Roof mounted Solar panels

This is the panel I have on my cap:

$280 BougeRV Yuma 100W Compact CIGS Thin-Film Flexible Solar Panel, The Most Flexible Solar Panel with Tape for Easy Installation (Compact Version)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BJJYZJ5X?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1

I have vinyl down first and then the panel, which has five 2" strips of VHB tape to hold it down...and it is down! It's been on the truck for just about 2 years now.

 

Thanks, can you explain the Vinyl down first part

 

I used vinyl, like you'd use for a wrap. That way, if I were to remove the panel at some point in the future, it would be easier and less likely to damage the paint.

 

400 watts

 

Ive been looking around for vinyl? Did you pay to have it done? Or can you buy a piece and lay it your self, if so where did you get it? Sorry to pester

 

Amazon:

$30 VViViD+ Matte Demon Black Premium Vinyl Wrap Film (3ft x 5ft)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PQF5S1F?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Did it myself, it's not hard as it's a mostly flat surface. Plenty of YouTube videos to get an idea.

 

Vbo_Taco [OP]: Not answering your question of mounting panels...all good responses on here. Just wanted to relay my experience if I did it again, I would do it differently. Food for thought: I originally went with 200watts of solar on my ARE topper, permanently mounted. My power needs are basically a refrigerator that uses about 40watts an hour of draw. My 1100watt Bluetti usually doesn't keep up with the power needs after a few days if the sun is low(winter) or if it's cloudy(shocking). So I ended up adding a Bluetti controller that provides 500watts of charge to my Bluetti power station from the Alternator. That always works no matter if the sun is shining or not. If I were to do it again, I would do the Bluetti controller($250) and if I were to base camp for more than two days I would buy solar that I could set up and take down. The advantage of portable is you can camp in shade and power the panels in the sun. Also, the panels can be set perpendicular to the sun which is a huge advantage over the attached panels on a roof. And finally, wiring the panels was somewhat of a chore. The Bluetti controller was a lot more simple and straight forward. Just another angle to consider.

 

mounted 100w panel on my canopy roof rack to power my fridge and some camp lights + phone charging at night. 50ah renogy battery is all I need at this time. created these mounts with a friend of mine to mount the panel under the cross bars so I can still take advantage of all the space on the roof.

 

This here (the part about portable panels)
I s'pose some may think portables are a hassle (and indeed you do have to be more aware of wind possibly blowing them around), but for me, having to park my rig in the sun when shade is available is a hard pass (I've also been places in the forest with enough trees to make it difficult to find a spot where there's good sun throughout the day). Being able to move the panels around and aim them directly at the sun for better harvest I find to be a huge plus.

 

Might be the wrong thread but...Does anyone have any experience with the

$113 Renogy 120W ShadowFlux Anti-Shading N-Type Solar Panel, 12V 120 Watt Solar Panel 25% High-Efficiency, PV Module Power Charger for RV Marine Rooftop Farm Battery and Other Off-Grid Applications

shadowflux solar panels or does it seem like a bit of a gimmick? (anti shading for reference)

New to the solar/fridge game, I like the idea of higher efficiency but I also would just get a quick release panel and move it if needed. I don't think my ecoflow will power the fridge for our typical 3 day trips without me stressing.

 

What is the PVC pipe on the left? It looks like the potato cannon that rules them all

 

Shower tube

would be a helluva potato canon though

 

Yup. Pressurized water tube. Holds 4.5 gallons. Users a schrader valve to add pressure and a pressure relief valves insures the tube doesn’t blow up

 

Based on the claims made, those panels look like they'd be good for a truck-mounted setup where you would sometimes have a (not too leafy) tree branch or other partial obstruction present but where moving the whole truck would be a hassle. It would be less important for a portable panel setup where you can just walk over and move it slightly. It will make no difference whatsoever if the entire panel is shaded (which the obstruction will usually end up doing anyway as the sun moves).

Based on its voltage output figures, a MPPT charge controller will be needed to make much use of it's 28.89 Vmp output. Not familiar with the Ecoflow... Does it have a MPPT solar input (or can it process the power from panels having greater than 18-19 Vmp)?

 

Thanks for the info! Ya it'll be a roof mounted set up on top of my Topo Topper Wedge, the eco flow has a 11-50V, 13A, 220W Max parameter for solar input through its internal MPPT (believe that what it uses). I just couldn't decide if it was worth the extra $40 vs the standard 200w panel..
We currently only use the ecoflow for phones and lights and I don't think we've ever used more than 10% of the battery but the fridge is a new wrinkle to the power usage.

 

I guess since your vehicle-mounting it, it couldn't hurt to have that shading feature (it might not come into play real often, but would be good for the times that it does). Sounds like your Ecoflow should handle it then.