Basic solar setup in a cargo van

[gac1222]

Hey guys, fairly new here but have been researching solar for a couple months.  Recently picked up a chevy express AWD cargo van and am in the process of gutting it and converting it into a camper.  I want solar, but only need it for a few instances.  I plan to run a Fantastic fan, charge a cell phone and laptop, and run a few LED lights.  Nothing crazy, just the essentials.  I am planning to buy from Renogy, but my electrical experience is limited.  These are the items I have picked out, I figure it should be sufficient, right?  The plan is to run the solar completely separate from the car battery as I dont want to wire anything to the alternator. Regarding fuses, where exactly would I need to place them?  Also, is there anything else I am missing on this list (ie wire?  If so, what size wire would I need to buy?)  I plan to wire the fantastic fan directly to the charge controller, but plug everything else into the inverter. Sorry, still trying to figure all this solar out.  Thanks in advance!

100 Watt Solar kit - http://www.renogy.com/renogy-100-watt-12-volt-solar-starter-kit-w-mppt-charge-controller/
155ah AGM battery - http://www.renogy.com/vmax-12v-155ah-agm-solar-charge-tank/
500Watt Pure sine inverter - http://www.renogy.com/renogy-500w-12v-off-grid-pure-sine-wave-battery-inverter-w-cables/
20Amp fuse - http://www.renogy.com/renogy-20a-30a-40a-60a-anl-fuse-set-w-fuse/

 

[GotSmart]

Set up a fuse box, and run the power off of that. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001P6FTHC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a basic wiring system in this thread.

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-Rebuild-91-Dodge-short-van

 

[VanDwellerMod]

Welcome to the CRVL forums gac1222!  If you get a chance, we'd love to see some pics of your Chevy.  Here's a link to a tutorial on how to post photos.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started.  

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[akrvbob]

Looks like a very good plan! The fuse goes right off the positive post of the battery between the battery and charge controller. Some people also put one coming off the positive post of the charge controller going to the solar panel It's extra safety and gives you an easy way to turn off the panel if you ever need to.

A fuse block is an excellent idea and wiring directly to the charge controller is a bad idea.
Bob

 

[rvpopeye]

Welcome aboard and sounds like a good plan . X2 ^^ above on the fuse placement

 

[gac1222]

Looks like a very good plan! The fuse goes right off the positive post of the battery between the battery and charge controller. Some people also put one coming off the positive post of the charge controller going to the solar panel It's extra safety and gives you an easy way to turn off the panel if you ever need to.

A fuse block is an excellent idea and wiring directly to the charge controller is a bad idea.
Bob


I plan on getting a 40amp mppt charge controller. Doesn't this have a spot to wire directly in? Would it be better if I installed a fuse from the controller to the fan? I guess the area I'm conflicted is that if I end up getting a fuse box, why not just bypass the inverter directly and wire everything to the fuse box. I'm just a little hesitant because I don't know very much about electrical wiring. 

 

[GotSmart]

Power comes from panel to controller to fuse to battery.

Power comes from battery  to fuse box and  inverter.

Converter takes 12v and changes it to 120Volt.  

Fuse box protects all small 12 v use items. It is a 12V fuse box.

Main fuse protects inverter and fuse box and battery

 

[gac1222]

Power comes from panel to controller to fuse to battery.

Power comes from battery  to fuse box and  inverter.

Converter takes 12v and changes it to 120Volt.  

Fuse box protects all small 12 v use items. It is a 12V fuse box.

Main fuse protects inverter and fuse box and battery

OK this is great. Thank you. Regarding the wires from the fuses, which size is typically used to connect to lights, other electrical devices, etc?

 

[GotSmart]

OK this is great. Thank you. Regarding the wires from the fuses, which size is typically used to connect to lights, other electrical devices, etc?

I try to use 12 as a standard size.  That way if you need to upgrade a light or fan the wires do not have to be upsized.  

Have you looked at my build?

I have room on my E~Box to upsize connections if needed.

 

[rvpopeye]

12 ga will be good for up to 20A .
That way you can buy a big spool for less cash , label the wire before/as you put them in because they'll all be the same color............

 

[gac1222]

I try to use 12 as a standard size.  That way if you need to upgrade a light or fan the wires do not have to be upsized.  

Have you looked at my build?

I have room on my E~Box to upsize connections if needed.

Ok awesome, the pics are helpful. Thank you

 

[GotSmart]

12 ga will be good for up to 20A .
That way you can buy a big spool for less cash , label the wire before/as you put them in because they'll all be the same color............

Two spools.  White for +   Green for -.  It is a good idea to label individual circuits. 

I have room for a lot more things.  The switches on the E~Box make life easy.  The bottom one is for the fan, and the top three are for the Cig plugs.  One spare at this time. 

6 more open spaces in the fusebox

 

[Big Country]

In most electrical systems white is never used as a positive or hot wire.

 

[highdesertranger]

in 12v I would use the long standing standard, red = positive, black = negative. highdesertranger

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

In all the automotive applications I have worked on the standard has always been black = ground; except some european cars use brown = ground.

It is easiest if you can use different colors for each circuit's hot wire.  Makes it a lot easier to troubleshoot later.

In any case label all hot wires at both ends (this is especially important if you only use one wire color for all hot wires).  Again makes troubleshooting easier.  You can get numbered tags at any home improvement store but I just print out tags in small print and use clear packing tape to make flags on the wire.  It's putsy and takes time to do but saves a lot of time later.  Ground wires do not need to be labeled.

 -- Spiff

 

[GotSmart]

I am color blind.  Depending on the light, a wire can look many different colors.  

That is why I use White for power in my personal 12V systems.  If it was a large system, I would use number tags. 

That is also why I let others wire their own systems.  

 

[akrvbob]

Use this as a fuse block:
http://amzn.to/2aY0jpp

Every item you wire to it will be fused. Use at least an 8 gauge wire from the battery to it and that wire needs to be fused as well at the positive post of the battery.

Nothing is wired to the inverter, it is wired to the battery and 110 volt items are plugged into it like into a wall outlet. Use black and red as color for your wire, black is negative and red is positive. Bob

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

FWIW, in the boating world, the 120 volt ac uses the standard ac wiring colors - black is hot, white is return, and green is ground.

For 12 volt dc, they use red for hot and YELLOW for ground.

That way, whenever you run into a black wire, you KNOW it's hot and not ground.

 

[blars]

Some RVs use Black for +12v and White for ground. :-( Seems to be deliberately confusing.

 

[gac1222]

Use this as a fuse block:
http://amzn.to/2aY0jpp

Every item you wire to it will be fused.  Use at least an 8 gauge wire from the battery to it and that wire needs to be fused as well at the positive post of the battery.

Nothing is wired to the inverter, it is wired to the battery and  110 volt items are plugged into it like into a wall outlet. Use black and red as color for your wire, black is negative and red is positive. Bob

Ok.  This makes sense.  I understand nothing is wired into the inverter, I just worded it incorrectly. Picked up the fuse box with a cover. Regarding fusing, does everyone just crimp the ring connectors on to the wires?  Is that the gold standard?  Thank you everyone for you information, this is incredibly useful.