Video Transcript for An In-Depth Look at the etrailer Solar Charging System with Digital Solar Controller

Hi everybody, Andy here with etrailer.com. Let's take a look together at this etrailer Solar Charging System with Digital Solar Charge Controller. Now these three 100 watt monocrystalline solar panels are going to convert the sun's energy into DC electricity. And of course that electricity will then charge your battery and your RV so you can power your devices that are connected to your batteries. So again, this kit includes three 100 watt panels for a total of 300 watts, and each panel is going to give you a maximum output current of 4.8 amps and a short circuit current of 5.1 amps. Now as you probably know, finding the right solar package for your rig, for your particular application can be a daunting task.

Trying to find answers to questions such as the size of panels that you might need or conversion formulas or amp hours and things like that. The good news is we have done the hard work for you. So on your screen, I am including our link to our solar calculator here at etrailer.com to help you find the best solar package for your particular application with as little effort as possible. Take advantage of this calculator, answer a few of the questions that it gives, and then that calculator will put together the package that you need for your particular application. So just take that link, pop it into the address bar of your browser, that will take you to that calculator and you'll be able to find out exactly what you need.

Now these panels are designed to, for a fixed mount installation on your RVs, on your vans and more, and each panel weighs about 13 and a half pounds so they're relatively lightweight. And they feature a tempered glass coating and a durable, (Andy taps panel) black aluminum frame. And so these are very rugged, they're very robust. I think they're gonna hold up really well for you, against the elements, and I think they're gonna be very long lasting for you as well. So they're gonna be able to withstand the harsh road and weather conditions.

Let's talk measurements. Looking at the overall length of these panels, we're sitting at about 42 and one eighth inches long. The overall width about 21 and one eighth inches wide, and then the thickness, about one and three 16th inches thick. So you do need to make sure that you have the room available on the roof of your RV or camper for these panels. And you do wanna make sure that these panels are not going to be around persistent shadows, like you wanna make sure that nothing on your roof is going to cast shadows over these panels 'cause that would reduce their effectiveness.

Now this does include the mounting hardware. You're gonna get brackets and hardware. I want to point out that on these brackets, they already have Butyl Tape applied to these brackets. So when you run your screws through these brackets, as you're running the screws through the brackets and through your roof, that Butyl Tape is going to seal up those screws. However, I also recommend picking up some self-leveling sealant if you do not already have it. That's self-leveling sealant you can just apply over the screw heads on the brackets and that's just gonna give you another layer of protection to prevent moisture, water, from seeping in through the screws, through the roof and then collecting in your ceiling and possibly giving you problems with mold or mildew. So self leveling sealant would be a great addition to pick up if you don't already have it for this kit. Now this is going to connect to your system with MC4 branch connectors that are included here. As you can see, (Andy taps panels) on the back of each of these panels. So we have our MC4 connectors and these cables are about three feet long. And then you're also going to get four MC4 branch connectors that are going to allow you to connect these panels in series. So those branch connectors are included in this kit. And then let's take a look at this controller, at the front of my table here. This 30 amp solar controller is going to help prevent harmful overcharging of your RV batteries. It's gonna monitor and adjust output from your solar panels. This is going to work with your 12 volt, 24 volt, 36 volt and 48 volt batteries and solar systems. As you see there, it also works with, it's gonna work with your sealed/gel, AGM. flooded lead acid and lithium iron phosphate batteries. And this does feature the digital PWM or pulse width modulation technology that's going to regulate the panel output to provide a consistent charge. The automatic multi-stage charging switches modes as the battery charges, helping to extend your battery life. This is going to include preset charging profiles, again for the sealed/gel, AGM, flooded and lithium batteries. Now let me put on your screen some additional information for you that might prove helpful for you. Good information to have. And as you notice, we do have a pretty nice display here. It's large, it's gonna be backlit. You're gonna be able to easily monitor, at a glance, the charge and discharge currents. This also has four USB-A ports, two on either side, so you can charge your devices while the solar panels are generating power. Just some overall measurements. Looking at the width, we're sitting right at about seven and 13 16ths inches wide, four inches tall, round about two inches deep. So this is also going to include all of the wiring here. You're gonna get red and black wiring with the ring terminal and then red and black wiring with the MC4 connectors. Each of these wires measure about seven and a half meters long. This does have a lifetime, a limited lifetime warranty. And we do also have other kits available. We do have a kit with this panel, which is one 100 watt panel instead of the three. And then we have kits with larger panels as well. So again, take advantage of our solar calculator. Let that tell you exactly what you need, depending on the answers that you give it, and we'll have just what you need here at etrailer.com. Well, I think that's gonna wrap up our look today. I do hope that our time together was helpful for you. Again, my name is Andy. Thank you for joining me.