OK! Took me longer than I expected (everything seems to take longer now that I'm 74) but I've successfully installed two 100 Watt panels on the roof of my 1707T trailer and completed the wiring.
The installation is complicated by the fact that our trailers "telescope". If they didn't, you could mount the charge controller on any handy vertical surface and run wiring down any suitable path to the "basement". But, since I wanted the controller and charging monitor near eye level, I was limited in my options.
I ultimately decided on mounting the controller on the side of the left side cabinet with the charging monitor on the cabinet's front. The reason I chose this location is because there is already a hole in the roof above it where the TV antenna coax enters. I thought I could bring the panel wires in through the same hole.
This picture shows the silicone I had to remove to gain access to the entry point. I've got it a bit more than half removed in the picture and you can see the hole it was covering.
Here's the entry point with all silicone removed.
I pulled the antenna wire out of the hole and enlarged it slightly so that the two 1/4" PV 10 gauge wires would fit in along with the antenna wire once it was reinstalled.
I added a plastic "grommet" like thing into the hole to keep the metal roof from cutting the wires but I didn't take a picture of that sorry!
The left side of the cabinet had the outlet for the TV antenna and a "cigarette lighter socket" on a plate that I've removed here. You can see the two solar cables inside the cabinet. I'll run them under the floor of the cabinet, which you can see slightly raised. It was stapled in.
I'm limited to four pictures per post, so this will be "continued".
- Jack
My New 200 Watt Solar Installation (Now 300 Watts)
Threaded Mode
