We installed 10 195w Eco-Worthy bifacial panels on the roof of our Fleetwood. Some of the panels had dinged corners from shipping. We notified Eco-Worthy and tested every panel. I turned a couple of panels face down, and the current was almost the same. I was impressed.
I have worked with panels before and always found the Z brackets to be less than desirable. To replace a panel you must remove the sealant, take out the screws, remove the brackets, bolt the brackets to the new panel, screw it down, and use sealant to keep water out. I wanted a better way.
I ordered a large roll of 3M VHB tape. I set up a jig and drilled holes in the "ears" of the brackets. I put tape on the bottom of the bracket and both ears. The tape is supposed to hold 70# per square inch. I then screwed the brackets to the panels. With the tape, the brackets should never leak once screwed to the roof. I covered them with Dicor as a precaution. To replace a panel, all I have to do is remove the screws in the ears, run a knife through the tape, lift off the panel, lay a new one in, and run screws through the ears. The integrity of the brackets is not disturbed.
I also ordered a 24v Eco-Worthy hybrid charger/inverter but at the time, it could not handle the voltage from 5 panels in series. I called Eco-Worthy to verify it would not work. I went with a Litimes 48v unit. Eco-Worthy had no issue with me returning the inverter. We decided to go with Eco-Worthy 12v 280ah batteries. We ordered four.
I called Eco-Worthy about the dinged panels, I had watched a woman pull up and roll them out of the FedEx van, and before I could get out to help the damage was done. We decided that returning the 7 dinged panels was a waste of time and money. We tested them and found them sound. Eco-Worthy sent me enough cable to install them for my trouble. It was a win/win.
I borrowed a cable lift and a neighbor and I started to install them at 9am. We were done by 11am. I wired 2 5 panel arrays in series, dropped the cables, and wired them in parallel. And then to the charger/inverter. I charged the batteries fully, wired them in series and ran the cables to 100 amp circuit breakers. I installed a battery balancer.
We wired an RV box to the output of the inverter and ran a 30 amp RV cord to the 50 amp RV supply. When plugged in, we have shore power 24/7. I installed a shunt and a battery monitor. Then I hooked up the cables to the inverter and switched it on. Success.
In Montana, in June and July, we were catching 1.5kw for a couple of hours a day. We can run our AC for 3-4 hours without depleting the batteries. We are in Utah right now. It is a very cloudy day. At 10:30am, we are getting 4 amps at 53.3v. We use a microwave, Nespresso, air fryer, blender, and other appliances. We replaced our propane refrigerator with a 120v Whirlpool 11.3 cu ft model. It draws 200 amps.
With only 30 amps, we can only run two energy hogs at once, but do not find that bothersome. We have been using our predominantly Eco-Worthy system for 2 years. Our panels and batteries have worked flawlessly. The only thing I wish I had done differently was to add 2 more panels on the roof. That extra 390 watts would come in handy in the desert. Next time we stop for long enough, I may order another pair and install them.
Since our panels are mounted flat, the Winter sun cannot hit them at an optimal angle. Our motorhome roof has a slight crown and we found that pointing N-S, the hour before and after solar noon is our best sun. Pointing E-W is not as efficient. The other drawback is dust. In Quartzsite, the LTVA campgrounds have a lot of dust. Last year, our first, I noticed my solar gain was down. It had sprinkled a token desert rain and it turned the dust into little mud craters. I washed the panels and my solar gain went up 15%. I now dust them regularly.
Why Eco-Worthy? I researched components, read reviews, asked friends, and looked for value. Eco-Worthy panels stood above the rest. As far as batteries, Will Prowse helped me make that decision. His YouTube channel is filled with advice. As I said, I would have installed an Eco-Worthy hybrid if the specs allowed. Our system allows us to boondock anywhere. We have a macerator pump to pump our waste tank into a 32 gallon portable tank to take it to dump. We also have a 60 gallon potable water bladder and a water pump to fill our fresh water tank. We stayed 4 months in the desert without moving our motorhome.
I used Adobe Illustrator to make a drawing of the system so anyone working on it could follow my logic. We have a Facebook page "America at a Mile a Minute", join us on our travels.
