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Solar

The special Zamp plug is a option for direct connection. Otherwise it is a simple dc plug.

If you don't want to plug into the galley dc outlet and want a more direct mounting method Zamp's optional connection really is a nice setup.

The Zamp has a on board controller so truly is plug and play.

Cary
 
Cary said:
The special Zamp plug is a option for direct connection. Otherwise it is a simple dc plug.

If you don't want to plug into the galley dc outlet and want a more direct mounting method Zamp's optional connection really is a nice setup.

The Zamp has a on board controller so truly is plug and play.

Cary
Click to expand...

Hi, Cary. I don't see a simple CD plug on the Zamp set up. I see the alligator clip(s) and I see the special plug that connects to the quick connect outlet.

Are there 2 DC outlets in the galley? If the dometic is plugged into one DC outlet in the galley.....

Not a big deal to connect a dc plug to the Zamp wiring, I am sure.
 
I believe you do need to still wire on your own dc plug. Check Zamp's option list though, there may be a dc plug option too.

If you are running the fridge then does not leave you a extra plug for the Zamp in the galley. If running both you might need to plug the solar into the cabin outlet. Or use something like this in the galley:
http://www.rakuten.com/prod/car-ci...dc-adaptor/219945870.html?listingId=132698854

Cary
 
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Cary said:
I believe you do need to still wire on your own dc plug. Check Zamp's option list though, there may be a dc plug option too.

If you are running the fridge then does not leave you a extra plug for the Zamp in the galley. If running both you might need to plug the solar into the cabin outlet. Or use something like this in the galley:
http://www.rakuten.com/prod/car-ci...dc-adaptor/219945870.html?listingId=132698854

Cary
Click to expand...

I'm fairly certain about the Zamp plug

Great idea about the 1-to-2 converter for the DC outlet. I am not electrically-minded (can you tell, yet?!!), but didn't realize you could use an outlet for input and output at the same time....

Because I plan to leave the solar panel charging while I am away from the TD, I don't want to plug the penel into the outlet in the cabin, as that would require leaving a door or window ajar.

Of course, the panel is more valuable than anything I leave in the open cabin, so I'm not sure why I care about leaving a window or door ajar.

still need to devise an approach for locking the panel to the TD
 
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Make friends with your neighbors. (Not hard with a Camp-Inn).
That's the best security option out there. :)
 
hi, Evan. Agreed

As to the electrical connection, the best approach may be to simply connect the Zamp quick connect kit to the battery. Probably an hour's work if you know what you are doing and have the drill bit, caulking, on hand.
 
We are now thinking that we don't want to plug into the galley or cabin DC connections because we want to be able to lock the trailer and walk away, and leave the panels charging the battery while we are hiking. Yesterday we took off the inside cover wood panel that provides access to the battery. It seems that we need to disconnect the wires to the battery on-off switch to take the panel totally off. Then we could remove the battery to get access to create another port (like the solar access that CI already installed)? If so, are there helpful hints about installing the zamp quick disconnect kit, and what is best to connect the wires to? direct to the battery?

Thanks,
Cathy
 
Cathy,

Just close the hatch over the solar cord. The dust seal is large enough to close over the cord, there is no reason to unplug to close the hatch with a solar panel.

Cary
 
Cary said:
Cathy,

Just close the hatch over the solar cord. The dust seal is large enough to close over the cord, there is no reason to unplug to close the hatch with a solar panel.

