Auxillary Solar Panel - ideas?

First let me apologize if I'm posting on the incorrect area on Sprinter Forum. I have a 2019 144 4x4 that was built out by fitter here in Portland. My question is, the fitter installed a ZAMP plug-in near the foot well on the passenger side for an auxiliary solar panel. Apparently it's tied into the AGM house batteries. Does anyone have a suggestion for brand / model and size (wattage) for a fold able solar panel? My intent is to provide some charging for the house batteries when we are camping off-grid. Currently our house batteries provide power for the isotherm fridge, induction cook-top, maxaair fan and misc USB and 110v outlets......or is a solar panel eeven worth investing in?
Thanks!
 

Cheyenne

UK 2004 T1N 313CDi
Valeria,

Your 2019 will almost certainly be a VS30 rather than an NCV3 so in that respect this is the wrong area of the forum. Do you have the larger NCV3 headlights or the much slimmer VS30 style, that's the quick way to check.

But, seen as your question is really about solar panels rather than the base van you would have done better posting in the 'Sprinter RV's & Conversions Talk' section.
https://sprinter-source.com/forums/index.php?forums/5/post-thread

Keith.
 

SSTraveler

2014 LTV Unity Murphy Bed
The Zamp port is commonly referred to as and SAE connector/port. Zamp makes a solar suit case or if you want to use another brand that might have MC4 connectors, which are standard solar panel connectors, you will need a SAE connector to MC4 connector adapter, https://www.amazon.com/iGreely-Adapter-Conector-Polarity-Reverse/dp/B07K8GMRDJ/ref=sr_1_7?crid=FXJV2P477XYF&dchild=1&keywords=mc4+to+zamp+adapter&qid=1590231680&sprefix=Mc4+to+zamp,aps,271&sr=8-7. You need to veryify the polarity of the plug on your van because Zamp tends to reverse the conventional wire color meaning. Red is supposed to be positive but Zamp makes it the negative. You'll need a voltmeter to verify which port is positive and which is negative so you can configure the adapter correctly to mate the solar suit case you select to the Zamp/SAE port. I personally like Renogy panels, https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-Monocrystalline-Foldable-Waterproof-Controller/dp/B079JVBVL3/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=59UA8Y6KW4OE&dchild=1&keywords=solar+suitcase&qid=1590232422&sprefix=Solar+suitc,aps,307&sr=8-1-spons&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExRE80NUtDWVRQWU5VJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDA3Nzc4MjlNUUtaVDIwM0JaWSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwOTg2MDExMjJHUk5ZSk5HVlJTViZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1. You want to make sure the suit case you select includes a solar controller. You need to know what kind of power you are interested in. A 100w Renogy suitcase (with solar controller) gives you a max 5.6 amps per hour charging and a 200w suitcase doubles the amp output. I have 200w on my roof and 210ah of AGM batteries and it has no problem supplying my Isotherm Refrigerator and still have charging to the batteries. I definitely think solar is worthwhile, I would rather have it permanently mounted on the roof so it is always available but being able to plug in a solar suit case so you can park in the shade but use the suit case panels in the sun is a good idea for boondocking.
 
Last edited:

klompen

Member
Great advice from SSTraveler. I'll add another vote for Renogy. I just purchased one of their 200W suitcases because I found that my 100W Goal Zero panel wasn't enough. My Sportsmobile came with a Zamp solar controller and SAE connector. What I liked about the Renogy panel is that I could easily bypass (and remove) their a solar controller since the vehicle one was all I needed. It was cheaper to buy the Renogy & remove the controller than to buy a panel with no controller.

Besides the MC4 to SAE adapter, if you get an extension cable like this it comes with a connector that makes it easy to swap the polarity. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Z7T494M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 My Zamp controller tells me if the polarity is switched so it is safe to hook up, then change as needed.

This is the Renogy panel that I purchased: https://www.renogy.com/200-watt-12-volt-monocrystalline-foldable-solar-suitcase-back-order/ Mine was also back-ordered, but they restocked pretty quickly.
 

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