Opinons on Solar Power

[jimindenver]

jimindenver:  I don't know what refrigerator you are using but I run a old (1982!) Norcold 251D 2.1 cu. ft. frig with 200W solar and 208 ah battery with power to spare.  Only twice this summer did I not get back to 100%: one was a hot, humid 96° day with overcast skies and the other was this last week parked for three days under trees.  Running the frig, ceiling fan, LED lights, and charging my phone and laptop, I am usually back to full batteries by noon.

-- Spiff

With my system running, I'm not afraid of any of these cute little fridges. I'm half temped to plug in the S&B side by side while we are not camping. They say the fridge is 20% of your bill, it's about time that solar system starts earning its keep. (who needs grid tied )

My bank has 337 usable Ah if fully charged. My 12v fridge pulls 8a at 12v constantly. That's 192 Ah a day and less than two days on my bank. The avanti pulls 13a plus inverter loses, say 15a. That's less than a day on my bank. A regular mini fridge pulls between 8 and 13a plus loses but cycles, those should go a few days.

For our trailer it will have to be a balance of size and draw. I Hope to find one that fits with a .8a draw or less at 120v. Add two inches of insulation on the sides, top and bottom and deal with it.

 

[Caroline57]

Off grid- that's what I was thinking. And trust me as a young girl I'm very very very aware of people watching me/ people following me sort of stuff. All girls are. And I wouldn't do anything like leave anything valuable visible. Safety is a huge concern of mine so the van is going to have dead bolts on all the doors to. That was my dads one contribution haha. Obviously that doesn't help much when outside the van but it should help me sleep at night. As a smaller girl I'm not great at self defense.

 

[Caroline57]

Highdesertstranger- hahahaha those gps coordinates are not easy to earn! But thanks for making me laugh.

 

[SoulRaven]

Just for giggles I did the math. Figure a block of ice every 3 days at 3 bucks a block. That's 121 trips to a store per year and $365.00 in ice alone, never mind the gas, wear and tear on the vehicle AND the fact that you'd probably walk out of the store with at least 2 other items that you probably could live with out... I figure it will pay for itself in way less than a year, probably more like 6 months. Looked at that way, $500 is a bargain!!

Just for clarity here, your math is wrong.  I use the big blocks of ice, and the normal cost is 99 cents, rarely as much as $1.99 and they will last for a week, actually slightly more.  I don't think I've ever spent more than maybe $75 in a year for ice.

I go shopping once a week, and did the same when I had powered fridges, so there is no added gas costs or anything else.  No matter how far out boondocking I am, I'm ready for an outing to town at least once a week, and a change of scenery.

The biggest thing for me is that if I'm going to lose $50+ worth of food, it will be my fault, and not because a $500+ piece of junk decides to die the day I fill it up.  Then I get to repurchase all those groceries, and use an ice chest while waiting for another $500+ fridge to arrive, just so I can go through it all again in a few more years.

Please don't get me wrong here, it's not totally about the money, it's about the aggravation associated with losing the food, getting a new one, etc. etc.  My ice chest will never break, and if it did I could easily replace it the very same day in almost any town in the country. 

These chest type fridges have another drawback in my humble opinion too.  While I didn't mind the extra heat they put out in the winter, I don't need any added heat in my van in the summer, and of course that's when they run the most and put out the most heat.

 

[Caroline57]

Rvbob- thank you! And I found a 2 year old but never used 230w solar panel for sale on Craigslist for $150. What's your opinion on possibly buying that?

 

[SoulRaven]

Off grid- that's what I was thinking. And trust me as a young girl I'm very very very aware of people watching me/ people following me sort of stuff. All girls are. And I wouldn't do anything like leave anything valuable visible. Safety is a huge concern of mine so the van is going to have dead bolts on all the doors to. That was my dads one contribution haha. Obviously that doesn't help much when outside the van but it should help me sleep at night. As a smaller girl I'm not great at self defense.

While I don't think pepper spray is always legal, yellow jacket or wasp spray is, and I've heard it works well on humans too.

 

[Caroline57]

Pepper spray is always legal! When I went away to my one year of college haha cops handed it out to all the girls. And tazers aren't legal in all states like in Michigan but my dad bought me one and shipped it from another state and I asked a cop if I could get in trouble if I ever used it and he said no way would a cop ever give a girl trouble if she were actually in a situation where she was in danger. But I'm not too too concerned about everything. I'm not stupid and I can take care of myself.

