Our RV Solar Power System Passed an Anniversary

... and I'm takin' a lil' risk, if you're the superstitious sort. The anniversary of our moh-bile power station passed last September/October. I installed the final bits of our RV Solar power system and it went into production in mid October of 2006. That makes the current system just two months shy of 6 1/2 years old.

*Our Intitial RV Solar Panel installation*

In fact, it's so old... I wasn't even blogging yet! I disremember just how long the batteries had been in place. I believe the RV battery bank went in the month before. Just a short time after the install I had to go back and re-do the battery cables, as my initial work had been less than my "inspector" approved of.

*The RV Battery Bank with the Upgraded Battery Cables*

You might remember that I'd originally planned on having at least four panels, hopefully more. Our real estate debacle, and other resulting di does along the way have kept that from happening.

Just the same, I spend as much time fiddling with the electronics on this rig... writing my sites, blogs and books as anybody, plus we generally read well into the evening requiring the lights to be on... and then after the furnace keeps us from freezing in the night I get up and fire up the coffee maker in the morning.

That RV Solar Power Battery Bank of ours has seen juuuuust a few ampere hours of juice flow through it over the years.

I remember folks warning us that it'd need replacement ... um... quite a while ago. That replacement has been planned and aborted due to "circumstances" of the difficulty kind... on a couple of occasions. I've decided that it's kinda like cowboys. When I was a kid, just startin' out ~ Cowboy ~ I got told; "What are you doin' that for boy? Cowboys are a dyin' breed!"

Uh Huh... and today, we're STILL busily dyin'! :) and that aged RV Battery Bank of ours, after ALL these many years of lighting my RV Boondocking life are STILL, busily wearin' out! :)

I was told two panels ain't enough. You need more. Don't get me wrong, I'd LIKE two more panels. With two more I'd likely not even have to fire up the generator after the Cloudy Days! But... those two 130 watt Kyocera panels have powered us just fine, with HOURS each day on the computer, an hour or two of morning coffee maker and HOURS into the evening of Illuminated reading....
 
... or at least she reads while I tap tap tap on the keyboard... If I'm not reading.

... and I don't have to worry about the generator growin' legs when we're not at the rig... or worryin' about the price of gasoline for it, or even having gas for it much... or... even running it beyond some top off runs in poor weather in the winter. After say March... it seldom gets run until down into November... and then only when the weather blocks charging.

When it comes to frugal living... RV Boondocking on Solar Power is 'bout as cheap as a fella can go. Think about it... sure you've got to crack the piggy bank to get it all set up in the first place but then...

When you keep yourself as far from the benefits of deep pockets as I seem so skilled at doing! ;) Parking out where the rent is Zero... and having your own power plant just hummmin' away making essentially free power... unsupervised... while you go off and take a walk in the park is pretty damn fine!

When we get up against it... we just find a good place to set up for a few weeks and settle in. Our expenditure for camp fees, diesel fuel, generator gas and all those nicks against our income that go along with being on the road... pretty much come to a screeching halt! That's juuuuust 'bout as frugal living as it can get and still not get frost bite!

Yes Sir! When it comes to RV Boondocking... our RV Solar Power System is likely the shiniest  investment we made... and one of the best You'll ever make.

Squeezin' The Last of the Good Out of Our System
Brian