Budsy
New Member
I’m new at all this and want to know if 12v or 24v would be better for my 10 foot trailer with room for only one panel on the roof?
Thanks
Thanks
12v or 24v
- Thread starter Budsy
- Start date
ghostwriter66
"Here - Hold my Beer"
I am assuming you are talking about a 12/24 SCC???
If so I would go with 24V and get a panel with the highest voltage your SCC can handle
Budsy
New Member
I have no system in place for the trailer. It is gutted and am currently redoing the interior.
Rednecktek
Solar Wizard
Have you done a guesstimate on what all equipment you'll want in there?
There are pro's and cons both ways. Just for a couple examples:
12v:
Pro's - smaller battery foitprint, 12v devices are readily available at an auto parts store, cheapest option.
Con's - Limited to about 1200w before wires get absurdly thick, AIO options for 12v are really limited, more batteries required in parallel for larger inverters.
24v:
Pro's - More wattage available for the same wire size, smaller SCC required
Con's - Limited options for accessories, converter needed for 12v appliances, larger battery footprint needed.
Whichever way you go I would recommend you DIY your battery because you can use larger capacity cells to compensate for the lack of space available. It's pretty easy and fun.
Being limited to a single panel for some reason really limits how much system you can built. It'd be pretty pointless to build a system so large it requires a week to recharge.
For a small trailer, I'd go with a 12v system, build yourself a 280 or 304ah battery with a good BMS, use 12v lights, USB ports, and cig lighter sockets. Get an MPP 1012LV to do your SCC, inverting, and generator/shore power. If you need more than 1kw, you could get the Ionic 2kw AIO but you'd need a 200a BMS or a pair of batteries. Throw a pair of 400w panels in parallel on the roof and you'll be golden. That's just my suggestion though.
There are pro's and cons both ways. Just for a couple examples:
12v:
Pro's - smaller battery foitprint, 12v devices are readily available at an auto parts store, cheapest option.
Con's - Limited to about 1200w before wires get absurdly thick, AIO options for 12v are really limited, more batteries required in parallel for larger inverters.
24v:
Pro's - More wattage available for the same wire size, smaller SCC required
Con's - Limited options for accessories, converter needed for 12v appliances, larger battery footprint needed.
Whichever way you go I would recommend you DIY your battery because you can use larger capacity cells to compensate for the lack of space available. It's pretty easy and fun.
Being limited to a single panel for some reason really limits how much system you can built. It'd be pretty pointless to build a system so large it requires a week to recharge.
For a small trailer, I'd go with a 12v system, build yourself a 280 or 304ah battery with a good BMS, use 12v lights, USB ports, and cig lighter sockets. Get an MPP 1012LV to do your SCC, inverting, and generator/shore power. If you need more than 1kw, you could get the Ionic 2kw AIO but you'd need a 200a BMS or a pair of batteries. Throw a pair of 400w panels in parallel on the roof and you'll be golden. That's just my suggestion though.
justinm001
Solar Addict
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2022
- Messages
- 1,568
Biggest question is what size panel? If 100w max then you pretty much need to be 12V.
are you talking about your solar power or your battery system. for a one panel solar system what I did on my camper and kept the 12V battery set up so I wouldn't need more hardware to run the 12V appliances, but I went with the 24V split cell panel and a mppt controller. I am not sure if 24V panel is the proper term but that's how it was sold
HarryN
Solar Enthusiast
I do understand why people like to build their own battery.
The part that I am not so convinced about for this is that it can take a lot of time to pull it off, and if you go to sell the trailer, then the DIY battery aspect is a negative value to the trailer price vs using an off the shelf battery that you can just buy.
It is good for you as long as you are the end user, but most people will view it as something that they need to remove vs having value.
