Trailer multi-power source setup

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kwschnei

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I'm brand new to trailers and solar, and am hoping someone can check my setup so that I'm not about to do something stupid. I've got a Taxa Woolly Bear (2021) that I'm going to expand to a dual battery (parallel) system on. Everything in the trailer is wired for 12V DC - no AC and I'm not anticipating a need to change that. My needs are pretty light and I'm more interested in extending time to depletion on the batteries with solar instead of being able to fully recharge them.

My goal is to have a system that I can charge either with shore power or a solar panel depending on what's available. My current plan is to tie together the input from the 7-wire and an on-board battery charger and plug that into a DC-DC charger that will also accept the input from the solar panels. Then the DC-DC charger is attached to the first battery in the bank. Is this the right way to go about doing this? Is there a better/cheaper way to do this?

Additionally, I'd love recommendations for a power cutoff switch to install between the batteries and the trailer's power panel to completely kill power during storage to avoid parasitic drain from the control panel.

Here's the shopping list I've got (about $450 in parts, excluding a new battery box and second battery):

AC port plug: NOCO - AC Port Plug - GCP1
Battery charger: NOCO - 1-Bank 10A On-Board Battery Charger - GENPRO10X1
DC-DC battery charger: Renogy 40A DC-DC Battery Charger with MPPT
Solar panel: 100W Portable Solar Panel



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Jason Shelby

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kwschnei said:
I'm brand new to trailers and solar, and am hoping someone can check my setup so that I'm not about to do something stupid. I've got a Taxa Woolly Bear (2021) that I'm going to expand to a dual battery (parallel) system on. Everything in the trailer is wired for 12V DC - no AC and I'm not anticipating a need to change that. My needs are pretty light and I'm more interested in extending time to depletion on the batteries with solar instead of being able to fully recharge them.

My goal is to have a system that I can charge either with shore power or a solar panel depending on what's available. My current plan is to tie together the input from the 7-wire and an on-board battery charger and plug that into a DC-DC charger that will also accept the input from the solar panels. Then the DC-DC charger is attached to the first battery in the bank. Is this the right way to go about doing this? Is there a better/cheaper way to do this?

Additionally, I'd love recommendations for a power cutoff switch to install between the batteries and the trailer's power panel to completely kill power during storage to avoid parasitic drain from the control panel.

Here's the shopping list I've got (about $450 in parts, excluding a new battery box and second battery):

AC port plug: NOCO - AC Port Plug - GCP1
Battery charger: NOCO - 1-Bank 10A On-Board Battery Charger - GENPRO10X1
DC-DC battery charger: Renogy 40A DC-DC Battery Charger with MPPT
Solar panel: 100W Portable Solar Panel



View attachment 284480
Click to expand...
I have 4ga wire with an Anderson plug attached to my 2 batteries in the trailer so when I going down the road the truck powers everything, and I have a standard 2amp NOCO battery charger and the refrigerator plug into a NOCO 110volt splitter that is used for shore power and while it’s parked at home. Been wired this way for over 4 years with no problems.

I have added solar yet, but I will hopefully do it someday.
 
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kwschnei

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Vermont, USA
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Schneider
I picked up my brakes controller from eTrailer earlier this week and had a really nice experience with that. I figured that once I knew what I needed and that the system should work, I'd shop around on price for the functionality.

My trailer is a Taxa Woolly Bear that I'm mounting a Thule Approach (soft shelled RTT) on. By the time I mount the RTT, I don't think there's anywhere I can mount them that will work.

IMG_4264.jpeg
 
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Renegade

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AFAIK there is no 1 unit that does it all.

I use a RedArc Trailer S for charging off the 7 pin, it also can charge solar.

For shore power charging I have used NOCO or Xantrex units. NOCO sounds best for your application.

After conversion to 12VDC, this all goes to a Circuit breaker and then Blue Sea panel for distribution.
 
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kwschnei

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I've finished the build (it took a bit because I had to have a battery box custom built due to the short length of the trailer's tongue).

Here's what I ended up doing (labeled picture of the battery box attached):
IMG_4498.jpegIMG_4499.jpeg
 
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grubworm

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kwschnei said:
I've finished the build (it took a bit because I had to have a battery box custom built due to the short length of the trailer's tongue).

Here's what I ended up doing (labeled picture of the battery box attached):
View attachment 286754View attachment 286755
Click to expand...
nice set up. ive been using LiTime for a while now and did a build with the same battery you have, but i just went with their 20A charger instead of the 40. i have a black metal tongue box and it gets pretty hot when in the sun, so i did add some extra vents (stainless marine vents for boat) and debating if i need to add a 12v fan in there to make sure im getting the hot air out fast enough. it gets well over 100 degrees here in the summer, but unless you go out west during the summer, you will probably be good temp wise

very sharp install!
 
reaver

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The LiTime charger has solar input as well, right? Does it sense voltage change to determine if the vehicle is running, or is there a trigger wire that turns the charger on? I'm still waiting for my renogy chargers to die, but they haven't yet....

