Followers

Sunday, March 30, 2014

SO LAR YOU HAVE IT.....

                                                          Brian Boone came Monday morning to install our new solar system.  He did a magnificent job.  John and I will recommend him any time!  

 Quickly, he was up his ladder with the solar panels.  

After both panels we on the roof of the coach, he invited me to come to the roof and decide where I wanted them located.  

We wanted to make sure that the space was used carefully in order to provide room for the panels that will be added next year.  Of course, I deferred my decision to Brian since he is the expert.  
So here I am in my sunbonnet pretending I know where to put the solar panels.  









It was not long until Brian had the roof portion of the installation completed.  Now, for the wiring.  

Thank goodness he did not ask me to choose colors for the placement of the wires.  

Note the thickness of these wires. The thicker the wire gauge, the less power you loose while traveling from the solar panels to the coach 



In the basement, our Tiffin Allegro Bus came equipped with a metal lined compartment that contained a gas grill.  We removed grill shortly after purchasing our new to us Bus.

The Blue Sky solar boost 3024i charge controller was installed in that compartment. The perfect place for the controller.





Next to be installed was the Blue Sky energy panel that provides readings of the volts and amps available.  

The wiring was the biggest challenge due to needing to remove our Splendide washer/dryer and drilling through the ceramic flooring and sub-floor.  Those wires were to travel from the charge controller underneath to the display panel in our bedroom. 

It was a messy job, but one would not know it afterward. Brian comes equipped with a vacuum to remove all traces of wood and ceramic dust and chips.



By two o'clock, we were running on solar power.

There is plenty of room on the roof for five or six more panels that we will add a few at a time.

Right now, we are doing great on what we have - using forethought about when we want to operate our crock pot, bread machine, vacuum, and rice cooker.

We are thrilled with our power situation! Now, we are able to boondock and hardly give any thought to our energy consumption.

We are thinking that the solar will also help us when staying at RV resorts that charge for electricity.  Now, we do not need to plug into their power source.  How cool is that?

Thank you Brian Boone for doing a super job installing our solar system.  We look forward to working with you next January.




After Brian left, John went to work installing a shelf in the bottom of our closet.


We have placed our shoes under the shelf and will be deciding what goes on the shelf soon.  Can you believe we now have more storage than we know what to fill it with?







20 comments:

  1. Looks great. I never thought about how much you will save when you are at campgrounds that charge for electricity. Good luck with your new purchase.

    No one ever has more storage space than they need!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks. New storage space just makes for more "stuff", doesn't it?

      Delete
  2. nice be solar powered! good for you guys! enjoy the quiet!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, we will. Sure better than the state park here....geesh. Dogs, noise, noise.

      Delete
  3. Congrats on your added independence! Are you still in Borrego? We want to get solar immediately on the new rig and are looking at options we can reach in our first week out - Borrego Springs, Slab City and Quartzsite are all 3-4 hours from here. I look forward to reading how the system works over the next few months. Great to have open storage space......dangerous too :-).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, still in Borrego. Will be for at least a week.

      Delete
  4. Nan you might want to ask Brian to make those panels so that they can be tipped towards the sun. During the winter months the sun is at a much lower angle in the sky which makes the flat mounted panels less efficient. Some food for thought.
    Liked the shelf idea for your closet.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the suggestion, Rick. I don't know how long John will be able to climb to the roof to put up the panels, so we have opted to go for more panels than normal to compensate for the the loss of sun during the winter.

      Delete
  5. Congrats on the solar power. Sure glad you knew where you wanted those panels.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ahhh, you sure know how to give a gal a hard time!

      Delete
  6. WOW Nan this looks terrific. I'm green. He did this in less than a day?? More WOW! How do I contact Brian?? Thanks so much for posting this.

    ReplyDelete
  7. We weren't interested in tilting our panels either. Instead we added an extra panel which more than makes up for it. You'll be thrilled at the difference when you're dry camping. We love it and I'm sure you will too.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Its the freedom our solar power gives us that we most enjoy. I agree with adding an extra panel so as not to have to climb up on the roof putting panels up & down. We've been there in the winds of Borrego scrambling to get the panels down for fear of having them ripped off. Never did happen but with the wind battering those panels the sound inside the coach sounded like they were being torn right off. We have lost sleep over panels being up in the wind. Enjoy your new freedom from the rules & regulations of expensive & crowded RV Parks. Enjoy the serenity of nature, the night sky, your campfires, unobstructed sunrises & sunsets. Enjoy the quiet beauty which surrounds you. Good for you guys............:))

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think that is great you guys have taken the solar route. Just think of the freedom you now have. No more rules & regulated RV Parks. Nothing to block your sunrises & sunset, no noisy neighbors crushing the serenity of Mother Nature. Totally agree about putting an extra panel on the roof so you don't have to climb up there & put them up or down. We have toughed out those big bad Borrego winds with our panels up & it was always a major concern & noise. We've lost sleep worrying about those panels being up. And getting up & down off that RV roof isn't getting easier for any one of us either. Good for you guys...............

    ReplyDelete
  10. Tried 3 times to add a comment but I think Google ran interference all three times......

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
  11. Looks like you're getting ready for Armageddon. Will I have room when I get on your roof next time?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It also crossed my mind, Bill. Right now there is room, but when we finish adding panels...you will need to be careful where you walk.

      Delete

Thank you for leaving your comment. We do enjoy hearing from you.