Cost of Solar

Looking at doing our first European trip in a month or so. I think it would be a good idea to get a solar set up fitted before we go as I understand not all Aires have EHU. 
So what would be the approximate cost of having a good quality set up supplied and fitted ? Our van is a 2013 Kemerton. 
As always thanks .

How long at a stretch do you plan to stay on aires Charlie, without doing half a day's travelling in between stops, or having a night or two on a campsite with hook-up?

Your battery should last four days without being unduly careful, even if you don't travel. Half a day or so will top up your battery, specially if you switch off your fridge before you set out. The fridge hogs power from the alternator, and it won't defrost in a few hours, so switch it off for the journey and all the spare power goes to topping up the leisure battery.

Unless you want a solar panel anyway, I'd suggest you wait for the problem to occur before you spend a lot of cash solving it. You may well be pleasantly surprised.

Dave


P.S. I'm a real ale fan, so when you take me to the pub for saving you all that dosh it won't cost a lot!

Very rare to find an aire with EHU Charlie. In all my years of aires I've only found a few, surprisingly in Switzerland, and free! We have a 100W solar panel that was on the van when we bought it, and we find it keeps us topped up with as much power as we need. The longest we've gone without EHU is five weeks.. However we move on almost every day, but sometimes only drive 50 miles or so.
Al

I had an 80w system last year. Cost was £299 + an extra £60 for a battery-master so both batteries get the charge. You can get quotes up to £600 for the same size set-up, you really do need to shop around.
If you can get to the Malvern Show before you go, there are always firms who fit on site there.

[quote="Gromit"]if you switch off your fridge before you set out. The fridge hogs power from the alternator, and it won't defrost in a few hours, so switch it off for the journey and all the spare power goes to topping up the leisure battery.

[quote]

When the engine is running the leisure battery, starter battery, and alternator are all connected together and the fridge is connected to them. The starter battery can recharge very quickly but the leisure battery may be a deep cycle battery and if so, it will only charge slowly. AS do not tend to fit deep cycle batteries as leisure batteries so after starting the engine both batteries will take high current for about 10 mins, after that the charge current will be down to a few amps so there is ample capacity for the alternator to provide the 20 amps consumed by the fridge. There is no benefit in leaving the fridge switched off.

If you are travelling every day and are a light user of electricity then solar is not necessary but if you have an 80 or 100w panel fitted and are able to keep your gas topped up you can save circa €4 per night on campsite fees by not taking electric.

Hi Peter

I was merely passing on the advice offered to me by Mark Burdett at AutoSleepers Service Centre. He is usually very reliable and should be in the best position to have access to accurate information, so I have been confidently following his advice.

From what you say I presume he is wrong, so no need to fiddle with the fridge settings at all?

Dave

If you had really flattened your battery and weren't going to drive for more than an hour you may get more into the leisure battery by not having the fridge on, but the capacity of alternators used on commercial vehicles is so high I really don't think it would make much difference.

I would keep the fridge on even though the insulation would keep the contents cool enough for an hour or so.

Thanks for that Peter.

It's usually not a problem as we tend to stay on ACSI or Municipals, using Aires only as one-night stopovers en route. (Can't see the point of going to a lot of trouble to save a couple of Euros here and there, which would make such a trivial difference to the overall holiday costs. Just my opinion of course!)

We did run the battery down once in the Mosel Valley (lovely area) where the Stellplatz are only a couple of miles apart, and campsites noticeably absent. Hence asking Mark for advice.

Dave

I concur with Peter on this one - the charging system is perfectly capable of keeping the leisure battery topped up and power the fridge, especially if the ambient temperature is in the 30s.

PS - I've used solar panels on all my vans - EHU is becoming expensive abroad. This year we found more bigger vans and caravans are using air conditioning all day long on site and with a flat rate for EHU, everybody else is paying for it!

A few years ago the alternator failed on my van, when I ordered a new one from our local auto parts factor I was offered any one of three replacements, all with different outputs, highest being the most expensive. I went for the highest one. I wonder which one Autosleeper specify when they buy in the base vehicle?
I guess Dave's comment regarding aires is aimed at me. I don't use them primarily to save a few euro's, although that is a bonus, but mainly because many of them are in either convenient or spectacular places. Not towing a car or carrying a scooter, this is important to me..

Charliefarlies question was about the cost of solar. Can't anyone else help answer the question, then it's up to him to decide whether to go down that route.

bikeralw wrote:I guess Dave's comment regarding aires is aimed at me.

Not at all Al. You have a PM.

Paul. I suppose I'm to blame, but rather than send Charlie down an expensive and possibly un-nessary route I thought it more helpful (and considerate) to advise him that he may not need to spend the money. If he's planning to use aires primarily for overnight stops here and there, he doesn't need a solar panel.

Dave

Around  £450 according to Rhino Installs 
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Google is your friend ☺

Check out sunstore solar, local to you at  Worthing, they supplied my panel and I have to say they were excellent. Ask for Curtis, knows the business and their prices were good too.
01903 213141 or see the website.

They did have a panel I returned (100w) which had a small fault, they replaced it with a new one despite the fact it was an easy fix, suspect they have sold it  now but you never know they may strike a cheap deal!

Gromit wrote:How long at a stretch do you plan to stay on aires Charlie, without doing half a day's travelling in between stops, or having a night or two on a campsite with hook-up?

Your battery should last four days without being unduly careful, even if you don't travel. Half a day or so will top up your battery, specially if you switch off your fridge before you set out. The fridge hogs power from the alternator, and it won't defrost in a few hours, so switch it off for the journey and all the spare power goes to topping up the leisure battery.

