cables securely to controller. I didn't know then (but do now) that there is a sequence to attaching to controller, battery then solar and finally load if needed (roof fan in my case).
Basic PWM controller worked right away but has no screen so added a £2 volt meter to top of controller.
Upgraded a few weeks ago to MPPT controller with higher Ampage capabilities and will add a second panel from Amazon shop using Y branch mc4 connectors when weather improves.

Does that help?

 

[Pontyboy]

Thanks for everyone's input. Information is power, great advice as usual.
I was a little nervous attempting this with no prior experience however armed with the above and comparing costs of DIY and professional installation its a no brainer.
waiting for warmer weather to get on with it

 

[peterc10]

Have had 2 panels on our previous and present motorhome. Both used ali angle stuck down to the roof with Sika and fixed to the panels using pop rivets. We fixed them ourselves on the previous motorhome but got the dealer to do it on our present motorhome. Combined distance of over 40,000 miles in all weathers with them on the roof and no problems

 

[Jev88]

Thanks for everyone's input. Information is power, great advice as usual.
I was a little nervous attempting this with no prior experience however armed with the above and comparing costs of DIY and professional installation its a no brainer.
waiting for warmer weather to get on with it

If you weren't so far away I would give you a hand ?. Do be careful on the roof.

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[Pontyboy]

That is such a kind thought.
I'll continue with planning my project.

 

[Richard n Ann]

Fixed ours down with hinges, then I can tilt it if I want. Handy for later in the year, makes a big difference ??

 

[TCG]

Fixed ours down with hinges, then I can tilt it if I want. Handy for later in the year, makes a big difference ??

View attachment 367799View attachment 367800View attachment 367801

Wonderfully clean roof, do you want to come and clean mine

 

[Richard n Ann]

Wonderfully clean roof, do you want to come and clean mine

No not bothered thanks ? our van lives in the garage with a special high roof ?

 

[Pontyboy]

How do you elevate it?
Do you have to climb on the roof?

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[Richard n Ann]

How do you elevate it?
Do you have to climb on the roof?

Yes.

 

[Stealaway]

I am planning to fit a 200W solar panel to my Nexxo T740. Has anyone undertaken similar and could pass on any tips or advice.
Regards
Roy

I fitted two solar panels to my T660. I came through the roof above the cupboard directly behind the driver and fitted a 20a breaker fuse switch to isolate the panels. You can drop a weight down the body void behind the driver seat and fish the wire out in the seat /battery box. It was all reasonably easy. I had a dual solar controller and also fed a pair of wires under the floor to the starter battery.

 

[Ridgeway]

I thought there was a typically good and detailed thread from Techno on his Solar installs some where, thought that's what i followed when i did mine.

The biggest challenge in my install and i can imagine on many is how and where to run the rather chunky cable. My factory solar cable inlet was at the back of the van and yet all else was at the front so it meant a full van length cable run through the vehicle itself, that took way longer than the panel install.

Good luck !

 

[TONCAZ]

As said above there are lots of ways and options.
For me it was second hand panel and basic controller supplied with from another Funster that was also upgrading.
Purchased my own plastic corners and cables and cable entry port for two wires.
Drilled entry hole near TV aeriel as that guarantees I knew where the inner hole would appear in a locker of my choice.
Mounted controller in locker and removed internal trim to route cables from controller down to leisure battery.
Then fed solar cables down and loosely fixed with some slack to controller.
Mounted corners in my workshop and then moved to roof.
Placed panel on roof and pencil marked where feet sit. Roughed up and cleaned four contact points and dried. Double checked foot position. Puraflex40 applied to all of four mounting feet. Lowered panel onto pencil marks and applied gentle even pressure. Then applied extra sealant/adhesive around feet edges and smoothed off.
Using multimeter I triple checked the wires (+/-) coming from panel as all solar cables are usually black.
Cut and trimmed all cables and fixed MC4 connectors and removed the excess metres of cables. Puraflex a few cable mounts on roof in convenient places to hold cables (not pulled tight) .
At this point I then used same Puraflex to mount the cable entry point box and glands.
I then went back in MH to connect cables securely to controller. I didn't know then (but do now) that there is a sequence to attaching to controller, battery then solar and finally load if needed (roof fan in my case).
Basic PWM controller worked right away but has no screen so added a £2 volt meter to top of controller.
Upgraded a few weeks ago to MPPT controller with higher Ampage capabilities and will add a second panel from Amazon shop using Y branch mc4 connectors when weather improves.

Does that help?

Hi
Fitting a panel myself and noticed you have used Puraflex 40, any issues with this adhesive, reveiwed it on web and sounds ok.

Cheers Tony

 

[Jev88]

Hi
Fitting a panel myself and noticed you have used Puraflex 40, any issues with this adhesive, reveiwed it on web and sounds ok.

Cheers Tony

All good two years later. Recommended by other Funsters. One tip is don't crush your fitting into the bead of Puraflex40, you need a few mm gap between fixture and roof for the gunk to occupy and same is true of other similar fixative.

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[TONCAZ]

All good two years later. Recommended by other Funsters. One tip is don't crush your fitting into the bead of Puraflex40, you need a few mm gap between fixture and roof for the gunk to occupy and same is true of other similar fixative.

Brilliant

Cheers

 

[Scottt N]

Newbie dumb question, or not, you decide, I'm fitting 2 200w panels on a Burstner 748, done all the videos on YT etc. I have a niggling doubt about bypassing the transformer/rectifier box to wire the panels through an isolator switch, mppt controller, 30amp fuse straight to the batteries. Do I have to go through the rectifier or not? I know I'm going to have to go through it with the inverter to put power to the sockets.

 

[Guigsy]

Newbie dumb question, or not, you decide, I'm fitting 2 200w panels on a Burstner 748, done all the videos on YT etc. I have a niggling doubt about bypassing the transformer/rectifier box to wire the panels through an isolator switch, mppt controller, 30amp fuse straight to the batteries. Do I have to go through the rectifier or not? I know I'm going to have to go through it with the inverter to put power to the sockets.

I assume you're deciding whether to use the solar input on your distribution box/EBL? The MPPT controller does the voltage control. If anything, plugging the controller straight to the battery is safer as you don't have to worry about the fact you're pushing just over 30amps in. Lots of distribution boxes aren't designed to take that much solar input.

 

[Scottt N]

Yes, Burstner call it the rectfier/ transformer. it actually has a solar output block on it hence thee niggle. Not do much with the solar but certainly with the inverter I need to wire it straight to the sockets, my original plan was just to the hook up, however the rectifier would try to charge the batteries if I did this so digging into the bowels to fid the appropriate cables., thanks for the input

 

[Guigsy]

As long as the solar charger and the "rectifier" both know the battery type, it shouldn't matter. They'll settle on a voltage where they'll both provide current.

Wiring an inverter to power your existing mains sockets is a different layer of fun. Either the inverter needs a mains pass-thru capability, or you need a hefty selector switch to select the appropriate source, mains or inverter. The inverter needs chunky wiring direct to the battery. Also consider how you want the fridge to behave. If it's a 3-way, they eat A LOT of power in 12v and 230v modes.

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[Scottt N]

Thanks, yep only looking to power the sockets not the fridge, will probably use gas for that. Got 0awd cable but not happy with the look of ot so off to physically see what I buy as opposed to the Internet lol. Need to rewire the batteries with larger cable too. No electrician all advice gratefully received thanks