Cary
Click to expand...

that makes things easy

-Al
 
Hi all:
Please forgive us for the multiple posts about solar and the battery, as we gear up to a 2-week trip. We have been doing lots of tests to try to better understand our system. We are struggling with how to recharge the battery after 3 days (which is about how long the battery lasts with our fridge). We've tested running our car and got almost nothing after 30 minutes. One time we drove 8 hours and the battery was only 2/3 full when we got home. We've tried out our new solar panels (in our driveway) and get about a day's worth of battery to run the fridge. We thought we might have a bad battery but we just had it checked out and were told it is not perfect but it's fine, and that it is optimistic about getting a rapid charge of 14v as soon as the car starts up (because we are not getting that when we hook up the tow vehicle). We are trying to figure out if we have a "problem" with the wiring or battery, or if this is just what we should expect to see (battery initially last 3 days, and then we have to use the solar panels every day after that). Should we be changing our expectations? Cathy
 
Cathy,


Your experiences sound pretty normal. If I understand the math correctly (Cary will chime in if I'm wrong), once the large battery is drained, it takes about 12 hours to get it fully charged again. So, 8 hours of driving would put you right at the 2/3 mark. The solar panels will help some - depending on the panel size and the weather, of course - but they are more of a trickle charge. If your solar panels can keep up with the fridge at all, I would consider this a success.
 
Rather than letting the battery run down, wouldn't hooking up the solar panels right away be better? Evan, is this what you meant by trickle charge? Maybe I don't understand. Is the battery running down even with the solar panel connected?
 
This might help:

Your battery is like a bathtub, the fridge is your drain, and the solar panel is the spigot. If you open the drain (use the fridge) the tub will empty out. If you turn on the spigot (plug in the solar panel) it will take longer to empty - depending on how much water is coming in. Most of the time, the drain from the fridge will be more than the solar panel is adding. So, yes, the battery is running down even with the solar panels connected - but hopefully much slower.

As Joan says, the sooner you plug in the solar panels, the more they can help to keep the battery full. (That's why I had mine mounted to the roof - so it would always be on).
 
Al and Cathy,

2/3 full? It sounds like you may be reading the water tank scale on your meter. That is not how the battery reads. Three LEDs on the meter indicates "Good" on the battery scale which is a fully charged battery. Four LEDs indicates "Charging" or "Charging state" on the battery scale which would mean your car (or shore power) is charging the battery or recently did. If you are not getting the fourth LED on the battery monitor that says that your car charging circuit is not connected and is not charging when driving. It also means that if you still have three LEDs when you get their you are not discharging either.

Evan,

Charging from a properly wired vehicle charge line should bring up a heavily discharged battery in about an hour.

Cary
 
Thanks Cary. So between a solar panel, sunlight and a car, you should be able to keep the battery charged longer than 3 days, actually until you run out of gas.
 
Cary said:
Evan,

Charging from a properly wired vehicle charge line should bring up a heavily discharged battery in about an hour.

Cary
Click to expand...

I've checked this with the guy who wired the hitch and with a trailer service guy who checked my battery, and they both say this is "impossible." (Still, I am inclined to listen to Cary and not these other folks.)

I have been trying to make this happen, but only Cary and a couple of our friends here on the forum are saying this is a possible outcome.

8 hours driving? Sure, that will charge a heavily discharged (i.e., fridge won't work) battery, but not in one hour. At least that's according to the folks I've talked with.

Now, a lightly discharged battery? Driving for an hour can "top it off" - is what I am told. But it won't do much more than that within a "few hours," I have been told.

-Al (the earlier messages were from Cathy)
 
Cary,

Can you explain how the math works to us non-scientific folks?
I was under the impression that with the built in 5 amp charger, it would take 12 hours to charge a 60ah battery ( 60ah / 5a = 12 hours). In my experience, I haven't seen that 1 hour of driving will do much for a mostly dead battery.. I must be doing something wrong :(
 
Evan a typical automobile alternator puts out 95-105amps. So with the auto running, assuming that the auto battery isn't dead, then that's a lot of amps to pump someplace that needs them. At least it makes sense to me that a 90 amp battery or smaller in the CI, which shouldn't be totally dead, should top off within an hour.

Now let the electrical engineer (Cary/Craig) jump in with an answer that is correct :).
 
Another aspect to consider is that our battery is over 18 months old and may not have been managed properly. It is not in perfect form (but probably not worth replacing yet).

Performance was characterrized as "about as good as a normal battery" but not as good as this battery would do when new.
 
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