Solar Prep 2007 MADP

[Scottybdivin]

I just discovered that "Solar Prep" is listed under Standard Equipment in the 2007 MADP brochure. I had completely missed this up until now. Does anyone know what equipment it consists of? It is listed independently from the 5W solar battery charger.

[Mr_D]

Small (some say too small) wiring from roof to electrical bay as I remember. Should be a plate on the roof that is removed to get to the wiring. Other end should be in the electrical bay and labeled. Or at least that's the way it was on our '02 DSDP.

[HavingABlast]

On our 2015 VTDP I was told that SOP at Newmar is 10ga. 2Hikers confirmed the same with her DSDP. I talked with a AM Solar and they recommended 6ga. We both went with that. The upgrade was a bit over $100.




2015 Newmar Ventana 3636 (in production), Cummins ISB,
2014 JKU Wrangler, SMI AF1, Blue Ox Baseplate and Tow Bar

[Scottybdivin]

So the Solar Prep was just the wiring, which is too small for practical use? If that is the case on your 2015, I confident it would be the same or smaller on my 2007. Were the installers able to use the wire to fish the new wiring through or did the yake a completely different route? Mr D when you say electrical bay, are you referring the shore power electrical bay? Thanks

[travelwarm]

I used AM Solar this year with 6 g wire. Works perfectly on my 2014 Ventana LE.

[HavingABlast]

Originally Posted by Scottybdivin

So the Solar Prep was just the wiring, which is too small for practical use? If that is the case on your 2015, I confident it would be the same or smaller on my 2007. Were the installers able to use the wire to fish the new wiring through or did the yake a completely different route? Mr D when you say electrical bay, are you referring the shore power electrical bay? Thanks

My understanding is that it is just a conductor from the roof to the basement. The controller is added with solar. 2hikers went with factory install of the 6ga wire, then took it to a Solar Installer in or around Nappanee. The one thing she said was that the installer was dismayed that Newmar didn't take the shortest route to the batteries. This led to more of a voltage drop. If you are lucky, your conductor is 6ga and it takes the short path to the batteries. If not, this is just something to consider when pulling the wire.

Jerry


2015 Newmar Ventana 3636 (in production), Cummins ISB,
2014 JKU Wrangler, SMI AF1, Blue Ox Baseplate and Tow Bar

[HavingABlast]

Originally Posted by travelwarm

I used AM Solar this year with 6 g wire. Works perfectly on my 2014 Ventana LE.

I was thinking of 600w-800w. We are not all electric. How many watts of solar did you add?


2015 Newmar Ventana 3636 (in production), Cummins ISB,
2014 JKU Wrangler, SMI AF1, Blue Ox Baseplate and Tow Bar

[shaman52]

Attached are pictures of the Newmar Solar Prep on my 2007 MADP 4528. The other end of the 10 gauge wiring is under a small plate on roof ( I have never opened that plate.)





I have a nice 940W solar install details on my MADP 4528 if you are interested?

[Scottybdivin]

Originally Posted by shaman52

Attached are pictures of the Newmar Solar Prep on my 2007 MADP 4528. The other end of the 10 gauge wiring is under a small plate on roof ( I have never opened that plate.)

Attachment 97718

Attachment 97719

I have a nice 940W solar install details on my MADP 4528 if you are interested?

That is exactly what I was looking for. I would love to see the details of your install. Since you have never removed the plate, I assume that you followed a different path for the wiring? Thank you.

[shaman52]

Will climb up on roof tomorrow and post pictures of installation. Will also detail the equipment and wiring for you.

["007"]

See if these threads help other links in threads.
More Solar info in QT's # 3.

[shaman52]

Here are three solar install pictures on the roof and inside RV above the refrigerator.

Here is the bill of materials for my install. Midnight Solar Yuma AZ did a good job.

