Graphite Dave
Dave Orton
Attached is a PDF of the electrical drawing.
I had several objectives for the electrical system.
1. Always charge house battery with a 3 stage (bulk,absorb,float) charger.
2. Keep house electrical completely separate from Sprinter electrical.
3. Keep electrical wiring accessible for future changes/additions.
4. Minimize controls.
5. Control the amount of amperage that can be drawn from the alternator.
6. Have 3 methods (solar,shore,120 volt from Sprinter)of charging house battery.
The system design is different. Most people connect their house battery to their vehicle battery for charging by the alternator. Batteries of different size,type and age should not be connected together if you want maximum battery life. The system consists of a 1000 watt Magnum MSS inverter/charger/transfer switch, a 600 watt Xantrex inverter powered by the Sprinter 12 volt system,a 135 watt Kyocera solar panel with Morningstar MPPT controller, a Blue Sea 9009 selector switch to select shore power or Xantrex 120 volt power and a IDP40 distribution panel. The house battery is a 8D 255 amp-hr AGM Lifeline.
The IDP 40 distribution panel is located close to floor in the center of the van to keep wiring as short as possible. Added a terminal block for positive wiring connections at panel. The IDP has 4 AC breakers and 12 DC fuses.
All wiring is done with flexible rubber covered "SO" cords. Most of the wiring is outside the walls for access. Only used blue plastic conduit in two places(solar panel wire and up right rear in wall). Used 14/3 for 120 volt power and 12/2,14/2 and 16/2 for 12 volt power. Rubber cords are very easy to run. Wiring is in the 1 1/2" thick floor, behind the rear seat backs, up the left side of van and in a 1 1/2" sq. Panduit wireway that replaced the Sprinter wireway at top of left wall.
The "house" DC wiring is not grounded to the Sprinter chassis. It is a separate system that the Sprinter does not know exists. Positive and negative DC wires are run to every load and terminate at the IDP panel. The 120 volt power is grounded to the chassis. There are only 3 DC switches (water pump, radiator fan/water heating pump/hot water tank pump). All ceiling lights (10) are LED with a switch. The Magnum MSS inverter has a remote meter (ME-RC50) that I set to display the state of charge (SOC) and pushbuttons to start the Magnum inverter and charger. There are five 12 volt distribution blocks (5 terminals). Blocks are located in overhead cabinets,at right rear under the seat, in "vehicle" inverter box at passenger seat.
Results:
The system works very well. The solar panel usually keeps the house battery charged without using shore power or 120 volt power from the Xantrex inverter. The panel output about matches the power requirements for the 80 liter compressor refrigerator. I have only used the backup Xantrax 120 volt power on two occasions when days were without sunshine. Overnight the refrigerator reduces state of charge down to 92% and the solar panel has it back up to 99% by late afternoon. I do not have any other major power requirements. No audio/visual. I turn on the Magnum inverter when I want 120 volt power and turn on the Magnum charger when I need to charge with shore power or the Xantrex. Usually both are off. I do use a 600 watt microwave powered by the 1000 watt Magnum.
Mistakes:
1. Xantrex should have been 1000 watts so I could use full charging amp that the Magnum allows. The Xantrex tripped until I reduced charging amps. The Magnum can charge at 50 amps. I had to set charging at 60% or 30 amps to prevent Xantrex from tripping.
2. Would like to have about 200 watts of solar panels. The existing 135 watt just matches the refrigerator power needs on full sunshine days. Be nice to have some extra power for semi-sunny days.
3. Would not use the IDP distribution panel again. It is difficult to wire on the AC side and the DC side does not have terminals. Also if the AC wiring was not in the same location as the DC wiring, the "rats nest" of wires would be less. I would use a Blue Sea 5026 DC distribution panel and a 1116 AC circuit breaker panel next time.
4. Would change the location of the panels. Existing panel is located in center of van to minimize wiring lengths which is correct. It is located just above the floor which makes it hard to wire. Next time I would locate the two panels halfway up the wall behind the refrigerator.
