Search results

The tools aren't bad... ability to cleanly strip wires of various sizes, a good crimper for 10ga and smaller, and a cheapo hammer crimper for large crimps for battery interconnects. Everything else is supplies you'll need regardless (wire, crimps, fuse holders etc etc). Google around and look...

What exactly are you looking to do? Just DC? DC & AC? Solar? What are your power needs going to be like (i.e. how heavy duty of a system are you planning on building)?

Can't tell you where to look, sorry. I'll just give my strong advice that you learn it and do it yourself. It isn't as confusing as it initially sounds if you go about it systematically and carefully and ask lots of questions / do lots of research. The giant plus to doing it yourself is then...

You / we need more info. How many batteries do you have, and how many amp hours is each battery rated for? What are your draws? You mention a fridge, how many amps or watts does that draw per hour? What other uses do you have (lights, laptops, heaters, etc). Do you have any solar yet? This...

I didn't know JDM was a thing, but I admit they're pretty cool, definitely different. Looks like they're mostly right hand drive? And is their shore power 220?

I have a Detroit locker on my 1985 Toyota 4Runner, I will point out they take some getting used to in the snow. They will help you get out of trouble sometimes (two wheels turning not just one) but when the rear is locked and both rear wheels are providing power there's a strong tendency for the...

Annie, you're not buying the van, you're buying the previous owner. Try to find out what happened to require a new motor at 130,000 miles, that's relatively low mileage to need a new motor. Maybe it was something catastrophic that was no fault of the previous owner, but if it was due to...

Call local guys like this: https://www.youtube.com/c/MattsOffRoadRecovery ... that specialize in off road recovery. -- Bass

I'd for 48 volts, for the size of battery bank he'll need and the size of inverter that's much more of a "standard" these days that 24 it seems. -- Bass

I built an 1,900 watt system for an off grid cabin, all the work myself, it cost me $12k. So there's your first "holy cow" amount. Things you need to figure out: + racking for the panels + breaker box between panels and charge controller + batteries + inverter / charger + input for generator as...

Just to make sure we're covering all our bases here, do you need the power? In other words, are your batteries drained down enough that they'll take a charge? I only ask because I've made this mistake before, if your batteries are fully charged your panel output will seem very very low. What...

12v 3A @ 16' on 16awg wire leads to 2.41% voltage drop: https://www.calculator.net/voltage-drop-calculator.html ... which is within the desired 3% voltage drop for electronics (some people say you can get away with larger voltage drop for electric motors, but I don't know how I feel about that...

Get a cheapo 6v to 12v step up converter and flog that battery until it dies? https://www.amazon.com/DIGITEN-Converter-Regulator-Waterproof-Module/dp/B019GY2FLW Doesn't solve the charging issue mentioned above, you'll need to figure out 6v charging.

Is your controller the Tracer 4210AN? Say 92-100v max depending on temp in spec sheet.

What is the open circuit voltage of your panels (Voc)? Could you be catching ideal conditions that put you over the 92-100v maximum for your controller at same time your load is going to basically nothing because as you say your system is already topped up?

24v panels presumably, peak voltage ~44v, right? Regardless, if controller is 4210AN, according to data sheet here: https://www.epsolarpv.com/product/3.html ... max wattage it can handle is 1040@24v, you have 3x375 = 1,125w of panels Probably only how over max input on nice clear sunny days...

FWIW I've been quite happy with Victron's battery monitor for less $$$ than the Trimetric it will do similar things (has a shunt, calculates power in and power out etc), ~$210: https://www.amazon.com/Victron-Energy-MONITOR-VTBMV-S-BMV-712-Battery/dp/B075RTSTKS (not that I don't imagine the...

Like Brian said, the big thing that gets these flexible panels is heat buildup. I would NOT mount them flush on something without airflow in the back... I've seen them literally burn fabric biminis on boats, and even if you mount them flush on something flame proof they will fail prematurely...

As noted above, you need a fuse coming off your battery. In fact, most suggestions I would make are that you need some more fusing in various places, this all looks quite good to me (caveat: I'm no expert, you paid nothing for this post and it's worth less than that :cool: ) To clarify (because...

One thing I would steer away from is built in USB ports, as the charging profiles change over the years (remember when 1A was a "fast charger"?). My preference is just 12v power ports that I put USB chargers in, that way if I need a higher amperage charger down the road I just swap out a $10 USB...