Unless you want a solar panel anyway, I'd suggest you wait for the problem to occur before you spend a lot of cash solving it. You may well be pleasantly surprised.

Dave


P.S. I'm a real ale fan, so when you take me to the pub for saving you all that dosh it won't cost a lot!

 

Dave if Im honest I didn't know the leisure battery would last anything like that amount of time ! Also I don't know how long or how much of the time we will spend on Aires. I just get a wee bit anxious sometimes so can easily end up taking precautions that I need not have done . 

Appreciate the comments as this is all great information. Blimey we really are wet behind the ears .

Paulmold wrote:Charliefarlies question was about the cost of solar. Can't anyone else help answer the question, then it's up to him to decide whether to go down that route.

Paul all the information in the posts above are so helpful and invaluable to us ! Honestly they really are ! Peters explanation is brilliant and all taken on board. 

I did ask about the cost and its very likely I will end up having a system fitted if only for the peace of mind that comes with it. 

I have the original bill for mine from 5 years ago. Fitted by a company in Leeds, a bit far for Charlie, total £620. I think prices have come down a bit since then, economies of scale I guess.

Charliefarlie wrote:Appreciate the comments as this is all great information. Blimey we really are wet behind the ears .

Wet enough to be unaware that no UK gas cylinders can be exchanged abroad.
I don't know if your van has an underslung tank fitted, but if not that's something else to worry about!   Except that it's not a problem at all.

If you do have an underslung you only need the appropriate fill adapter.

Dave


More info if you need it.

My Broadway EB since new 2014 as been very poor in charging the leisure batteries, I also complained about this with Mark at Auto Sleepers and he told me exactly the same as he told Gromit, to switch my fridge off when travelling to boost the input of the leisure battery.
I have never done this and find my 90 watt of solar soon takes my batteries to 100%.

John.

Gromit wrote:

Charliefarlie wrote:Appreciate the comments as this is all great information. Blimey we really are wet behind the ears .

Wet enough to be unaware that no UK gas cylinders can be exchanged abroad.
I don't know if your van has an underslung tank fitted, but if not that's something else to worry about!   Except that it's not a problem at all.

If you do have an underslung you only need the appropriate fill adapter.

Dave


More info if you need it.

Dave our van has the under slung tank and I do realise an adapter is required. Is it easy to find LPG over in Europe as it is here in the UK ?

Charliefarlie wrote:

Dave our van has the under slung tank and I do realise an adapter is required. Is it easy to find LPG over in Europe as it is here in the UK ?

No trouble at all Charlie. You just keep your eyes open for a GPL sign at garages and filling stations, or download the POIs from here and open them in Maps.Me on your phone or tablet. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

We have them on Maps.Me but so far we've never had a problem finding one as we mooch along. As with diesel, we regard the half full mark as time to fill up - never any buttock clenching anxieties then. That's the last thing you want on holiday.

This is the adapter for France, Italy, Greece, Hungary, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, Spain, and Poland. MUCH easier to use than the clumsy British filler gun. Offer it up, pull the trigger and the claws lock onto your fill adapter.
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Dave

Slightly related to the discussion about the merits of turning off the fridge when driving  . . .

I am currently looking into fitting daytime running lights. While researching this subject, I was rather surprised to read that so-called experts claim that driving with conventional headlights switched on measurably affects miles per gallon - presumably as a result of the extra drag of the alternator, because of its increased electrical load.

A motorhome fridge (I presume) draws far more current from the battery than headlights. What, therefore, do people reckon is a ballpark mpg loss for a motorhome running the fridge on 12v while driving? Is this something worth considering?

Awesome link. Thanks Dave that explains it nicely... 

Gromit wrote:

Charliefarlie wrote:

Dave our van has the under slung tank and I do realise an adapter is required. Is it easy to find LPG over in Europe as it is here in the UK ?

No trouble at all Charlie. You just keep your eyes open for a GPL sign at garages and filling stations, or download the POIs from here and open them in Maps.Me on your phone or tablet. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

We have them on Maps.Me but so far we've never had a problem finding one as we mooch along. As with diesel, we regard the half full mark as time to fill up - never any buttock clenching anxieties then. That's the last thing you want on holiday.

This is the adapter for France, Italy, Greece, Hungary, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, Spain, and Poland. MUCH easier to use than the clumsy British filler gun. Offer it up, pull the trigger and the claws lock onto your fill adapter.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Dave

Jenvid wrote:Slightly related to the discussion about the merits of turning off the fridge when driving  . . .

I am currently looking into fitting daytime running lights. While researching this subject, I was rather surprised to read that so-called experts claim that driving with conventional headlights switched on measurably affects miles per gallon - presumably as a result of the extra drag of the alternator, because of its increased electrical load.

A motorhome fridge (I presume) draws far more current from the battery than headlights. What, therefore, do people reckon is a ballpark mpg loss for a motorhome running the fridge on 12v while driving? Is this something worth considering?

A fridge draws 120W or so, whereas while standard headlights will draw around the same, you have to add to this two rear lights, two number plate lights, and at least four high level marker lights. Assuming these are all filament bulbs and not LEDs, I recon running with headlights on draws about 50% more than the fridge does.
I would imagine a drag on the alternator has a negligible effect on MPG when the engine is pulling a vehicle of 3.5 tons.
By the way, all modern motorbikes have lights on all the time, there is no off switch.

Dipped headlights consume 110 Watts (approx 9 amps), an 80 litre fridge with freezer consumes a similar 125 Watts. An average motorhome 2.3 HDi diesel engine produces around 70/75 bhp at cruising RPM which equates to around 56KW or 56,000 Watts of power. So in effect, the headlights/fridge draw an insignificant amount of power from the engine's output. Although the pedants will say that every little helps