More propane. More batteries, solar!

nomade · Post by **nomade** » September 19th, 2020, 12:35 pm

Nice setup!

I was looking at your panel, any reasons to pick this over a flexible one?

Does your camper came with charge controller preinstalled?

Djgoebelt · Post by **Djgoebelt** » June 24th, 2019, 9:57 pm

Hi John. That’s interesting about not keeping plugged in without turning off the battery switch. I wonder how it knows whether I’m occupying it or storing it.

I guess I’ll keep trying the trailer assist. I’ve only done it twice.

I will definitely post pics of the decals when they are installed. It’s been nice chatting with you. Take care.

Denny

partsbob · Post by **partsbob** » June 24th, 2019, 8:38 pm

I was advised by the Starcraft dealer’s Service Manager (NOT CW!) who corrected some initial problems with our unit (roof and shower leaks) to not leave the battery disconnect On once the battery was fully charged. He claimed he has seen too many fried batteries from people who always kept them connected, saying the factory inverter/charger did not “float” once reaching full-charge, so I just reconnect a couple days before we head out to camp.
I agree with you in keeping tongue-weight low and why I installed a single 27-series deep-cycle battery rather than multiple 24-series, again since we rarely boondock.
As far as the backup-assist, I’ve used it at home a couple of times since buying the truck just 2 months ago, just to know how it works, but I’m pretty proficient without it. Thanks for your tips and looking forward to seeing the new graphics when complete!

Djgoebelt · Post by **Djgoebelt** » June 24th, 2019, 4:39 pm

Hi again. If you are plugged into a 30amp supply, you don’t have to worry about overcharging your battery. The charge controller will take care of it. No, the box I bought will not hold larger batteries. I wanted to keep the additional weight on the tongue to a minimum, and I was already adding a second propane tank. That’s why I stayed with the 24s. If you have larger batteries, I’m sure you can find the right size box on Amazon or maybe Harbor Freight. For my next project I am having decals made for the front and rear that are “Southwest dessert” themed. I’ll post photos after I have it done. Do you use the backup assist on your truck? I’m not a fan so far.

partsbob · Post by **partsbob** » June 24th, 2019, 12:49 pm

Thanks for the quick reply and information! That makes sense with storage for you, I have a 30a circuit where I store ours at home, so keeping it charged isn’t an issue for us, actually having to use the disconnect to keep from overcharging our single battery. We rarely boondock so far, but that may change as we travel more, so I was considering carrying a portable 120w panel, just in case. Clean roof install on yours!
BTW, where did you find the matching battery box, is it aluminum and would it hold (2) 27-series batteries or just the standard 24-series? True, our 2nd CW sales experience was horrible and, if it wasn’t such a great deal for us on this Satellite, we would have walked away after the first 30-minutes of waiting with an appointment, even though it was a 6-hour drive.

Djgoebelt · Post by **Djgoebelt** » June 24th, 2019, 6:51 am

Hi. Nice to hear from you. I decided to go with the rooftop solar panel (100 watt) because I needed something to keep my batteries charged while it’s in storage. I keep it at a storage facility and the roof is the most secure place to put it. I’m also going to buy a portable folding set of panels before we hit the road in August. I was hoping to put a larger wattage panel on the roof; but shading is a problem. I sacrificed my one year old battery and bought two new ones. I’m told if you have one battery that is older, the new battery will not charge to full capacity. We won’t be using the air conditioner or microwave when we boondock, so I think we will be ok on power. I also installed a Cavco catalytic heater. It uses 1/8 of the propane that the furnace uses. And it uses no electricity. No blower motor draining the batteries. The hitch you see is what I tow with. It handles perfectly. Sorry to say it, but it sounds like you are another Camping World victim. Safe travels, my friend.

partsbob · Post by **partsbob** » June 24th, 2019, 3:27 am

I just saw your post regarding your propane/batt/solar mods and was shocked by your pix in that your Comet looks virtually identical to our Starcraft Satellite, since we didn’t realize the Comet was virtually the same as the Satellite sold by Camping World. We love our 8 month old Satellite so much and couldn’t understand why it’s not more popular on the road, now realizing it’s also being sold under the Comet name.
I retired Dec 2017, so my wife & I bought our Satellite as a leftover 2018 model last October and believe we got a very good deal, after just selling our previous Jayco 154BH and, since I’ve made a few mods of my own on ours, I hope you won’t mind answering the following questions regarding yours:
Did you choose to roof-mount the solar panel for convenience, rather than have it portable for optimal placement at the campsite and using the existing solar connection at the front corner of the unit? What is the wattage of the panel you installed and have you used it enough yet to know how long it takes to recharge the batteries? Did you first add the solar or the 2nd battery and, if not done at the same time, how much longer has the 2nd battery improved the power storage?
Finally, I notice you didn’t use an equalizer hitch or is that just for the pix? I can tell by the checkerboard sticker on the tongue that your F150 has the same trailer-assist that our F150 has, and that the truck has built-in “sway-control”, but we still use a 10K equalizer hitch with a single sway-bar for ours because Camping World wouldn’t allow us to leave without one installed because of the camper weight being over 3,500 lbs. If you don’t usually use one, how well does it tow with the F150 and is sway ever a problem? Our hitch adds at least another 150 lbs to the tongue-weight and is a pain to install, though I’m certain it adds safety to the package.

Post by **kuba122** » June 20th, 2019, 7:35 pm

Very Good! That's exactly my setup, 2 20lb propane tanks, 2 batteries and 200W solar charger. Same thing for us, we ran out of propane on a cold night early in our RV experience .... funny how that happens.

Djgoebelt · Post by **Djgoebelt** » June 18th, 2019, 4:47 am

We ran out of propane and power on a cold Colorado night last year in our Comet 17RB. I don’t think we have to worry about that anymore.

We added a second propane tank with cover, a second battery in a security box, and solar. The whole upgrade cost less than $1000.