 

[Almost There]

Just for clarity here, your math is wrong.  I use the big blocks of ice, and the normal cost is 99 cents, rarely as much as $1.99 and they will last for a week, actually slightly more.  I don't think I've ever spent more than maybe $75 in a year for ice.

Must be nice, our blocks are $2.99 here. I think I remember paying somewhere around $2.00 for a block my last trip to Florida but that was 2 years ago now!

Can't wait for better prices.

And obviously your cooler is better than my cooler.

 

[bcbullet]

These chest type fridges have another drawback in my humble opinion too.  While I didn't mind the extra heat they put out in the winter, I don't need any added heat in my van in the summer, and of course that's when they run the most and put out the most heat.

Respectfully, a large portion of "the extra heat they put out" is actually coming from the inside of the fridge...hence the cold beer  :angel:

 

[jimindenver]

That does bring up a different option. For 20 years we used two coolers. a chest type for drinks and a up right Ice box for the food.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-COL...ith-Shelves-/181845143293?hash=item2a56d0aefd

You would be surprised just how much longer the ice block lasted in that thin walled, vintage ice box than the cubed Ice did in the thicker walled chest cooler. The reasons are block ice with less surface simply last longer than cubed. The block and the water that melts off of it in the ice box are not in direct contact with the food. The transfer of heat to the block is greatly moderated and the food stays cool, not cold.

Having the water stay up top in the clean container is much nicer. We never got sick from drinking it in 20 years.

The chest cooler with the cubed ice and water are in direct contact so the transfer is at a maximum and will stay that way since the stuff will never freeze.

I don't know if there is a modern version of the Coleman Ice box. The vintage ones are not cheap. A block of ice in ours easily kept food for a week if we kept it out of the sun. Add some insulation to it and I bet it would do much better.

 

[jimindenver]

Actually they are called Coleman convertibles.

 

[akrvbob]

I've never seen a 99 cent block of ice, they are $1.99 or more (often much more) everywhere I've been and I've put more than 6000 miles on my van this summer.

In fact, in many places you simply can't buy blocks at any price. More often than not, a 10 pound bag of ice is now 7 pounds, and sometimes its 5 pounds.

If you live in the real world you should figure a minimum of $30 to $50 a month for ice if you are traveling. A 12 volt compressor fridge could easily pay for itself in a year and they are very reliable. They will not just break down all the time.
Bob

 

[cyndi]

Back to the subject at hand...

When I sold my moho the solar system went with it. I'll be leaving the east coast without solar.

I know I can live without it because I have before. But, setting up solar on the van is at the top of the priority list; even if it's just a small renology system, to start. Solar power makes life much easier, on so many levels.

(I do have a small portable system to charge phones, cameras and tablets)

 

[Caroline57]

Haha I really just want someone to tell me if that's a good deal.. Or if it's not good that the panel has been sitting for 2 years.

 

[Almost There]

Rvbob- thank you! And I found a 2 year old but never used 230w solar panel for sale on Craigslist for $150. What's your opinion on possibly buying that?

Haha I really just want someone to tell me if that's a good deal.. Or if it's not good that the panel has been sitting for 2 years.

Whether it's a good deal or not will depend on who made it, what type of PV panel it is and a whole host of other things including whether it's sufficiently large to power the battery that you want to use. And of course the battery needs are determined by how much you want to power.

The solar panel is just about the last thing to look at, not the first.

Post a link to it and the guys that know PV panels will surely weigh in on it's viability.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Haha I really just want someone to tell me if that's a good deal.. Or if it's not good that the panel has been sitting for 2 years.

Do you know how to read a digital multimeter?  Look the panel over carefully for physical damage.  If you don't see any, then there should be a sticker on it which lists the Open Circuit Voltage (possibly labeled as Voc)  Put the panel out in bright sunshine and check the voltage on it.  If it's close to spec, you are good to go.

Regards
John

 

[wagoneer]

I have had panels for 20 plus years, look for damage and clip a meter even cheap panels should produce.

 

[highdesertranger]

I just posted yesterday a picture of the sticker on a panel here's a link, https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-small-battery-box . look at that Caroline it, that's the label they are talking about. highdesertranger

 

[Caroline57]

Thank you HDR, I think this is that... http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/for/5183418064.html and I'm going to be in Chicago in a little bit for a girls trip so that's why it's there

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

OK, with an open circuit voltage of 37.1 volts, you are going to HAVE to use an MPPT controller, not the cheaper PMW type.  It's only putting out 8 amps, though, so you won't need a big one.

Regards
John