MPPT Controller
As I mentioned in my first article about this solar project, I got a kit with an MPPT charge controller which seeks and transfers maximum power to the battery bank and the load. You can find out more at this Wickipedia link. This one weighs about 2 pounds needs some room around it for ventilation of the heat sink on the back. It also needs connecting wires for the solar panels, battery bank and load as well as a ribbon cable to a remote meter if the unit is hidden. Space is at a premium in the trailer but another FunFinder owner mentioned that there is room behind the microwave and cables can be routed there without too much difficulty.
Controller mounted and wired up.
Notice I said too much difficulty – it is actually a royal pain to route cables from anywhere in a travel trailer to anywhere else. The existing wiring is haphazardly placed, totally unlabeled and sealed with foam at many locations. Running 6 wires and the ribbon cable to the controller took about 6 hot sweaty hours and a lot of frustrating dead ends but was otherwise simple. My FF210X routing is probably different than your unit but the methodology is the same: just decide where the controller will be located and where the cables need to go.
The solar panels go on the roof. You will need to determine where to place them and how to get the cables to the controller.
MARK + and – ON THE ENDS OF THE PANEL CABLES BEFORE RUNNING THEM TO THE COBTROLLER!
I decided to place my panels forward on the roof on either side of the front ventilator. I had heard that the radio antenna was a good place to run cables through the roof so I removed mine and broke it in the process (order replacement from Amazon – NO ONE in the entire Knoxville area had one!) but once the antenna mounting was removed, it didn’t look like a good route at all. Next choice was the roof ventilator for the refrigerator, I had to dig lots of goopy sealant out of the ventilator cover screws (Square drive screws) and cur a small access hole in the bug screen but then the cables could be easily passed to the microwave cabinet. An advantage in going this way is that you can leave some slack along the side of the refrigerator in case (when) you need to adjust the rooftop placement of the panel cables.
Mounting them is simple enough, establish location, mark the area for the mounting pads, clean with solvent, apply self leveling sealant to the entire pad area and screw it down – firm but not too tight. I placed one screw in each of the pads on one side of the panel but didn’t tighten it – this held the panel in place until I cleaned and sealed the pads on the second side. Then I installed the rest of the screws and tightened them all.
We routed the panel cables through the refrigerator vent and down to the microwave cabinet. They attach to the controller. Do not click the last connector to the panels until you are finished with everything else and ready to go live.