Panels

#

Description

Unit cost

Cost

4

Panasonic HT 235 Panels

680

2720

Solar Controller

1

MidNite Lite 150

650

650

1

Temp Sensor

30

30

Inverter

0

Existing Magnum ME-2012 (100 amps)

0

0

0

Existing Temp Sensor

0

0

Instrumentation

0

Magnum BMK w/ 500 amp shunt

212

0

1

Labor Estimate

600

600

Subtotal

4,000

Batteries

3

Lifeline GPL-8DL (255 AH)

675

2025

2

Terminal Block

14

28

20

Wire 3/0 10' x 2 runs

5

100

1

Run Temp Sensor from Solar Controller to Bat

480

480

1

Labor Estimate

480

480

1

Misc Shop Materials

15

15

3,128

Wiring/Hardware

1

MidNite Baby Box w/ breaker spaces

72

72

2

Circuit Breakers 80A reset

19

38

1

Custom Rail Mounting Panels for 4 HT 235's

380

380

3M VHB Tape (per panel; for fiberglass roof)

2.5

0

Dicor Sealant

10

0

Distribution Posts

8

0

Class T Fuse (400 amp)

28

0

Class T Fuse (300 amp)

15

0

Class T fuse and holder (400)

55

0

Class T fuse and holder (300)

40

0

Class T Fuse holder

29

0

Fuses

0

Wire clamps

5

Terminal Connectors

8

12-volt fuse panel

20

Negative bus bar

3

Ground bolt

5

Stainless steel screws (box)

14

0

20

#10 Tray cable

0.73

14.6

12

#8 Tray cable

1.5

18

#6 cable (for drop to batteries)

1.85

0

10

3/0 welding wire MidNite Classic Lite 150 to batteries)

10

100

4

2/0 welding wire (battery interconnects) 4x 2/0 x 14"

20

80

Mega lugs for cable ends @ batteries (2/0)

2.3

0

Mega lugs for inverter run (4/0)

3.45

0

Mega lugs for chassis ground connection (4/0)

3.45

0

2/0 Heat Shrink, adhesive - 6" (yields 3)

1.5

0

4/0 Heat Shrink, adhesive - 6" (yields 3)

2

0

#12 primary wire - roll











Total

743.6

Total Costs


Panels, Inverter, Inst.,Controller
4,000.00



Batteries
3,128.00



Wiring/Hardware
0,743.60



Total

$7,871.60

Plus Shipping




Plus additional wiring (incomplete)

[Scottybdivin]

Thanks for all that information. If I am interpreting correctly, they did all of that for $600 in labor? That would be a no-brainer. One thing I noticed, where they installed your breaker panel, I lost about 1/2 of that space when I installed the residential fridge. I will have to put it some other place. How much do you think you gained in overall height.

Have you posted your thoughts about your solar install somewhere? I would like to hear how you use it and what you have gained by it.

[shaman52]

1. The $600 labor charge is correct. A two man team did it in one 9 hr day. Equipment and battery prices were very reasonable. Workmanship was top notch.

2. Turn the breaker panel sideways and it might fit. The NEC (National Electric Code) does allow an electric panel to be mounted horizontally, but only if vertical mounting is not possible due to space limitations. The wiring from the panel goes toward the back of the space and down inside the back of the refrigerator cavity. If you had to you could place the breaker panel below the refrigerator in the bay/frame area. Then run to the solar controller.

3. The battery tray had to be extended toward the Cummins engine to fit the 3 Lifeline 8D AGM batteries. The three batteries serve as a combined bank for house and chassis .This has presented no problems and has been done by others.
4. The bottom of the solar panel is 1/8 inch above the Dometic Penguin II heat pumps. The panels are 1.378 inches thick so added gained height over heat pumps is about 1.5 inches. By the way the panels reduce rain noise and heat load in the bedroom.
5. The advantage is when you dry camp you do not have run your 10Kw diesel generator twice a day for a few hours We have spent two winters North of Yuma AZ, Imperial Lake area on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land and generator usage was minimal. Remember you still currently can take 30% of the install cost off of your Solar system Federal Income Tax return. This can be inverter upgrade, battery upgrade, etc.
6. I have discussed my solar system on the Escapees RV forum.

Good Luck!