How Do You Sweep Your Slides with All That Solar Up There?

[xrated]

I can't, and won't say that I enjoy going on the roof with a Milwaukee leaf blower to blow off the tops of the slides, but there is an advantage....if you want to call it that. I usually walk around the roof while I'm up there checking the roof/seams/openings for any type of problem with the sealant. So, I'm probably on the roof 8 to 10 times a year or more.

[Paul & Deb]

Odd ball here but I'm not a fan of toppers. I had the on a 5th wheel 3 trailers ago and not since. I get on my roof almost every camp site anyway. Checking one thing or another. I only have 1 slide now, but I still go up and blow it off with my leaf blower if we're anywhere there are leaves or if we've been in rain. Oh, and I'm 71. I also have 4 200 watt panels up there and there's plenty of waking area.

[Hoopy Frood]

If you have slides, and camp somewhere other than the southwest where there are few trees, then slide toppers are, IMO anyway, a must-have. We haven't had the chance to get them installed on our new-to-us Momentum, but they'll be up there before our first trip this spring. We stay in a lot of places with trees, and getting up on the roof to clean the slides off, is unnecessary when there are options. We had them for 10 years on our last trailer, and never did a thing to them, and never regretted having them.

[jnoyes]

Odd ball here but I'm not a fan of toppers. I had the on a 5th wheel 3 trailers ago and not since. I get on my roof almost every camp site anyway. Checking one thing or another. I only have 1 slide now, but I still go up and blow it off with my leaf blower if we're anywhere there are leaves or if we've been in rain. Oh, and I'm 71. I also have 4 200 watt panels up there and there's plenty of waking area.

I read your build thread earlier. Nice work! Your setup is pretty much exactly what I want to do, except we have a 50 amp rig so will use a Multiplus II.

[Gronk1]

I also use a leaf blower, as for the heavy stuff that sticks to the roof after a rain-we camp a lot in Oregon-I get climb onto the slides to remove that stuff, carries my 230 lbs just fine.

[Rudy35]

I've got to agree with a rechargeable battery powered leaf blower. I'm always finding uses for it, to include the camper roof, rug, stairs etc., truck windshield, tonneau cover, boat, I could go on and on. Another neat thing, mine has a variable speed trigger and I use it on low to get a smoldering campfire going! Just don't try that with it on high!

[BB&LAB]

We have solar and I removed our slide toppers, but when I designed our solar system I left space on the roof to not only sweep debris off the slides but also to service equipment on the roof. I never thought it was wise to fill every square inch of roof real estate with solar panels and leaving no or very little room for servicing, cleaning etc. You might ask why I removed our slide toppers? A couple reasons, the main because they are incredibly noisy in heavy winds, enough so sleeping was difficult and in general an annoyance. Yes there are solutions to mitigate the wind flapping issue, but they involve just one more to-do item when setting and breaking down which I just did not want. Another negative experience was in below freezing temperatures where the toppers got wet, then froze just in time to bring in the slides which created havoc with the toppers and delayed leaving. Finally, after a year and a half, I noticed two of the three toppers were beginning to tear, just another expense and work to do. So considering the wind and potential freezing issue once I notice these two tears removing was a no brainer and we have not missed them. Having said all that the one caveat for whether to install slide toppers is for those who are not comfortable or have physical considerations making it not safe to go on the roof to sweep the slides. In this case slide toppers would be a wise investment.

[deeuubee]

I've got to agree with a rechargeable battery powered leaf blower. I'm always finding uses for it, to include the camper roof, rug, stairs etc., truck windshield, tonneau cover, boat, I could go on and on. Another neat thing, mine has a variable speed trigger and I use it on low to get a smoldering campfire going! Just don't try that with it on high!

+1 What Rudy said, plus we use a telescoping ladder to keep from going on the roof. Pine needles in the Adirondacks are brutal.

[D2Reid]

it seems no one really cares about being able to walk on the roof edges and use a broom to sweep their slides

I care a lot, but for a different reason. FWIW I also love my slide toppers.

I winter at a ski resort, as a result I get a lot of snow on my roof and toppers. I use a stiff bristle broom (example) that has no metal on it, and a heavy duty extension pole (example) combination.

The plastic only broom cleans the roof and slide toppers without damaging them and the extension pole allows me to stand well back from the edge to reach the slide toppers that are a few feet below the roof. The extension pole also allows me to lower my angle of push so I get more power behind it. This is important on a slick icy roof, the lower the center of gravity (push) the more stable.

Leaf blower is not heavy duty enough to remove the snow and subsequent ice.

[jnoyes]

Great feedback from everyone! So here’s my plan.
1. Install the Multiplus II inverter/charger and a couple of SOK 206Ah batteries. Monitor our actual power usage this summer, then
2. Since I already carry the Milwaukee leaf blower and a broom, go with some amount of solar up top and/or add more batteries as necessary. Phase one solar would avoid blocking the slides. Phase 2 solar (in wire frame, probably never go this far) would call for slide toppers. I tried this out with both 100 and 200 watt panels. Leaning towards 200s. Fewer brackets and simpler wiring.



I really appreciate this forum. Get something out of it nearly every day.