Why you need for a solar setup

With so many places to go free camping these days you need to make sure you are self-sufficient. This includes running all your lighting and appliances like your fridge and TV, or being able to charge your table or phone while traveling.

Solar systems have become an essential part of caravanning and camping these days, but what do you need to ensure you can run your appliances, and how much power do you need to generate?

To calculate how much power you need to generate, you need to look at the appliances you are running and how long you use them on average. On each device it should state the energy consumption; for example, the average hourly current consumption for a caravan fridge could be around 2.8Amps – but each fridge is different, so please check before proceeding. Once you work out how many total amps you will need each day, you can then find the right solar system for you.

Camec have a range of solar panels available that can be fixed to the roof of your caravan. We also offer mobile solutions, such as folding solar panels, that don’t require you to be continuously parked in the sun. These are available from 100W up to 160W – there is sure to be one to suit your energy needs. However, based on how much power you need to generate to run your appliances, you may need more than one panel.

You’ll also need somewhere to store your power when the sun goes down! Camec have 100AH and 120AH batteries available. Depending on how much power you need to store you may need multiple batteries in your caravan.

In an ideal system, you should allow enough battery power, so you will only be discharging the battery or batteries to around 50% of their rated capacity to ensure maximum life. You may also wish to increase the battery capacity to allow for longer operation – in case it rains for a couple of days, or there is intense cloud cover.

You will also need a Solar Charge Regulator to regulate the charge between the solar panels and the batteries. This is because the solar panel voltage will need to be reduced down to the suitable voltage for the battery to bring it to full charge.

Once you’ve done all this, simply connect up your appliance and let there be light! To help work out your solar requirements contact your local Camec store for our expert advise.