Roof top solar

[jalake]

I'm looking to get opinions on mounting roof top solar on my etorque.

The idea is to mount a 100w flexible panel on the roof, and have a battery selector in the bed to change from charging the starting battery (since my etorque system doesn't always charge and the dealers can't find an issue) and charge my battery for my overlanding set up.

Has anyone done this, as I could not find any by searching the forums.

Also is there any issues running solar charging to the house battery with the etorque system? Would I want solar charging turned off while the vehicle is running and does it affect the BMS module on the battery at all?

 

[boogielander]

i can help you with this question even though I THINK i posted about it before (but I never got to update it)

Questions you need to ask yourself: how are you going to mount the panel on the roof and are you ready to deal with those consequences?
There 2 ways to mount panels to the roof. One is flexible panel stick on, the other is hard panel mounted to the roof rack.
Two problems with those here: 1. how are you going to deal with the double sided tape/ glue when panel goes bad and you need to replace it, especially you run the chance of damaging the paint on the roof, and 2. are you ready to deal with the roof rack? There are 2 types of roof rack: drill and no drill. Drilling the roof requires you to do ample waterproofing, are you capable of making sure doing a great job sealing it? No drill require the use of clamp on types of roof rack, and as someone who does this a lot and build overlanding/ offroading rigs for career, I DO NOT trust those clamp on types to hold. Nuts and bolts are the way to go.

Is it doable? Yes absolutely but at a great cost.
The 2 panels I got on top of my camper are Bouge RV Yuma 200w CIGS Flex Panel, and they retail at $599.99 EACH. These are significantly more expensive than other panels, but these are the best performing ones out there. Real world conversion rate is significantly higher than cheaper alternatives (when competitions are pushing 140W out of 200w panel, these are pushing 180W out of 200W panel), and even if partially obstructed these will still push power at a reduced rate while cheaper ones straight up would stop making power.

I use a Renogy 50A DC-DC charger with MPPT to charge my 100AH LiFEPO4 in the camper. This is a smart charger, meaning it automatically switches from charging the house battery from alternator or solar depending on solar output, and can top off starting battery via solar as needed. There's a ignition trigger wire that you must connect so the smart charger knows you have a smart alternator system (not mild hybrid system, but smart alternator). I've ran it for over a year and ran it 50 days straight on my trip to Alaska and Arctic Ocean and back, and it's still going good. This unit is around $300. *Be sure to buy from Renogy direct and not Amazon because the Amazon options are the old version, and solar is capped at 25A while the new version sold at Renogy website has full 50A solar capability). I've yet to see any issue with e-torque with this setup, and the starting battery still remains at the same charging habit as before (when the truck was brand new bone stock - voltage drop down to the 12s while cruising after hours of driving).

HOWEVER, if I was to do this again, I'd get the only other option there are: Redarc. This is due to few of my friends not having good experience with Renogy products and their after-sales performance (which, honestly I've experienced as well and I considered swapping, but due to urgentness of my need to install this before my big trip I had to stay with Renogy because this is the only option in stock at the time). Redarc is about double the price, but it is the trusted brand for professionals and their after-sale department is great.

If you want to know more, have a read here: Boogielander Build – Part 10 – In-depth View of Electrical System for

And as usual, NEVER BUY CHEAP CHINESE PRODUCTS OR UNKNOWN BRANDED PRODUCTS.

 

[Willwork4truck]

What kind of battery issues are you having? Have you had your battery load tested, and have you had the "generator" voltage checked to see what it is giving the battery? I have no idea of the age/warranty status of your truck as its not in your signature.

Seems like you need to chase down your starting battery/charging issues first. Trying to band-aid them by using a solar panel isn't the best idea. Now if you are wanting to keep it charged while parked and not running for a week or more then yes, a panel (don't need 100 watts though) will do that.

Follow boggielander's advice for a separate battery charging system. He is using quality (not cheapo) components. There are many YT videos on what you are wanting to do but beware of all the brand ambassadors and such that push a particular product, whether good or not good quality.

Having solar while camping would suggest having a separate "house" battery (Lifepo4) which a 100+ watt panel could help recharge (though not very much, max 5 amps/hr and only during peak solar hours). A DC-DC charger is better for keeping a "house" battery charged up while driving.

 

[kwill]

I think a better answer is one of the newer chargers like Pecron makes. Much cheaper and more reliable.

 

[Willwork4truck]

I think a better answer is one of the newer chargers like Pecron makes. Much cheaper and more reliable.

