our electrical system consists of:
- Shore power connection16[A]
- Solar panel 100[Wp] and controller Victron MPPT 70/15
- Household battery Cellpower CPC-110 (AGM) and Battery monitor Philippi BCM
- Main Switch Philippi BHM-300
- Battery separator Cyrix i-225
- Converter Waeco PP602 600[W]
- Ctek battery charger
Actually we hardly ever use the shore power connection. In general our solar system provides all the electrical power we need. we run one flexible solar panel on the roof of the van. The advantage is that it does not stick out from the roof and it is lightweight. Drawback is that the roof needs to be in the sun. When camping in a hot environment this is not so nice. In general the MPPT controller creates around 3-4 [A] charge current. When the sun is too weak, the first back-up is the alternator; it can supply a charging current to the household battery when the battery separator is closed, but this is not so good for the AGM battery because the charge current of the alternator is not optimized for AGM batteries. The second back up is to use the shore power and the Ctek charger.
since 2020 we have a free standing panel. Now we can park up in the shade and still charge our battery. Also, the power cord for this panel can be used as power cord for the shore power should we need it. So only one extension cord is needed.