CrewMax Overlander

covid projects, that's what I'm talking about..haha

 

all right. let’s drill some holes and pull some wire.

 

panels on. mounts are on the bottom of the crossbars. allows the panels to set below by just a bit so the rack is still usable.


cables will run along the rack then down through the roof of the shell. solar battery, mppt dc-dc controller and inverter are all in the bed.

this might take a few days...

 

my original plan had been to just use fuses in the solar hookup but i changed my mind today and went with blue sea circuit breakers. 80A breaker from MPPT to secondary battery under the hood. a 70A from MPPT to LiFePo battery then a 100A from MPPT to fuse block and inverter.

anyone know if there's a good spot for a chassis ground under the bed? if not, i need to buy some more 4AWG wire to run the negative from the MPPT DC-DC charger to the secondary battery.

final hook up of everything is probably going to have to wait until i can get some MDF. not really in the mood to brave home depot right now...

 

panel cables are now through the roof. makes me feel better with the snow coming later this evening.



the panels are connected in parallel as the max input voltage for the DC-DC MPPT unit is 25v. according to renogy, two 100w panels in parallel should have a 17.6v operating voltage.

i really can't wait to have this all connected.

 

Dang man that’s clean.

 

so, it’s kinda snowing. 70 and sunny yesterday but i’m stuck inside anyway. figured i’d use the time to map out the rest of the solar install. looks like i’m going to need some longer inverter cable though. the two foot cables that came with it aren’t quite going to reach.







i need to price out the cable (1/0 from ce auto electric) but it may need to wait. all other parts i already have and it’s no biggie if the inverter isn’t connected right away.

colorado is on stay-at-home until 4/26 so i won’t be making a run for MDF until after that. once i get the MDF, i can get it all into the truck.

 

Fun project! Looking forward to see how it comes out

 

started the solar wiring today. forgot how long it takes to sleeve 40' of cable so i didn't get much done. we'll see how far i get tomorrow.

well, this is messy. i'll be tidying that up a bit.



these are no longer needed since the fridge and switch panel will run off the solar system now.



i did get the new 4awg cable run from the batteries under the hood to where they will connect with the dc-dc mppt. that was really the biggest PITA. everything else is connected in the bed. it'll be nice to have this done.

 

You’re making me think if I need to change my wires... I got 6AWG for my dual batteries to run back to the bed. Should I change to 4 or 2?

 

are they powering something or connecting to a mppt controller?

the renogy manual for the dc-dc mppt recommends 4awg for runs of 16-30 feet and 6awg for 3-16. the way i have the cable routed, it's right about 28 feet.

this guy has a ton of great info. he also recommends 4awg for mppt to starter battery.
https://www.mobile-solarpower.com/

 

nice connectors though

 

Yes. They’ll be used to send power to my power box through an Anderson plug. I’ll have the inverter, fuse box and some outlets for charging electronics and possibly a coffee pot lol. I won’t be using the box all the time so that’s why I want it removable.

But they’ll come straight from the auxiliary battery back there.

 

excluding the inverter, do you know how many amps you'll be pulling? how big is the inverter and what is its draw? this is a handy chart to keep around.

 

Can't wait to see how you ran the wires and hooked it all up.

 

just asked my lovely wife what she wanted to do today since, well, there are so many options right now. her response?

'get outside and fix your f'ing truck.'

i love her.

 

Great info. Thanks for sharing. I want a solar setup but first have to get a topper for the truck.

 

test fit looks good so far.

already have the baltic birch cut to fit. going to start placing everything and measuring wires. i’ll get it all wired up and running then take it all off and paint with some primer and bed liner.

just need to figure out a tie down for the battery.

 

Maybe use a battery box and strap it down to the board?

 

Well I’ll need to change the wire gauge since the run is gonna be more than 5 feet long. The inverter is gonna be 750W which is more than enough for what I want. Thanks for the chart bro.

 

i have a box. just not sure if i want to use it. i kind of like the idea of laying the battery down rather than having it stand upright. keeps it below the window line. need to futz around with it a bit more.

 

The 95DZ is serious! Looks good!

 

Blue Sea has a great web site for this info too

http://circuitwizard.bluesea.com/

 

gone are the days of a ground tent and a coleman oil lamp..lol..this is serious overlanding here.

 

camping is secondary. it’s more for powering the studio in the back country. there are a lot of things that i’ll be able to do that most photo/video guys won’t. making myself a niche. just hoping i can get it to payoff.

 

"ice cold beer anyone ?"

 

first section of the power panel.



blank spot below the fuse block will have the battery monitor. the blanks next to the power outlets will have switches. one switch for the outlets. one for bed lights. one for camp lights on the rack. switch on the bottom right is the remote on/off for the inverter.

 

Where are you going to mount this?