I had several objectives for the electrical system.
1. Always charge house battery with a 3 stage (bulk,absorb,float) charger.
2. Keep house electrical completely separate from Sprinter electrical.
3. Keep electrical wiring accessible for future changes/additions.
4. Minimize controls.
5. Control the amount of amperage that can be drawn from the alternator.
6. Have 3 methods (solar,shore,120 volt from Sprinter)of charging house battery.
The system design is different. Most people connect their house battery to their vehicle battery for charging by the alternator. Batteries of different size,type and age should not be connected together if you want maximum battery life. The system consists of a 1000 watt Magnum MSS inverter/charger/transfer switch, a 600 watt Xantrex inverter powered by the Sprinter 12 volt system,a 135 watt Kyocera solar panel with Morningstar MPPT controller, a Blue Sea 9009 selector switch to select shore power or Xantrex 120 volt power and a IDP40 distribution panel. The house battery is a 8D 255 amp-hr AGM Lifeline.
The IDP 40 distribution panel is located close to floor in the center of the van to keep wiring as short as possible. Added a terminal block for positive wiring connections at panel. The IDP has 4 AC breakers and 12 DC fuses.
All wiring is done with flexible rubber covered "SO" cords. Most of the wiring is outside the walls for access. Only used blue plastic conduit in two places(solar panel wire and up right rear in wall). Used 14/3 for 120 volt power and 12/2,14/2 and 16/2 for 12 volt power. Rubber cords are very easy to run. Wiring is in the 1 1/2" thick floor, behind the rear seat backs, up the left side of van and in a 1 1/2" sq. Panduit wireway that replaced the Sprinter wireway at top of left wall.
The "house" DC wiring is not grounded to the Sprinter chassis. It is a separate system that the Sprinter does not know exists. Positive and negative DC wires are run to every load and terminate at the IDP panel. The 120 volt power is grounded to the chassis. There are only 3 DC switches (water pump, radiator fan/water heating pump/hot water tank pump). All ceiling lights (10) are LED with a switch. The Magnum MSS inverter has a remote meter (ME-RC50) that I set to display the state of charge (SOC) and pushbuttons to start the Magnum inverter and charger. There are five 12 volt distribution blocks (5 terminals). Blocks are located in overhead cabinets,at right rear under the seat, in "vehicle" inverter box at passenger seat.
Results:
The system works very well. The solar panel usually keeps the house battery charged without using shore power or 120 volt power from the Xantrex inverter. The panel output about matches the power requirements for the 80 liter compressor refrigerator. I have only used the backup Xantrax 120 volt power on two occasions when days were without sunshine. Overnight the refrigerator reduces state of charge down to 92% and the solar panel has it back up to 99% by late afternoon. I do not have any other major power requirements. No audio/visual. I turn on the Magnum inverter when I want 120 volt power and turn on the Magnum charger when I need to charge with shore power or the Xantrex. Usually both are off. I do use a 600 watt microwave powered by the 1000 watt Magnum.
Mistakes:
1. Xantrex should have been 1000 watts so I could use full charging amp that the Magnum allows. The Xantrex tripped until I reduced charging amps. The Magnum can charge at 50 amps. I had to set charging at 60% or 30 amps to prevent Xantrex from tripping.
2. Would like to have about 200 watts of solar panels. The existing 135 watt just matches the refrigerator power needs on full sunshine days. Be nice to have some extra power for semi-sunny days.
3. Would not use the IDP distribution panel again. It is difficult to wire on the AC side and the DC side does not have terminals. Also if the AC wiring was not in the same location as the DC wiring, the "rats nest" of wires would be less. I would use a Blue Sea 5026 DC distribution panel and a 1116 AC circuit breaker panel next time.
4. Would change the location of the panels. Existing panel is located in center of van to minimize wiring lengths which is correct. It is located just above the floor which makes it hard to wire. Next time I would locate the two panels halfway up the wall behind the refrigerator.
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