Lots of options for him for sure.

 

[jalake]

i can help you with this question even though I THINK i posted about it before (but I never got to update it)
View attachment 191451
Questions you need to ask yourself: how are you going to mount the panel on the roof and are you ready to deal with those consequences?
There 2 ways to mount panels to the roof. One is flexible panel stick on, the other is hard panel mounted to the roof rack.
Two problems with those here: 1. how are you going to deal with the double sided tape/ glue when panel goes bad and you need to replace it, especially you run the chance of damaging the paint on the roof, and 2. are you ready to deal with the roof rack? There are 2 types of roof rack: drill and no drill. Drilling the roof requires you to do ample waterproofing, are you capable of making sure doing a great job sealing it? No drill require the use of clamp on types of roof rack, and as someone who does this a lot and build overlanding/ offroading rigs for career, I DO NOT trust those clamp on types to hold. Nuts and bolts are the way to go.

Is it doable? Yes absolutely but at a great cost.
The 2 panels I got on top of my camper are Bouge RV Yuma 200w CIGS Flex Panel, and they retail at $599.99 EACH. These are significantly more expensive than other panels, but these are the best performing ones out there. Real world conversion rate is significantly higher than cheaper alternatives (when competitions are pushing 140W out of 200w panel, these are pushing 180W out of 200W panel), and even if partially obstructed these will still push power at a reduced rate while cheaper ones straight up would stop making power.

I use a Renogy 50A DC-DC charger with MPPT to charge my 100AH LiFEPO4 in the camper. This is a smart charger, meaning it automatically switches from charging the house battery from alternator or solar depending on solar output, and can top off starting battery via solar as needed. There's a ignition trigger wire that you must connect so the smart charger knows you have a smart alternator system (not mild hybrid system, but smart alternator). I've ran it for over a year and ran it 50 days straight on my trip to Alaska and Arctic Ocean and back, and it's still going good. This unit is around $300. *Be sure to buy from Renogy direct and not Amazon because the Amazon options are the old version, and solar is capped at 25A while the new version sold at Renogy website has full 50A solar capability). I've yet to see any issue with e-torque with this setup, and the starting battery still remains at the same charging habit as before (when the truck was brand new bone stock - voltage drop down to the 12s while cruising after hours of driving).

HOWEVER, if I was to do this again, I'd get the only other option there are: Redarc. This is due to few of my friends not having good experience with Renogy products and their after-sales performance (which, honestly I've experienced as well and I considered swapping, but due to urgentness of my need to install this before my big trip I had to stay with Renogy because this is the only option in stock at the time). Redarc is about double the price, but it is the trusted brand for professionals and their after-sale department is great.

If you want to know more, have a read here: Boogielander Build – Part 10 – In-depth View of Electrical System for

And as usual, NEVER BUY CHEAP CHINESE PRODUCTS OR UNKNOWN BRANDED PRODUCTS.

I have decided to use a flexible solar route. I did find a pretty creative mounting option using corrugated plastic underneath to help dissipate heat and allow water flow. It uses home made aluminum mountain brackets held on with eternabond. I am going to run a victron MPPT, I have used these prior on a ground up camper build I did last year.

 

[jalake]

What kind of battery issues are you having? Have you had your battery load tested, and have you had the "generator" voltage checked to see what it is giving the battery? I have no idea of the age/warranty status of your truck as its not in your signature.

Seems like you need to chase down your starting battery/charging issues first. Trying to band-aid them by using a solar panel isn't the best idea. Now if you are wanting to keep it charged while parked and not running for a week or more then yes, a panel (don't need 100 watts though) will do that.

Follow boggielander's advice for a separate battery charging system. He is using quality (not cheapo) components. There are many YT videos on what you are wanting to do but beware of all the brand ambassadors and such that push a particular product, whether good or not good quality.

Having solar while camping would suggest having a separate "house" battery (Lifepo4) which a 100+ watt panel could help recharge (though not very much, max 5 amps/hr and only during peak solar hours). A DC-DC charger is better for keeping a "house" battery charged up while driving.

I have a 2021 etorque bighorn

The issue is charging will completely stop after extended driving and the battery will continually get lower voltage. Sometimes it will stay above 14v for a day then others will immediately cut charging and my voltage will drop to 12.4v. turning accessories on reduce voltage further and charging never starts again

The house battery was replaced as my other battery died and left me stranded in Yellowstone, the generator was replaced a few days later.

