Community Forums

tomjkarl · 02-26-2009, 10:30 AM

I have a 2007 Pacifica. The control panel has a solar indicator, DC breaker, and wiring, but there is no panel on the roof. I bought a 15W panel that I plan to add on the roof. It would be nice to tap it into whatever exists in the rv, but I have no idea where the connection would be, or if there is any method of controlling the charge. My alternative is to mount the panel near the drivers side rear, put the controller in the electrical hookup area, and run it forward to the house and chassis batteries. Any suggestions where the solar hookup might be? Is there a controller involved?

Doggy Daddy · 02-26-2009, 10:47 AM

http://www.amsolar.com/education.html

MonacoMama · 02-26-2009, 10:49 AM

tomjkarl...welcome to iRV2!

I have actually moved your post to "New Member Check-n" and also created a shortcut to the National RV Forum where other Pacifica owners may tend to hang out more.

Don't forget to ask for some "karma" while you are there.

Again..welcome to the forum..we hope you visit & post often.

MM

JC2 · 02-26-2009, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Doggy Daddy:
http://www.amsolar.com/education.html

Very good link with excellant info. Thank you.

RV Wizard · 02-26-2009, 11:16 PM

tomjkarl, welcome to iRV2.com. We are glad to have you join us here and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. The solar wiring for your coach is probably for the chassis battery and should be fed up to the roof air conditioner area. Good luck and keep us posted.

Wingnut57 · 02-27-2009, 04:32 AM

tomjkarl, welcome to iRV2.com.

two2go · 02-27-2009, 05:28 AM

For what it's worth, here is a LINK to another thread on National solar panels. I posted a diagram of the wiring for my Dolphin there. National probably didn't vary too much on their systems from coach to coach.

It looks like the wiring in my coach goes straight up from the control panel through the roof to the factory panel. I was not able to trace the actual wire because it was behind the wall panel. If you can look behind the control panel (I removed a wall panel behind it), maybe you can see if any wire (ideally, red) coming off the indicator light is run.

As far as a controller, it might be a good idea for 15 watts and up. I got a simple Morningstar Sun Guard 4 for less than $30 which seems to keep my batteries at the right voltage, but I have a 50 watt panel.

tomjkarl · 02-27-2009, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by RV Wizard:
tomjkarl, welcome to iRV2.com. We are glad to have you join us here and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. The solar wiring for your coach is probably for the chassis battery and should be fed up to the roof air conditioner area. Good luck and keep us posted.

Mike, Thanks for the input. The Pacifica has a Coleman Mach basement unit, so there is nothing on the roof other than a skylight, 3 plumbing vents, 2 mechanical vents, and 2 fantastic fans. I spent considerable time yesterday behind the control panels and found the wiring which disappears into a large harness. I've made the decision to mount the panel at the rear over the closet area where I can run the wiring straight down to the electrical panel where the controller will be in a good environment. From that point the coach batteries are only a couple of feet away so it will be a simple job. Thanks again for the input.

Fred and Bonnie · 02-27-2009, 05:55 PM

tomjkarl, NRV sealed the solar panel directly to the roof on units with basement A/C. Yes the power went to the coach batteries.

RV Wizard · 02-28-2009, 12:27 AM

tomjkarl, In that case, you will have to do it the way you have stated.

tomjkarl · 03-03-2009, 10:05 AM

As a follow up, I retrieved the RV today from storage and went to work installing the solar charger. I installed the 15W panel near the driver side rear of the coach, ran the wires down through the closet into the electrical connection area, installed the regulator in that area, and ran the wiring forward to the next compartment, connecting to the house batteries. Before connecting to the house batteries, they measured 12.4. After connecting they measured 12.6, so the sytem is giving me the small trickle charge I wanted for storage. Thanks to all theat replied to my original post.