TECH HELP EDITOR
Base vehicle expert
QCan we fix flexible solar panels to a coachbuilt motorhome's roof?
In the Summer issue (p132), Clive wrote about solar panels: their use, size, etc, but two questions came to mind.
In the installation paragraph concerning ‘the thin flexible panels’, he stated that “this type relies on conduction to take away excess heat.” Does this mean that such panels shouldn't be glued to fibreglass/plastic roofs?
We have a Pilote G600L A-class, which we took to the USA in 2018 (see Oct 2019, p36), and the two thin flexible panels stuck to our roof cooked in the heat of the Mojave Desert. That's the only way I can describe what happened.
They still produced electricity, 28V at the input to the regulator, but with massive fluctuations eventually only producing minimum amps on clear sunny days and more on overcast dull days. We concluded that the whole system needed sorting and left it to RoadPro to fit two aluminiumframed glass panels, a new regulator and two new AGM batteries, which have all worked perfectly – although, in fairness, we haven't been back to Utah! Incidentally, do you think we should have taken it up with the supplying dealer who fitted the stick-on panels when we bought the new 'van from it?
The second question is concerning using the fridge on 12V when the sun is in copious quantities.
I thought the fridge thermostat only worked on gas or mains electric and that the 12V setting was merely to maintain the temperature whilst driving. Trying my fridge today on 12V only works if I turn the ignition on; I don't need to start the engine, but isn't the fridge then running off the main ‘engine’ battery?
My volts/amps display reads 13.4V and, when I turn the ignition on, it goes up
