Portable solar panel with legacy elite 2 platinum package

[Brian H.]

Hello all Hull #1633. Does anyone use a portable solar panel for a little extra charge power with a LE2 platinum package.  The trailer has 400 watts of solar and i have a 100w Renogy suit case panel that i used with my old trailer.  I already have the adapter to go from Renogy to Zamp.  Is the extra 100W worth it and is there any problem with doing this?

Thanks in advance.

[topgun2]

Given the right time (sun) and place (security for the panels) then more is better.  If you have the room and payload capacity to take the panels with you - then - why not?  There is nothing to "hurt" and only more energy to gain.

Bill

[Galway Girl]

We use 200w Renogy panels when dry camping or boon docking for more than 3 days in one place.

See our article.

External Solar Kit Details - Hull 505

We've found that it's helpful when the trailer is shaded by tree's and we want to keep things topped off for longer stays.

CS

[Brian H.]

Great info! Thanks

[Tom and Doreen]

We have the "portable" solar panel that Oliver sells, which is essentially the same one that's on the roof but includes a controller.  We found it too bulky and heavy to bring along camping so we use it during the winter to maintain the batteries when the camper is covered and not being used. 

It's good to have a light weight panel to supplement the roof-top panels when camping in shaded areas. 

 

[jd1923]

4 hours ago, Brian H. said:

Is the extra 100W worth it and is there any problem with doing this?

Welcome Brian, looking forward to hearing more re your project(s)!

Is it worth it? An extra 100W is a drop in the bucket, although aimed at the sun it is more efficient compared to each 100W on the roof. We added a Victron MPPT 30A SC and the 30-LB Renogy 400W suitcase. I've found almost 2 years later that we rarely use it and should have saved the upgrade $$$. Wish somebody told me this 2 years ago!

We move around a bit. I now believe extra solar is for those who want to boondock in one place for a week or longer. And you have to chase the sun all day in moving panels. There is an Oliver owner who sells a machine that rotates the panel, but it's another thing to carry and it only holds one panel. The only guys I see running much solar are the ones that live in their campers, staying the 14-day limit on BLM lands.

Since we move around a bit, sometimes just one overnight, most often we stay 3 nights and then "on the road again." In this use case the DC-2-DC charger is a much greater value. We can charge 200 Ah while towing a half day drive. 😎

Our 400W suitcase will not add 200Ah babysitting them all day on the sunniest of days! Here are my two related upgrade links: 

 

Edited 20 hours ago by jd1923

[Steph and Dud B]

We have only the stock panels (360W on our model year) and lithium batteries. We spend 3 weeks at a time at beach campsites with full sun and have no shortage of power. I suppose if we had portable panels we could run the A/C more, but probably not worth it in our use case.

[DanielBoondock]

Don’t need it myself since I drive electric, but if I wasn’t I still I doubt I’d do it. A lot of bother, have to be around so sticky fingers doesn’t walk off with it, and as @jd1923 sez it’s just more stuff, and big clumsy stuff too. Getting this rig pared down to the essentials has been a major project. 

I’d do this instead

• Try to optimize the roof solar charging opportunities if possible
• Possibly upgrade the house batteries (you have a recent vintage but don’t know what you’ve got on board)
• Most likely would be to instead get a backup source, it’s awfully handy to just charge off the truck one way or another
• Ecoflow Delta Pro has a TT-30 plug so you can top off the house batteries directly
• Or just get one of the 120V regular versions and find some creative uses of it

My 2c …

5 hours ago, Tom and Doreen said:

We have the "portable" solar panel that Oliver sells

Sells how, do they have a web store? Not coming up with anything …

[DanielBoondock]

… another idea, hard mount regular panels to the bed rails on the trick if you’re configured like that, and have that charge an Ecoflow. So top off the Ecoflow pro and use that to top off the house. That’s exactly what I do boondocking using the 220 kWh traction battery, minus the solar

[FloraFauna]

I have the zamp portable suitcase panel that I believe adds another 240 watts (this particular size is no longer available)  Its awful heavy and the cable is just too short to be able to move it optimally with the sun on the streetside of the trailer.  Several calls to zamp technical support did not result in being able to purchase a longer and heavier cable. When its only in the sun for a few hours the gain is not that great - we are typically in partial shaded sites. There is also the worry that someone will walk off with the panel while i am not at camp.  Pulling it up and placing it back multiple times is a hassle.  Finally even though we are at nonelectric sites most of the time, we typically dont need the portable unit. For all of these reasons, i find myself taking it along less and less. There are a few situations where i will be happy to have it but those situations are far and few.

[topgun2]

13 hours ago, DanielBoondock said:

Sells how, do they have a web store? Not coming up with anything …

No - there is not a "web store".

However, Oliver does have a number of items for sale via the Parts/Service department.  These things include grills, outdoor rugs, chairs, outdoor firepits and portable solar panels.  Every now and then they will advertise "specials" here on the Forum.

Bill

[Tom and Doreen]

14 hours ago, DanielBoondock said:

...Sells how, do they have a web store? Not coming up with anything …

At the time that we purchased ( Jan '23 ) Oliver sold a portable panel as an add-on. It's basically the same panel(s) that are on the roof but with a stand and controller / converter. We found them of little use other than as a battery maintainer during the winter. It also works great for charging tractor and trolling motor batteries when needed. 

Edited 47 minutes ago by Tom and Doreen