If you value your time spare time at $10 - 20 / hr, how much have you saved on a 200 amp-hr battery pack at today's prices?
littleharbor2
Solar Addict
Easy enough to pull the DIY battery and swap in a new cheap battery before it sells. .
when I sell my camper and I plan on it, the home made 304AH battery will be staying with me and the two flooded GC2 batteries will go back in it.
as for money saved, when I bought my cells I paid about 500US for the cells and about 70 for the BMS. today, if you want to use todays prices I could buy everything for about 400, so I'm probably saving about 3 to 400 bucks even after valuing my own time. building a 12V battery is only 1 to 2 hours once it is balanced, and most of the balance is on its own so you can do other things so I can't really count that as taking up my time. now if you go overboard and do fancy compression systems and extravagant boxes it will take a little longer but that's a personal decision
justinm001
Solar Addict
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2022
- Messages
- 1,568
A 400AH eg4 battery is only $1000, so if only 300ah thats like $750 so $350 more to get a nice case and all the wiring and everything else.
HarryN
Solar Enthusiast
A trailer is subject to a lot of vibration and shock - often more so than the vehicle towing it. Also the suspensions are usually not nearly as forgiving.
Consider instead to use panels that are 26 x 56 or 26 x 60 inches and mounting a couple of them. This provides more mounting points and less glass flex. Companies like rich, solarland, and others make them in the 150 - 200 watt range. 2 or 3 of them should fit cross wise.
Regardless of 12 or 24 volt, common components that go into systems are a fuse block for 30 amp and less connections, and a breaker for each parallel battery string.
Example fuse block:
www.bluesea.com
Example breaker:
www.bluesea.com
Example solar charge controller and monitors:
www.bogartengineering.com
www.victronenergy.com
A little test fixture that I made in the garage for fun that shows how to wire up the low power side of a 12 or 24 volt system:
diysolarforum.com
It isn't anything special, just to help beginners get through the first steps.
Consider instead to use panels that are 26 x 56 or 26 x 60 inches and mounting a couple of them. This provides more mounting points and less glass flex. Companies like rich, solarland, and others make them in the 150 - 200 watt range. 2 or 3 of them should fit cross wise.
Regardless of 12 or 24 volt, common components that go into systems are a fuse block for 30 amp and less connections, and a breaker for each parallel battery string.
Example fuse block:
ST Blade Fuse Block - 12 Circuits with Negative Bus and Cover - Blue Sea Systems
Compact ATO® / ATC® fuse block consolidates branch circuits and eliminates the tangle of in-line fuses for electronics and other appliances.
www.bluesea.com
Example breaker:
187-Series - Blue Sea Systems
Thermal circuit breakers provide heavy duty circuit protection for 25 to 200 Amp loads when switching and circuit protection are both required.
www.bluesea.com
Example solar charge controller and monitors:
- Bogart Engineering Battery Monitors
Bogart Engineering is the manufacturer of Trimetric & Pentametric brand of battery monitors & solar chargers. We're a team of engineers & scientists with experience in solar & battery technologies. If you researching batteries or solar technologies for use in your RV and have questions or need...
BlueSolar MPPT 100/30 & 100/50 - Victron Energy
Maximize the energy-harvest, driving it intelligently to achieve full charge in the shortest possible time using the BlueSolar MPPT 100/30 & 100/50. Find a dealer nearby.
A little test fixture that I made in the garage for fun that shows how to wire up the low power side of a 12 or 24 volt system:
Small test fixture
Sometimes it is easier to show people things in photos than to describe them. So I made a little test fixture from left over parts, nothing fancy. In this case, some people asked about methods of dealing with pre-charging the capacitors on the input stage of inverters, and I had suggested that...
diysolarforum.com
It isn't anything special, just to help beginners get through the first steps.
HarryN
Solar Enthusiast
Here is thread by a fairly sophisticated trailer builder on the forum.
It is quite a bit bigger but it might give you some insights into what can go into it all - depending on how deep you want to go. It is further than I am up to but interesting.
diysolarforum.com
It is quite a bit bigger but it might give you some insights into what can go into it all - depending on how deep you want to go. It is further than I am up to but interesting.
