Solar panel install on 2020 Imagine 2400BHS - part 1 of 2

**tonygoncalves** · 07-05-2020, 11:37 AM

Took the plunge last week and finally installed the solar panels, controller, etc. I bought 2x BougeRV 170W panels, BougeRV entry gland, Victron SmartSolar 100/20 charge controller, MC4 connectors, 25' of red & black 10AWG solar cable, etc.

Test fitted the panels and gland, to make sure they didn't interfer with anything already on the roof. Want to make sure there's lot of room around the vent for when I finally replace it with a MaxxFan Deluxe. Also, need room to be able to walk around the roof:

Took the plunge and drilled the hole:

Fished the wires through the "attic" from the hole to the front cabinet over the bed:

There's about a 1/2" gap betweent the cabinet front and the ceiling inside the cabinet. I was able to run the fish tape through there to the vent, which allowed me to pull both wires through the attic into the cabinet:

From there I fished the wires through that gap from the centre cabinet to the passenger side cabinet, so that the wires would run along the wall into the storage bay below:

Drilled a hole into the drawer compartment, and another in line into the storage bay. Made sure to leave clearance for operation of the drawer itself:

Ran the wire to a 40Amp circuit breaker, then to the Victron charge controller. These pics are now out of date, I've upgraded the wires from the controller to the distribution panel to 10AWG:

to be continued...

**tonygoncalves** · 07-05-2020, 11:39 AM

continued from part one...

Now it's time to install the actual panels and the entry gland to the roof.

I used 3M VHB tape on the glands and the solar panel feet. Then covered that with Eternabond, and used Dicor to seal the edges of the Eternabond.

The finished product:

After a few days I got a little nervous of having those big panels only held on by tape to the TPO roof, as I wasn't sure how well bonded the TPO is to the wood underneath, so I went back and installed the supplied screws into the solar panel Z mounts, and covered everything in Dicor. I now have 16 more potential water entry points to my roof, but I'm confident in my waterproofing skills, and I do a twice-per-year job of inspecting the existing Dicor sealant.

I originally planned on running the panels in parallel, but I wasn't happy with the placement of the Y connectors, so I switched to running in series. I used a few pieces of Eternabond to tape down the cables, keeping the ends free for service access.

If we ever really get into more boondocking, I have room for at least two more 170W panels, but I would need to upgrade my charge controller and add at least one more battery first.

Thanks for reading, and remember to keep your stick on the ice!

**WhittleBurner** · 07-06-2020, 10:40 AM

Nice write up, I merged the 2 (threads) together to keep it easier to read and follow.

**Zed157** · 07-06-2020, 10:47 AM

Nice work!

**DaveMatthewsBand** · 07-06-2020, 10:56 AM

Consider this... using larger panels.
This means fewer holes. A single 340 watt panels means 8 holes in your roof instead of 16.

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**tonygoncalves** · 07-06-2020, 11:42 AM

Originally Posted by DaveMatthewsBand

Consider this... using larger panels.
This means fewer holes. A single 340 watt panels means 8 holes in your roof instead of 16.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Obviously too late now, and I had considered it and it would have been cheaper, but dismissed it because of the following: my current solar controller can only handle up to 280W at 12v, and I physically don't have room on my roof for a 80"x40", especially with the curvature up front. There is room in the back passenger side of the roof, but then I'd have to run the wires all the way up to front storage bay. I'm happy with my current 2x 170w panels, it's more than enough for my current single 100Ah battery.

**openrangeowners** · 07-06-2020, 12:32 PM

Adding Eternabond tape over your panel mount screws (after applying Dicor) will prevent any water from entering in the future. Nice job!

**tonygoncalves** · 07-08-2020, 11:27 AM

Update: as a test, a couple days ago I ran down my battery to 15% by 8am, and waited to see how long it would take to recharge by solar. The day was a mix of sun & cloud, mostly mixed clouds in the morning, and mostly sunny in the afternoon. Battery was fully charged by 4pm that day.