Archive for the ‘Solar’ Category
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
This is a question we get asked often. Once fellow travellers discover that I have an electrical background and training, I am regularly asked to examine their solar installation to determine why it is not working. Here is a list of the top 5 causes for Solar that does not perform on caravans and motorhomes […]
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Tags: Caravan, notorhome, Solar
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar | 8 Comments »
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010
My brother-in-law recently purchased a pure sine wave inverter via eBay. In the supplied information the inverter looked like the perfect replacement for his modified sine wave “Xantrex” brand inverter (that has performed flawlessly for a number of years). The inverter purchased is currently selling (on ebay) for $579 plus $135 shipping When the inverter […]
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Tags: battery, Caravan, Electronics, Energy, Motorhome, Power, Technology
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, News, Power, Solar, Technology | 10 Comments »
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
Most people who have anything to do with solar power know that a solar regulator is necessary. Not too many of these people understand the exact function of a solar regulator or how it does what it does. For the purpose of this discussion and unless I state otherwise, I will be talking about the […]
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Tags: battery, Caravan, Motorhome, Power
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar, Technology | 4 Comments »
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009
As we travel, we often meet people who are in caravans and mobile homes. It always surprises me how many people continue to have issues with the electrical systems. In most cases the conversation starts with “why does my fridge cut-out during the night” or perhaps “my caravan lights go very dim by about 10pm”. […]
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Tags: battery, Caravan, Energy, Motorhome
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar | 11 Comments »
Tuesday, August 11th, 2009
We often get asked “how many solar panels do I need?”. The person asking the question normally expects me to look at the size of their caravan/motorhome then immediately offer a valid technical opinion. To offer any kind of meaningful answer a number of factors must be known: Average daily power consumption (normally measured in […]
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Tags: Caravan, Energy, Motorhome, Power
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar | 18 Comments »
Sunday, August 2nd, 2009
For someone wanting to equip their motorhome or caravan with solar panels to collect free power from the sun, there is an almost endless list of technical terms rumours and myths to wade through. Terms like polycrystalline, amorphous and temperature co-efficient to name just a few. Sales pitch aside, how is the average person supposed to […]
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Tags: Caravan, Energy, Motorhome, Power
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar, Technology | 12 Comments »
Sunday, August 2nd, 2009
Setting up a motorhome electrical system for long term travel Having now lived in our motorhome for over 6 years, and during that time almost constantly tweaked and tuned the electrical system, we feel that we have got it pretty much right. So what makes a good electrical system in a motorhome? The answer […]
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Tags: Energy, Motorhome, Power
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, News, Power, Solar | 19 Comments »
Friday, February 27th, 2009
Billions of dollars are now being spent annually on alternative energy research. Some of us have been living almost entirely on renewable energy for years. However, all this research is making our lives a little easier. New and improved products are emerging thick and fast, fuelled by the now much larger market created by the […]
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Tags: Energy
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar, Technology | 14 Comments »
Friday, December 5th, 2008
Most caravanners and motorhomers rely on battery power to some degree or other. If you have been listening to the experts, you will know that the best way to ensure a long and productive life for your expensive deep cycle batteries is to pay close attention to how the batteries are charged and to what […]
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Tags: Electronics, Power
Posted in Caravan, Motorhome, Power, Solar | 14 Comments »