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quoteSun’s out, the motorhome’s out!
Using solar power for your motorhome gives you the freedom to explore whenever and wherever you want – as long as the sun is in the sky!
Last month we asked motorhome owners if they used a solar panel on their leisure vehicle.
Here are the results…
With more 800 votes in what has been one of our most popular polls yet, the power of the sun is a clearly popular choice with our motorhome readers, with a massive 88 per cent of voters telling us they use a solar panel on their motorhome!
Only five per cent of voters said they don’t use solar power but seven per cent said they were considering a solar panel for their van.
Your comments
As well as being able to go off grid, a solar panel will keep your motorhome battery charged over winter or when it’s not in use. And many owners told us a solar panel was a very worthwhile investment.
Alan Gardner has a 150W solar panel and an extra leisure battery fitted to his motorhome.
“The battery stays charged all the time, especially over the winter,” he commented. “Well worth the initial expenditure.”
M Lawrence also has a 150W solar panel and told us he’d never had a problem with the leisure battery being less than 100%.
“We don’t bother connecting to the mains at home, even when we’re initially charging the fridge,” he said “A worthwhile investment.”
Barry Tramaseur said he’s had a 120w panel for 11 years and has never had to charge his motorhome’s twin leisure batteries – or the vehicle battery.
“Best investment for off hook up,” he added.
Nicholas Evans said he loved the flexibility of their solar panel to provide energy when the motorhome is kept in storage.
“Without the solar panel, the battery would suffer as we found out in the past,” he commented. “It’s great to see this idea becoming more widespread and in the long run will avoid a lot of holiday disappointments!”
Read our latest article on the benefits of solar power when motorhoming.
I have had three 100w solar panels on my Motorhome. The first one failed completely just after the warranty expired. I replaced this with another one and just over a year ago this one blew off the roof shortly after emerging on the northern side of the Dartford crossing (although I wasn’t aware at the time it happened). I turned to Fleabay and purchased a cheaper 120w which so far has been one of the best buys I ever made. Both batteries stayed fully charged over the winter period
Never had a problem with low batteries, don’t stay anywhere more than two or three days and all our lights are LED. The batteries are charged from the alternator and the fridge runs off the underslung gas tank. I have two 110Ah batteries which if necessary will power our motorhome for at least five days and if we stay on a site then the hookup keeps our battery topped up.
Not allowing batteries to cycle is not good for them as it can reduce their capacity and cause sulphation to the plates.
I have never found the need for a solar panel.
There is no need to put holes other than cable entry via a correct gland, panels can be attached with adhesive.
We plug into mains when we’re at home to charge the battery etc – we have solar panels on our house roof!
Don’t relish the idea of putting holes in the roof of my motor home.