Edited - I answered my own question.
 
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kwschnei

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reaver said:
The LiTime charger has solar input as well, right? Does it sense voltage change to determine if the vehicle is running, or is there a trigger wire that turns the charger on? I'm still waiting for my renogy chargers to die, but they haven't yet....

Edited - I answered my own question.
Click to expand...
For anyone else that stumbles across this, it does sense the voltage change to switch. For my use case, without a permanently attached solar panel, there's 0 change that I'll have the solar panel setup while connected to the car.
 
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kwschnei

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grubworm said:
nice set up. ive been using LiTime for a while now and did a build with the same battery you have, but i just went with their 20A charger instead of the 40. i have a black metal tongue box and it gets pretty hot when in the sun, so i did add some extra vents (stainless marine vents for boat) and debating if i need to add a 12v fan in there to make sure im getting the hot air out fast enough. it gets well over 100 degrees here in the summer, but unless you go out west during the summer, you will probably be good temp wise

very sharp install!
Click to expand...
I went back and forth quite a bit on the 20A vs 40A charger. Ultimately, with the style trailer I have and the camping we've done with it, I know that having access to shore power is uncommon and I wanted the extra charging speed when it was available.

I've got a temperature sensor that I'm going to toss in the battery box in the spring. I'm not super concerned for local camping as a really hot day is 90°F here. The battery's operating temperature is 4°F - 140°F (though charging max limit is 122°F). I suspect I'll ultimately end up adding an additional vent in the future - 15 years ago I tent-camped my way around the West and would love to do it again with this setup. If you've got a good recommendation, for the vent, I'd love a link.
 
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kwschnei said:
For anyone else that stumbles across this, it does sense the voltage change to switch. For my use case, without a permanently attached solar panel, there's 0 change that I'll have the solar panel setup while connected to the car.
Click to expand...
You say that, but I just ordered a 300Ah battery for my trailer, and recently added 400w worth of solar to it. I'm expecting to push 30+ amps during the summer with the combined 20A DC-DC and solar.
 
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kwschnei said:
I went back and forth quite a bit on the 20A vs 40A charger. Ultimately, with the style trailer I have and the camping we've done with it, I know that having access to shore power is uncommon and I wanted the extra charging speed when it was available.

I've got a temperature sensor that I'm going to toss in the battery box in the spring. I'm not super concerned for local camping as a really hot day is 90°F here. The battery's operating temperature is 4°F - 140°F (though charging max limit is 122°F). I suspect I'll ultimately end up adding an additional vent in the future - 15 years ago I tent-camped my way around the West and would love to do it again with this setup. If you've got a good recommendation, for the vent, I'd love a link.
Click to expand...
yeah, im with ya on the bigger charger for those times you do have shore power and need to use it to its full potential. i used smart chargers for the longest and then when i started buying the big capacity lifepo4 batteries, i went with the 14.6v and 20A charger and it does work a lot faster.

as for the link for the vents, i went back to amazon and saw that the vents i bought years ago are no longer available...but they are just simple stainless 4" circular vents used mainly for boats (venting the fuel tank area) and can be found at any boat place or even other brands on amazon. the ones i got have a screen that keeps bugs out. we have a lot of mud-dobbers down here and they go into any small opening and build their mud nests. i never worried about heat when using the lead acid batteries, but i try to manage heat now that i am using the lithium batteries. i have a cabin i run off solar and the lipo battery i have for it is outside in a box and sees extreme heat in the summer (over 110 degrees) and so far no problems, but i really dont know if that heat is shortening its life or not.

1730375802952.png
 
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kwschnei

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Vermont, USA
First Name
Kyle
Last Name
Schneider
grubworm said:
yeah, im with ya on the bigger charger for those times you do have shore power and need to use it to its full potential. i used smart chargers for the longest and then when i started buying the big capacity lifepo4 batteries, i went with the 14.6v and 20A charger and it does work a lot faster.

as for the link for the vents, i went back to amazon and saw that the vents i bought years ago are no longer available...but they are just simple stainless 4" circular vents used mainly for boats (venting the fuel tank area) and can be found at any boat place or even other brands on amazon. the ones i got have a screen that keeps bugs out. we have a lot of mud-dobbers down here and they go into any small opening and build their mud nests. i never worried about heat when using the lead acid batteries, but i try to manage heat now that i am using the lithium batteries. i have a cabin i run off solar and the lipo battery i have for it is outside in a box and sees extreme heat in the summer (over 110 degrees) and so far no problems, but i really dont know if that heat is shortening its life or not.

View attachment 286775
Click to expand...
Thanks, great idea about the screens in them - I deal with wasp nests around the house every summer and it'd be a rude shock to open the battery box up and find a nest inside!
 
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