24' Enclosed Trailer Build
Hey all, now that I have sold my 5th wheel, and have a Motorhome that we use to go on trips to the desert and such, I needed an enclosed to haul my RZR And other gear around, and decided to do all of my solar equipment in the enclosed rather than trying to modify the motorhome itself. I also...
diysolarforum.com
a case for mine would be 50 bucks, and it would look like a regular batter except a metal case instead of plastic. and like I said it would be about 500 to build mine now maybe 600 but a 400AH battery up here is 1300, and you don't know what your getting component wise. we are talking a high end 300ah compared to , who knows what BMS or quality of cells
HarryN
Solar Enthusiast
For your location, it might make more sense to use AGM batteries in your trailer than Li. LiFe are not so ideal for a trailer in an area that goes below freezing in the winter.
Rolls batteries ( made in Canada ) are exceptional for their ultra low temperature capabilities, but typically are not ideal for supplying the discharge rates needed for inverters.
Lifeline batteries are not quite as cold weather resistant as the rolls, but are designed for higher discharge rates like an inverter needs.
There are other brands on the market of course, but you can use the data sheets and specs for those two as baselines to compare the others that you are looking at. I like to use size 27s or 31s or the weight per battery becomes more than I want to lift.
@RV8R here on the forum has a lot of experience with the Rolls in various uses. I have a fair amount of experience with the Lifelines - as do others.
Both are excellent in the right use situation.
______________
If you go down the AGM path, then the 24 volt system will provide some very real advantages in the winter time over a 12 volt system in terms of operational range and stability.
Rolls batteries ( made in Canada ) are exceptional for their ultra low temperature capabilities, but typically are not ideal for supplying the discharge rates needed for inverters.
Lifeline batteries are not quite as cold weather resistant as the rolls, but are designed for higher discharge rates like an inverter needs.
There are other brands on the market of course, but you can use the data sheets and specs for those two as baselines to compare the others that you are looking at. I like to use size 27s or 31s or the weight per battery becomes more than I want to lift.
@RV8R here on the forum has a lot of experience with the Rolls in various uses. I have a fair amount of experience with the Lifelines - as do others.
Both are excellent in the right use situation.
______________
If you go down the AGM path, then the 24 volt system will provide some very real advantages in the winter time over a 12 volt system in terms of operational range and stability.
DPC
Solar Enthusiast
Is that Significant?
MrNatural22
?SW sunshine =⚡️⚡️lit up thru the darkness✌️
I would go with a 12v system on a small trailer with limited power needs.
Use a higher voltage/wattage panel with appropriate charge controller (Victron 100/20 or 100/30 smartsolar) to charge quicker and perform better during cloudy days, 1500w PSW inverter and a 200ah lifepo. (relatively inexpensive these days)
Unless you are planning for bigger energy consumption such as a microwave other high wattage demand devises that should meet most needs.
You actually could save $ using a cheap 700w Walmart microwave on this setup if you set it for 1/2 power and aren’t in a hurry. It will still cycle 1100w when cooking just not a steady draw.
Use a higher voltage/wattage panel with appropriate charge controller (Victron 100/20 or 100/30 smartsolar) to charge quicker and perform better during cloudy days, 1500w PSW inverter and a 200ah lifepo. (relatively inexpensive these days)
Unless you are planning for bigger energy consumption such as a microwave other high wattage demand devises that should meet most needs.
You actually could save $ using a cheap 700w Walmart microwave on this setup if you set it for 1/2 power and aren’t in a hurry. It will still cycle 1100w when cooking just not a steady draw.
Last edited:
littleharbor2
Solar Addict
Definitely give the Fullriver AGM's a look. Very good batteries.
Dave in AZ
Solar Enthusiast
Bad microwave advise, sorry. Unless you purchase an "inverter microwave", which are vastly better for mobile, then almost all microwaves achieve "half power" by cycling magnetron on full power, at a 50% time cycle. Only inverter microwaves actually change the amount of power the magnetron uses from 100%. A "700W" small counter microwave actually pulls 1150W, the "700w" on label is the 60% efficiency or so magnetron output. But it cycles 1150 on/off to do it, a huge inverter pull due to cycling induction. However, if you set 50 to 70% power on the inverter microwave, you can cook quite well with 800-1000W actual pull, allowing a 1000W inverter to run a small microwave just fine.
Purchase the Panasonic inverter microwave, tons of good mobile application reviews.
