loess
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I've started to gather components for a solar rig for use this summer while traveling in my van (1991 Toyota Previa). So far I've got a Rogue MPPT charge controller and Tri-Metric battery monitor, and once I save a bit more $ I'll start hunting for a battery bank and wires/other accessories. While I was in Colorado last month I found a nice deal on a barely used 235 watt solar panel and brought it home.
The solar panel weighs 44 lbs, and is 39" x 65". Area on my van's roof (basically everything behind the moonroof) that it will sit on top of is roughly 44.5" x 72". A fairly close fit but I think it will work out OK.
I have hunted around doing some research on this but don't know a whole lot about roof racks and would welcome any thoughts and ideas you folks might have in terms of getting it mounted up on the roof of the Previa. I like the looks of Brad's setup which appears to be a pretty secure mounting system on his cargo van.
However, I'm a little afraid to drill into the van's body because once you do it there is no going back. That said I think drilling might be inevitable in terms of running the wires from the panel to the rest of the setup (though it might be possible to run them down the side of the van and then come inside from underneath?). Anyway, if there's a way to avoid drilling and still get the panel secured in a way that leaves me feeling just as confident driving it at 70 mph into the wind, that would be pretty swell. I would also like to be able to remove and re-install the panel as needed (the van is my daily driver as well so there's not much sense rolling around town with the big panel when I am at home).
It has been suggested to me that a non-drilling solution could be to use these "Quik-N-Easy" rain gutter clamps, then use a couple of crossmembers to build a custom rack that fits the Astronergy solar panel. Sounds simple enough, but figured I would throw it out here to bounce the idea off of you guys first.
Pics of my van and the roof are below. Love to hear any thoughts or bright ideas!
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The solar panel weighs 44 lbs, and is 39" x 65". Area on my van's roof (basically everything behind the moonroof) that it will sit on top of is roughly 44.5" x 72". A fairly close fit but I think it will work out OK.
I have hunted around doing some research on this but don't know a whole lot about roof racks and would welcome any thoughts and ideas you folks might have in terms of getting it mounted up on the roof of the Previa. I like the looks of Brad's setup which appears to be a pretty secure mounting system on his cargo van.
However, I'm a little afraid to drill into the van's body because once you do it there is no going back. That said I think drilling might be inevitable in terms of running the wires from the panel to the rest of the setup (though it might be possible to run them down the side of the van and then come inside from underneath?). Anyway, if there's a way to avoid drilling and still get the panel secured in a way that leaves me feeling just as confident driving it at 70 mph into the wind, that would be pretty swell. I would also like to be able to remove and re-install the panel as needed (the van is my daily driver as well so there's not much sense rolling around town with the big panel when I am at home).
It has been suggested to me that a non-drilling solution could be to use these "Quik-N-Easy" rain gutter clamps, then use a couple of crossmembers to build a custom rack that fits the Astronergy solar panel. Sounds simple enough, but figured I would throw it out here to bounce the idea off of you guys first.
Pics of my van and the roof are below. Love to hear any thoughts or bright ideas!
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