I've dealt with Stellantis direct on the issue and all dealer techs/star technicians agree there is no issue... Which I highly disagree with, but time will tell.

I was working with one of the board members at Stellantis who agreed to put the max care warranty on the truck as no solutions have been found.

I will use it entirely parked while overlanding just to keep the house battery topped off. I was more curious if I forgot to switch solar charging off, with the truck running, what would the system do by seeing an external power input

 

[theblet]

weird issue. I believe the ET battery is like 48v or something, not 12v.

I honestly don’t know using solar is going to be worth the money or effort. Maybe try another shop that’s familiar with the system that can fix it.

There might even be an ET delete kit.

 

[jalake]

I have a 2021 etorque bighorn

The house battery was replaced as my other battery died and left me stranded in Yellowstone, the generator was replaced a few days later.

I've dealt with Stellantis direct on the issue and all dealer techs/star technicians agree there is no issue... Which I highly disagree with, but time will tell.

I was working with one of the board members at Stellantis who agreed to put the max care warranty on the truck as no solutions have been found.

I will use it entirely parked while overlanding just to keep the house battery topped off. I was more curious if I forgot to switch solar charging off, with the truck running, what would the system do by seeing an external power input

weird issue. I believe the ET battery is like 48v or something, not 12v.

I honestly don’t know using solar is going to be worth the money or effort. Maybe try another shop that’s familiar with the system that can fix it.

There might even be an ET delete kit.

Yes the ET battery is 48v which is charged by the generator, which In turn is stoped down to 12v to charge the starting battery. I don't believe it's possible to delete the ET because it's integrated into almost all systems.

The solar would basically act as a trickle charger for long duration camps. It's going on either way to charge my second battery for a camp setup with a portable lifepo4 battery

 

[kapinallinen2]

I have a 2021 etorque bighorn

The issue is charging will completely stop after extended driving and the battery will continually get lower voltage. Sometimes it will stay above 14v for a day then others will immediately cut charging and my voltage will drop to 12.4v. turning accessories on reduce voltage further and charging never starts again

The house battery was replaced as my other battery died and left me stranded in Yellowstone, the generator was replaced a few days later.

I've dealt with Stellantis direct on the issue and all dealer techs/star technicians agree there is no issue... Which I highly disagree with, but time will tell.

I was working with one of the board members at Stellantis who agreed to put the max care warranty on the truck as no solutions have been found.

I will use it entirely parked while overlanding just to keep the house battery topped off. I was more curious if I forgot to switch solar charging off, with the truck running, what would the system do by seeing an external power input

Sounds like the DC to DC converter in the 48 volt battery pack is acting up. Did they replace the battery pack?

 

[theblet]

Yes the ET battery is 48v which is charged by the generator, which In turn is stoped down to 12v to charge the starting battery. I don't believe it's possible to delete the ET because it's integrated into almost all systems.

The solar would basically act as a trickle charger for long duration camps. It's going on either way to charge my second battery for a camp setup with a portable lifepo4 battery

It could work for camping, but I wouldn’t roof mount anything.

Also, the etorque system is covered under emission warranty, which is 8 years I think.

 

[boogielander]

I have decided to use a flexible solar route. I did find a pretty creative mounting option using corrugated plastic underneath to help dissipate heat and allow water flow. It uses home made aluminum mountain brackets held on with eternabond. I am going to run a victron MPPT, I have used these prior on a ground up camper build I did last year.

can't go wrong with victron though im not sure it has the smart feature, which means you will need to manually connect and disconnect should you choose to tap that into starting battery as well.
theoretically, if you wire it correctly, it SHOULD be fine even if you forget to disconnect, but at this point you're not gonna be able to charge the house battery with the Victron going to starting battery. Hence, my recommendation is do a DC-DC with MPPT from Redarc or Renogy (if you still have faith in that company's customer service team).

Another note: truck running at 12.4v is totally normal during extended period of driving. There is a sensor on the negative terminal of the battery that tells the ET system to charge or stop charging the starting battery for fuel efficiency. Even when it's at 12.4v, the computer looks at all the parameters and think 12.4v is good enough voltage for the next starting sequence, even with all the extra loads (what exactly are you running that requires extra load? just curious). It was alarming for me when I first finish building the truck, even during extended driving time with my Victron DC-DC charger pushing out over 30v (~360-380w) of power to the Ecoflow (wattage reading taken from Ecoflow Delta 2 and voltage reading taken from Victron), the truck's onboard readout still reads mid 12v and sometimes 12.4 during long term coasting. Been like that for 37k miles, and of that 37k miles, 12.7k miles/ 50 days of that was spent on remote areas of Canada and Alaska I still saw 12.4-12.6v here and there while pushing max capacity out of the Renogy 50A and Victron DC-DC. Therefore, seeing 12.4v shouldn't be that big of an issue. I'm also on stock starting battery as well.

sorry but im confused about how you are mounting it to the truck... like where are the aluminum brackets gonna be mounted to?

