The latest project, removable camper project, OZ Trail 8.

[losh1971]

On another note. Trying to figure out how to adjust the voltage on my solar controller. I'm struggling to figure out how to adjust it to 15v - 15.2v. Google was no help. I can get it to flash but it won't change. Best I can get is 14.5v, which by the time I get some loss I'm only putting 14v into the battery. Might need an electrician to check it out and see if they have any ideas. There has to be a way of increasing the voltage to around 15v in full sun.

Having said that I checked the battery voltage and it was around 12.6v about 30mins after dark, so that's pretty good and will get us through the night with the fridge running. I do have a push in battery, which I will swap over to the 7.8ah one before we go to bed. That should help slow the drain on the main battery and get us through until the sun comes back up.

 

[losh1971]

Are you using a new regulator on the bottle ?

Basically brand new. This is the first time I've used it. It's a low pressure one connected to a braided hose. It's an all in one crimped hose job.

 

[chrisp]

On another note. Trying to figure out how to adjust the voltage on my solar controller. I'm struggling to figure out how to adjust it to 15v - 15.2v. Google was no help. I can get it to flash but it won't change. Best I can get is 14.5v, which by the time I get some loss I'm only putting 14v into the battery. Might need an electrician to check it out and see if they have any ideas. There has to be a way of increasing the voltage to around 15v in full sun.

Having said that I checked the battery voltage and it was around 12.6v about 30mins after dark, so that's pretty good and will get us through the night with the fridge running. I do have a push in battery, which I will swap over to the 7.8ah one before we go to bed. That should help slow the drain on the main battery and get us through until the sun comes back up.

It’s probably easier, and better, to move the solar regulator (the box on the rear of the solar panel) nearer to the battery. The panels put out about 18 V or so, so they can tolerate quite a bit of voltage drop on the input side. The output side is less tolerant of voltage drop (as you have found).

 

[losh1971]

It’s probably easier, and better, to move the solar regulator (the box on the rear of the solar panel) nearer to the battery. The panels put out about 18 V or so, so they can tolerate quite a bit of voltage drop on the input side. The output side is less tolerant of voltage drop (as you have found).

Yeah it loses about 0.4v from what it says on the controller just to the Anderson plug. Not sure if the controller is accurate.

Having said that I should be able to turn up the power at the controller so that it sits on say 15.2v and then by the time it drops I should get 14.6v - 14.7v or thereabouts. I can't seem to work out how to crank up the controller a little. I'm using 6BS over a 5m run. Not much loss between the first Anderson and the battery. There seems to be more loss between the controller and that first connection. I've had as much as 14v at the battery today, but I'd like it to do better. I was hoping to adjust it to help it work better. According to online I should be able to.

 

[chrisp]

Yeah it loses about 0.4v from what it says on the controller just to the Anderson plug. Not sure if the controller is accurate.

Having said that I should be able to turn up the power at the controller so that it sits on say 15.2v and then by the time it drops I should get 14.6v - 14.7v or thereabouts. I can't seem to work out how to crank up the controller a little. I'm using 6BS over a 5m run. Not much loss between the first Anderson and the battery. There seems to be more loss between the controller and that first connection. I've had as much as 14v at the battery today, but I'd like it to do better. I was hoping to adjust it to help it work better. According to online I should be able to.

The problem with upping the voltage of the solar regulator, is that the voltage will be too high once the battery is charged (and the current drops off). The higher voltage (anything over 14.7V) will gas the battery and shorten its life.

I simply disconnected the solar regulator on the back of the panel (and left it there) and ran wire directly from the PV panel to another (new) solar regulator that I fitted nearby to the battery. You can reuse the existing regulator instead of replacing it.

The input side to the solar regulator can tolerate several volts of voltage-drop on the wiring (so the wire gauge isn’t as critical), whereas the output side can’t really tolerate more than a few 100mV.

 

[losh1971]

Thanks for that. I'll have a look tomorrow when we're expecting a sunny day and see what it's putting out at the controller. Nothing I can do at this point in time as I'm away. I'll have another go at setting the controller but just to 14.8v. I just don't know why it won't let change the voltage? It flashes then when you try to change it, it resets and stops flashing. There has to be a way of setting it. There's just nothing online in the way of instructions.

 

[losh1971]

So I've figured out the solar controller I think. I found the instructions and there are three battery types. I was able to set it for wet battery and the adjust the settings to 14.9v. It has since dropped back to mid 13s but it's overcast and this seems to effect what it can put out.

 

[losh1971]

So I went to Mitre 10 and dropped about $150 on hose, hose fitting and stove. Tried Mitre 10 and Bunnings for an adapter to suit my hose and nothing. I have no clue what this low pressure hose/reg is meant for but it's not for a camping stove. I was able to buy a hose for the BBQ and the stove came with a 1m hose, no reg. I really don't know about this reg thing seems that a camping stove hose does not even suit a reg.

Bought the stove at Mitre 10 along with the BBQ hose. Then trip to Bunnings to try for adapters without luck. Bunnings range was far less than Mitre 10. So back to Mitre 10 to spend more money on a gas bottle adapter for the new stove. I thought Bunnings would have had a decent selection of bits but no.

I'll hang onto the reg hose and see what I can buy from Rankin Bond, if they are still selling to the public. Failing that I'll put it down to learning, even though it cost me a fair few dollars.

I'll see how I go now, may need to place the gas bottle on the ground for it to work properly. But hoping I can leave it mounted. At some point I will buy a camp kitchen, which should make the stove higher than the gas bottle.

 

[hademall]

So I went to Mitre 10 and dropped about $150 on hose, hose fitting and stove. Tried Mitre 10 and Bunnings for an adapter to suit my hose and nothing. I have no clue what this low pressure hose/reg is meant for but it's not for a camping stove. I was able to buy a hose for the BBQ and the stove came with a 1m hose, no reg. I really don't know about this reg thing seems that a camping stove hose does not even suit a reg.

Bought the stove at Mitre 10 along with the BBQ hose. Then trip to Bunnings to try for adapters without luck. Bunnings range was far less than Mitre 10. So back to Mitre 10 to spend more money on a gas bottle adapter for the new stove. I thought Bunnings would have had a decent selection of bits but no.

I'll hang onto the reg hose and see what I can buy from Rankin Bond, if they are still selling to the public. Failing that I'll put it down to learning, even though it cost me a fair few dollars.

I'll see how I go now, may need to place the gas bottle on the ground for it to work properly. But hoping I can leave it mounted. At some point I will buy a camp kitchen, which should make the stove higher than the gas bottle.

View attachment 265221

View attachment 265222

Me and the missus are coming to Taz in April. I can lend you an electric fry pan if you want. Bought it at a garage sale for $10

 

[losh1971]

Me and the missus are coming to Taz in April. I can lend you an electric fry pan if you want. Bought it at a garage sale for $10

Will it run off my 500w inverter?