Make Your Caravan Off-Grid Ready With a Solar Kit

The most obvious reason why people go for solar power as their main source of power is for a better environment. The clean energy you get from the sun may be more difficult to harness sometimes, but it's sure worth it. You don't need to worry about any power outages with solar as long as you have enough charge in your battery. You can also go completely off-grid with a PV system on your caravan.

You won't need to look for shore power or any other hook-up point when on your caravanning trips. Although you can still opt-in to do so, it's not your only option. But connecting to shore power is not always possible. This is where a proper off-grid solar kit can make your caravan truly self-sustainable. At least when it comes to power.

What is in an Off-Grid Solar Kit?

Panels

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What's at the core of every PV system, no matter if it's off-grid or not, are its panels. Solar panels are what make solar power usable as they convert the photons coming from the sun into electrical charge. All off grid solar kits come with solar panels as they are a mandatory component.  

Controllers

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To help make the electrical charge coming from the panels and into the battery usable by devices and appliances you need a controller. Charge controllers, as they're called, are a sort of a middle man that distributes the charge to where it needs to go. But in order for the charge to be used by any PV component, it needs to go through an inverter.

Inverters

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What every off grid kit should always come with is a power inverter. In order for you to be able to charge your phone or cook your meal, you need usable electricity. Because the panels generate DC power from the sun's UV rays, you need an inverter to convert that power to AC. Since this is what all the appliances and devices we use on a daily basis rely on.

Batteries

When the charge you have left, generated by the panels and converted by the inverter, is no longer needed you need to store it somewhere. Of course, this is why off grid kits come with batteries to save the day. Without solar batteries, you won't be able to rely on the sun alone since when it sets, there will be no charge to use unless it's stored.

What to Look for in an Off-Grid Solar Kit

Types of Panels

There are many options you can choose from when it comes to the type of panels you want to have on your caravan. The main two panels an off grid kit can come with are mono and polycrystalline. 

Monocrystalline panels have their cells made from a single silicone crystal. This makes them darker and gives them a honeycomb appearance. Although quite expensive, monocrystalline panels are more efficient when it comes to their conversion process.

Source: powersolarphoenix.com

Polycrystalline panels, on the other hand, are made by combining multiple silicone crystals together to create the panel's cells. Because of this, polycrystalline panels have a lighter shade of blue and they are also more affordable.

Charge Controller

Just like there are different types of solar panels, there are also different types of charge controllers. You get to choose between MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) controllers and PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) units.

PWM charge controllers are the older counterparts and although they are reliable they are not as powerful or as efficient as their more advanced predecessor. PWM controllers are mainly made for small-scale applications.

MPPT controllers, as you already know, are about 20% to 25% more efficient than PWM controllers. MPPT charge controllers are also able to handle larger loads than PWM units, especially when using a lot of panels.

Source: sustainable.co.za

Amp Rating

The amperage rating of your PV system needs to be adequate to that of your everyday needs. The higher the number of devices and appliances you will be using at once, the greater the amperage rating of your system needs to be. The higher this rating is the more electricity can flow through it and supply your appliances and devices.

Installation & Hardware

Although an off grid kit comes with all the components needed to make your caravan independent from the grid it still needs to include all the mounting and connecting hardware. Off grid solar kits that come with everything you need to install an off-grid PV system on your caravan are a better option.

This way you're able to save time searching for the right mounting brackets and bolts or cables and connectors. These off grid kits are especially useful if it's your first time building an off-grid PV system or any kind of PV system for that matter.

Conclusion

Caravanning is a great way to explore beautiful landscapes and enjoy having home comforts at the same time. A PV system is a big part of that and without it, it wouldn't be possible to take on long journeys without the need to charge up.