 

[kwill]

If you're convinced you need a solar panel on the truck I would go with something like this to avoid a total kludge: Ram HD 4th Gen (2010-2018) VSS System™ - 65 Watt Hood Solar Panel (single) | 25% Off Sale

 

[boogielander]

If you're convinced you need a solar panel on the truck I would go with something like this to avoid a total kludge: Ram HD 4th Gen (2010-2018) VSS System™ - 65 Watt Hood Solar Panel (single) | 25% Off Sale

that's quite expensive for labelled 65w (probably only 40w actual) lol

 

[theblet]

that's quite expensive for labelled 65w (probably only 40w actual) lol

Sounds about right. Gobs of money for little energy. The way of the green!

 

[kwill]

I agree that it is expensive. One of the newer flexible panels on the roof might be cheaper and more efficient but the whole idea is suspect to me.

 

[jalake]

Sounds like the DC to DC converter in the 48 volt battery pack is acting up. Did they replace the battery pack?

They will not because it has not thrown error codes besides when the battery dies. The 48v tested slightly low but not low enough for their specs to replace. My thoughts are it's with the communication inside the 48v of when to charge the starter battery

 

[jalake]

If you're convinced you need a solar panel on the truck I would go with something like this to avoid a total kludge: Ram HD 4th Gen (2010-2018) VSS System™ - 65 Watt Hood Solar Panel (single) | 25% Off Sale

The solar is to charge a second battery for overlanding and running 12v accessories with the truck off, a portable lithium battery. I'm going to have a battery 1-2-off switch to control which battery is being charged. The question was more if solar is being input to the starter battery while the truck is running, what will the computer do. Will it affect the charging system, will the BMS on the negative terminal tell the ET to stop charging etc.

 

[jalake]

can't go wrong with victron though im not sure it has the smart feature, which means you will need to manually connect and disconnect should you choose to tap that into starting battery as well.
theoretically, if you wire it correctly, it SHOULD be fine even if you forget to disconnect, but at this point you're not gonna be able to charge the house battery with the Victron going to starting battery. Hence, my recommendation is do a DC-DC with MPPT from Redarc or Renogy (if you still have faith in that company's customer service team).

Another note: truck running at 12.4v is totally normal during extended period of driving. There is a sensor on the negative terminal of the battery that tells the ET system to charge or stop charging the starting battery for fuel efficiency. Even when it's at 12.4v, the computer looks at all the parameters and think 12.4v is good enough voltage for the next starting sequence, even with all the extra loads (what exactly are you running that requires extra load? just curious). It was alarming for me when I first finish building the truck, even during extended driving time with my Victron DC-DC charger pushing out over 30v (~360-380w) of power to the Ecoflow (wattage reading taken from Ecoflow Delta 2 and voltage reading taken from Victron), the truck's onboard readout still reads mid 12v and sometimes 12.4 during long term coasting. Been like that for 37k miles, and of that 37k miles, 12.7k miles/ 50 days of that was spent on remote areas of Canada and Alaska I still saw 12.4-12.6v here and there while pushing max capacity out of the Renogy 50A and Victron DC-DC. Therefore, seeing 12.4v shouldn't be that big of an issue. I'm also on stock starting battery as well.

sorry but im confused about how you are mounting it to the truck... like where are the aluminum brackets gonna be mounted to?

The thought was a 1-2-off battery switch. I could select where the power is being distributed to through that switch, select started battery or portable. Not charge both at the same time but choose one.

Also this is a video I found on mounting the flex panels... He has a long term update which show it worked well

 

[jalake]

If you're convinced you need a solar panel on the truck I would go with something like this to avoid a total kludge: Ram HD 4th Gen (2010-2018) VSS System™ - 65 Watt Hood Solar Panel (single) | 25% Off Sale

That is a clean look, but way over priced and not enough power. I'll have 200w solar on the roof, fully removable. It's not really for the starting battery but if I'm parked camping for a week it's nice to have the ability to top off the starting battery since these trucks have so much parasitic draw